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THREE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST CHURCH IN SALEM MASSACHUSETTS
Gc 974.402 Sa32saf 1925505
M. L
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 02954 1684
Frederick Lewis Teis.
Lancaster, Massachusetts. -
THREE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST CHURCH IN SALEM MASSACHUSETTS
OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH
MINISTER REVEREND THOMAS H. BILLINGS, PH.D.
MODERATOR W. D. Chapple
CLERK W. F. Strangman
TREASURER W. H. Trumbull
DEACONS
Philip P. Arrington Herbert C. Farwell
Edwin W. Ford Willis H. Ropes Emerson Staebner
STANDING COMMITTEE
One Year Two Years
Alfred W. Putnam, Chairman Dr. J. Frank Donaldson Gardner M. Jones Roger F. Nichols
Mrs. Frank A. Brooks
George H. Perkins
Three Years Miss S. P. Benson Mrs. A. S. Brown D. L. Furness
One Year
TRUSTEES Two Years Three Years
S. H. Batchelder Harrison M. Davis Josiah H. Gifford
1629-1929
THE FIRST CHURCH IN SALEM FOUNDED AUGUST 6,1629, O.S. THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH IN AMERICA
On a day of Fasting and Prager, appointed by Governor John Endicott for the purpose, after a Covenant and Confession of Faith had been read and Consent thereto solemnly professed by the church members, the Rev. Francis Higginson, chosen Teacher, and the Rev. Samuel Skelton, chosen Pastor, were Ordained, and to them Governor Bradford and others, deputed from Plymouth gave the Right Hand of Fellowship:
THIS TABLET ERECTED BY THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY IN SALEM ON THE 300TH ANNIVERSARY
With the compliments of the FIRST CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY IN SALEM
EXERCISES IN COMMEMORATION OF THE THREE HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE GATHERING OF THE FIRST CHURCH IN SALEM MASSACHUSETTS
MAY 26 - JUNE 3, 1929
PRIVATELY PRINTED
1930
COPYRIGHT, 1930 BY THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY IN SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Riverside Press CAMBRIDGE . MASSACHUSETTS PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.
1925505
FOREWORD
T HE committee appointed to take charge of the Three-Hundredth Anniversary cele- bration of the First Church in Salem felt that the event was of more than parochial interest, and that its significance should be made plain, not only to the members and friends of the parish, but to a wider public as well. The gathering of this church was the beginning of ecclesiastical organi- zation in New England. The form its constitution took determined the church polity of a variety of denominations in this and other countries. It was with this wider significance in mind that the cele- bration was planned.
An important factor in the success of our under- taking was the beauty and adequacy of our present church equipment. If future generations pore over these records as we have pored over those of our predecessors, they may be glad to find here a brief statement about our present building and those that were before it. This we now occupy is the sixth meeting-house of the church, becoming so in 1923 when the First and
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North societies were reunited. For the first few years of its history, the church in Salem met in an unfinished building of one story. It was not until 1634 that the first meeting-house was built on land now occupied by the Daniel Low Com- pany at the corner of Essex and Washington streets. For nearly three centuries, until 1923, the church occupied that one spot continuously. A bronze tablet now marks the site. The small building first erected soon proved inadequate, and in 1639 it was doubled in size, making the total length forty-five feet. This building, which served until 1670, was a long, narrow hall, with a gallery at each end, the chief entrance in the middle of one side, and the pulpit opposite. In 1670, this building in its turn proved inadequate and "the great and spacious meeting-house," as Cotton Mather describes it, was erected at a cost of one thousand pounds. This stood until 1718, when it fell into decay and was considered dan- gerous. The building then erected (on another lot), and after its completion moved to the his- toric site, seems to have resembled the old First Church in Hingham as it stands to-day. Later a porch and a beautiful spire were added at the western end. Beams from this third meeting- house provided the wood from which was made the communion table of the old First Church,
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used until 1923, and now standing in the minis- ter's room in our present building.
The building of 1718 served the society for more than a century. The corner-stone of the fifth meeting-house, its successor, was laid with impressive ceremonies on April 27, 1826. Extensive interior alterations were made in 1867, and the building was rededicated. In an address delivered on this later occasion, Reverend Charles W. Upham, who was present at the laying of the original corner-stone in 1826, de- scribed the ceremony. "A vast multitude," he said, "filled the neighboring streets. The cere- monies were attended by the venerable Dr. Edward Augustus Holyoke of the North Church, of which he was one of the founders. He was then in his ninety-eighth year, and seventy years before had become a member of this church. Peter Lander, the oldest member of the congre- gation, whose flowing white locks were em- blematic of his pure and revered character, deposited the Plate; after the inscriptions on its two sides had been read aloud, in his clear and expressive articulation, by Timothy Pickering, eighty-one years of age, then, as all his ancestors had been since the one who had enlarged the first meeting-house in 1639, a member of the society." This building, altered in its interior vii
arrangements in 1867, still stands in good condi- tion on the old site at the corner of Essex and Washington streets, and was the home of the society until 1923.
The building which the reunited societies now occupy is the second meeting-house of the North Society. The first, a model of which is in our possession, was built in 1772 at the foundation of the society, and stood on North Street, near Lynde. It came to be considered dangerous and a new building was necessary. The present building was dedicated June 22, 1836. Since the reunion of the North and First societies in 1923, the interior has been renovated, but not altered. Even the varicolored upholstery of the pews, a relic of the days when pews were private prop- erty and when each owner fitted his pew accord- ing to his fancy, has been retained. In 1927- 1928, the older one-story parish house in the rear was removed, and the present structure with two stories put in its place. The large hall under the auditorium, known as Willson Hall in mem- ory of Reverend Edmund B. Willson, long the minister of the North Church, was also built at that time. The organ, already considerably enlarged and improved since the reunion, was augmented in 1927 by a choir organ, the gift of V111
Mrs. David M. Little in memory of her husband. We came to the anniversary with a setting and equipment that was in every respect adequate.
We felt some regret that the celebration could not be held, as the preceding century celebra- tions were, on the exact date of the gathering of the church. But in August our own people are widely scattered, and others whose participation we desired would not be available. We chose a time toward the end of the church year, but sufficiently early to make it possible for most of our members to be present. The celebration began on May 26. At the regular morning serv- ice on that day, eighteen persons were taken into the membership of the church. At the close of the service, the exhibition in the large room at the rear was opened for the first time. The communion silver, copies of some of the oldest books from the Ministers' Library, the earliest record book of the church, many other docu- ments, both printed and manuscript, portraits, silhouettes, and photographs of persons and scenes connected with the history of the church - all these attracted a great deal of interest throughout the week. After each of the meetings the room was crowded. A committee of which Mr. William D. Chapple was the head, with ix
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Dr. William F. Strangman assisting, arranged the exhibits and provided for adequate super- vision. A large group of the women of the church acted as hostesses, at least two of the num- ber being present in turn while the room was open.
The first meeting came on Sunday evening, May 26. After a preliminary half-hour of music, the service began at 7.45. The church was filled. Many people from the surrounding towns were present. Reverend Harris G. Hale, D.D., minister of the North Church in Marble- head, conducted the service. Dr. Hale, in be- ginning the service, gave a most interesting out- line of the relation of the church he represented to the First Church in Salem. For the first half- century after its founding, the church in Marble- head was a part of the Salem church. Its min- isters were not ordained and the people came to the Salem church for all the sacraments. It was not until 1685 that the Marblehead church became independent. Dr. Hale's presence and participation helped a great deal in creating the proper atmosphere for the first of the historical addresses, that on "The First Church," given by Dr. Billings. This and the other principal ad- dresses are printed in full in this volume.
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The meeting on Tuesday evening, May 28, began with an organ recital in the church by Mr. Joseph N. Ashton. Mr. Ashton was for- merly a member of the North Church and for a considerable time its organist. Later, he served in the music departments of Brown University and Wellesley College. He is at present organist of the First Unitarian Church in Winchester. He is the Secretary of the Salem Athenæum. Mr. Phillips, who read the paper of the evening, is the President of the same institution. Prior to Mr. Phillips's address, Mr. William D. Chapple spoke briefly regarding the exhibition, mention- ing in particular the gifts of silver plate from Mrs. David M. Little and Mrs. David B. New- comb. These were birthday gifts to the church on this anniversary occasion. After the address, the company adjourned to the Parish House, where light refreshments were served by the Social Committee of the church.
The Third Century Sermon was preached on Sunday morning, June 2, by Reverend Samuel Atkins Eliot, D.D., former President of the American Unitarian Association, now the min- ister of Arlington Street Church in Boston. Reverend James Luther Adams, minister of the Second Church in Salem, assisted in the service. The Second Church omitted its service for the
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day in order that all might attend for the Cen- tury Sermon. The service was made the more impressive by the use of the Psalms and tunes used at the two preceding Century Sermons. Professor James Hardy Ropes was in attendance as the official representative of Harvard Univer- sity. The former Endicott pew was occupied by Mr. William Crowninshield Endicott.
On Sunday evening, June 2, the last of the historical meetings was held. This, like all the others, was attended by a large congregation, most of them gathering at 7.15 for the organ recital given by Mr. George J. Perry, organist and director of music in the church. Before beginning his paper, Reverend Henry Wilder Foote, of Belmont, mentioned his own family's long connection with the North Church. He spoke of the two boys who many years ago had occupied with their parents one of the pews toward the front of the church. One of them was his father, Henry Wilder Foote, long the minister of King's Chapel; the other, Dr. Arthur Foote, now one of America's most distinguished musicians. Two of Dr. Foote's compositions were performed in the musical programme of the evening.
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The final meeting, on Monday, June 3, was in some respects the climax of the celebration. Approximately sixty ministers were in the pro- cession. When the line was formed, in the Cleveland Room, Reverend Francis Greenwood Peabody, D.D., present as the representative of Harvard University and Harvard Divinity School, gave the prayer of blessing. The proces- sion passed from the door of the Parish House, along the eastern side of the church, and so to the main entrance and down the central aisle. The tune Federal Street, rich in its accumulated associations with significant moments in the life of the society, was an appropriate proces- sional. The service was throughout deeply mov- ing. Mr. Peterson's summons to enter upon our greatest heritage, the unfinished tasks of the church, put into words the mood of reverent consecration that held us all. The communion service, with its deep significance, its quiet dig- nity and beauty, will not be forgotten by any who were present. The old communion silver of the First and North societies was set forth on the table. The Universalist Church and the two branches of the Congregational Church were represented both in the ministrants and in the deacons. The ancient cups were carried by the deacons and then passed from hand to hand, X111
so that each person present was made vividly aware of his fellowship with the community of those who through the centuries have been bound together by the spirit of aspiration, trust, and service which makes the church. The local group became a symbol of the world-wide church which is the fellowship of all who are living in this spirit. The presence and participation of the ministers of the other Protestant churches of Salem helped to strengthen this impression. Reverend Frederick Harlan Page, D.D., Presi- dent of the Massachusetts Conference of Con- gregational Churches, was appointed by the General Council of Congregational Churches then in session at Detroit, to represent that body and bring their official greetings. Reverend Arthur W. Cleaves, D.D., minister of the First Baptist Church in Providence, had expected to be present, but was detained at the last moment. He sent cordial greetings from the church, which was founded by Roger Williams just after he left the ministry of this society. Mayor Bates of Salem was in the congregation and Mayor Patch of Beverly in his usual place in the choir. Rev- erend Elvin J. Prescott was present as a former minister of the church. Letters of congratula- tion were received from Reverend George Cros- well Cressy, D.D., Reverend Theodore John-
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son, Reverend Theodore D. Bacon, and Rever- end George D. Latimer, former ministers, all of whom except Mr. Latimer had served the First Church. It was during Mr. Bacon's pastorate of the North Church that the two societies came together, and he continued for a period to serve the reunited group.
At the close of the meeting, the guests of the day were entertained at lunch in Willson Hall. The arrangements for this occasion were in charge of a committee of which Mrs. Alfred W. Putnam was the chairman. The stage in the hall, under the direction of Miss Sylvia Benson and Mrs. Albert Brown, was set as a Salem garden. A typical colonial doorway, flanked by ever- greens and flowering shrubs, stood at the back, complete to the last detail, with its ancient knocker and latch. From the door a path led between borders of flowers to the front of the stage. This furnished the appropriate back- ground for the informal gathering. A buffet lunch was served to nearly two hundred and fifty people. After lunch many visited the Ropes Memorial Garden, next to the church, and the Pierce-Nichols house, near by on Federal Street. Members of the parish had provided cars and trips had been arranged for our visitors, but most of the out-of-town guests came by motor
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and left early for the homeward trip, so that comparatively few took advantage of the cars. A few did, however, and these were taken to some of the loveliest of the gardens. These were at the height of their beauty. The courtesy of those who lent their cars and opened their houses and gardens to our guests was greatly appreciated. A moving picture was made, which is a permanent record of the persons and inci- dents that made the day so memorable.
We have mentioned already certain special features of the music provided for the entire celebration by our organist and Director, Mr. George J. Perry. The details are in the pro- grammes, copies of which are printed at the end of this volume. The church received from many of its visitors congratulations on the character of the selections and their performance. The musi- cal numbers were never a mere distraction, but gave satisfying expression to the moods the occa- sion evoked. Mr. G. Hawthorne Perkins, Chair- man of the Music Committee, gave unstintedly of his time and thought in collaboration with Mr. Perry. A composition by Mr. Perkins was used as the close of the service in connection with the Third Century Sermon.
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The Order of the Procession at the Service of Commemoration on Monday, June 3, 1929, was as follows:
I. The Marshals.
Reverend JAMES LUTHER ADAMS, of the Second Church of Salem. Sepa- rated from the First Church in 1717. Reverend FREDERIC LEWIS WEIS, of the First Church of Lancaster, Massachusetts. Gathered in 1653.
II. The Representatives of the Local Churches. Reverend OLIVA BROUILLETTE, of the French Baptist Church.
Reverend PETER L. COSMAN, of the Calvary Baptist Church.
Reverend CORNELIUS P. TROWBRIDGE, of Grace Episcopal Church.
Reverend HAROLD LANCASTER, of Wesley Methodist Church.
Reverend RALPH ATHERTON SHER- WOOD, of the First Baptist Church. Reverend JOSEPH M. SHEPLER, D.D., of the Lafayette Street Methodist Church.
III. Essex Conference Churches founded after the Revolution.
Reverend HOWARD CHARLES GALE, xvii
of the Unitarian Church of Peabody, Massachusetts. Reverend WILLIAM WARE LOCKE, of the Unitarian Church of Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Reverend RAYMOND H. PALMER, of the Unitarian Church of Lynn, Massa- chusetts.
IV. The Colonial Churches.
Reverend EVERETT S. TREWORGY, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Ashby, Massachusetts. Founded in 1767.
Reverend JOHN W. DAY, D.D., of the First Congregational Church (Unita- rian), of Kennebunk, Maine. Founded in 1750.
Reverend JOSEPH N. PARDEE, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Bolton, Massachusetts. Founded in 1738. Reverend LAURENCE HAYWARD, of the First Religious Society (Unitarian), of Newburyport, Massachusetts. Founded in 1725.
Reverend EDWARD H. COTTON, of the Second Congregational Church (Uni- tarian), of Marblehead, Massachu- setts. Founded in 1715. xviii
Reverend WILLIAM SAFFORD JONES, of the South Parish (Unitarian), of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Founded in 1714.
Reverend JOSEPH J. RUSSELL, of the Second Congregational Church of Beverly, Massachusetts. Founded in 1713.
Reverend JOHN M. DEYO, of the Con- gregational Church of Danbury, Connecticut. Founded in 1696.
Reverend W. H. WATSON, of the Con- gregational Church of Newcastle, New Hampshire. Founded in 1682. Reverend GEORGE E. CARY, of the First Parish (Congregational) of Bradford, Massachusetts. Founded in 1682. Reverend WARREN S. ARCHIBALD, of the Second Congregational Church of Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1670.
Reverend ROY BROWN WINTERSTEEN, of the First Congregational Society (Unitarian) of Uxbridge, Massachu- setts, and of the First Parish (Uni- tarian) of Mendon, Massachusetts. The latter founded in 1669.
Reverend RANSOM F. CARVER, of the xix
First Parish (Unitarian), of Billerica, Massachusetts. Founded in 1663. Reverend JOHN W. DARR, of the First Congregational Church of North- ampton, Massachusetts. Founded in 1661.
Reverend LYMAN M. GREENMAN, of the First Congregational Society (Unitarian), of Chelmsford, Massa- chusetts. Founded in 1655.
Reverend EUGENE R. SHIPPEN, D.D., of the Second Church (Unitarian) of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1649.
Reverend CARL G. HORST, of the First Congregational Church (Unitarian) of West Bridgewater, and of the First Parish (Unitarian) of East Bridge- water, Massachusetts. The former founded in 1651.
Reverend LORING B. CHASE, of the Congregational Church of East Providence, Rhode Island. Founded in 1643.
Reverend SAMUEL C. BEANE, of the North Parish (Unitarian) of North Andover, Massachusetts. Founded in 1645.
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Reverend FRED ALBAN WEIL, of the First Congregational Society (Uni- tarian), of Quincy, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636.
Reverend ROBERT P. DOREMUS, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Glouces- ter, Massachusetts. Founded in 1642.
Reverend RALPH E. BAILEY, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Cam- bridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636.
Reverend RAYMOND CALKINS, D.D., of the First Parish (Congregational), of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Also founded in 1636.
Reverend THOMAS W. DAVISON, of the First Congregational Society of Charlestown, Massachusetts. Founded in 1632.
Reverend DUDLEY R. CHILD, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Duxbury. Massachusetts. Founded in 1632. V. The Daughter Churches.
Reverend HARRIS G. HALE, of the Old North Church (Congregational), of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Founded in 1632.
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Reverend FRED R. LEWIS, of the First Parish (Unitarian), of Beverly, Massachusetts. Founded in 1667. VI. Reverend ELVIN J. PRESCOTT, former Minister of the First Church of Salem.
VII. Colleges.
Reverend FRANCIS GREENWOOD PEA- BODY, D.D., Plummer Professor of Christian Morals, Emeritus. Repre- senting Harvard College and the Harvard Theological School.
VIII. Reverend SAMUEL ATKINS ELIOT, D.D., Minister of the Arlington Street Church of Boston, Massachusetts, and Preacher of the Third Century Sermon at the First Church in Salem on Sunday, June 3.
Reverend HENRY WILDER FOOTE, of the Congregational Society (Uni- tarian), of Belmont, Massachusetts. IX. Deacons.
Reverend ROBERT MARSHALL RICE, of the First Universalist Church of Beverly, Massachusetts.
Reverend CARL HEATH KOPF, of the Crombie Street Church (Congrega- tional) of Salem. xxii
Reverend ROBERT M. GREY, of the First Church (Congregational) of Woburn, Massachusetts. Gathered in 1642.
Reverend HARRY J. HOOPER, of the First Church (Unitarian) of Hing- ham, Massachusetts (The Old Ship Church). Gathered in 1635.
Reverend DAN HUNTINGTON FENN, of the First Church (Unitarian) of Taunton, Massachusetts. Gathered in 1637.
Reverend SETH ROGERS BROOKS, of the First Parish (Universalist) of Malden, Massachusetts. Gathered in 1649.
X. The Officiating Ministers.
Reverend MILO E. PEARSON, D.D., Minister of the Tabernacle Church of Salem.
Reverend LESLIE C. NICHOLS, Minis- ter of the First Universalist Church of Salem.
Reverend FREDERICK HARLAN PAGE, D.D., President of the Massachu- setts Conference of Congregational Churches.
Reverend LOUIS C. CORNISH, D.D.,
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President of the American Unitarian Association.
Reverend LEE SULLIVAN MCCOLLES- TER, S.T.D., Dean of the Crane Theological School at Tufts College. Reverend ABBOT: PETERSON, Minister of the First Parish of Brookline, Massachusetts, preacher of the day. Reverend THOMAS HENRY BILLINGS, Ph.D., Minister of the First Church of Salem.
The Executive Committee, for themselves, and on behalf of the Society, gratefully acknow- ledge their obligations to all who took part in the Tercentenary exercises, especially to the emi- nent men who came here to deliver the sermons and addresses printed in this memorial volume.
To all who served on the various sub-com- mittees, or contributed to the expenses of the celebration, or helped in any other way, the Executive Committee desire to express their thanks and appreciation; particularly, to Mr. Henry W. Wright, for his services in connection with the bronze tablet, and to Mr. George B. Ives, for kindly undertaking to see this volume through the press.
Rev. J. L. Adams Rev. M. E. Pearson, D.D., Rev. F. H. Page, D.D., Rev. L. C. Cornish, D.D., Rev. L, S. McCollester, S.T.D., Rev. H. G. Hale, D.D. Rev. S. A. Eliot, D.D., Rev. L. C. Nichols, Rev. T. H. Billings, Rev. A. Peterson, Rev. H. W. Foote
MINISTERS WHO TOOK PART IN THE CEREMONIES
THE PURITAN ADVENTURE BEING THE THIRD CENTURY SERMON OF THE FIRST CHURCH IN SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS DELIVERED BY REVEREND SAMUEL A. ELIOT SUNDAY, JUNE 2, 1929
THE PURITAN ADVENTURE
HEBREWS XI, IO. He looked for the City which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. W HENEVER I think of our Puritan heritage, there comes to my mind a figure of speech which I think originated with Mr. George William Curtis. If you were to go down in the April days into the woods of what we used to call the Old Colony, under the matted leaves you would find masses of fibrous roots that straggle and burrow in the sandy soil. They are dark and unsightly, but the flower that springs from them is the sweetest of the year. The roots are tough and hard, but the blossom is the mayflower.
That is the way I feel about Puritanism. Needless to say that in some aspects the Puritan heritage is bare and cold. Around that sturdy strength there is little atmosphere of beauty. The genial graces do not readily bear company with such austerities of thought and condition. One does not think of a Puritan as painting in water colors or playing the violin. He lures us just by clear-grained human usefulness and
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brave old wisdom of sincerity. Yet out of the dry ground of the Calvinistic thought and out of the hard soil of the Puritan conscience have sprung flowers of perennial enchantment. "By their fruits," we read, not by their roots, "shall ye know them."
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