USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Leicester > Brief history of Leicester, Massachusetts > Part 5
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More than a year intervened before the settlement of the next pastor. In December a fast was ap- pointed "in order to make choice of a minister." The Rev. David Goddard was the choice of the peo- ple. He was born in Framingham, September 26, . 1706; graduated at Harvard in 1731; ordained June 30, 1736; and died January 19, 1754, at Framing- ham of " the great sickness," in that region, of which in the town of llolliston, fifty-four out of a population of four hundred died in six weeks. He was a man of devoted piety, morbidly conscientious, sympa- thized with the people in their financial straits, and was in full sympathy with the great religious move- ments of his time. In the afternoon of October 15, 1740, Rev. George Whitefield preached in Leicester, and in Jannary, 1742, Rev. Jonathan Edwards, of Northampton, spent several weeks here in evangelis- tic labor. In connection with this work there were evidently some extravagances. Dr. HIall, of Sutton, while preaching here, was disturbed by "a woman somewhat troublesome," "frequent in fainting fits." Mr. Parsons, however, like Mr. Edwards, was judi-
cious and cautious, and discountenaneed all excesses ; and his ministry was fruitful in spiritual results.
The Rev. Joseph Roberts, the third pastor, was born in Boston in 1720, and graduated from Harvard College in 1741. Ile was ordained October 23, 1754. Ilis avaricious disposition soon occasioned dissatis- faction, and he was dismissed by council, December 14, 1762. He removed to Weston, where he was an active patriot, and was a member of the State Consti- tutional Convention in 1779. Engaging in business, he lost, and refusing to pay the debts of the company, was in prison, as a debtor, three years. He became a misanthrope and a miser, and lived like a beggar. He died April 30, 1811, at the age of ninety-one. After his death bags of money were found in his house, the bags so rotten as to burst when lifted.
His successor was Rev. Benjamin Conklin, who was born in Southold, L. I. ; graduated from Prince- ton in 1755 and installed November 23, 1763. Hc was dismissed, on account of failing health, June 30, 1794, and died in Leicester, January 30, 1798. Dr. Moore, in the church records, gives his age as sixty- six years and six weeks. The inscription on his grave-stone is, "aged 65 years." He was a promi- nent adviser and actor in the Revolutionary struggle, a member of the Committee of Correspondence, and supposed to have been at one time a chaplain in the army. He was respected and beloved by his people, and the record of his patriotism, in the struggle with England and in the Shays' insurrection, adds lustre to the annals of the town. It is related of him that when asked if he would preach in the pulpit of a distinguished Unitarian minister, his answer was, "Yes, I would preach on Mars Hill if I could get a chance."
Rev. Zephaniah Swift Moore, D.D., was ordained January 10, 1798. He was born in Palmer, Novem- ber 20, 1770; graduated from Dartmouth College in 1793; and was dismissed October 8, 1811; made prefessor of languages in Dartmouth College in 1811; president of Williams College in 1815; and of Am- herst in 1821. He left a permanent influence upon the church and the town. He was a man of marked intellectual power and literary culture. His style was clear, simple and persuasive. When he was called to Dartmouth College, his people regarded his appointment as little less than robbery. When he left town they accompanied him in carriages, and the children stood, with uncovered heads, in long lines on each side of the way while he passed.
Professor William Tyler, D.D., of Amherst Col- lege, describes him as " a man of medium size, but commanding presence, weighing some two hundred and forty pounds, yet without any appearance of obesity, neat in his dress, retaining the use of short breeches and long hose, which were particularly be- coming to his person. In his manners there was a union of suavity with dignity, rare anywhere, cspe- cially in persons bred in the country, which marked
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him as a gentleman of the old school, one of nature's noblemen, and which, while it attracted the love of his pupils, invariably commanded also their respect." Rev. Dr. Thomas Snell, of North Brookfield, in his funeral sermon characterizes him as "by nature a great man, by grace a good man, and by the provi- dence of God a useful man, a correct thinker and a lucid writer, a sound theologian, instructive preacher and greatly beloved pastor, a wise counselor and sympathizing friend, and a friend and father espe- cially to all the young men of the infant college in which he was at the same time a winning teacher and a firin presiding officer."
Rev. Jolin Nelson, D.D., was the sixth pastor of the church. He was born in Hopkinton, Mass., May 9, 1786. Ile was graduated from Williams Col- lege in 1807, and studied theology with Rev. Samuel Austin, D.D., of Worcester. He remained pastor of the church till his death, December 6, 1871, a period of fifty-nine years, nine months and two days.
It is said that there were twelve hundred sleighs on and around the Common on the day of ordination, and that there were three thousand people assembled, only a portion of whom could, of course, enter the church. It was during the ministry of Dr. Nelson that the church had its principal growth, there being at the time of his settlement only sixty-five mem- bers. , He was an interesting and animated preacher, a favorite in the surrounding churches, and honored and beloved by his own people. He received the degree of D.D. from Williams College, in 1843, was a trustee of that college from 1826 to 1833, and of Amherst College from 1839 to 1848. He was a trus- tee of Leicester Academy from 1812 to his death, in 1871, and president from 1834. He was for many years a corporate member of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. He was chap- lain of the local regiment of militia sixteen years from 1812. He was often appointed to preach on publie occasions, and was personally identified with the great moral and religious movements of his time. " Dr. Nelson descended from a strong, intelligent and pious ancestry. He early became a Christian, and united with the church, He was profoundly reverential and consecrated in spirit. He was pre- eminently judicious and considerate in action, and singularly broad and catholic in his moral and reli- gious judgments. Forgetful of self, he was always thoughtful of the happiness of others. Nurtured in a genial and happy home, inured to labor and hard- ship in his struggles for an education, brought while in college into the atmosphere of a great religious awakening and intense missionary zeal, and actively associated with the great moral and religious mnove- ments of his time, he was trained and fitted for the ministry which he accomplished. His qualities were of the enduring kind. Ile loved his people and he loved his work. He was pastor of the church for nearly sixty years, and his loving, pure and gen-
tle spirit won for him the lasting respect and affee- tion of his people, and of all who knew him." !
The fiftieth anniversary of his settlement and marriage was celebrated May 6, 1862. His sermon was from Job 32 : 7 : " I said days should speak ; and multitude of years should teach wisdom." Governor Washburn presided at the after-dinner exercises, and addresses were made by several elergymen. Rev. George Blagden, D. D., presided at the golden wed- ding. The occasion was as interesting as it was rare.
In consequence of failing health it beeame neces- sary for Dr. Nelson to have assistance in the pastoral office, and on the 4th of March, 1851, the Rev. An- drew C. Dennison was ordained, as his assistant. Hle was born in Hampton, Conn., June 27, 1822; was graduated from Yale College in 1847, and from Union Theological Seminary in 1850. He was dismissed in March, 1856, and afterward settled at West Chester and Portland, Conn. He is now pastor of the Con- gregational Church in Middlefield, Conn.
Rev. Amos H. Coolidge, the present pastor of the church, was born in Sherborn, Mass., August 17, 1827. graduated from Amherst College in 1853 and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1856. He was ordained April 21, 1857. The day was made memor- able by one of the most remarkable snow-storms of modern times. Eighteen inches of snow fell, and the furious winds blew it into drifts which made the roads impassable. Only about one hundred persons attended the services, and but a small fraction of the council was present. The sermon was by Rev. Prof. Austin Phelps, D. D., of Andover Theological Semi- nary.
The second meeting-house was built in 1784, a little in the rear of the old site. The pulpit was in front oc- tagonal. It had over it a sounding-board, and just below, the "deacons' seat." There were galleries ou three sides of the house, which, with the pulpit and dea- cons' seat, were painted to resemble shaded marble. The pews were square, and each seat was hung upon hinges. In prayer-time they were turned up and their united fall as the congregation resumed their seats justified the fears of the Philadelphian, unused to such an amen, in his movement to escape from the house. A belfry and steeple were added afterward, and in 1828 the building was moved back to the location of the present church building. In 1829 the interior was entirely renovated. A bell and a clock, made by George Holbrook, of Brookfield, were placed on it January 13, 1803. The bell was re-cast in 1810 and again in 1834, and about the year 1834 Joshua Clapp, Esq., presented the town with a clock. The first organ was purchased in 1827, the second in 1844 and the third in 1867. The house was first warmed by fires about the year 1821.
The present meeting-house was dedicated Novem-
I Proceedings of the Worcester Society of Antiquity, 1887.
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ber lo, 1807. It lash the interior was changed by the removal of the organ-loft and galleries for the choir to the rear of the pulpit.
For more than sixty years the singing was purely congregational. The hymns were read by the deacon, and then stig line by line by the congregation. In 1780 a choir, by permission, occupied the front seat in the gallery. There was a short trial of sound be- tween the deacon and the choir, in which the choir gained the permanent advantage, not, however, with- ont greatly seandalizing some of the members, and causing them to leave the house.
Bible-reading formed no part of the service here in the last century. The first Bible thus used was published by Isaiah Thomas, and was presented to the society by Col. William Henshaw. It was read for the first time by Dr. Moore, May 4, 1800. The first action with reference to "a plan of Sunday-school" was taken May 3, 1819, and at first the schools were held in school- houses in different parts of the town. It is believed that before the year 1887 there had been but three regularly elected superintendents. The first was Deacon Joshua Murdock. Deacon Christopher C. Denny was elected in 1848, and Hon. Charles A. Denny April 6, 1862. Ile resigned after twenty-five years' service.
The parish was at first identified with the town, and its business transacted in the regular town-meeting till 1794. After this time those voters who had not withdrawn to other societies met after the regular town-meeting, on the same day, until February 9, 1833, when "The First Parish of Leicester" was or- ganized.
FRIENDS' MEETING. - Until about eighteen years after the incorporation of Leicester the people of the entire original township worshipped together on Straw- berry Hill. A Society of Friends was then organized. It belonged to the " Yearly Meeting of Friends for New England," a body composed of several " Quarterly Meetings," each made up of minor " Monthly Meet- ings," which, in turn, embraced subordinate "Pre- parative Meetings," containing one or more " Meetings for Worship." The Meeting here was not only a Meeting for Worship, but a Preparative Meeting. "The Leicester Preparative Meeting" was at first a sub- ordinate of the Smithfield, R. I., Monthly Meeting, but after the division of that Meeting in 1783, it be- eame subordinate to the Uxbridge Monthly Meeting.
In 1732 Ralph Earle, his three sons -William, Rob- ert and Benjamin-Thomas Smith, Daniel Hill, Na- thaniel Potter and Joseph Potter declared themselves to the clerk of the town to be Friends and asked, on aceonnt of conscientious scruples, to be released from
paying " any part of the tax lol the Report of the min. ister or ministers established by the Laws of the prov- ince." At the Smithfield Monthly Meeting. held Jan- uary 29, 1739, according to the records, "Friends at Leicester make report to this meeting that they have agreed upon a Place for Building a Meeting-House at the Burying Place between Ralph Earle's and Na- thaniel Potter's; and this meeting doth appoint Ben- jamin Earle, Nathaniel Potter, Thomas Smith and John Wells, all of said Leicester, to take Deed of the same; and Benjamin Earle, Thomas Smith and Na- thaniel Potter are appointed to undertake for Build- ing said House." The same meeting afterward con- tributed "four Pounds" toward its construction. The lot on which the house was built was a part of the farm which Robert Earle received from Ralph Earle, his father, with a small tract from the farm of Na- thaniel Potter, located by the brook, and added in order that the horses of the worshippers, let loose to feed during the service, might have water. The land was conveyed to Samuel Thayer, of Mendon, Mass., on the 13th of August, 1739, and by him to the per- sons appointed by the Monthly Meeting on the 27th of December of the same year. It was "to go entire and without any division unto ye survivor and sur- vivors of them, and to the heirs and assigns of ye sur- vivors or survivor of them forever." The Uxbridge Monthly Meetings were held here three times in the year, and for a time the Smithfield November Quar- terly Meeting. Washburn describes the house built at this time as "a low, one-story building, twenty by twenty-two feet." It was sold, removed and converted into a dwelling-house in 1791, and has since been destroyed.
The second meeting-house was built in 1791. It remained many years after the meetings were dis- continued. Its location was secluded and singularly attractive. It was surrounded and shaded by ancient forest trees, and stood amid the graves of the wor- shippers of successive generations, some of them buried without reference to family relationship, and with graves marked simply by rough head-stones. It was of two stories, the upper floor being upon three sides a gallery, connected with the lower by an oblong opening in the eentre. On a part of the lower floor were elevated seats for ministers, elders and over- seers. The men were separated from the women by a partition, the upper part of which was hung on hinges so as to open and form one audience-room. The object of this partition was to separate the sexes at the business meetings, the women as well as the men holding a meeting of their own, the two being theoretically upon an equality. The house was taken down about twelve years ago.
In 1826, according to Washburn's history, the so- ciety had about one hundred and twenty members. This number was probably never exceeded. The last minister of the Gospel, recognized by the Yearly Meeting, who was a member of the Leicester Meeting,
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1 For most of the facts relating to the " Friends' Meeting," the writer is indebted to Dr. Pliny Earle, The history of the Baptist Church was written by Rev. 11. E. Estes, D. D., and that of the Second Unitarian Church by Rev. S. May. The writer is indebted also to Rev. D. F. Mc- Grath, the parish priest, for the facts relating to the Roman Catholic Church.
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was Avis Swift, wife of Josiah Keene. She resided in Leicester from about 1812 to 1820. She was born in Nantucket, and was " a woman of much religious experience, of superior intellectual powers and of a large intelligence, and was greatly beloved by all who had the privilege of her acquaintance." She after- ward lived in Lynn, where she died. In consequence of the removal of members from town, the society be- came redueed in numbers and the meetings were dis- continued in 1853.
The Quakers, as the Friends are generally called, were averse to public life. They could not conscien- tiously take or administer an oath, and they were originally disposed to separate themselves as much as practicable from " the world's people." This dis- position diminished with the lapse of years. Dr. Pliny Earle, to whom we are indebted for most of the facts of this history, truthfully says that " during the first quarter of the current century a no inconsiderable part of the most intelligent and highly cultivated society in the town was to be found among them." Early in the last century they in theory and practice renounced slavery. They were in this respect evidently in harmony with the sentiment of the people of the town, which found, as we have seen, an early and emphatic public expression. The Friends, however, were first to adopt the anti-slavery principle as one of the canons of their organization, and remained true to that principle in all the struggle.
In 1827, May 15th, a boarding and day school for young ladies was opened at the house of Pliny Earle, situated at the junction of Mulberry and Earle Streets, and continued till 1839. It was known as the " Mul- berry Grove School," and was taught by Sarah Earle and her sisters Lucy and Eliza ; the farm-house near being used for the reeitation rooms. Sarah Earle was principal till her marriage, in 1832, when she was suc- ceeded by Eliza. The French language and painting were tanght; but it was professedly an English school, and the instruction was characterized by great thoroughness. The public examinations were in the Friends' meeting-house. At one of thein Governor Emory Washburn, being present, remarked that he had often heard of the excellence of the school, but " the half had not been told."
GREENVILLE BAPTIST CHURCH .- Some of the first settlers in Leieester were Baptists, and among them Dr. Thomas Green. He was dismissed from the First Baptist Church in Boston to aid in forming a church in Sutton in 1735. At least eight other persons re- siding in Leicester,-Thomas Richardson, Daniel Denny, Elisha Nevers, Martha Green, Joshua Nichols Abiathar Vinton, Bathsheba Nevers and Lydia Vin- ton-had been baptized in Sutton and Leicester by a Baptist minister, named John Converse, three years before. On the 28th of September, 1737, Dr. Green and Benjamin Marsh were ordained associate pastors of the church in Sutton, "and September 28, 1738, by mutual agreement, the brethren in Leieester be-
came a church by themselves, and Green their pas- tor." (" Backus' History," vol. ii., page 31.) .
Since its organization the pastors of the church have been Thomas Green, 1738-73; Benjamin Fos- ter, D.D., 1776-82; Isaae Beall, 1783-88; Nathan Dana, 1794-97; Peter Rogers, 1803-13; Benjamin N. Harris, 1827-30; John Green, 1830-40; Moses Har- rington, 1840-49 ; L. O. Lovell, 1856-58; H. C. Estes, 1860-62; N. B. Cooke, 1862-68; L. Holmes, 1869-76; J. Sawyer, 1876-77; J. W. Searle, 1877-81; A. W. Spaulding, 1882-86 ; H. C. Estes, D.D., 1886. Dr. Estes was graduated from Waterville College (now Colby University) in 1847.
Dr. Thomas Green was a man of great ability, prominence and influence. He was largely engaged in business and remarkably successful. He was a physician, eminent in his profession, with a prac- tice that extended into neighboring States, and with many medieal students under his instruction. And he was quite as distinguished and successful in his work of the ministry. After his death it was said of him in an English periodical that he had bap- tized not less than one thousand persons. The Rev. Isaae Baekus, the historian of the Baptists in New England, visited him in 1756, held a meeting with his people, and the next day wrote the following words in his journal : "Oct. 19th. I can but admire how the doctor is able to get along as he does, having a great deal of farming business to manage, multitudes of sick to take care of, several appren- tices to instruct in the art of physic, and a church to care for and watch over; yet in the midst of all he seems to keep religion uppermost-to have his mind bent upon divine things-and to be very bold in Christian conversation with all sorts of people."
His successor, Dr. Foster, was ordained October 23, 1776. In January of that year he had married Elizabeth, the youngest daughter of Dr. Green. He was a graduate of Yale College, and distinguished for his learning, faithfulness and successful work. Under his ministry the church was much enlarged and strengthened. He was the author of two learned works published while he preached in Leicester, and in recognition of the ability shown in auother work published later, he received the degree of Doetor of Divinity from Brown University in 1792. After having been pastor of the First Baptist Church in New York ten years, he died there of yellow fever in 1798, at the age of forty-eight years.
Under the ministry of the Rev. John Green the church enjoyed mueh prosperity. In those ten years the additions were ninety-six, and the mem- bership was increased to eighty, the largest in its history, though at one time in Dr. Forbes' minis- try the number of members was seventy-six. The membership is now fifty-four.
When the church has been without a settled min- ister it has often had valuable stated supplies from ministers living in Woreester or elsewhere: Nathan
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Price, 1799; Ebenezer Burt, 1802-3; Benjamin M. ITill, 1816-18; Luther Goddard, 1821; Ebenezer Burt, 1824-25 ; Otis Converse, 1850-51 ; John F. Bur- bank, 1852-53; N. Hervey, 1854-56.
Benjamin M. Hill was a distinguished man, not yet ordained when he preached in Leicester, but afterwards pastor in New Haven, Ct., and Troy, N. Y., nearly twenty years, then corresponding secretary of the American Baptist Home Mission Society twenty- three years, and widely known and honored as the Rev. Dr. Hill, who died in 1881.
In 1747 the church had a house of worship already built and occupied, which, with its grounds and the cemetery adjoining, two acres in extent, was the gift of Dr. Green, of whom, after his decease, the his- torian, Isaac Backus, said, " He was the main support of his society in temporals and spirituals all his days." That house was repaired in 1779 at a cost of three hundred and fifty pounds, and again it was re- paired and enlarged in 1824; then, after it had been occupied more than a hundred and ten years, it was replaced by a new and attractive house, with organ, bell and elock, which was dedicated in 1860 and is now ocenpied.
The Sunday-school was commenced in 1821. At first it was held in the afternoon "after meetings." For several years its numbers were few, sometimes ten, sometimes twenty-five and, like most Sunday- schools of that time, it was suspended during the winter. But, in 1829 and 1830, it received a sudden and surprising impul-e. In the latter year its num- ber of scholars was increased to cighty, and in 1834 it rose to one hundred and sixty. Since then the school has numbered about one hundred-sometimes more, sometimes less.
On Friday, the 28th of September, 1888, the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the church, commemorative services were held, in which the Green family, descendants of the first pastor, took part ; and an interesting feature of the exercises was the presentation of a fine brass tablet, which had been placed upon the wall by the H. n. Andrew HI. Green, of New York, in memory of his distinguished ancestor, Dr. Thomas Green.
SECOND CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY .- " In the au- tumn and winter of 1832-33," says Washburn, in his "History of Leicester," "several families in the town formed a Unitarian Religious Society." In April, 1833, sixteen gentlemen-among whom were Waldo Flint, Isaac Southgate, Joseph D. Sargent, John Whittemore, Dwight Bisco, Lyman Waite, Silas Gleason and Edward Flint-applied to be incorporated as " The Second Congregational Society in Leicester," and received incorporation on the 13th of said month. From that time forward regular services of worship were held in the old Town Hall, and in June, 1834, the society gave a unanimous call to Rev. Samuel May, of Boston, to become their minister, which he accepted. On the 12th of August following
their new meeting-house was dedicated, when Rev. James Walker, of Charlestown, preached the sermon ; and, on the following day, Mr. May was ordained by an ecclesiastical council, of which Rev. Dr. Aaron Bancroft, of Worcester, was moderator. The sermon of ordination was by Rev. F. W. P. Greenwood, of King's Chapel, Boston ; the ordaining prayer by Dr. Bancroft ; the charge by Rev. Dr. Charles Lowell, of Boston, and the right hand of fellowship by Rev. Samuel J. May, then of Brooklyn, Conn. A church of twelve members had already been gathered. The sermons of Rev. Messrs. Walker and Greenwood were printed in a neat pamphlet. Mr. May continued minister for twelve years, and in the summer of 1846 resigned the office. Since his time the changes in the ministry have been many ; but the society has been sustained by an honorable devotedness on the part of its members, and the list of its ministers includes the names of men of eminent ability. Those whose terms were of two years or more duration were as follows : Rev. Frederick Hinckley, 1847-48; Rev. James Thompson, D.D., who had just closed a long and prosperous ministry in Barre, 1849-51; Rev. Wm. Coe, of Worcester, 1351-54; Rev. Joseph Angier, of Milton, 1855 and 1856; Rev. F. Macintyre, of Grafton, 1858-59; Rev. James Thurston, 1862-64; Rev. J. J. Putnam, of Worcester, 1864-65. In 1866 considerable changes were made in the interior of the meeting-house, on the completion of which Rev. Everett Finley became minister, February, 1867, and continued until his death, which occurred early in 1869. His body lies buried in Leicester, in Pine Grove Cemetery. In July, 1869, Rev. David H. Montgomery became minister, and so continued eight years. Rev. S. B. Weston followed. During his ministry a question arose as to the application of the trust fund left to the society by Isaac Southgate, Esq., which being, by mutual agreement, referred to arbi- tration, it was decided unanimously that the fund was not available in Mr. Weston's ease. Mr. Weston received the decision with honorable good feeling, resigning his office in 1881. It was not until 1883 that the society were prepared to settle a minister ; but in September of that year Rev. Lewis G. Wilson was ordained by an ecclesiastical council, of which Rev. Dr. A. A. Livermore, of Meadville, Penn., was moderator. Mr. Wilson continued two years. Rev. Rodney F. Johonnot was ordained in September, 1886, and his ministry continued until September, 1888.
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