USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Historical collections: containing I. The Reformation in France; the rise, progress and destruction of the Huguenot Church. Vol I > Part 19
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The house, by a vote of the society, has recently been enlarged, at an expense of nearly $3,000 .*
* Much of the foregoing ecclesiastical history of the first church of Oxford is taken from a manuscript left by the late Rev. Horatio Bardwell, D. D .; and the following account of the settlement, pastorate, and death of Dr. Bardwell has been obtained, by request made by letter, from Mrs. Bardwell, widow of deceased. It is taken from a communication pub- lished in the Congregationalist, after the doctor's decease.
15
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Rev. Horatio Bardwell, the successor of the Rev. Loren Robbins, was installed, June 8, 1836, and continued a success- ful pastorate over this society, until 1862, when, by his re- quest, he was relieved of the active duties and responsibilities of the church ; at which time an assistant pastor accepted the position, and officiated in his stead.
Finally, at the request of Dr. Bardwell, he was dismissed, June 5, 1864, and, at the same time, Rev. S. J. Austin was installed.
The whole pastorate of Dr. Bardwell was twenty-eight years. He died, May 5, 1866, aged seventy-seven years.
OBITUARY.
The following notice, by Rev. Seth Sweetser, D. D., ap- peared in the Congregationalist :
" The funeral of the Rev. Horatio Bardwell, D. D., was attended at Oxford on Wednesday, May 9, by a very large concourse, the meeting- house being closely filled. Prayer was offered at the house of his son by Rev. S. J. Austin, pastor of the church.
" The services at the meeting-house consisted of appropriate singing, reading of the Scriptures, and prayer by Mr. Austin; sermon by the writer of this article, from John XI, 25, and a prayer for the bereaved family and friends by Rev. Dr. Paine, of Holden.
"Dr. Bardwell, at the time of his death, was in his seventy-eighth year. He was born at Belchertown, Massachusetts, on the 3d of Novem- ber, 1788. His father's family removed to Goshen in 1803. When nine- teen years old he united with the church, and in the following year put himself under the care of his brother-in-law, Rev. William Fisher, with whom he studied until he entered the seminary, at Andover, in 1811. He was licensed to preach by the Haverhill Association in 1814, and ordained on the 21st of June, 1815, as a missionary of the A. B. C. F. M., at Newburyport, in company with Messrs. Richards, Poor, Meigs, Warren, and Mills, with whom, excepting Mr. Mills, he sailed for India in the ship Dryad, on the 23d of the following October. He joined this mission at Bombay, the first established by the Board, and continued to labor with them until the climate had so impaired his health that the only hope of saving his life was an immediate removal. He left Bombay, and arrived in this country in 1821, having been absent about six years.
" After the partial recovery of his health he was installed over the
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church in Holden, in 1823, as colleague with Rev. Mr. Avery, who lived less than a year after. Mr. Bardwell was called into the service of the Board, to act as agent of Foreign Missions in 1832, traveling and preach- ing in behalf of the cause. In 1836 he was installed at Oxford, and continued his pastoral labors till about two years previous to his death.
" Mr. Bardwell was married, in 1815, to Miss Rachel Forbush, of An- dover, who survives him. He also leaves four sous and one daughter.
" In 1841 Dartmouth college conferred upon him the honorary degree of A. M., and, in 1857, Amherst college the degree of D. D.
" The key to the entire life and character of Dr. Bardwell is found in his consecration to the work of missions. He pursued his studies just at the period when the churches began to be stirred with a new zeal for extending the kingdom of God among the heathen. It was an untried experiment, and demanded singleness of purpose, firmness of faith, and heroic self-denial.
"In giving himself then to the Lord, in an undertaking so arduous and perilous, he gave himself, without reserve, to the service of God for life. Whether in India or in his native land, it was his joy to live for Christ. Honored and beloved as a missionary, he was not less honored and beloved as a pastor. He gave full proof of the excellence of his spirit in the strength of his affections, his increasing watchfulness, and his care for the souls of his people.
" He was regarded by his brethren, and by all who knew him, as a man singularly unselfish, free from self-complacency, always ready to do, and always ready to yield; never shrinking from service, and never obtruding himself ; always courteous, affable, and genial ; always a man ; a Christian always.
" He had the peculiar and somewhat unfrequent merit of making most of himself and his opportunities.
" He was conspicuously a diligent man, never slighting his pulpit preparations, and never neglecting the tasks assigned to him by his brethren. He was in the habit of writing out two sermons each week, and he continued this habit till the close of his pastoral office. His ministry was a successful one, marked by the members whom he was permitted to receive into the church, as well as the savor of a spiritual piety attending his preaching.
" He has left a precious name, and his words and his example will long continue to animate and cheer those who have enjoyed his friend- ship and his instruction."*
* It is due to the late Rev. Horatio Bardwell, D. D., to state, that the writer of this his- torical sketch of Oxford procured from his widow, at the expense of $150, paid by his voluntary offer. many valuable historical facts relating to its history; but mostly such facts as were gathered from the records of the town, and its different religious societies, and not fully prepared for publication.
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THE OXFORD PARSONAGE ASSOCIATION, OXFORD.
This association was incorporated, December 11, 1816. The following were the corporators named in the act : Nathan Hall, Elias Pratt, John Meriam, Stephen Prince, Sylvanus Town, Charles Town, Peter Butler, Ebenezer Meriam, Abijah Davis, Archibald Campbell, James Gleason, Samuel Coburn, Joseph Brown, Jun., Martha Kingsbury, and David Nichols, incorporated into a body politic, by the name of the " Oxford Ministerial Association." They were authorized to raise, by subscription, the sum of $4,000, which was to be appro- priated to the purpose of purchasing land, whereon to erect a parsonage house for the use of the Congregational minister in the town of Oxford, and for building said house and other necessary outhouses, under the direction of trustees ; and the said land and buildings shall forever continue the property of the association, for the use aforesaid, and no other. Said property shall be divided into twelve shares of equal amount, to be distributed among the members of the association, pro- portionably, as they shall subscribe for the same; and said shares shall, at all times, be transferable, and may be conveyed by deed, or otherwise; and the owners of said shares or parts of shares shall be members of said association; and no person shall continue a member when he or she shall cease to have an interest in the shares as aforesaid.
There shall be a meeting of said association on the 1st of March, annually, at which time there shall be chosen three or more trustees, a clerk, and treasurer, and such other officers as
All these notes and preparations, as found, will be carefully arranged and deposited by themselves, to be preserved for any future use, in the care of the Southbridge Library, as will, also, all other collections of facts made in this connection by the writer of this histori- cal sketch, together with all other collections connected with the other parts of his publica- tions.
Dr. Bardwell had partially prepared a brief history of the Reformation in France, which does not appear in this connection, but such manuscript will be preserved as above. Thus the labors of the Doctor will not, in any particular, be lost, but preserved for the future use of such as may desire them.
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may be necessary to manage the affairs of the association, and the trustees shall see that the same is exclusively appropriated for the purposes before mentioned, and shall give bonds to the treasurer for the time being, conditioned faithfully to dis- charge their trust.
A succession of officers is provided for, and the association have the right to make such by-laws as may be thought neces- sary, not repugnant to the constitution of this commonwealth. Each share entitled to one vote, and no more.
UNIVERSALIST SOCIETY.
The origin of the Universalist Society in Oxford, Massa- chusetts, dates back to the latter part of the seventeenth cen- tury. As early as 1777 there were persons of wealth and influence in Oxford, who professed a faith in the doctrine of the final salvation of all men, and who occasionally secured the services of clergymen of that faith.
There was, however, no church organization of the believers of that faith for several years afterward. Prior to that date tradition tells of the frequent visits to Oxford of one Dr. Isaac Davis, of Somers, Connecticut, who conversed much on the subject, and made several converts to the faith. Probably to him may be traced the origin of the sect in Oxford.
From 1777 to 1785 Elder Caleb Rich, of Warwick, and Elder Adam Streeter, of Douglas, who subsequently removed to Oxford, preached occasionally, and drew together many of the people of Oxford, and some from the adjacent towns, who soon became permanent supporters of the cause.
On Wednesday, April 27, 1785, a meeting was holden at the school-house on Oxford Plain, for the purpose of consum- mating a legal organization. At this meeting Dr. Daniel Fiske was chosen moderator, and the following declaration was adopted :
" Whereas, A number of professors of the Protestant religion, being
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principally of the inhabitants of Oxford, together with some persons of the adjacent towns, have, for a number of years past, assembled upon the Sabbath day, for public worship, and have attended to the instruc- tions of Rev. Adam Streeter, and supported him by free contributions from time to time, do now resolve to form themselves into a religious society, in conformity with the laws of the commonwealth."
Ezra Conant was then chosen secretary, and Samuel Davis, Jun., Collins Moore, and Jonathan Davis, of Oxford, Ebene- zer Davis, of Charlton, Ebenezer Rich, of Sutton, and Isaac Stone, of Ward (now Auburn), were chosen a select committee for the society, with power to grant certificates of member- ship, in the absence of a settled pastor. The society, thus organized, then voted to adopt the "Charter Compact" (society constitution) which had previously been obtained from the Universalist Society in Gloucester, Massachusetts ; they also voted to denominate themselves the "Second Religious Society in Oxford," and the "Third Independent Religious Society in the Commonwealth called Universalist."
The first Universalist Society in Massachusetts was formed in Gloucester in 1780, and the second in Boston, about two years subsequent.
Elder Adam Streeter, who had been their religious teacher prior to the organization of the society, still continued to labor with them till the event of his death, which took place, September 3, 1786.
He was regarded as a truly religious and devoted man, and an able defender of the faith he professed. To the Univer- salist Society in Oxford we trace the origin of the ecclesiastical body formerly known as the "General Convention of Univer- salists of the New England States," and others, but now called " The United States Convention of Universalists."
On the 27th day of August, 1785, the society held a meet- ing, and voted to issue a call for an association of Universalist clergymen, and other persons of like faith, to be holden in Oxford, on the 14th day of September next, at 9 o'clock, A. M.
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On the day appointed for the holding of said association, the Rev. Elhanan Winchester, of Philadelphia, was chosen moderator, and Dr. Daniel Fiske, of Oxford, clerk.
Then followed the further business necessary to the organi- zation of the General Convention already named. This con- vention met in Oxford again, by special invitation of the society, in the years 1791, 1793, and 1794, and has not met here since.
It now meets only in the principal cities of the United States. The society in Oxford, annually, for a number of years, chose delegates to attend the meetings of the General Convention.
Immediately after the death of the Rev. Mr. Streeter, a meeting of the society was called by order of a select com- mittee, and, after choosing Dr. Daniel Fiske, moderator, it was :
Voted : " To direct the select committee, as soon as may be, to procure for this society a public teacher, whose instructions we can conscien- tiously attend."
Voted: "That the remainder of the present year's subscription be ap- propriated to the use and support of Mrs. Streeter, widow of Rev. Mr. Streeter."
This meeting was holden, November 3; but the records fail to inform us who supplied the pulpit from that date to May 1, 1788, at which time the services of Rev. Elder Elkany Ingals, of Grafton, were secured.
April 19, 1789, Mr. Ingals was succeeded by Rev. Thomas Barnes, who appears to have remained pastor of the society till some time in the year 1793. Mr. Barnes was very highly · esteemed in Oxford, both for his preaching talent and for his works' sake. During the ministry of Mr. Barnes the society was induced to erect a house of worship.
At a meeting, holden, September 4, 1791, it was voted to build a house forthwith. Samuel Davis, Captain Jonathan Davis, and John Mayo, were appointed a building committee. The house was built principally by subscription, each sub-
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scriber giving his promissory note to the building committee, and the committee giving bonds to appropriate the money for the purpose for which it was subscribed. 'A small portion of the money was raised from the property possessed by the town for parochial purposes. The house was to be forty-six by forty-three feet dimensions, with a porch and tower in front, and of the Tuscan order of architecture. The building of the house was disposed of at auction to the lowest bidder, and was struck off to Captain Levi Davis, of Charlton, at £271, though including only the outside.
Soon after the erection of the house, a bell, weighing 713 pounds, was obtained, at a cost of £71 6s.
In 1793 the society voted to finish the inside of the house, the work to be disposed of to the lowest bidder, at auction. Mr. Simon Hathaway, of Sutton, secured the work at £237. During the year 1793 the society had preaching but one Sabbath in each month, and that by some preacher from abroad, not named in the records. In 1794 the society voted to engage the services of Elder Michael Coffin, of New York, for one half of the time.
Mr. Coffin's ministry with the society continued three years.
We do not learn from the records that the society had any minister with them, or any public religious meetings, from 1797 to April 1, 1801, from which time the Rev. Hosea Ballou and Rev. Edward Turner supplied the pulpit for four or five years. Some of the older members of the society, now living, inform us that the Rev. Jacob Wood was pastor for two years about this time, or not far from 1810; but the records give no account of his ministry.
From 1805 to 1811 the records of the society are very deficient, and more than indicate that the members of it were inactive. Not far from the last-given date many of the mem- bers belonging to the adjacent towns withdrew from the society, and but a small amount of money was annually
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raised, which appears to have been expended for occasional preaching, and for repairs of the meeting-house.
At the early date of 1788 the society numbered about 130 members, forty-four of whom belonged in Oxford, twenty- nine in Charlton, sixteen in Sutton, fifteen in Thompson, fourteen in Woodstock, Connecticut ; nine in Ward, and three in Sturbridge. The society generally chose three mem- bers, residents of Oxford, and one from each of the other towns, for a select committee. In the year last referred to, 1788, each member of the society subscribed for the support of the ministry, varying each from one shilling to one pound. This practice prevailed for some twenty years, or more, from the origin of the society.
We may suppose that those persons in the several towns in the vicinity of Oxford, who became members of this society, did so to avoid being taxed by the territorial parish in their respective towns for the support of a religion in which they had no faith, and felt no interest. Hence, when, at a later date, independent societies sprung up in their sev- eral towns, they withdrew from the Oxford society.
In 1811 and 1812 Rev. John Nichols preached one Sab- bath in each month. Mr. Nichols was succeeded by the Rev. Richard Carrique in December, 1813.
Mr. Carrique preached a portion of the time for two years -perhaps for a longer period.
At a society meeting, holden, May 12, 1817, it was voted : " That General Jonathan Davis have the old subscriptions on the papers in Oxford, for the years 1815 and 1816, and clear the society from debt to this date." At the same meeting the society voted to " build a spire on their house of worship;" and voted to "let the work of building the spire, making the bell-frame, and hanging the bell, to Rufus Moore, at the price of three hundred and forty dollars."
In September, 1818, the society voted the Congregational
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Society the use of their meeting-house one Sabbath in each month for one year, beginning the third Sabbath in Novem- ber. The same year the society voted to raise the amount of $550, by a tax on the pews, to defray the expenses of repairs on the meeting-house. A large share of the pews were sold at auction to pay the tax on them, and the society came near losing the control of the house by means of a change of the pew-holders.
From the year 1818 the society seems to have been in a very confused state for a number of years. The Rev. Joshua Flagg preached for them occasionally. The Rev. John Bis- bee supplied the pulpit occasionally about this time ; but the society was in a feeble state most of the time from 1818 to 1828.
In February, 1828, the society invited the Rev. Lyman Maynard to become their pastor ; and, for two years or more, they seemed to prosper. A church of between twenty and thirty members was gathered under his labors. Soon after this some of the influential members of the society became dissatisfied with him; and, by their persevering opposition, in 1832, procured his dismission. The Rev. Seth Chandler succeeded Mr. Maynard in 1832, and was dismissed, July, 1834.
In 1835 the Rev. John Boyden preached occasionally. In the same year the society voted to let their meeting-house to any other denomination, when not used by themselves ; and the Methodist Society occupied it for a limited period.
In 1839 and 1840 the Rev. Gilman Noyes preached for the society a portion of the time. March 27, 1841, Rev. Alvin Abbott, of Sutton, was invited to preach for the society one half of the time. Mr. Abbott was succeeded in the spring of 1844 by Rev. Alfred Barnes.
During the ministry of Mr. Barnes, the old meeting-house was renovated and made into a neat and pleasant chapel, in
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modern style, with a basement for mechanical and mercantile purposes. It was rededicated in May, 1846, and Mr. Barnes resigned his charge of the society the following week.
The society then invited the Rev. R. M. Byram to become their pastor; he remained with them about two years. The meeting-house having been owned by proprietors and pew- holders from 1845, the time it was remodeled and put into its present form, at a meeting of the society, December 21, 1848, it was voted to choose a committee of three, to draft an article for the purpose of purchasing the chapel of the pro- prietors and pew-holders, to be the free property of the society. Jacob Baker, Erastus Ormsbee, and John Barnes were chosen said committee, and the chapel was immediately purchased, and remains the free property of the society.
At a meeting held on February 10, 1849, the society voted to choose a committee to lease the basement-story and cellar of this house during its continuance ; this committee was Israel Sibley, John Barnes, and Samuel Mayo.
On the 21st of April, 1849, the society, in consideration of the sum of $1,600, to them paid by Erastus Ormsbee, Israel Sibley, and Nathaniel H. Rowland, voted to ratify the lease conveying the basement and cellar of the house to those gentlemen, as aforesaid, which lease still continues.
In April, 1849, the society engaged the Rev. Jacob Baker, of Dudley, to supply the pulpit. Mr. Baker continued to supply for three years. The society paid off their debts, and prospered well under his ministry.
In 1852 Rev. Albert Tyler became pastor of the society, and, in April, 1854, Mr. Tyler was succeeded by the Rev. H. Closson, who resigned his charge of the society in December, 1855. In 1856 and 1857 the pulpit was supplied during the warm season of each year by the Rev. O. H. Tillotson, of Worcester.
In March, 1858, Rev. George Proctor, the present pastor,
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was invited to take charge of the society. The society has not been large for many years. At the present time it is small, but united, free of debt, and comparatively prosperous.
The author of this brief history of the Universalist Society of Oxford closes with the following :
" The foregoing historical sketch of the Universalist Society in Oxford the undersigned believes to give a brief account of all the facts of its entire existence, of special interest to the public.
" Signed,
" GEORGE PROCTOR."
BAPTIST SOCIETY.
A number of persons, whose names are here given, met, by previous appointment, on the 29th of March, 1837, to organ- ize a "Baptist Society," in that part of this town called North Oxford, at which time a constitution was adopted.
NAMES.
Jennison Barton,
Amasa Eddy,
William Copp,
Smith Bruce,
David Hull,
Elbridge Warren,
Robert Fittz,
Waterman Warren,
Maverick Jennison,
Ebenezer Newton,
David Stone,
Amos P. Newton,
David Holman,
William Dalrimple,
James Boomer,
Martin Boomer,
Ebenezer Cook,
Warren Bruce,
Fenner S. Hopkins,
Flavel Leach,
David Jennison, Andrew J. Copp,
Jonathan Flagg,
Samuel Warren.
William Brown,
In order to make their meetings legal, they applied to a justice of the peace to issue a warrant, directing the clerk of the society to put up, in public places, notice of the proposed meeting. On May 1, 1837, at a meeting legally called, those members who had, by unanimous vote, been dismissed from the Baptist church, in Auburn, met for the purpose of form-
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ing themselves into a new church. Chose Josiah Godard, moderator ; William Copp, clerk of the meeting.
Voted : "To adopt, as the articles of their faith, practice, and covenant, those which are used in the Worcester Baptist Association."
Chose Jennison Barton and William Copp, deacons.
Voted : "To call a council to recognize them as a Baptist church."
Voted : "That the council be requested to meet at the Baptist meeting- house in N. Oxford, on Wednesday, May 10th inst., and that Josiah Godard, Jennison Barton, and William Copp be a committee to meet with the council and receive the hand of church fellowship, in behalf of the new church."
The council met at the time appointed, when the following persons were present, viz. : Rev. Jonathan Aldrich and Luther Godard, of Worcester; Rev. John Green, of Leicester; Rev. Charles H. Peabody and Deacon John Titus, of 1st church, Sut- ton; Rev. Job B. Boomer, 2d church, Sutton ; also, brethren Harvey Fittz and John Paine.
The meeting was organized by the choice of Rev. Luther Godard, moderator, and Rev. John Green, clerk. Prayer was offered by the Rev. Job B. Boomer.
The ecclesiastical council voted unanimously to recognize those of this new organization an independent church by the name of the "North Oxford Baptist Church."
The council appointed Rev. Job B. Boomer to commend this new church to the Great Head of the church, by a con- secrating prayer.
Rev. Harvey Fittz was appointed to address the church, and extend the hand of fellowship.
The following are the names of those who united to form this church, most of whom were former members of the Bap- tist church in Auburn :
Deacon Jennison Barton, Josiah G. Warren,
William Copp,
Selah Barton, Celinda Copp, Elizabeth Leach, Damaris Eddy,
Georgiana Barton, Sally Warren,
Amasa Eddy,
Elizabeth Newton,
David Hull,
Relief Neushaw,
Lucy Fittz,
Robert Fittz,
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David Stone,
Almira Hall,
Sophia A. Adams,
Flavel Leach,
Abigail Cudworth,
Selah Barton,
Samuel Warren, Eleanor L. N. Howe, Betsey Barton,
Maverick Jennison,
Mariah Brown,
Julia Ann Bruce,
Amos P. Newton,
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