USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Templeton > Historical discourse in commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of the formation of the First Congregational Church in Templeton, Massachusetts : with an appendix, embracing a survey of the municipal affairs of the town > Part 4
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Mr. Wellington's ordination took place Feb. 25, 1807. A council of nine churches, pastors and delegates, assembled at the house of Deacon Paul Kendall, where Mr. Wellington at first boarded. Rev. Dr. Cushing, of Waltham, was moderator ; Rev. Festus Foster, of Petersham, scribe. The ser- mon was preached by Rev. Dr. Cushing, of Wal- tham ; the prayer of ordination was offered by Rev. Samuel Kendall, D.D., of Weston; the charge was by Rev. Joseph Lee, of Royalston ; the right hand of fellowship by Rev. Joseph Esterbrook, of Athol ; introductory and concluding prayers, by Rev. John Foster, of Brighton, and Rev. Jonathan Osgood, of Gardner. The other pastors present in council were Rev. E. L. Bascom and Rev. James Thompson. The service was concluded by singing Dr. Watts's version of the hundred and twenty-second psalm, -
" How pleased and blest was I," &c., - .
which was read before pronouncing the benediction by the newly consecrated pastor .*
The town at that time contained between eleven and twelve hundred inhabitants. The old first meeting- house was still in use, though soon to be exchanged for the present one. Almost that whole generation has passed away. There are, indeed, a considerable number still in the congregation who remember that ordination-day; but the men and women of the time,
* He was born in Waltham, Feb. 20, 1780; graduated at Harvard College in the class of 1802; and received from that institution the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1854.
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who bore active and responsible parts, have almost all gone. Only three or four of the communicants whom he first met here at the Lord's table survive ; and only one still resides here, and retains her connection with this church. But the pastoral relation, that day formed, still continues ; and, at the end of almost half a century, he who then became your minister is with you; his prayers are still offered up in the congrega- tion, asking that as God was with the fathers, so he may be with the children. Still does he bear testi- mony to that cause of gospel truth and righteousness which he has so long and faithfully advocated among this people. This is not the fitting occasion to speak in detail of the characteristics and benefits of that ministry, which has covered almost the whole of the last half-century of the existence of this church. Many there are who treasure the record thereof in their hearts as a precious possession.
Not long after the time of the ordination, the parish voted to build a new meeting-house .* The old house was raised, July 3, 1753, in the presence of a large concourse, many of whom had come from Chockset, now Sterling. The vote to build it was
* The proceedings of the First Parish, as a legal corporation, from the begin- ning till now, are to be traced in the " Proprietors' Records," vol. i. up to August, 1754, vol. ii. up to the incorporation of the town in 1762; thence in the records of the town of Templeton, vol. i. till our territory in Phillipston was set off as a sepa- rate precinct in 1774; thence in the record-book of the first precinct (in the office of the town-clerk, and which was also used by the selectmen as a receipt-book), till the First Parish and town were again legally identified by the incorporation of " Gerry" in 1786; thence in the town-records again, vol. ii. till 1806, when the parish took an organization distinct from the town; and since, in the First-Parish Records.
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passed by the proprietors, May 8, 1751; and a tax of sixteen shillings was laid on each original right of land in the township, for the purpose. An addition to this tax was afterwards made of four shillings more. A location was selected as early as 1743, perhaps before, probably by the committee chosen in 1734 to lay out the forty-acre lots. In 1752, the building committee were authorized to change the site within a distance " not exceeding forty rods, and still on the same original lot." The house stood a few rods south-eastwardly of the present one, fronting to the south, so that the front-door looked exactly in the direction of the road that leads from Rev. Dr. Wel- lington's house hither. The whole surrounding land, at the time of the erection of the first meeting-house, was covered with a heavy growth of wood and timber. The frame of the house was of chestnut, and was all cut - so the oldest member of this congregation has informed me - upon this common. When the house was built, there still were standing a number of large original trees so near as to have fallen upon it, had they been blown over. After the first minister was settled, a child, straying from the meeting, was " lost in the woods," on the common, one Sunday ; and the whole congregation turned out to search for it. The work of building the meeting-house was undertaken by Mr. John Brooks, from Sterling. The timber was to be furnished by the proprietors, who also were to provide for the glazing, pulpit, &c. The whole cost in money, including the. sums appropriated by the town a few years later "towards finishing it," was
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about two hundred and twenty-five pounds, - equal to seven hundred and fifty dollars.
In 1809, it was agreed to build the present meeting- house. Its dimensions are almost twice that of the former one; it being sixty-five feet in length, with projection of five feet for columns in front, fifty-five feet in width, and posts thirty-two feet. The commit- tee for the purpose were Dr. Josiah Howe, Benjamin Read, Eden Baldwin, Leonard Stone, Deacon Jonathan Cutting, Jonathan Cutting, jun., and Joshua Richard- son. The builders were Mr. Elias Carter, of Brim- field, and Mr. Jonathan Cutting, jun., of Templeton. The raising was commenced June 26, 1810; and the house was completed in September, 1811. The last service in the old house was held Sept. 1, 1811. It was agreed to devote the old building for the pur- pose of a town-house; and, being moved to the place where now stands the house of Mrs. Lydia Newton, it was so occupied for about thirty years. It was then taken down; and the timbers, being found in excellent preservation, now compose the frame of Mrs. Newton's house.
What sacred and impressive associations must there have been filling all minds on leaving the old house! " Those walls had resounded with all the varying notes of Christian worship." Within them, how many devout prayers had been offered, how many lessons of heavenly truth been inculcated ! How many of a generation, then already nearly passed away, had there laid upon the altar of God the burden of their hearts, in affliction, in anxiety,
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in penitence, and also in faith, hope, and charity ! In that house, too, had been transacted all the muni- cipal affairs of the town from its incorporation. There the fathers, kindled with love for their ancient birthright of freedom, had met in solemn council on that tremendous question of resistance to the usurping attempts of their king. There they had passed those deliberate votes, expressing nothing more than the reality of their high and stern re- solve, whereby they determined, that " if the Con- tinental Congress should, for the safety of these United Colonies, declare them independent of the kingdom of Great Britain, we, the said inhabitants, do solemnly engage, with our lives and fortunes, to support them in the measure." * In that unadorned house of worship they had learned how they held their freedom, not by grant of Magna Charta, but by the will of GOD. There they had been taught, that piety toward him is the only sure foundation of justice and charity toward man. The day which witnessed the final parting from that ancient build- ing as a temple of worship must indeed have been of most affecting interest. An appropriate discourse was preached by the then recently settled pastor, and was published together with his sermon at the dedication of the new house, which was Sept. 19, 1811. The enterprise of building it had been carried to very successful completion in all respects. Owing to the difference between that time and
* Town Records, vol. i. p. 201, May 24, 1776.
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the present in the price of materials and labor, the cost was less than half of what it would be now. The whole was defrayed by sale of the pews. It is said, that, at the time, this was regarded as the best meeting-house in the county of Worcester. It certainly justified the commendation given in the dedication sermon in these words: "In this house we discover not a finical nicety: we discover a just proportion ; we see a majestic simplicity ; we see a simplicity blended with much elegance and beauty."
The public spirit of the people was further shown by the purchase at that time, by means of a parish- tax, of the first bell that ever called the people of the town to the house of God .* About this time, a new and active interest was felt in the subject of sacred music; and the choir here was long re- garded as the best in this region. Singing-schools were provided, in part, as a parochial charge. Musi- cal instruments were procured. In former times, great objections were felt by many to the use of instruments in the services of the sanctuary; it being imagined they were inconsistent with proper devotion. So late as 1797, it was a great satisfac- tion to Mr. Sparhawk, that, on the subject being brought up in a church meeting, no one voted for their introduction. t In 1804, however, the town voted "to have the bass-viol used in the meeting-
* Three others have been procured since by this parish, as successive defects occurred; namely, in 1815, 1829, and 1853.
t For nearly half a century, the choice of choristers, and other matters relating to singing, were determined by votes of the church.
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house." The organ now used here was first opened in the autumn of 1832. Mr. Abel Sanger, of War- wick, a native of Templeton and an eminent musi- cian, left by his will seven hundred dollars to this parish for the purchase of an organ ; and the builder, Mr. William M. Goodrich, also a native of this place, generously, and to his honor, furnished for that sum the present instrument, though it was of the value of a thousand dollars.
Several different books of psalms and hymns have been used in the public devotions of this church. The first book, a century ago, was the Psalms of Sternhold and Hopkins. This was a version of the Hebrew Psalms, originally used three hundred years ago, in the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. It was introduced by royal authority into the Eng- lish churches, in the reign of King Edward VI. Its lines are so rugged and uncouth, that it has been described by calling it " the songs of David with the poetry taken out." Very few of these pieces are now thought worthy of use by any denomination. Yet the pioneers here, " in those words, no doubt, worthily uttered the praise of God." They loved it; and it was a sore trial to some of them # when the church voted, in 1762, to substitute Tate and Brady's Psalms, with Watts's Hymns. These psalms were also introduced into the English Established Church by royal authority. There is a plain, simple
So I was informed by the late Mrs. Mary Dolbear, referring especially to her father, Z. Barrett.
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majesty in many of them; but they are little used in modern collections. In 1791, Watts's Psalms were substituted for Tate and Brady's. This change also was not made without some difficulty. To Dr. Watts are the churches of Christ more indebted than to any other writer for their words of sacred song. There are, however, great differences of style and sentiment among his pieces: some of them have striking and serious defects. There are a few ex- pressions in his book which seem to deserve the censure laid upon them by an eminent living clergy- man of the church of England, when he calls them " shocking words, which change the glory of the incorruptible God into the likeness of a corruptible man." But notwithstanding any objections or defects noticeable in Watts's Psalms and Hymns, considered as the only book for the devotions of a congregation, still, in great part, they present an admirable com- bination of fervent picty with beauty and strength; and, as the poet Montgomery has said, " every sab- bath, in every region of the earth where his native tongue is spoken, thousands and tens of thousands of voices are sending the sacrifices of prayer and praise to God, in the strains which he prepared for them more than a century ago."
Watts's Psalms and Hymns were exclusively used here till 1827, when my colleague prepared a pam- phlet to be used with it, containing a selection of about a hundred additional hymns, many of them in metres not found in Watts. These hymns were of excellent character, and proved a valuable addi-
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tion to the services. In 1839, the present collection of psalms and hymns was introduced. It was com- piled by the late Rev. Dr. Greenwood, of Boston ; and, with the best pieces of Watts and Doddridge, comprises also a wide range of authors, whose hymns had not before been accessible for use in the public services.
As already indicated, it is not my purpose, in these discourses, to go into much detail of the ministry in the second half-century of the church, which is occu- pied by the pastorate of my colleague. In several respects, it has noticeable coincidences with the mini- stry of Rev. Mr. Sparhawk. It was during the time from the twentieth to the thirtieth year of the last- named ministry that the secessions, before described, occurred ; and it was exactly a quarter of a cen- tury after the present senior pastor's ordination - namely, in March, 1832 - that the first request was presented, signed by eleven members of the church, for dismission, " to be formed into a Trinitarian Con- gregational church." The church, fully recognizing the principles of liberty of conscience, voted to grant the request. Others soon after withdrew for the same purpose; the whole number of members who have been dismissed up to this time, to join the Trinitarian church, being twenty-eight. Of course, this secession could not but be a trial to the feel- ings of the pastor, who had been with them in so many sacred experiences for a quarter of a century ; had ministered to them according to such light as, in his honest study of God's word, had been given
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to him. But, whatever the trial might have been to him, I believe that those who considered it a duty to withdraw never felt that they had occasion to complain of the spirit in which their former pastor met it. More recently, other societies also have been formed in the town .**
After a time, the failing health of the pastor began to interrupt the constancy of his public services. Temporary provision was made by the parish, at various times, for his aid in the pulpit, especially in the years 1839, 1840, and subsequently. In 1841, the settlement of a colleague was contem- plated, and Rev. Daniel B. Parkhurst, a graduate of Yale College in the class of 1837, invited to preach as a candidate; but he declined to receive a call.
Rev. Mr. Wellington's health having become some- what improved, he supplied a large part of the time till 1843; when, it being found that his health would not probably enable him to continue in the sole charge of the society, an arrangement was made, with great cordiality, by which it was understood that the parish would settle a colleague ; that Mr. Wellington, being released from all responsibility for active service, should continue as senior pastor ; and that his salary should cease, - a subscription, however, being made to pay him the sum of one thousand dollars. This arrangement having been completed, the parish voted, Oct. 4, 1843, to give a call to Mr. Edmund B. Willson + to settle as col-
See APPENDIX G.
# Now pastor at West Roxbury, Mass.
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league pastor. This invitation was declined. A call was given, Jan. 2, 1844, to Mr. Norwood Damon, and accepted by him. He was ordained here Feb. 21, 1844. The sermon was preached by Rev. F. D. Huntington ; the charge was by Rev. Alonzo Hill ; the ordaining prayer was offered by Rev. N. Gage ; and the address to the society was given by Rev. Dr. Thompson. Rev. Mr. Damon resigned his ministry, Nov. 1, 1845. The supply of the pulpit was then resumed by the senior pastor. During a part of the winter, he was assisted by several members of the Cambridge divinity-school class of 1846; * and afterward he preached most of the time till August of the same year. In November, a call was given to the present junior pastor ; and my ordination as col- league took place Jan. 13, 1847, with the concurrence of a council of nine churches. The Scripture was read by the senior pastor; the sermon was preached by Rev. Calvin Lincoln, of Fitchburg; and the or- daining prayer offered by Rev. William H. White, of Littleton ; - the charge being given by Rev. Dr. Thompson, of Barre; the right hand of fellowship by Rev. S. H. Winkley, of Boston ; and the address to the society by Rev. Dr. Barrett, of Boston.
* They were Messrs. G. F. Clark, F. MeIntire, L. J. Livermore, and E. G. Adams. Mr. Livermore (now pastor at Clinton) also preached, by invitation of the parish committee, soon after he left the theological school, but declined to receive a call here. These - with the other persons just named as officiating during Dr. Wellington's ill health, and those who have been before spoken of as preachers here previous to Mr. Sparhawk's ordination, or between his death and the ordination of the senior pastor - I believe to comprise all who, from the very first, were ever regarded as preaching in this parish in the capacity of " candidates for settlement."
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A few weeks after that time, my colleague preached his fortieth anniversary discourse ; and a kind Pro- vidence has granted that he should continue among his people to the close of the century, still officiating from time to time, as his strength would permit, in all the sacred ministrations of this house and of the pastoral office. In how many of your dwellings has his voice been heard in prayer for the household ! To how many stricken hearts has he been a son of consolation ! How many have received from him their early and lasting impressions of religious truth and duty ! Almost the whole of those to whom he here first administered the Christian sacraments have already passed on to experience, in the spiritual world, the realities contemplated on earth only by faith. The number of members of this church who, between his ordination and the close of the century, have died in communion with it, is about one hun- dred and eighty-five.
Through this long term of my colleague's ministry, the customary succession of sacred services has been maintained. The unchanging message of the gospel has been delivered, yet in its ever-varying adaptation to the changing circumstances of the community and of individuals. During this time, the Sunday School - blessed instrument of Christian instruction and of spiritual influence - was established. It was com- menced here in 1827. For the most part, its teachers have been exceedingly faithful, well quali- fied, and persevering. The Sunday-school Library has been instituted, and is well sustained by your
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annual contributions. It now contains upwards of a thousand volumes, and is a source of great good to the young.
Missionary associations have also been formed among us, to enable us to combine our interest, and unite our pecuniary aid, which has been bestowed in generous contributions, to assist in the great work and duty of promoting Christianity abroad.
The Ladies' Social Circle, under its present organi- zation, was first formed in 1835; another organiza- tion for similar purposes having existed some years previously. The purpose of the Ladies' Circle is to furnish charitable assistance to the needy, promote the cause of Christianity by missionary aid and in other ways, to provide a library for the use of its members, and to encourage mutual acquaintance and sympathy. In the last respect, its meetings have been of great value. At its formation, it consisted of thirty-six members. The number was soon after much increased; and a general interest has con- stantly been manifested in it. The number has varied in different years ; but, on an average, there have been about seventy members for each year. The funds raised by means of the annual assessments, and by the avails of their industry in the meetings, have amounted, during the period of the existence of the Ladies' Society (beside the garments, &c., given away), to somewhat over a thousand dollars. The number of volumes collected in their library is about six hundred.
As the century is closing, a substantial provision
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is being made for the future by means of the com- modious parsonage-house which the generosity of the people has just provided, and which is to re- main as the possession of this parish so long as the conditions are fulfilled of supporting the Christian ministry. It will be a place, I trust, around which, as the permanent dwelling-place of successive mini- sters of the society, pleasant and sacred associations will long cluster. Let it be a place of free and happy resort. May it witness the unfolding of many a spiritual emotion and serious thought, and many a hallowed confidence in the pastor of the flock, even for generations to come !
Without dwelling further on instrumentalities em- ployed or provisions made during the last half- century of our existence, I will proceed to a brief summary of the most important statistics of this church for the whole century.
As already noticed, there have been only two vacancies in the pastoral office, from the beginning, through the whole hundred years. Both together amounted to about three years and a half; viz., from August, 1759, to November, 1761, and from Novem- ber, 1805, to February, 1807. The number of per- sons belonging to the church, in all, has been five hundred and ninety-eight, - two hundred and nine- teen men and three hundred and seventy-nine women. Of these, ninety-one were received upon recommendation from other churches; the remainder, by profession. The largest number received in any one year, by profession, was twenty-five; namely, in
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1811. In the respective periods, the members be- coming connected with the church were as follows: Original founders, before Mr. Pond's ordination, twelve men ; during Rev. Mr. Pond's ministry, by profession, two men and two women; during the vacancy following, two men, by letter ; during Rev. Mr. Sparhawk's ministry, a hundred men and a hundred and forty-five women by profession, and nineteen men and thirty-four women by letter. This just completes the first half-century. In the second half, members have been received as follows: Dur- ing the vacancy after Mr. Sparhawk's death, four men and four women by letter, and one woman by profession ; and during Rev. Dr. Wellington's mini- stry, including the time since the settlement of a colleague, by profession, seventy-two men and a hun- dred and seventy-three women; by letter, eight men and twenty women.
The whole number received to this church in Mr. Sparhawk's ministry, by profession, was two hundred and forty-five. The number so received in Dr. Wel- lington's ministry, up to the close of the century, is also just two hundred and forty-five.
The whole number of members who have been dismissed and recommended during the century, or who have withdrawn for the purpose of joining other churches or of forming new ones, is a hundred and ninety-six, - eighty-two men and a hundred and fourteen women. Of these, five were dismissed to form the First Church in Hubbardston, which was organized in 1770; twenty-five, to form the church
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in Phillipston in 1785, or to join it soon after ; three, to form the First Church in Gardner, at its ^ organization in 1786; twenty, in all, to join the Baptist connection, - the church of that persuasion in this town being formed in 1782; twenty-eight, at various times, to become members of the Trinitarian church in this town, formed in 1832. Of the eighty- one foregoing, thirty-three were men; forty-eight, women. Three or four others, originally received as members here, now commune elsewhere, and not with us; having made no request for dismission. There have been dismissed and recommended to other churches during the century, in consequence of their removal to various places, a hundred and fifteen members, - forty-nine men and sixty-six women. A considerable number also have moved from the town, but without letters of dismission. One member only has been excluded.
The practice of "owning the covenant " for the purpose of having baptism for children, according to a pretty general custom of the times, was con- siderably practised in Mr. Sparhawk's ministry. It was adopted by the church, May 7, 1758, when they voted, " that parents and others, come to adult age, should receive the ordinance of baptism for themselves and theirs by virtue of owning the cove- nant, and thereto stand propounded two sabbaths." Under this vote, ninety-five persons have "owned the covenant" here, -forty-four men and fifty-one women; four of them in Rev. Mr. Pond's ministry, the rest in Mr. Sparhawk's, - almost all of them
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