USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Watertown > Historical sketch of Watertown, in Massachusetts, from the first settlement of the town to the close of its second century > Part 11
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13
press. His published writings, accordingly, are few, but are very respectable compositions, both in manner and matter. They are the following : " A Discourse delivered at Athol at the Consecration of a Lodge, Oct. 13, 1803." " A Discourse delivered at Dedham, at the Consecration of Constellation Lodge, Oct. 19th, 1803." " Two Sermons preached at Watertown, Sept. 30th, and Oct. 7th, 1810," from Acts, ii. 47 : "Two Sermons preached at Watertown, Sept. 22d,
1816," from Deuteronomy xxxii. 47. In the third of these is presented a very lucid and judicious view of the nature of a Christian church, and of the char- acter which appertains to the ordinance of the Supper. From the last, published about two years before his death, is taken the following extract, which is honor- able to the feelings of his heart, as a minister : " When I look round on the people of my charge, and view them as pilgrims on their passage to a state of recom- pense and retribution, when I consider that during the space of more than thirty-six years I have been with them, in all seasons and in innumerable vicissi- tudes, have shared in their griefs, sorrows, and adver- sities, and have experienced their kind attention and
-
124
affectionate aids, when I have been called to pass through the furnace of afflictions,-when I consider how many of my parishioners have already been joined to the congregation of the dead, how soon those who have been brought up under my ministry and who still continue among the living, must pass into the invisi- ble and eternal world, how soon my ministerial labors must come to a close, and how soon I shall be requir- ed, by an impartial and unerring Judge, to give an account of my stewardship, my feelings are unuttera- ble ! "
There are recorded by Mr. Eliot, during his minis- try, 497 baptisms and 118 received to the church .*
After the death of Mr. Eliot the pulpit was supplied by various candidates for the ministry. On the 12th of April, 1819, the town voted to invite the writer of this narrative to settle with them in the Gospel minis- try, the church having previously, on the 31st of March, made a nomination to that effect. The invita- tion was accepted, and the ordination took place on the 23d of June, 1819. The introductory prayer was offered by the Rev. Dr. Lowell of Boston ; the Rev. Dr. Osgood of Medford preached the sermon, from 1 Timothy, i. 15.+ The Rev. Dr. Kirkland, President of Harvard College, offered the ordaining prayer ; the Rev. Dr. Ripley of Concord delivered the charge ; the Rev. Mr. Palfrey of Boston gave the right hand of fellowship ; and the Rev. Mr. Ripley of Waltham offered the concluding prayer.
In the summer of 1819, the meeting-house was enlarged by an addition of 16 feet in width. This enlargement afforded space for the erection of 16 new pews on the lower floor. The alteration was made
* The body of Mr. Eliot was deposited in the tomb of John Richard- son, Esq. His widow still resides in Watertown.
+ This sermon was printed at the request of the society, and was the last production published by the venerable and eloquent preacher. He died December 12th, 1822.
.
125
by persons, who entered into a contract for the pur- pose with a committee appointed by the town.
The meeting-house erected in Watertown by the Watertown and Newton Universalist society was dedicated on the 15th of August, 1827. On the same day the Rev. Russell Streeter was installed as pastor. The church was publicly recognised July 23d, 1828. The connexion of the Rev. Mr. Streeter with the society was dissolved in 1829; and on the 15th of May, 1830, the Rev. William S. Balch, their present pastor, was installed.
On the 19th of August, 1830, the meeting-house erected by a Baptist society in Watertown was dedi- cated, and the Rev. Peter Chase was installed as their pastor. A church was formed at the same time.
On the 17th of September, 1830, the inhabitants of Watertown commemorated the completion of the sec- ond century from the settlement of the town. An address was delivered by the Congregational Minister, at the request of the Selectmen; and religious ser- vices, adapted to the occasion, were performed by the Rev. Mr. Ripley of Waltham, and the Rev. Mr. Balch and the Rev. Mr. Chase of Watertown.
The humble narrative, which has now been brought to a close,* may suggest considerations of some practi- cal importance. The history of a town is indeed but a small item on the broad records of man's doings,-so small, that many will regard the interest taken in it as mere antiquarian trifling. But it is not without its use, at least to those who live on the spot, to which the narrative belongs. Our towns are the minute sec- tions of a great community, each of which has an influ- ence and an interest, however inconsiderable, in the welfare of the whole. They are the nurseries of the state, sending forth a continual supply of members to act and to be acted upon, amidst the complicated trans-
* See Appendix L.
1
126
actions and improvements of the country. These little subdivisions are the elementary parts of that mighty and unwieldy mass, which we call the nation ; and in proportion as the parts are made sound and pure, the whole receives a firmer and more healthy character. - In our community and under our institutions, this is pe- culiarly true. So free and numerous are the channels of intercourse through a body politic, in which men have equal rights, that scarcely the most inconsiderable fragment of society can be said to stand alone. The village has a bearing on the nation, and the nation on the village. The inhabitants of every town, therefore, should feel that they have relations to sustain, and du- ties to perform, of no unimportant nature. The sacred interests of knowledge, of rational freedom, and of re- ligion, they should cherish with the deepest solicitude of which the heart of man is capable. They should never forget, that upon the members of every family, upon the inmates of every home, lies a solemn respon- sibleness to their country and to God,-that the domes- tic establishment is a seminary, which sends forth its pupils through the land, and the influence of which, in extent and duration, can scarcely be measured.
The care of education is a precious trust, for which our towns, each and all, are accountable. While they maintain a watchful concern in the cause of knowledge, they are doing good not only to themselves, but to the whole land. A power is thus put in operation, which seeks out and draws forth the talents of every portion of the community, which reaches forth a helping hand to the minds marked by God for usefulness and dis- tinction, and calls them to the service of society ; and by doing this from generation to generation, perpetu- ates a race of vigorous and enlightened guardians of good institutions. It is this, which fans into a bright and beautiful flame the spark of intellect, that might otherwise be smothered, or burn dimly, in secret pla- ces. It is this, which spreads far and wide that enlight-
1
127
ened energy of character, upon which must ever rest the strong defence of the high interests of humanity. The memorable example of our fathers, in this respect, is worthy of all praise. Scarcely had they felled the forest sufficiently to prepare room for their poor and scattered dwellings, when they turned their thoughts anxiously to the care of education. In the midst of distress and danger, when, it might be supposed, they had enough to do in procuring bread to eat and in de- fending themselves from the savages, they laid the foundation of our venerable University and of schools, the blessings of which are now a rich part of our in- heritance. The means of learning took root among the deep foundations of the republic, and grew and flour- ished with it. We may not forget, that they belong essentially, not to its ornament only, but to its welfare, and that they cannot be slighted without peril to all we hold most dear.
It should be remembered, however, that higher in- terests than those of knowledge are committed, as an inestimable deposit, to every town among us ; I mean the interests of morals and religion. Here, too, the state has a claim upon all its parts ; for religion belongs to the community, and blesses the community. They make but a defective estimate, who treat it merely as a concern between the individual and his God. It is this ; but it is likewise more than this. It is a matter between the members of society, as such, a matter in which they have a strong mutual interest. Religion goes beyond the breast of the individual and beyond the family circle. It travels through society, and scat- ters blessings as it goes ; it gives security to rights, to property, and to enjoyments ; it controls if it does not extinguish the passions from which spring encroach- ment and oppression ; it acts upon the whole while it acts upon the parts, and spreads the broad wing of its love over the community at large, as well as over your own dwelling. Such views of its agen-
128
cy are too often excluded, or their importance un- derrated, by the narrowness of sectarian feeling, or in the eagerness of party triumph. The subject was not regarded thus by our ancestors. . They considered re- ligion as the best friend and ally of their civil institu- tions, as the sanctifier and the protector of whatever they valued most highly in their political privileges. And they judged rightly. We surely want something to penetrate the whole mass of society, and operate as a restraint upon that pestilent ambition, which aims only at self-aggrandizement, and, so it can but build a triumphal arch to its own glory, cares not how abject and miserable are the crowds that gaze upon it. We want something that will give a solemn sanction to sound and wholesome laws, and to the sacred institu- tions of order and justice. We want something, that will prevent passion or selfishness from sweeping away the landmarks of venerable principles, that will not suffer licentiousness, under the abused name of free- dom, to confound the essential distinctions, which God has instituted in the very nature of human society. The power, that will do all this, is to be found only in moral and religious influence, an influence guarded and guided so wisely, that it shall surround us like the air we breathe, vitally important, and felt not by its pressure, but by its refreshing and beneficial agency. None of the shackles, imposed by creeds, or by the spirit of a party, can supply the place of this great moral power. The people of every village should feel the solemn ob- ligation of cherishing this guardian of their best posses- sions, and at the same time they should remember, that the spirit, miscalled religion, which kindles the wild- fire of strife and fanaticism from town to town, is as far from resembling the beneficent agency of true Chris- tianity, as the burning fever is from resembling the healthful and natural action of the functions of the body.
The principles, which have been stated, are the es- sential sources of all the good we can wish for our
129
country. These are the support of the privileges and institutions, which make our country worthy of our love. They are inseparably associated with the mem- ory of our fathers, who through successive generations watched with pious care over the church of Christ, and kept a sleepless eye fixed on the blessings of freedom. Whatever there is of honest fame, or of virtuous ex- citement, in their sufferings and deeds ; whatever their example affords, to which the nations of the earth point, as to a source of instruction and a beacon of hope ; whatever is registered of their high enterprise, their noble daring, their firm endurance ; all these become the nutriment of a consecrated patriotism, when they are regarded as the expression of strong devotedness to the cause of knowledge, of truth, and of piety. It is thus that the feeling becomes a hallowed one, which connects us with the men of former days, - men who have left the impression of their wisdom and valor on their own age, and on succeeding ages, who set forth and defended principles, the power of which is now felt in every fibre of the community, and who, in times when the hearts of multitudes quaked within them for fear, looked unmoved on danger and death, resting on a sublime sense of duty, and on the arm of Almighty God.
In the same elevated spirit the Christian citizen can look forward to the future. His blessings rise to a higher value, and glow with a richer beauty, when he can hope that they will be transmitted to his children's children, encompassed and strengthened by the helps of knowledge and piety. His regard to the public welfare thus acquires something of the nature of pa- rental affection, blending with its serious and perhaps stern expression the mildness of that feeling, which looks with fond care to coming generations. We should love our country, as Christians and as enlight- ened men. We should show this love, not by hating and reviling other nations, not by idle vaporing and
17
130
swelling boasts, not by plunging with mad zeal into the conflicts of party ; remembering that if it be truly said,
Faction will freedom, like its shade, pursue,
Yet, like the shadow, proves the substance true,
it is also the fearful lesson of history, that faction is of- ten the assassin, as well as the companion, of liberty. We must manifest a love for our native land in other and better ways, - by cleaving fast to principles and in- stitutions established by the labors of the wise, and sanctified by the prayers of the pious, and by such a use of our gifts and privileges, that those who are to come after us, may have as much good and as little evil to tell of us, as we have to tell of our ancestors. We must remember, that the good man is the best patriot ; that fidelity in the use of our extraordinary blessings will teach us most effectually how to prize and to preserve the fair inheritance transmitted from the Fathers of New England.
- £
APPENDIX.
(A, page 12.)
The following is a list of the names, with the quantity of land assigned to each, in a "grant of the Plowlands at Beverbroke Plaines, devided and lotted out by the Freemen to all the Townesmen then inhabiting, being 106 in number." - February 28, 1636.
Acres.
Acres.
George Phillips, pastor,
forty.
Francis Smith,
John Whitney,
ten.
John Eaton,
Thomas Hastings,
two.
John Loveran,
twenty.
Richard Woodward,
six.
William Jennison, John Page,
ten.
Robert Betts,
one.
John Grigs,
one.
Samuel Hosier,
five.
John Simson,
four.
John Winkell,
three.
Charles Chadwick,
three.
John Goffe,
four.
Robert Veazy,
one.
Nathaniel Bowman,
seven.
Henry Goldstone,
seven.
Brian Pembleton,
twelve. nine.
John Tomson,
two.
John Lawrence,
three,
John Eddy,-
nine.
John Tucker,
three.
William Bassum,
three.
Thomas Cakebred, Robert Tuck,
eight. five.
Benjamin Crispe,
three. six.
Henry Cuttris,
one.
William Bridges,
five.
Richard Kemball,
twelve.
Gregory Taylor, John Coolige,
five.
Edward Dikes,
three.
Daniel Patrick,
fourteen.
Thomas Brookes,
four.
Joseph Mosse,
two.
Timothy Hawkins, Gregory Stone,
ten.
Robert Lockwood,
Six.
James Cutter,
three.
Francis Onge, John Gay,
five.
John Cutting, Daniel Perse,
one
Simon Eire,
eighteen.
Barnaby Windes,
six.
Sir Richard Saltonstall
thirty.
John Kingsberry,
six.
Nathaniel Baker,
five.
Robert Feke,
twenty-four.
John Richardson,
three.
Isaac Stone,
eleven.
George Munnings, Henry Bright,
four.
Thomas Smith.
two. three.
Nicholls Knapp,
six.
Miles Nutt,
three.
Richard Sawtle,
one.
John Hayward,
seven.
four.
Thomas Filbrick,
nine.
John Ellett,
five.
John Barnard,
ten.
two.
Ephraim Child,
sixteen.
six.
ten.
John Smith, Sen.,
four.
Richard Browne,
eight. six.
thirteen.
Edmund Sherman,
three.
John Rose,
132
Simon Stone,
fourteen.
John Smith, Jun.,
onė.
Robert Daniel,
eight.
Roger Willington,
two.
Isaac Mixer,
four.
Christopher Grant,
three. four.
Henry Dengayne, Thomas Maihew,
thirty.
Foster Pickram,
John Stowars,
two.
John Springe, John Warner,
seven.
Edmund James,
five.
Emanuel White,
three.
John Firmin,
nine.
Edward Garfield,
seven.
John Warrin,
thirteen.
William Gutterig,
three.
John Batcheler,
six.
Hugh Mason,
three.
William Knop,
seven.
Thomas Rogers,
five.
Henry Kemball,
six.
Thomas Bartlett,
two.
William Palmer,
one.
John Doggett,
six.
Edmund Lewis,
five
Lawrence Waters,
four.
John Finch,
four.
Martin Underwood,
two.
William Swift, John Winter,
five.
William Paine,
twenty-four.
three.
Garrett Church,
two.
Edward Lam,
three.
Abram Shaw,
ten.
Though the number is stated to be 106, it will be found, on counting, to be 108.
(B, page 13.)
The confusion on this question arises from the apparently contradictory testimonies of the old writers, and from the vague character of some of their expressions. Dr. Kendal, in the body of his Century Discourse, considers the church in Watertown as the sixth in age, among the Massachusetts churches ; but in a note of some length, the fruit of subsequent researches, he as- signs to it an earlier date, and is disposed even to regard it as second only to that at Salem. In this last estimate he is, how- ever, undoubtedly in an error. The mistakes of Johnson, (Won- der-working Providence,) in his arrangement of the churches, are now generally acknowledged ; and if his testimony be set aside, as it probably should be, the opinions which others have built on his authority as to this point, must fall with it. Mather (Mag- nal. B. III. ch. 4.) says that the Rev. Mr. Phillips and the other settlers of Watertown, on the 30th of July, 1630, " upon a day set apart for solemn fasting and prayer, the very next month after they came ashore, entered into this holy covenant." He then subjoins the covenant at length, and adds, that " about forty men then subscribed this instrument in order unto their coalescence into a church-estate." The day here designated was that, which Governor Winthrop had appropriated for fasting and prayer on ac-
Edward How,
twenty-four.
John Nichols,
one.
John Dwight,
seven.
five. six.
Richard Beere,
two.
133
count of the prevalent sickness, and on which Winthrop, Dudley, Johnson, and Wilson " first entered into church covenant, and laid the foundation of the churches both of Charlestown and afterwards of Boston." (Prince, p. 310, &c.) At the same time Sir Richard Saltonstall, and others of the settlement at Wa- tertown, subscribed a covenant. Mather's statement, as to the origin of the Watertown church, would seem to be explicit and decisive of the question. But, in a note at the end of Dr. Ken- dal's Discourse, Dr. Holmes, to whose faithful and valuable la- bors on the early history of this country high praise is due, has endeavoured to show that the transaction to which Mather's ac- count relates, was not the actual formation of a church, but mere- ly an exercise preparatory to that act. His reasoning certainly deserves much consideration, and is stated with fairness and strength. Yet it does not seem to me entirely satisfactory and convincing. Although, as he remarks, the fast on the 30th of Ju- ly related not primarily to ecclesiastical matters, but to the prevalent sickness, yet the strong expressions used by the wri- ters, from whom we have the account, certainly seem to imply nothing less than the actual formation of churches. According to Prince, it was considered an important object in keeping the fast, " that such godly persons among them, as know each other, may publicly at the end of their exercise make known their desire, and practise the same by solemnly entering into covenant with God to walk in his ways," &c. ; and though their society con- sisted of very few, they promised, " after to receive in such by confession of faith, as shall appear to be fitly qualified." This last engagement implies, that they intended from that day to be regarded as an organized church, prepared to receive others into their number. Morton, in relating the same transaction, tells us, that their purpose was to seek " for direction and guidance in the solemn enterprize of entering into church fellowship." (New England's Memorial, Davis's ed. p. 159.) Language like this appears decisively to describe the formation of churches ; and if it were not intended to do so, it is unguarded and ambiguous. Mather introduces his account by remarking, that "they [Mr. Phillips and others of the Watertown settlers] resolved that they would combine into a church fellowship there as their first work," &c. ; and when he remarks, that " in after time they, that join- ed unto the church, subscribed a form of the covenant some- what altered, with a confession of faith annexed unto it," this re- fers, I conceive, not to a subsequent process of forming a church, but merely to some modifications in their covenant, introduced perhaps to make it more explicit and satisfactory. There is, however, another account given by Mather, which is inconsistent
.
134
with his own statement, above quoted, as to the state of the Water- town church. He places (Book I. ch. 5.) the churches at Charles- town, Dorchester, Boston, Roxbury, and Lynn, before that at Watertown, in the order of time. I know not how this inconsistency is to be explained, but by supposing that Mather, in the arrange- ment of the churches just referred to, followed, without examina- tion, some erroneous authority. We seem warranted to infer that in the account, which assigns the Watertown church to July 30, 1630, he was more likely to be correct, because, in that ac- count, a specific date is given for the transaction, connected with the well-attested fact of the fast which was observed on that day ; whereas, in the other account, a merely general statement is made of one church following another, without any date assigned to either, except the Charlestown church. On the whole, I cannot but conclude, that the true date of the formation of the Watertown church is July 30, 1630, O. S. With regard to the relative positions of the first churches in Massachusetts, in the order of time, information may be found in Dr. Kendal's Century Dis- course, p. 19 ; Mass. Hist. Collections, 2d Series, Vol. I. pp. 9, 25 ; and Savage's note on Winthrop, Vol. I. p. 94.
The covenant mentioned above as recorded by Mather, into which Mr. Phillips and others entered, and which was the foun- dation of this ancient church of our fathers, is so remarkable for its hearty piety, and its entire freedom from a sectarian spirit, that I have thought proper to insert it in this connexion. It is as follows :
" July 30, 1630.
" We, whose names are hereto subscribed, having, through God's mercy, escaped out of the pollutions of the world, and been taken into the society of his people, with all thankfulness do here- by, both with heart and hand, acknowledge that his gracious good- ness and fatherly care towards us; and, for further and more full declaration thereof to the present and future ages, have under- taken (for the promoting of his glory, and the church's good, and the honour of our blessed Jesus, in our more full and free sub- jecting of ourselves and ours under his gracious government, in the practice of and obedience unto all his holy ordinances and orders, which he hath pleased to prescribe and impose upon us) a long and hazardous voyage from east to west, from Old England in Europe, to New England in America ; that we may walk before him, and serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness, all the days of our lives : and being safely arrived here, and thus far onwards peaceably preserved by his special providence, that we may bring forth our intentions into actions, and perfect our
135
resolutions in the [beginnings of some just and meet executions, we have separated the day above written from all other services, and dedicated it wholly to the Lord in divine employments, for a day of afflicting our souls, and humbling ourselves before the Lord, to seek him, and at his hands a way to walk in, by fasting and prayer, that we might know what was good in his sight ; and the Lord was entreated of us. For in the end of that day, after the finishing of our publick duties, we do all, before we depart, solemnly, and with all our hearts, personally, man by man, for ourselves and ours, (charging them before Christ and his elect angels, even them that are not here with us this day, or are yet unborn, that they keep the promise unblameably and faith- fully, unto the coming of our Lord Jesus,) promise, and enter into a sure covenant with the Lord our God, and, before him, with one another, by oath and serious protestation made, to re- nounce all idolatry and superstition, will-worship, all humane tra- ditions and inventions whatsoever in the worship of God; and forsaking all evil ways, do give ourselves wholly unto the Lord Jesus, to do him faithful service, observing and keeping all his statutes, commands, and ordinances, in all matters concerning our reformation, his worship, administrations, ministry, and gov- ernment, and in the carriage of ourselves among ourselves and one towards another, as he hath prescribed in his holy word. Further swearing to cleave unto that alone, and the true sense and meaning thereof to the utmost of our power, as unto the most clear light, and infallible rule, and all-sufficient canon, in all things that concern us in this our way. In witness of all, we do ex, animo and in the presence of God hereto set our names or marks, in the day and year above written."
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.