USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Andover > Historical sketches of the West Parish church, Andover, Massachusetts, 1906 > Part 3
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But there were those who were willing to take judg- ment into their own hands ; who felt that they could not sit at the table of our Lord with men who held opposite views on such a matter. The Free Church was the outcome.
Up to that day, this church had enjoyed, practically, an unbroken record. For, in reality, it dates back to its original in North Andover. The South Church was merely a division of the North for territorial convenience, and the West is just the South Church divided by Roger's Brook. In a certain sense, I am simply giving you, today, a hasty sketch of the last seventy years of our joint history since 1645.
And in the light of the history I have just repeated, it seems to me that kindly reference should be made to certain words that, a few days ago, were uttered which may be recorded and which touch this church as well as others. For, if my information is correct, the Free Church never was " disfellowshipped " by any. By im- plication, the come-outers disfellowshipped the other churches, or the Free Church never would have been. And in the face of these resolutions which I have read, the greater courage and, I make bold to say, the nobler patriotism was exhibited by those who spoke out, Fand placed on record, words clear and strong, touching that vital issue, yet stood loyally by the church they loved, and, while protesting against all compromise with evil,
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fired the hearts of young and old with enthusiasm for God and Liberty. And I think that these brave men who stood by this church in that trying time were doubly brave and true in that they were determined to purify the church and not destroy it. William Lloyd Garrison and his radical constituency of that day are worthy of all the honor that has been accorded them. But, for the major part, I think that it was the young men bred in the very churches these radicals denounced, who fell at Bull Run and Spottsylvania and Gettysburg and a hundred fields, where, in a baptism of blood, this nation atoned for the black man's wail and tears.
You do not forget those days, those awful days. I was but a lad not yet in my teens, and I do not forget them. Here, in the home of my childhood, surely you will permit me to let a bit of personal history recall to you the scene that was enacted in so many a West Parish home in those cruel days. I remember when the sun was darkened and all the light of day went out. It was just at set of sun, when a neighbor stopped at the door with a message in his hand and these words upon his lips, "From your brother's colonel". And every one was afraid to read the message. From it, I recall these words alone : " He was a brave soldier, and we bury him to- morrow with military honors." Then, for the first time in my life, I heard a strong man weep and sob aloud in the bitterness of grief. Then, in a few moments, the door opened and the bluff, plain-spoken neighbor entered. How the atmosphere of sorrow tones down the high- pitched voice and softens the rugged features ! I had never heard Captain Chandler speak, until then, when it did not seem that he could be heard from a quarter to half a mile. That evening his voice was tender as that of a mother crooning to her babe, and the great tears rolled over his cheeks from eyes unused to weeping.
And then, too, how rapidly ill news travelled in those days, and by what a subtle instinct in some one it went
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straight to the minister's home ! In a time so brief, that it seemed to me incredible, the slender form of the good pastor glided quietly and calmly into the room. I re- member that he told us that we did no wrong to weep, " for," said he, " did not Jesus himself weep at the tomb of Lazarus ?" Who of you who knew our beloved pastor fail to catch the very sound of his voice in the utterance of those beloved words? How well he knew the secret passages to the troubled soul! Alas ! that was not the first time that he had entered a West Parish home smit- ten by the death of a first born slain to expiate a nation's sin. They were sad, sad days, when people wore their heart upon their sleeve and the tears were very near the surface. Then spoke out New England manhood. And West Parish spoke with no uncertain sound. There are forty wreaths in yonder graveyard, and each wreath marks a hero's resting-place. And a goodly number, thank God, who went through the same fiery furnace, are with us still, to tell the children of today how nations must be born ; - and, sometimes, born again.
The first pastor of this church was Samuel C. Jackson. He was ordained June 6, 1827. No better man, doubt- less, could have been called to take in charge the western half of Justin Edwards' flock. Behind him on his father's side, was the religious stamina and theological granite of Jno. Edwards and Nathaniel Emmons. His mother was a lineal descendant of John Rogers through only seven generations, and they who knew her affirmed that, had she lived in his day, she would have walked into the fires of Smithfield as dauntlessly as did he. We can inherit neither intellect nor character, but one can hardly move from infancy to manhood in the presence of a stalwart in- tellect and superb character and not take on something of mental and moral greatness.
He went to college in a suit of clothes, so his daughter says, which was "the fruit of his mother's own distaff, spindle and loom ". He fitted himself for the law and in
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him the bar lost a brilliant light. His wife used to say : " The Lord made him for a statesman but his mother prayed him into the ministry". His first sermon in this pulpit was from the text: " Preach the Word". His second was upon the correlative text : " Take heed how ye hear". It was a fair warning that he proposed to be re- sponsible for himself alone. For twenty-three years he preached the Word and the church records show that they heard as for their lives. He unfolded to them " the unsearchable riches of Christ ", and his ministry was rich and fruitful. He came to his people with a mind singu- larly well endowed. He had the inspiration of intellect in both father and mother. Each bestowed upon him, early, a lavish training both on the intellectual and moral side. He had the advantage of a thorough collegiate education, supplemented by a complete study of the law and a theological course. He might have aspired to a higher place in some city field. The deep humility of the man appears in his acceptance of the call to the pastorate which I find in the records of the church. " I have al- ways felt," he says, " that since I am not my own, I am not at liberty to choose great worldly possessions, at the expense of the Gospel which I am commissioned to preach ". And then he adds : " How far I have been in- fluenced by such feelings, in forming my decision, must be left for the Great Searcher of hearts to decide ". When we consider that those " worldly possessions " con- sisted of a salary of six hundred dollars, paid semi-an- nually, we understand something of his lowly self-regard. And he gave himself unselfishly, unstintedly to his people. He was a lawyer, farmer, doctor and minister to them, each in turn. His people came frankly to him with their differences before those differences had passed the arbi- tration stage. He argued and adjudged their cases and they accepted, loyally, his verdict. He understood his people and they knew it. He loved them and they loved him and trusted him. He was among them as one that
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served. He was trusted in the home, in the field, in the study and in the pulpit. And when on Fast and Thanks- giving days, he treated the high themes of national life and character, he drew great congregations to listen and he chained the attention of every hearer. No town meet- ing was complete without him, and no decision was final until by his calm, clear, logical presentation of the case and a judicial statement of conclusions, the men who knew and trusted him were ready to give their verdict.
His was a familiar face in all our school-rooms and his words to the pupils were as " apples of gold in pictures of silver ". He was one of the most influential forces in the establishment of Abbot Academy and Prof. Park well calls him " a father of it", as he was for fifty years an earnest and faithful trustee thereof. Of the Theological Semi- nary and of Phillips Academy he was a trustee for thirty years. Bnt no drawings from without ever caused him to relax for a moment his hold upon the minds of his people from this pulpit or his sway over their hearts in their homes. Showers of blessing God poured out, repeatedly, upon him and his church and in his ministry of three and twenty years he welcomed into fellowship three hundred and twenty-four members; two hundred and nine of them upon profession of their faith in Jesus Christ.
He was dismissed by a council, because of failing health, September 25, 1850. The council found that he had " signally commended himself as both a preacher and a pastor of distinguished ability, of devoted faithfulness, of rare prudence, and of most exemplary Christian zeal ". In his own letter of resignation he bore witness to his ap- preciation of the West Parish people in these touching and tender words : " To you I have given the best of my life, the dew of my youth and the experience of mature age. Few pastors have been more contented and happy than I have been for twenty-two years among this people. No families will ever be to me like your families, no children like your children, no labors like my past labors, and no home like my present home ".
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His public life, subsequent to his pastorate, is familiar to many of you who survive him. After a protracted ill- ness during his pastorate, on his return, a hymn of wel- come was sung in his honor. As he appeared at the door the choir struck up the song, the whole congre- gation rose to their feet and as he appeared up the aisle, he was greeted with the joyful poem :
" Shepherd of the living God Welcome to thy flock again ".
On July 26, 1878, he was called away by the Great Shepherd to sing a song of Moses and the Lamb.
On July 3, 1850, Mr. Charles H. Pierce, just closing his studies in the Seminary, was called to succeed this man of God. A more mature mind than his might well have shrunk from the undertaking. The perfect harmony of the people, however, was half the battle for any man. He decided to accept the call and was ordained by coun- cil April 11, 1855. His letter of acceptance was not lacking in the witness of a prayerful spirit and reliance upon God and there was, in one sentence of it that which savoured of his predecessor's discourses ; in the hint that it takes two to make a bargain as well as to preach a sermon. He affirms that he is encouraged to undertake the work because of "the character you sustain as a peaceable and united people". It is not always that a candidate has the courage to affirm that he is not the only one on trial. He was a good preacher, a genial- spirited man beloved by the young people and highly esteemed in his pastoral relationship throughout the parish. During his ministry the vestry was erected to the supplying of a long-felt need.
I was a trifle more than three years of age when he came one day to the house and gave me a bag of mar- bles with the remark to my mother that she must make a minister of me; one of those too-early dedications which have drawn lines of care upon many a mother's face ;
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which have drawn upon the patience of more than many a congregation.
There was a somewhat marked revival near the close of this pastorate, some of the fruits of which his succes- sor gratefully admitted to have gathered. He was dis- missed by council April 11, 1855. The council agreed in finding that he had proved "an earnest, persuasive, evangelical and spiritual preacher ; a winning and as- siduous pastor".
Rev. James H. Merrill of Montague, was installed April 30, 1856, as the third pastor. He was the first pastor of whom I have a clear and satisfactory recollect- ion. It was under his gentle, loving, faithful tutelage that I gave myself to God and my life to God's ministry. He was essentially a pastor to the young. There was love in his eyes and winning tenderness in every feature. I think that I never saw such expressive mildness in mas- culine face. It was the cultured expression of a soul perfectly self-poised, persuaded of an inherent goodness in men and the certain power of God to bring His will to pass. So he never undertook impossibilities and therefore did not multiply failures. His preaching was the sincere milk of the Word and was, very largely, ex- pository. His intellectual ability was good, his powers well balanced and remarkably well proportioned. His sermons were force upon which his people lived in their spiritual reaches and his perfect winsomeness drew to him with most heart-felt appreciation the young people of his flock. The prayer-meetings, a power throughout Dr. Jackson's long ministry, were exceedingly helpful and useful during this second long pastorate. He was seek- ing not merely to save souls for heaven, he was training Christian men and women to be a blessing in the world in which God had placed them. He was an apt teacher and a faithful monitor.
During that long, dark night of the civil war, he was an angel of light in many a home. There was hope in the
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DEACON E. FRANCIS HOLT
REV. FREDERICK W. GREENE
REV. ROBERT A. MACFADDEN
REV. G. ARTHUR ANDREWS
very tone of his voice and his prayers were the calm ap- peals to God of a soul who was no stranger to Him whose very name is Love. He was rejoiced in the reception of a hundred and seventy-seven souls into the church be- sides the many who came by letter. He was deeply interested in all projects for higher education and was for twenty-three years a faithful trustee of the Punchard Free School, giving himself freely and unselfishly to every detail of that service. It would be impossible to record the impress made upon his people by his potent ministry. It was so quiet, so even in its tenor, so unremitting in its persuasiveness, that character was moulded and high motives formed almost unconsciously. His life was a sun, quickening in its warmth, exalting in its simple piety, full and rich and affluent, and I never knew but one other who impressed me as being, humanly speaking, a perfect man.
He was dismissed November 6, 1879. His family was blessed with the blessedness of his companionship for eight years longer and then, on October 28, 1887, he entered the eternal sunshine of God's presence.
On April 29, 1880, Rev. Austin H. Burr was installed as the fourth pastor. He had a brief ministry of less than four years, which was marked by no prominent events. He was an earnest preacher and a faithful pastor. He was deeply interested in the young, and labored assiduously to organize them for service along lines of work then coming into existence. His plans did not meet with the response required for their efficient execu- tion, but the good seed was sown and the harvest was inevitable. He is still held in loving and kindly remem- brance by many people in the parish. He was dismissed and warmly commended by council on January 21, 1885. After a brief leadership in another field he was called from his ministry in the church militant, to become a member of the church triumphant. . So He giveth his beloved sleep.
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Frederick W. Greene was called to the fifth pastorate, and was installed on September 23, 1885. With him came the Christian Endeavor and the more practical work among the young which was gestating throughout the former pastorate. During a ministry of almost ten years, a large and efficient work was inaugurated. The church was carefully organized upon a working basis, and the cheery and breezy presence of their leader, in all the activities of the congregation, left no opportunity for stagnation. With no display of learning, Mr. Greene was a good and painstaking student. His sermons were well thought out and were eminently practical in their general bearing and personal application. He under- stood men, and so he spoke to human experience. He was a man well calculated to speak to the inquisitive side of the intellect and set uneasy minds at rest. The tired soul also coming to his ministry found rest, and this church is richer in every way today for the patient, untir- ing service rendered during that decade of persistent toil. His faithful service was recognized by his brother pas- tors, and greatly to the regret of his congregation he was discovered by another hungry flock and was called away to larger service in a broader field. He was dismissed by council on January 11, 1895.
On May 15, 1895, Mr. Robert MacFadden was called to become the sixth pastor. He was then and still is a student in the Theological Seminary, and is to be in- stalled upon graduation there. He has supplied the pulpit as acting pastor, since his acceptance of the call, to the great satisfaction of the whole community, and with a very material increase of attendance upon divine worship. Were I to consult him, I am sure he would request me to simply say : " Let not him that putteth on his armor, boast as one that layeth it off."
Before speaking of those deacons of this church who served it so long and faithfully, ere they were called home, I wish to mention two or three men who were
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marked characters in the inauguration of this Society. One of them is Joseph Faulkner, who labored untiringly and with astonishing wisdom and perseverance for the founding of this section of the Andover church. I have been advised by excellent authority that, without his zeal, energy, labor, and money, this handsome building of stone, probably, never would have been erected. He was a calm, patient, persistent man, of unswerving integrity and of unwavering trust. Dr. Jackson wrote of him : "Had he withheld his aid and efforts, probably, this people never would have worshipped God in their present sanctuary. If they had existed at all as a separate parish, it would have been under circumstances far dif- ferent and probably less prosperous."
There are those in this house today who used to see a man of the olden time, with the long, old-fashioned queue hanging down his back, pass along the aisle to the square, high-backed pew of the early days. He was a relic of what was then a historic age. " In his youth he shared in the scenes and sacrifices, the hardship and perils of our Revolution. He had seen the immortal Washington, and served in the armies which that great general led. I refer to Captain Joseph Shattuck, a just man and a faith- ful Christian, who walked with his fellows ninety years, in peace with all men, and was then gathered to his fathers.
Another man who united with this church by profes- sion, on May 5, 1839, and is well worthy of record here, is William Hilton of Frye Village. He lived a pros- perous life and amassed a great fortune. At his death he distributed among his fellowmen a full half million dollars. Of this, fifty thousand dollars were given to Phillips Academy and ten thousand dollars to Abbot Academy.
John Smith and John Dove were connected with the early history of this church. Their great wealth and their generous disposition of no small part of it is known
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to all in this town. They went out in the anti-slavery agitation to found the Free Church, which they, in the main, supported for many years. They were faithful co-laborers with the other members of this Society in the early years, and their names are held in grateful remem- brance here.
Of the charter members of this church, the three deacons were : Zebadiah Abbott, Capt. Solomon Holt, and Ebenezer Lovejoy. The two first served but a brief term, Deacon Holt being removed by death after a ser- vice of two and a half years; Deacon Abbott removing from the parish after a term of six years.
Ebenezer Lovejoy was one of the patriarchs of the parish. Dr. Jackson writes of him: “ He was a vener- able man ; venerable for his age, for his wisdom, for his integrity and firmness, for his example of prolonged use- fulness and his regard for good order and religious in- struction. And venerable, also, as the living progenitor of more descendants than any who survived him or who went before him in this parish, and probably in Andover. He lived only two years short of a century, and outlived every individual in this large and populous town who was alive at the time of his birth." At the time of his death, the number of living descendants recorded to have sprung from him were one hundred and forty-four. Of these, seventy-three were of the fourth generation, four- teen were of the fifth generation. He was a devout and patient student of the Bible, a man thoroughly informed on all the topics of the day, a great reader and careful observer. He was a Christian who adorned the doctrine of Christ, and was at last gathered to his fathers like a shock of corn fully ripe.
Solomon Holt, Jr., so well known to most of you, served this church as deacon faithfully and well for almost three and fifty years. He was a quiet man, gentle and gentlemanly in all his ways, of strictest integrity in all his dealings with his fellowmen. He was a man who
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lived a life of prayer and whose thoughtful, measured, tones are in your ears today, as he led your souls to the throne of grace in yonder vestry and directed your thought to sacred things in words of rich experience and wise and profitable counsel. He had charge of the com- munion service for very many years. A hard-working man, of much care and responsibility, he was always punctual at the house of God and gave a loyal obedience to every divine command. And so walking in consistent fellowship with men, he went home, at last, full of years and honors.
Deacon Jacob Dascomb was elected October 5, 1832, as a fourth deacon to keep pace with the increasing membership of the church. He was a quiet, unobtrusive man, exceedingly tall and in his younger days of remark- ably fine presence ; in later life a little bent as his figure remains in my memory. He was of undoubted piety and earnestly sought to exemplify the life and the Gospel of Christ. A mild-mannered man in all his ways, he pre- sided with his associates at the table of the Lord, with a quiet grace and dignity which left upon us all the im- pression of a reserve force in his character which might be called, upon occasion, into determined action for the right. For a period of forty-two years, he passed the em- blems of the broken body and shed blood of Christ to the members of this church and then went home to drink the new wine in his Father's Kingdom.
Deacon Nathan Mooar was elected October 31, 1850. He was a man whom to know was to love and respect. An unassuming man, he was, in all his ways yet firm in his bearing and dignified in all his acts and words. His voice was never wanting in the service of public prayer and although there was a plaintive note in it his words were earnest, warm and fresh from a heart that knew his God and trusted him. He was a self-contained and well- poised man and his life befitted well his office. His life of good works as deacon covered a period of thirty-seven
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years when his light went out, for God took him where they need no candle, neither light of the sun.
Deacon Peter Smith received that title as the successor of Zebadiah Abbott, October 2, 1832. I have reserved his name until now for the sake of emphasis and I am sure that no one here will deem it unjust to those who were his contemporaries in office. His services to this church and his record as a public benefactor in our town compels especial recognition from us assembled here to consider the makers of our local history. He came to this country in his youth, yet not until he had formed ties in the father-land, religious and other, that were strong enough to draw him back, again and again, to the scenes of his boyhood days. There, in those early years, he laid the foundation for that painstaking care in business which marked his whole career. There he learned that persistence and fortitude under discouragement which gave fiber to his later youth and manhood and there he gained his instruction in the truth of God which gave firmness and fineness to his Christian character when the divine grace came in and made him in Christ, a new creature. He came here in the flush of his young Chris- tian manhood and flung all the energy of his being into the world's work for God, for his own, for humanity. An adopted son of America he chose this country in all loy- alty for his home. Henceforth Scotland was a memory to be cherished, America was a living reality to which he was to commit himself in whole hearted fealty and de- votion. And when his country called, he gave gladly, freely, his best and dearest and with hearty gratitude. His two first born sons he gave without a murmur, and his purse was always open to meet any reasonable call. But to the town of his adoption he gave unstintedly, with a generous hand and an open heart. With his two part- ners, who, in the early days were with him in this church he joined hands in a common service to humanity. They built their own monument in manifold throughout our
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