USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > Fall River > History, annals and sketches of the Central Church of Fall River, Massachusetts : A.D. 1842-A.D. 1905 : with portraits and views > Part 18
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His study was on the Rock Street side of the old church edifice, and one, now living, attests to his early winter walks to the church, lantern in hand.
Another member recalls an evening meeting, when, at a pause, it was suggested that the pastor take his chair and become one with the people. This at the time did not meet with his approval. The following Thursday, however, after the opening prayer, he took his seat with the audience, and the meeting proved so pleasant, inspiring, and successful, that the custom was often followed.
A close friendship, not unlike that of David and Jonathan, existed between Dr. Thurston and the Rev. P. B. Haughwout of the First Baptist Church of this city. For many years their monthly exchange of pulpits gave pleasure and mutual benefit to their congregations.
Dr. Thurston's life stands before us, a living monument to God's praise, and will so stand as long as the Church remains.
He was a " cornerstone " well fitted and rounded out, a chosen vessel fit for the Master's work.
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Rev. Michael Burnham, D.D. An Appreciation
IT was a kind providence which brought Mr. Burnham to the Central Church as the successor of Dr. Thurston in the pastorate.
Although young and inexperienced in the ministry, his zeal for the work, and the entire consecration of his soul to the sacred calling, soon won to him the hearts of his people, and he has retained their warm affection and interest through all the years of his absence, as is witnessed by the fact that he has been recalled to preach for us almost every summer since he left Fall River, and our people have shown their delight each year in welcoming him back to his old pulpit.
The strong attachment so immediately felt for Mr. Burn- ham was largely due to his genuine and keen sympathy with his people, in their grief at the loss of their well-beloved pastor who had ministered to them for twenty years.
Mr. Burnham so truly entered into the experiences of his Church that he seemed to feel a personal share in their sorrow, and his intuitive understanding of Dr. Thurston's character was always so appreciative that it was difficult to realize the fact that the two men had never met. Indeed, the desire voiced by Mr. Burnham at his first service with us after his installation, that the mantle of Dr. Thurston might fall on him, seemed by his people to have been answered when the new pastor was permitted to see the fulfillment of the plan so near to the heart of the old pastor, that we should build a sub- stantial and beautiful house of worship, which should fittingly express the zeal and devotion of the people.
Mr. Burnham was an eloquent and persuasive preacher. His natural gifts of expression were far beyond the ordinary, and his sermons were rich in allusion and illustration. He was unusually gifted in prayer, and in the prayer-meeting, both as leader and speaker, he was inspiring and impressive. But his greatest power and influence lay chiefly in his winning
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personality, - the man himself, his sincerity, his earnestness, his whole-souled devotion to Christ and his kingdom; and above all, his human interest, the unaffected and warm out- going of his heart toward individuals, and his desire to help and to save. These were the qualities which so endeared him, not only to the people of his own church, but to hundreds outside his own parish, and which lent a peculiar charm and persuasiveness to all his public utterances. As one has lately written of him, " For those closest to him, that which overtops all in his character, is his wonderful capacity for sympathy, as pastor and friend; he is a modern 'Greatheart.' "
The Church continued to grow and flourish during Mr. Burn- ham's ministry. The congregations were large and interested, and the prayer-meetings were so well attended that it was difficult for a late-comer to find a seat. Mr. Burnham was very successful in inducing the people, young and old, to take active part in the meetings, and there were scores who were in the habit of speaking or praying, so that the meetings main- tained a high degree of interest and profit. Mr. Burnham was so popular and attractive, both as preacher and pastor, that he united all classes, and drew into the Church many who, though poor in this world's goods, proved themselves by their active interest and service, to be rich towards God. The majority of such additions to the church membership were the fruit of Mr. Buck's loving labors, but their connection with the Central Church was largely determined by their respect and admiration for its pastor.
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Notwithstanding the success of Mr. Burnham's ministry, the years brought many burdens and trials which tested the endurance and faith of the pastor. The present church building was erected in the early years of his ministry, but the load of debt which later rested on the Church, mainly resulting from the depreciation and lack of sale of the old church property, was a source of depression and worry. When this load was lifted and the debt paid (1880), it was done at the cost
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of great personal effort and sacrifice on the part of Mr. Burn- ham.
It was during his pastorate, also, that the Church lost two most generous and loyal supporters, in the deaths of Col. Richard Borden and Dr. Nathan Durfee. Death also invaded the pastor's own home, and claimed two interesting and lovely little children; there were, besides, other trials and disap- pointments, so that the pastor's health began to give way under their accumulated weight.
He could not throw off these troubles with the buoyancy of one whose sympathies were less keen and sensitive. He bore his people on his heart, and the burden of responsibility and trial told so heavily on his health, that when he received a call to Immanuel Church, Roxbury, in 1882, he felt it wise to accept this opportunity for change of scene and work, to the great regret of the Church and the whole city.
Mr. Burnham's subsequent history, as pastor of the churches in Roxbury, Springfield, and St. Louis, has but proved and ripened his talents, and added, year by year, to his reputation as one of the strong men of the denomination. All his charges have been in churches of prominence and of the first standing. In all of them he has sustained himself with marked ability and success. His wife, whom he married February 8, 1871, four months after his installation, was Miss Cassandra V. Washburn, of Abington, Mass. She has always been a helpmeet for him, - cheerful, warm-hearted and cordial, full of energy, and extremely useful in all the work of the Church and parish. She has been beloved by all who have known her.
Five children have been born to Dr. and Mrs. Burnham, - four of them during the Fall River pastorate. Of these, the two oldest only are now living, - a son, Edmund Alden, like his father a Congregational minister, and a daughter, Mary Wesley, now Mrs. Nathaniel S. Kaime, of Denver, Colo.
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It was at his daughter's home in Denver, that Dr. Burnham's death occurred, April 15, 1905. The news of this event brought deep sadness to this Church and congregation, as the telegram announcing the fact was read from the pulpit at the morning service, Sunday, April 16. Dr. Burnham had been in failing health for some months, and the determination of the Pilgrim Church to build a new house of worship in a different location had led to the resignation of Dr. Burnham from his charge at St. Louis, since he felt that he had not the strength to carry the church through this new experience. He and Mrs. Burnham had been but a few weeks with their daughter, in Denver, where they had hoped much from rest and change of air, when the fatal illness seized him.
At the annual meeting of the Central Church, on Monday evening, April 17, a committee was appointed to attend the funeral at Essex, on Thursday, and the following resolutions presented through Deacon Charles J. Holmes, were adopted :
We learn, with sincere and heartfelt sorrow, of the death of our beloved former pastor, Rev. Michael Burnham, D.D., and desire to place on record this expression of our affection and esteem for him, and our tender sympathy for the bereaved family. Dr. Burnham's life became intertwined with the life of the Central Church to a remarkable degree. He came to the Church fresh from his seminary studies, and at once won the hearts of the whole parish. The twelve years of his pastorate, from 1870 to 1882, were eventful ones in the life of the Church, including, as they did, the building, dedication, and freeing from debt of our present edifice. Dr. Burnham was possessed of a peculiarly sympathetic nature, and all the burdens of the members of his parish became his own personal burdens. He lavished his strength upon the people he loved, and he gained from them, in return, a love and esteem which the passing years have not at all dimmed. In his various relations with outside interests, - mis- sionary, educational, and civic, - he was a wise and faithful counselor and helper.
Our earnest prayer is, that the comfort which he brought to so many hearts in our congregation may be granted in full measure by the " God of all comfort," to the sorrowing widow and children.
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In moving the adoption of the resolutions, Deacon Henry H. Earl spoke as follows:
In the death of Dr. Burnham, the Central Church loses one of the most dearly beloved of its former pastors. Though compelled by ill- health to retire from his official relation with this Church, he never lost his love and affection for this, his first pastorate, - a love and affection maintained through all the succeeding years of his ministry, and cor- dially reciprocated by his people then and now. Intensely sym- pathetic in his nature, a man broad minded, considerate, conservative, he lavished his strength and affection on the objects of his love, which included not only his immediate parishioners, but humanity at large.
Hence he was most faithful in all the work of his several pastorates; however large and exacting, - in his trusts as an official of institutions of learning, in his membership on domestic and foreign missionary boards, with his ministerial brethren, in his civic relations. Of the sturdy New England stock, he was always loyal to the most cherished convictions and the highest ideals of New England life. We are sad to think that we shall have him with us no more.
The committee appointed to attend the funeral comprised Deacon and Mrs. Charles J. Holmes, Deacon and Mrs. Charles A. Baker, Deacon and Mrs. Newton R. Earl, Mr. C. V. S. Remington, Mr. Albert F. Dow, Mrs. Eli Thurston, Mrs. R. K. Remington, and Mrs. William Carr.
The funeral services took place at the little church in Essex, and consisted of prayer by the pastor of the church, Rev. Mr. Lathrop; reading of Scripture by Rev. Mr. Capen, a classmate of Rev. Edmund A. Burnham; an address by Presi- dent Harris of Amherst, who was a room-mate of Dr. Burn- ham at Andover and a close friend; prayer by Rev. Dr. Barton of the American Board; two vocal selections sung by Mrs. Edmund Burnham; and benediction by Rev. Dr. Patton, recently of St. Louis, but now a secretary of the American Board. After the benediction, Deacon Charles J. Holmes . arose, and asked the privilege of saying a few words; then, in trembling accents, he gave a brief but most touching and tender tribute to his dead friend, alluding to his connection
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with Central Church, and the strong personal ties between Dr. Burnham and himself. The body was laid to rest in the Essex church-yard, where seven generations of the Burnham family are buried. His body, indeed, rests in the little country church-yard, but his spirit has entered in " through the gates into the city," where he is realizing the blessedness of that " communion and fellowship with the saints in light," to which he looked forward with such joyful anticipation and confidence, - a confidence stayed on Him who is our " God forever and ever."
Rev. Eldridge Mix, D.D.
THE fourth pastor of the Central Congregational Church was REV. ELDRIDGE MIX, D.D.
He was born in Atwater, Ohio, January 15, 1833. His ancestors were among those brave and progressive New Englanders, who, early in the nineteenth century, emigrated from New England and settled the Western Reserve, and whose descendants have been so prominently identified with our national life.
In early manhood, he entered Williams College and came under that great educator, Mark Hopkins, graduating in 1854. From college, he entered Andover Theological Seminary, from which he was graduated in 1860; on December 6, 1860, he was ordained by the First Presbytery of New York City. In 1861, he married, at Wilton, Conn., Miss Susan Willard.
He was assistant pastor of the West Presbyterian Church in New York, from October, 1860, to November, 1861; pastor of the First Congregational Church, Burlington, Vt., from September, 1862, to September, 1867; pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, Orange, N. J., from September, 1867, to June, 1881. The degree of doctor of divinity was conferred on him by Princeton University in 1878. He was installed as
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pastor of the Central Congregational Church, Fall River, in October, 1882. He resigned this pastorate in May, 1890.
He was a faithful and devoted pastor and an earnest preacher, whose constant endeavor was to follow in the foot- steps of Christ. By his preaching and life, he held before men the great truth, "To save lost humanity, the invisible God came to dwell among us in form of man, and willed to make himself known by this single sign, 'Love.'" Or, in his own words, " We look upon One strangely like ourselves, - One who has bowed the heavens and come down to us; who, though the mighty maker of the universe, has stooped to be the Saviour of men."
His life of christian strength is based upon and inspired by christian faith; a noble life of self-effacement, in which the Christ spirit such as the world seldom sees is largely exhibited; a heart of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long- suffering, and, " above all these things," love.
As pastor of the Central Church, he was greatly beloved by his parishioners, and ever held by them as a devoted christian man; he was esteemed by the ministry at large, pre-eminently " as a workman that needeth not to be ashamed." The ele- ments which marked his character were, great dignity and refinement of manner, unselfishness, sympathy, and integrity.
He loved the Central Church and all its varied services, and his affection for it has ever been maintained during these later years since his pastorate. He loved intensely the Sabbath morning of worship, with its music and its grand old hymns of inspiration; he rejoiced to join with heart and voice with the great congregation as they sang together,
I love thy church, O God!
Beyond my highest joy, I prize her heavenly ways, Her sweet communion, solemn vows, Her hymns of love and praise.
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The evening hour of prayer and praise was also one of great comfort and joy to him. He firmly believed and preached the great truth, that " the gospel alone can solve the large prob- lems of the world," and that to advance the onward and up- ward movement, to elevate and christianize all mankind, is the high calling of the church. He loved and took great delight in the home and social life of his people; to him, home was the kindest, dearest place in all the world, - " the blossom of which Heaven is the fruit," an Eden spot, whose gateway led into the church and the life of christian privilege and service.
He was intensely interested in all the different branches of the church work,- its missionary efforts both at home and abroad; the Sabbath school and Young People's Society; its many beneficent works; especially the Pleasant Street Mission, so successfully and wisely carried forward by his colaborer and beloved friend, Rev. E. A. Buck.
He firmly believed in and advocated systematic giving.
He endeavored to lead his people into personal work in winning men into the kingdom of God.
He has keenly felt the deaths of his steadfast and loyal friends, and the afterglow of their noble and devoted lives will not soon fade from his memory. " But if there was no night, we should not see the stars," and in all the changes and sorrows of life he has been enabled to say, " The Eternal is a rock and a strong refuge."
A man of marked executive ability, Dr. Mix for a number of years past has been superintendent of the large mission work of the Congregational churches of Worcester. He has been enabled to do a grand work in this large field.
On February 22, 1905, Mrs. Mix was called to her " Father's house." She was a woman of refinement and culture, of gentleness and sincerity, loving the kingdom of God and devoted to its promotion. Her grace and sweetness of character will long be remembered here. "And it shall
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come to pass that at evening time, it shall be light," and so shall
The voice that once said, " Peace, be still," Now whispers softly, " Fear no ill."
And when the " twilight is gently closing in " shall glad hands be stretched forth to welcome home, and, oh, joy! the Master's " well done."
On the church calendar of February 26 was written, " The hearts of our people go out in tenderest sympathy for Dr. Eldridge Mix and his daughter, in their great sorrow at the death of Mrs. Mix."
Rev. William Walker Jubb
REV. WILLIAM WALKER JUBB, the fifth pastor of Central Church, was of English birth and education. When seventeen years of age he joined his mother's church, the Methodist, and when about twenty, he began to preach. Later Mr. Jubb left that denomination for what he thought to be " the freer life of Congregationalism." After some time spent in study, he was settled over his first Congregational church (1864) in Ilkeson, Derbyshire.
He visited this country in 1881, when secretary of the Congregational Irish Missionary Society, and presented the claims of that organization in Boston, New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia.
Ten years later, he visited the United States, when he was introduced, by mutual friends, to the Central Church, - at that time without a pastor. The result of this introduction was the installation, September, 1891, of Mr. Jubb as fifth pastor of the Church, which office he retained for five years, when he resigned and returned to England.
Mr. Jubb was a man of great ability; eloquent as a speaker, and with a ready flow of language; a persuasive orator, genial
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and sympathetic. He was well-read in the best literature, and, when called upon for public addresses, more than filled the expectation of his audience. Mr. Jubb died in Illesley, near London, in March, 1904.
MRS. MARTHA JUBB, wife of Rev. W. W. Jubb, was a cul- tured English gentlewoman, endowed with many superior qualities of mind and heart, a woman whose presence was always felt for good in whatever position she might be placed. She was conscientious, spiritually minded, and earnestly devoted to the best interests of the Church. She returned to England with Mr. Jubb, in 1896.
Rev. William A. Knight
THE sixth pastor of the Central Congregational Church, the REV. WILLIAM A. KNIGHT, began his pastorate in October, 1897, and served the Church until January, 1902. He was the son of the Rev. Allen A. Knight and Mary A. (Robeson) Knight, and was born in Milton, Mo., October 20, 1863. His education was received in the public schools of Cleveland, Ohio; in Adelbert and Hiram colleges; and in Oberlin Theological Seminary; while recent study at Harvard has won for him the degree of master of arts. He was ordained to the ministry, September 4, 1886. In November of the same year he was married to Miss Maude Russell, of Aurora, Ohio, who with two daughters, Ethel and Gertrude, constitute their family.
After pastorates in the Madison Avenue Congregational Church of Cleveland, and as associate pastor in the First Presbyterian Church of the same city, Mr. Knight went to the First Congregational Church of Saginaw, Mich., and thence was called to the pastorate in this city. The years which he spent with the Central Church were years of active, devoted service, with special emphasis, perhaps, upon the work among the young people.
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A man of Mr. Knight's temperament could not be long in a manufacturing city like Fall River without having his sym- pathies aroused in behalf of the "toilers," and he became known, not only in the Church, but in the city at large, as the friend and champion of the poor and unfortunate of whatever name or class, and as an untiring advocate of peace and justice for all.
Personally, Mr. Knight is a man of deep spiritual nature, and of unswerving persistence in carrying out his convictions of duty, at whatever cost. Coupled with these sterner char- acteristics, are the most tender sympathies, and an artistic temperament which reveals itself very happily in his sermons and literary work. He is a constant student of the Bible, and his peculiar literary gift has found in " THE BOOK " material for its use, in song and story. Among other writings, he has published a little booklet, " The Song of Our Syrian Guest," an interpretation of the Twenty-Third Psalm, which has had a very large circulation, and has appealed to many a heart, the world over.
Mr. Knight left Fall River in response to an earnest call to assume the pastorate of Berkeley Temple, Boston, but after a year's service in this large institutional church, he became the pastor of the Brighton Church, in the same city, where he is now enjoying a fruitful ministry.
He has been called to public service, as a director of the Massachusetts Home Missionary Society, the Boston City Missionary Society, and as a member of the Committee on Labor of the National Council.
Rev. Clarence F. Swift, D.D.
REV. CLARENCE F. SWIFT, D.D., was born in Oberlin, Ohio, in 1861, and graduated from Oberlin College in 1883. After a year in Oberlin Seminary, he completed his theological course
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in Union Theological Seminary, New York City, where he graduated in 1886, and at once began his first pastorate in Smyrna, N. Y.
In the same year he married a college classmate, Miss Janet H. McKelvey, of Sandusky, Ohio, who has been a most active and efficient helper in every department of his work, and who with two daughters now constitute his family.
In 1888, Dr. Swift accepted a call to the New England Congregational Church of Saratoga Springs, where he served for six and a half years. In 1894, he took up the work with the Plymouth Church in Lansing, Mich. During this pastor- ate, a volume of his sermons entitled, " The Treasure and the Vessel," was published by the young people of his church, largely for circulation among the members.
In 1899, the Park Avenue Church of Minneapolis drew Dr. Swift away from Lansing, and in 1902, he was called from that field to take up his work in Fall River.
In June, 1900, the degree of doctor of divinity was conferred on him by Knox College, Galesburg, Ill.
He is logical and forceful in his sermons, - preaching with- out notes. His interest in theology is largely practical, being much less concerned with " truth for truth's sake " than with " truth for righteousness' sake."
Rev. Edwin A. Buck
REV. EDWIN AUGUSTUS BUCK was born in Bucksport, Me., May 31, 1824. Mr. Buck's parents were James and Lydia (Treat) Buck, - the former a country merchant in the town of Bucksport.
Edwin left home at fourteen years of age for Bangor, where he served as clerk in a store. During this time he suffered from an accident which kept him at home for some weeks. He always counted this event as the turning-point in his life's
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history. It was at this time that his mind inclined to thoughts of study.
With a natural aptitude for business, and flattering pros- pects offered him by his employer, the decision to obtain an education by his own efforts and consecrate all his powers to the service of the Master, was a victory over self, and he never swerved from this life purpose. He prepared for college at Phillips Academy, Andover. Thence he went to Yale and was graduated in the class of 1849.
Three years later he was graduated at Bangor Theological Seminary. One year of his theological course was taken in Andover Seminary, Andover, Mass.
In January, 1853, he was married to Miss Elmira R. Walker, of Medway, Mass. For twenty-four years, she shared his labors and faithfully fulfilled the duties of wife and mother in a home where love reigned supreme. She died the 16th of February, 1877.
Mr. Buck began his work as preacher, in Pownal, Me., in 1852. On May 31, 1854, he was ordained and settled as pastor over the Congregational church in Bethel, Me., where he continued till March 23, 1859. From March 30, 1859, to December 1, 1867, he was pastor of the Congregational church in Slatersville, R. I. In December, 1867, he was appointed missionary at Fall River, and began his work immediately.
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