USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Watertown > History of St. John's Methodist Episcopal Church in Watertown, 1836-1936 > Part 2
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A small balcony ran across the back of the Church. Narrow stairs from the front vestibule led to the basement or "ground floor," where the vestry was located, and this vestry was used for stewards' meetings, class meetings, and the Sunday School. (The vestry could also be reached from doors on the Cross Street side.) There was no kitchen, of course, as "church suppers" or any other form of social meeting were considered desecration of church property. Trustees during this period would not even rent the vestry to the local "Singing School" (adults, like our glee clubs). This strict observance of contemporary discipline was also present in other Protestant societies, of course, and was seldom questioned by the truly devout Christians.
In those days it was the custom for all regular attendants of a church to buy a pew, or if this were not possible, to rent part of a pew from some owner. The most desirable pews cost the most, of course, and those in the back or extreme sides, or under the chan- delier (which dripped oil no matter what was done) cost least. It was from this sale of pews that the building of the new structure was principally financed. Nathaniel Ayers, secretary for the Trustees in 1848, reports in his perfectly shaded and handsomely executed writing that the whole "expense" of building the house was $5,900; cost of land on which the Church stands was $1,600; total cost, $7,500. By January, 1848, they had sold thirty-one pews, amounting to $4,270, an average, you see, of nearly $138 a pew, a substantial outlay for a family in those days (they allowed pew holders at the old church some $546 towards their new pews). Sale of the old academy property to the lamented "bonnet factory" had netted them $995. They estimated that when all buyers of the new pews had paid in full, therefore, that their debt would be somewhat over $2,200. There remained unsold in the hands of the Trustees twenty-nine pews, and although they knew these last pews might well be purchased over a long period of time, they could not hope to count them in as immediate assets to defray building expenses. It was therefore decided late in January (1848) to assess each male member "that is able to pay," in order to raise enough money to pay the interest on the debts about to fall due.
The job of collector for the Trustees during this anxious period proved to be so unpopular that almost every Trustees' meeting has to record the resignation of the incumbent and another elec- tion to this office. From the records it is impossible to tabulate all
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who held the original notes against the church property and the exact amounts, or to tell why the Trustees had at one time to pay interest of twelve per cent on this debt. A Mr. Goss is mentioned as having a note on the Church, also Mr. Devoll, Mr. White, Mr. Hollman, Mr. Ritchie, Mr. L. Claflin, as well as numerous Trustees. In April, 1849, the interest money was raised by assessing each Trustee fifteen dollars.
These property notes had been signed by the Trustees to run for about three years, apparently, and by 1850 every Trustees' meeting was taken up by frantic efforts to appease church mem- bers, including some of the Trustees, who now wanted their money back. Collectors and treasurers were elected and would then resign. Mr. Whitney would take up part of the large note Brother Devoll held, and Mr. Priest would take over Brothers Hollman and Ritchie's notes to stop their bothering the poor treasurer. This is probably because Mr. Whitney and Mr. Priest were then better able to help the society than were these other members, who were doubtless themselves pressed by creditors. Meanwhile the accu- mulated debt reached the figure of $3,657. The situation was very unsatisfactory, and of course gave root to many a quarrel, so it was decided to try to raise money to discharge the debt immedi- ately. Prices on the pews remaining unsold were lowered ten per cent, and some more pews were consequently sold; $1,700 was raised by subscription, as well as an amount of about $375 from Trustees who cancelled their demand notes against the Church; the sexton, one Thomas F. Whitney, generously relinquished a salary of thirty dollars due him for the quarter; and over thirty church members gave amounts from one to fifty dollars in a special col- lection.
For three years, methods of this sort were fairly successful, but there came a day in 1853 when Mr. John Devoll, now residing in Weston and holding the largest individual note against the Church, $1,100 (it had been $1,600 at one time), found it necessary to be more importunate regarding its payment. The committee in charge searched for a new method of relieving the situation, and consequently applied to the Cambridge Savings Bank for a mort- gage of one thousand dollars. This was executed on November 10, 1853, and a measure of tranquillity was restored to the Church, which was then able to pay off the smaller notes from time to time by sale of pews and special subscriptions. This original mortgage
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note, quaintly phrased and painstakingly written in a clear long- hand, is in the possession of St. John's Church now, and will always be preserved.
Perhaps too much emphasis has been given to this prolonged financial struggle, because of course the regular religious life of the Church advanced during this period. In May, 1848, J. Augustus Adams was stationed in Watertown and in two years time brought about a "new era" in the evangelism of the Church. For a period of over six years, previous to Rev. Adams, it appears, there had not been a single addition to the membership by conversion, and no unusual religious interest in the Church, a fact deeply deplored by the ministers. But Rev. Adams was able to renew the evan- gelical spirit of the people under his ministry and to pave the way for the successful Rev. Mosely Dwight (1850-52). Mr. Dwight welcomed forty people into church membership and instituted two more Classes, or "Class Meetings," a form of religious instruction and experience much favored in those days. The Sunday School likewise flourished, exceeding the membership of the Church itself, as usual. Rev. Dwight could boast of ninety full members of the Church, but the School had one hundred and forty! And for once, all Stewards' debts were paid - that is, all current expenses were taken care of. In fact, Mr. Dwight contentedly records in April, 1852, "They are resolved, I judge, henceforth to conduct the finan- cial affairs of their church on the cash and prompt payment prin- ciple. The Lord prosper them forever and ever."
The ministerial claims began to be a little larger now, for the ministers of the new Church were married men. The "Estimating Committee" of 1848 had the Quarterly Conference pass the follow- ing "Claim" for Rev. J. A. Adams: House rent, $75; fuel, $25; traveling, $25; table, $125; quarterage (salary), $200. We can only conclude that living expenses were two-thirds to three-quarters less then than now, when the minister, always one of the most respected and considered to be one of the more fairly well-to-do villagers, received a princely total of $450 a year for his work! By 1854, the Rev. Franklin Furber was able to command $650; in 1856 Rev. H. M. Loud, $700; in 1857 Rev. Loud, $800, and from then on a steady rise up through the more expensive Civil War period.
In the autumn of 1854 the church building was seven years old, and already the advantage of its "newness" was gone. A committee on repairs was henceforth a part of the Trustees, and
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this committee now put an assessment upon all pew holders to raise necessary money for repairs. September of this year saw the church and carriage sheds painted by the Messrs. Page and Barnard for $185. The next fall the question of putting in gas pipes was discussed. The more advanced in thought won their point, and the gas lines were laid at a cost of eighty dollars, with the Stewards agreeing to provide for the expense of the actual lighting. In 1856 the roof leaked, and roof repairs, refinishing and painting of the church pews, and additional fire insurance necessitated another "tax" or assessment on pew holders. At this time the pews were "lavishly" fitted with cushions, expense charged to the owner of the pew at actual cost, five dollars per pew. The new cushions looked so fine that the members were inspired to consider refresco- ing the interior of the Church, and at a special meeting of the Trustees on October 13 a sum of $250 was voted to defray the expense of this. Money seemed to be "coming easier," and to be a Trustee became less of a financial hazard than it had been.
The very next month, however, affairs of another nature dis- turbed the Church. It became known about town that the new "Horse Rail Road," which was laying tracks out Mt. Auburn Street from Cambridge, proposed to run the tracks down the lane east of the church land (now Cross Street), and to build a stable in the rear of the property. Sylvester Priest called a special Trustees meeting and Aaron Gay, the secretary, was instructed to write up and present a petition to the selectmen, with Messrs. Brown and Learned. Excitement and indignation at the proposed desecration ran high, and eventually the combined influence of selectmen and churchmen served to prevent the stables being built so close to the Church.
Other Trustees' votes for the year included the removal of the doors from the pews, the sale of the once proud oil lamp chandelier and smaller lamps, and the installation of "handsome " gas fixtures.
The year 1857 saw a sharp rise in prices of all commodities, and church finances mirrored these changes right away. Pew rents of those so unfortunate as not to own one outright advanced ten per cent, as did the whole church budget. The church property in the light of advancing real estate values was decided to be worth $10,000 easily, and therefore was reported at this figure to the General Conference, and insured for an increased amount. As winter came on, complaints from church members forced the
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Trustees to realize that the heating of the larger auditorium was not satisfactory. The committee appointed put in a long and inter- esting winter trying out various furnaces, each one put in free on trial, until finally one, "The Magee Patent," won out, and was installed the winter following at a cost of $60.90. This expenditure, the cleaning of the church gutters, and the gravelling of the walks necessitated the last assessment on pew holders for the 1847-57 decade (which had been a most expensive one for Trustees and pew holders, as you can see).
In the meanwhile the Sunday School had continued its great prosperity, with larger classes each year and a rapidly growing library. In 1857 the superintendent of the School, Brother Black- well, could report a library of seven hundred volumes. As the Watertown Free Public Library was not established until 1868, one can realize the important place this Sunday School library filled, particularly in the lives of the Methodist children and youth.
The Sunday School was a training school for future church members and serious indeed was the business of becoming a church member. The discipline of the organized Methodist Episcopal society stated very definite rules on the correct behavior of church- men, and all people, young and old, were on a special period of probation before they were allowed to become full members. Dur- ing this period they received continuous instruction at the Class Meetings, and if they were dilatory in attendance or zeal, they were simply dropped from the rolls. A modern Methodist might well be surprised at the number of men and women dropped from the Probationers' List as "not suitable for church membership."
The Official Board records of 1853 exemplify our fathers' belief in strict church discipline. Among other things this pro- hibited all card playing, dancing or attendance at the theatre. The following case came up under the ministry of Rev. George Bowler:
"Feb. 21, 1853. . .. Case of L. Watson coming up. Brother Whitney, Jr., moved to lay the case over one month and that Brother Bowler request him to make a public acknowledgment before the church. Cases of Mr. Wells and Miss Bright postponed for one month, and Brothers Whitney, Jr., and Dadman were chosen to labor with them and report at next meeting."
The "case" of Mr. Watson was held over for a month, but by late March, the Board were thoroughly aroused, and the follow- ing action is recorded. "March 28. Board met as per adjournment :
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WATERTOWN
FIRST HORSE CAR TO RUN THROUGH WATERTOWN SQUARE, 1857
WHEN SCHOONERS SAILED THE CHARLES, 1870
Members present: Bros. Bowler, Priest, Gay, Learned, Blackwell, L. Whitney, Jr., Dadman, and Huckins. Prayer by Rev. Bowler. The following are the charges preferred against Lewis Watson - also the citation sent to him by preacher in charge.
Watertown, March 26, 1853.
Dear Brother:
Charges having been preferred against you for violation of rules of discipline, you are hereby cited to appear before a com- mittee of the Board for trial, and in default of appearance, your name will be stricken from the list of members, on Monday eve- ning, March 28, at the Vestry of the M. E. Church at 772 o'clock.
Ist. The charges are for unchristian conduct in attending a Ball and dancing at the same.
2nd. In declining to make acknowledgment of the fault before the church in general class.
3rd. In dancing at a mixed assembly during the last or present week.
By order of the Board of Stewards and Leaders, George Bowler, pastor."
The case ended by the following citation in the Official Board record :
"The committee on the above case reported that the said Watson appeared before them, but positively refused to make any acknowledgment, and they therefore recommended that he be expelled, and on motion of Brother Light, he was accordingly expelled."
A summary of the ministries to the Watertown Methodist Episcopal Church for the 1847-57 decade is as follows: 1847-48, Rev. Daniel Richards; 1848-50, Rev. J. Augustus Adams; 1850-52, Rev. Mosely Dwight; 1852-54, Rev. George Bowler; 1854-56, Rev. Franklin Furber; 1856-57 and 1858, Rev. H. M. Loud.
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CHAPTER IV
THE CIVIL WAR PERIOD, 1857-1867
THE records of the Civil War period are not as full as one might wish, and there apparently was less religious and secular advancement for the Watertown Society during these years. Two hundred dollars was added to the minister's table expenses, bring- ing his estimated "claim" up to one thousand dollars, and that of the presiding elder (district superintendent) was raised to forty dollars. It was during the pastorate of Rev. H. M. Loud, 1858, that members who had been coming to the Watertown Church from Newtonville, separated from us and began preaching services in a hall up there. Of course this withdrawal was keenly felt by the people of the congregation, but they naturally appreciated its necessity.
From 1858-60, Rev. George M. Steele was pastor here, and enjoyed a great popularity all over the town, being elected to serve upon the School Committee and asked to take part in many town functions. Later Mr. Steele became Principal of Wesleyan Acad- emy. The Sunday School enjoyed unusual prosperity through 1860: Superintendent Leonard Whitney, Jr., reporting in November, 217 scholars, 983 library books, and 112 Sunday School Advocate sub- scriptions. Church expenses for the pew holders continued, since repairs were not provided for by the yearly subscriptions or col- lections. The Cambridge Savings Bank note of $1,000 was con- tinued, but some effort was made to collect money to pay off the smaller debts. A new furnace for the downstairs vestry, bookcases for the Sunday School library, and premiums for renewed insurance policies were extra bills over which the treasurer of the Trustees had to worry. It was also magnanimously voted about this time that the pastor should hereafter have a yearly vacation of one week whenever he should see fit to take it. A committee was likewise appointed to search out the church records and write out a careful history of the first twenty-five years of this Methodist Church, a
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history, so it is recorded, which was later copied into a special volume and scrupulously preserved. But this history, which would have been invaluable to the centennial historian preparing this book, seems to have been misplaced or lost. Just what the parsonage furniture was, or even where the early parsonages were located, it is impossible to say from the records. In March 1860, however, a purchase of new furniture for a parsonage is mentioned, and also the preparation of this house to welcome the new minister, Rev. Henry C. Hempstead, in May. But its location is never mentioned.
Political discussions began to interest the men more and more in 1860, the pastor included. Brother Hempstead was 'returned for a second year in 1861, but requested that his salary be lowered to $800, to help the church finances in these troublous times. As the winter of 1861-62 progressed, Mr. Hempstead increasingly wished to take an active part in the War between the States. Finally he obtained his release from the Church and became chaplain of the Twenty-Ninth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers. He was an able, useful, and successful man in this work, and it was extremely regretted by his soldiers and by his former Watertown pastorate when he was killed opposite Fredericksburg, Virginia, in December of 1862.
Mr. Hempstead was succeeded by Dr. Bradford K. Peirce, 1862-63, and Rev. J. L. Hanaford, 1863-64, who were paid $800 a year. The total church expenses were about $1,514, plus benevo- lent collections of $700. From 1864-66 Rev. L. T. Townsend served the society and became very popular in the Church and town. In 1866 he resigned from the ministry and settled down in Watertown, devoting his time to literature, occasional preaching, and civic affairs. As chairman of the Watertown School Board 1869-72, he worked hard on reports which anticipated by several years the struggle for separate church schools by the Roman Catholics. Mr. Townsend believed that all American schools should be wholly national and unsectarian.
In 1865 extensive repairs were again needed in the Church, and the Trustees at first tried to raise the necessary $700 by sub- scription. After six months efforts, this proved impractical, so expenses for the repairs were met by a fifteen per cent assessment on all pews. Work undertaken at this time was the painting of the Church, a new fence, new floor supports and timbers, and tinting of the vestry walls. A report indicates that the Church was insured for $5,500, and the furniture for $1,575.
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Rev. L. D. Stebbins served the Church in 1866-67, salary $1,200, now paid monthly. Unfortunately the Sabbath School seems to have been less prosperous for some five years during this war and post-war period, average attendance having fallen from 150 to 55. This was due only in part to the withdrawal of many teachers when a new Newton Corner Methodist Church and Sun- day School was organized in 1864. Other than that it seems to have been just the lowering of interest observed in the history of many an organization over a long period of time, to be followed by rejuvenation. Trustees of the Watertown Methodist Church, as this war period ends, were George E. Priest, Sylvester Priest, Nathaniel Ayers, Henry Chase, William A. Wilson, Leonard Whitney, Jonas Phelps, Samuel Learned, 2d, and E. B. Blackwell.
There must also have been a ladies society in the Church similar to our "Ladies' Aid," but as no records from it have been preserved, what scanty information we have comes from infrequent notices in the Official Board books. In these years the group was called the Ladies' Benevolent Society, and it worked to help furnish the parsonage, along with the Board of Stewards and Leaders.
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WATERTOWN SQUARE, LOOKING WEST, BEFORE 1860, SHOWING METHODIST CHURCH, TOWN HALL, AND SPRING HOTEL
CHAPTER V
AFTER THE CIVIL WAR, 1867-1877
THE minister appointed to the Watertown Methodist Church in 1867 was the Rev. J. M. Bailey, and he certainly stepped into a discouraging situation. Sunday School and church attendance was small, church membership was no larger than it had been twenty years before, Class Meetings had declined in popularity and influ- ence, and finances were in as bad a state as they ever had been. At about this time the Trustees, especially urged by Brother Leonard Whitney, Jr., were even considering a plan of uniting with the Methodist Society at Newton. The Newton Corner group had not yet built their church edifice, and committees from both soci- eties met to consider building a new and joint church between Newton Corner and Watertown village, since, in Mr. Whitney's opinion, the Watertown Church was financially unable to exist another year. It seemed that times had never been so hard with the people. Moreover, all Trustees agreed that internal discord of various sorts, especially the differences between a certain promi- nent churchman and a former pastor, had weakened the unity of spirit necessary to both the spiritual and worldly success of the society. Eventually Mr. Whitney was reconciled to continuing as they were. His reconciliation was entirely needful, for he was by far the largest single contributor to the struggling Church at this time. So the following Board of Trustees bound themselves to help the Stewards in every possible way (February, 1868): Messrs. Sylvester Priest, Leonard Whitney, Sr., Nathaniel Ayers, William H. Dadman, John W. Coffin, Oliver Shaw, Bradshaw Whitney, Charles H. Shepard, and Frank J. Berry.
After the New England Conference of May, 1868, the Church was again served by Rev. Daniel Richards, the pastor under whose leadership this Main Street church building had been erected in 1847. Mr. Richards' pastoral reports are the longest and most com- plete of all records St. John's possesses, and only lack of space pre-
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vents us from reproducing each intimate report he prepared for the Quarterly Conferences of his two-year stay. Along with church doings, he recorded national events of importance, always with a thought of those who should be reading his reports "after 1900."
Mr. Richards must have been one of the most diligent pastors the village ever had, and he started out immediately to find new families to bring into the Church. His aim was to get one hundred families. But he soon had rightful fault to find, and his message of September 8, 1868, has many quaint phrases: "The people are not social with strangers; pass them by and not speak in store, post office, and car, and will not speak! These 'Watertownites' are cold, unsocial, undemonstrative; and let a stranger come to town, and whom they know at once, and they let him go around, spending his precious time trying to make their acquaintance, and will not help him by a little forwardness to speak! This is an error somewhat grave, and certainly not Methodistic. If the people would only make me know them a few times, I should recognize them all in one quarter. This would save me much valuable time and add to the pleasantness and utility of the pastorate. The people know me. If I knew them as they me, I certainly should speak to everyone.
The pastor has made the acquaintance of one pastor in the vil- lage (Brother Bell, Congregationalist), and with him has exchanged; the other pastors for the present pass him by in street, car, and store, with no recognition. He is ready to make their acquaintance any day and to reciprocate any Christian and professional courtesies (which do not involve a compromise of basic truths) but he thinks it is not his duty to seek them out first, as it might seem to be intrusive and rude, and uncomplainingly waits a 'welcome' from them when they please."
Mr. Richards wished to make his reports as interesting as he could ... "to be transmitted to the large church of the future in Watertown, who will smile at our littleness and leanness and rejoice that they live in better times!"
Even our respected grandparents were not always thoughtful of a kind minister's feelings, it seems. Anent this, the pastor con- tinued: "The congregation seems attentive and in sympathy with the Sabbath services, for the most part. But want of attentiveness and lack of sympathy, breaks the preacher's power more than any attempt to annoy outside."
The result of the presidential election of November 3, 1868,
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seemed a godsend to Mr. Richards, and he was certain that after 1900 we readers would look back with gratitude on that hour (elec- tion of Grant).
At about this time the people began to wish for a bell in the steeple. There was only one church bell in town - a cracked one giving out uncertain tones from the First Parish Church. A bell, the minister felt sure, too, would draw many a wanderer and neglector to the house of God.
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