USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Watertown > History of St. John's Methodist Episcopal Church in Watertown, 1836-1936 > Part 5
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Upon nomination, the following were elected to the Building Committee: L. Sidney Cleveland, chairman, Chester Sprague, George E. Priest, Richard H. Paine, Frank J. Berry, and the
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THE "OLD PARSONAGE" OF THE FIRST PARISH CHURCH, SITE OF PRESENT ST. JOHN'S CHURCH
preacher, Rev. G. M. Smiley, ex-officio. Two months later, April, 1893, the chairman was able to announce that over $18,600 having been subscribed, he would recommend that the previous limit of $20,000 (before operations should commence) be lowered to $18,000, so that the building contracts could be signed. The original vote was reconsidered, and the new $18,000 limit confirmed. At the same meeting Mr. Edward F. Porter desired to be released from the Board of Trustees, feeling that he could not consistently join the other Trustees in building so expensive a church as was planned. All the Board urged him to reconsider, and he eventually did relent, and became a member of the group again.
But at about this time the great monetary and business depres- sion of 1893 suddenly fell upon the whole country, making it abso- lutely impossible to take any further steps with such an expensive undertaking. The annual Trustees meeting a year later, therefore, in May, 1894, had nothing new to report, and operations were at a standstill. In July (1894), however, the panic and depression had somewhat abated, and the men dared to go ahead once more. The contract for building was awarded to Mr. Albert B. Murdough on July 19, a temporary mortgage was taken on the Main Street church property, and work begun.
The corner stone was laid in September, with appropriate and impressive ceremonies witnessed by nearly two thousand people. The principal address at the occasion was by Mr. George E. Priest, who gave a fine historical review. Among the many visiting clergy- men present was the Rev. Edwin H. Hughes, then pastor of the Newton Centre Methodist Episcopal Church, but now Senior Bishop of our Methodist Episcopal Church. Towards the end of the serv- ices, the corner-stone box was exhibited by the minister. It con- tained the historical review as read by Mr. Priest, a copy of the Scriptures, a Discipline containing the laws, rules, and doctrines of the Methodist Church, a report of the last conference meeting, a copy of each of the Boston daily papers, and of Zion's Herald, Epworth Herald, Christian Advocate, Watertown Enterprise, a town report of Watertown, list of taxable valuation of Watertown, the names of the local churches and their pastors, the directories of the Baptist and Congregational churches, a picture of the old Methodist church, directory of the present Church and officers, program of the day's exercises, names of architect and builder, and a portrait of Rev. J. B. Husted, who was in his ninetieth year, of the pastor,
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pastor's wife, and several others. The box was sealed by Mr. Herbert Learned, and the invited guests witnessed the Rev. J. B. Husted place it in position beneath the large stone at the easterly corner of the building .*
In November, a large loan from the Watertown Savings Bank was negotiated, $24,000, by means of a blanket mortgage on both the old Main Street edifice and the new church then under con- struction, rate five per cent. In November, also, an offer of $8,000 for the old property was received, but not accepted, for the following reason : The Trustees had now decided that they would very much like to own the Francis Schoolhouse lot next to the "old parsonage " lot on which they were building. A new Francis School had just been completed between Common and Marshall Streets, and it was hoped that the town might make at least an even exchange, giving the Methodists the old Francis School lot in exchange for the Methodists' old meeting-house property. The town might then build a new town hall on this land, or at least might enlarge Saltonstall Park. Ten thousand dollars was set as the value of the Main Street property. The proposed exchange or purchase fell through, how- ever, and finally the Trustees again put up for sale the Main Street building, in 1895.
All valuable furnishings, the organ, and the beautiful font were of course removed from the old church to the new in the early fall, the new fire insurance policies arranged ($30,000 on building, $5,000 on furnishings, and special accident insurance on the hand- some new memorial stained glass windows), and the splendid new Methodist Episcopal Church in Watertown dedicated, October 22, 1895. The complete, first-hand story of this new edifice is best told by the report of the Building Committee, written by its generous and able chairman, Mr. L. Sidney Cleveland, and read by him at the dedication. But the necessity of keeping the book down to as reasonable a size as possible forces us to omit that report here. Consequently a few miscellaneous facts will serve to close this chap- ter : After many debates, and even a presentation of the case before a Sunday morning congregation, it was voted by the Trustees to continue the old system of two treasuries and two means of church support - first, pew rents, collected by the Trustees to take care of their expenses and paid to their Treasurer; and second, free-will
* All information in this paragraph taken from The Watertown Tribune Enterprise, September 21, 1894 issue.
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NEW METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 1895
offerings and yearly subscriptions, paid to the Treasurer of the Board of Stewards to take care of the current expenses. What really amounted to a third treasury was the Pastor's Fund, consisting of the proceeds from the benevolent offerings taken at different times during the year, and given to the special benevolences of the Church - Missions, Preachers' Aid Society, and others.
The last special anecdote to be included is the sale (full of coin- cidence and reminiscences for some) of the old Main Street Church and land to the Young Men's Catholic Association, for $7,900, through their attorney, Mr. James H. Vahey, in October, 1896. The Association did not use it for long, however, but abandoned it to its mortgagors, who in turn sold it to the town as a site for the Main Street Fire Station, which was built there in 1906.
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CHAPTER VIII
THE DECADE 1897-1907
DEATH claimed two members of the Board of Trustees in 1897, Brother George E. Priest and Brother William H. Perkins. Fitting memorial resolutions were drawn up and sent to the two widows, and the Board sadly went about its increased business without the help of these two respected men. Mr. Priest, a Civil War veteran, had been a member of the Board for more than thirty years, and had been trained since childhood in church service, being the son of that noble founder of the society, Sylvester Priest.
In the fall and winter of 1897, the town made plans for widen- ing Mt. Auburn Street into a fine modern highway, and had to buy some of the church land. The parcel contained 1,147 square feet and was valued by the town at $300, which price the Church received for it in addition to new sidewalks and adjusted grading for the lawns. The $300 was applied towards reducing the note against the Church held by the Union Market National Bank. In November the last money due from the sale of the old church, $6,000, was paid to the Trustees by Patrick S. Cunniff for the Young Men's Catholic Association, and that sum was applied to reduce the large mortgage held by the Watertown Savings Bank.
In 1898 special efforts were made to finish up on the collection of the Building Fund subscriptions, both large and small, and these sums, too, were used to reduce the mortgage at the next interest date. In the same year the Priest family made plans to erect a memorial window to the memory of Sylvester Priest and George E. Priest, a matter encouraged and appreciated by all the Church. Meanwhile, the Trustees worried a lot about what would become of the old Francis Schoolhouse property which had just been put on sale by the selectmen. If a building of inferior grade were erected there, it would detract immeasurably from the appearance of the new Church. When Mr. Frederick A. Whitney heard of this, he pur- chased the land and later on presented it to the Trustees, giving the
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property a much finer and larger lawn. This contribution, on top of his generous gifts with other members of his family towards the Whitney Memorial Window - the largest of our stained glass windows-seemed most remarkable then, but turned out to be just the first of a long series of wonderful gifts to the Church during a period of over twenty years in his lifetime; and this generosity was continued by a provision in his will for large bequests for twenty years following his death! How marvelously fortunate was the Methodist Church in having the loyalty and devotion of such a man.
In 1899 Mr. Whitney wrote to the Trustees outlining various other improvements which he wished to undertake in the course of years to improve the Church. It was therefore voted in September to notify Mr. Whitney that the Board would hold themselves in readiness to cooperate in whatever he desired to do in beautifying and improving the property. He had always cherished the hope that the Church should be given a more specific name, in the man- ner of Episcopal churches, for instance, and therefore an early change at his suggestion was the balloting of the Trustees on the names "St. John" and "St. Paul" for the Watertown Church. The result was five votes for "St. John" and three for "St. Paul," so St. John's Methodist Episcopal Church we became, and the Trustees' By-Laws were altered to read thus, as were also the mortgage notes, stationery, calendars, and other printed matter. Other improvements accomplished the same year, financially made possible by Mr. Whitney, were: the standpipe for the watering carts was removed from the front of the church land; the central aisle of the auditorium was carried through to the altar; a new type of granolithic sidewalk was laid; the Church was wired for electricity; the driveway entrances were adorned with beautifully designed lamp posts; and a new artistic board was placed on the outside of the Church with the new name, St. John's, the order of services, and the minister's name upon it.
During 1900 the Trustees had to raise money for extensive repairs in the basement of the Church, as some of the timbers and all the wood flooring had rotted because of excessive dampness. Mr. Arthur Whitney (a second son of Mr. Leonard Whitney, Jr.) was on this committee on repairs and he, also, was generous in his contribution when the bill ($625) came in for replaced beams and a new granolithic flooring. In the middle of May, 1900, it became
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known that Mr. Frederick Whitney contemplated giving the Church a chime of bells in memory of his mother, Caroline Isabel Russell Whitney, to be made by the Meneely Bell Company of New York. There was considerable discussion as to whether it was desirable to locate the playing apparatus in the vestibule or in the small room in the tower. It was finally voted to locate them in the vestibule, but later on the bell company informed them that the room in the tower would be more suitable, and the first vote was therefore reconsidered. The chime of nine bells was put in place in the late fall, and was first rung at the joyful New Year's Eve service of 1900-01, to ring in the new year. They have ever since remained one of the most unusual and most valuable parts of our fine church property.
Other gifts to the Board were in 1901, when Mr. F. J. Berry gave a large lot in the Common Street Cemetery to be held in the name of the Church for the use of any church friend not otherwise provided for in death, and 1903, when the Ladies' Aid turned over $600 from its treasury to the Trustees to reduce the mortgage held by the Watertown Savings Bank.
In 1905 the question of the "reducing" of the church debt again came up, Messrs. Sprague, Berry, and Paine being appointed a committee on ways and means. As a result of this inquiry, a report was later presented by Mr. Learned showing how sharp was the decrease in pew rentals from 1897 to 1904. In 1897 the rentals collected amounted to $831.30, and in 1904 amounted to only $574, a thirty per cent decrease. Some new means of meet- ing Trustees' expenses was advocated, but none adopted at this time. Mr. Sprague remained in charge of the debt-reducing com- mittee, intending to interest twenty-five men as a nucleus for greater work, and then to make the effort general. From the records of the auditor for 1905-06, we find that $4,000 was able to be col- lected on these new subscriptions, reducing the mortgage to $11,000; a fine start indeed. The people had "gotten their second wind." But the pew rents continued their slide, netting the Trustees only $446 in 1906, a twenty-two per cent reduction from even the pre- vious year, but it was not thought practical to abandon them entirely.
As the 1897-1907 decade ended, the roll of the Board of Trustees read as follows: Chester Sprague, president (Mr. L. S. Cleveland declining to serve in this capacity any longer, his respon-
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sibilities here having lasted so many years), Bartlett M. Shaw, secretary, and Frank J. Berry, treasurer, L. Sidney Cleveland, W. W. Corson, Wilbur F. Learned, Richard H. Paine, Edward F. Porter, and Wallace W. Savage.
The regular church activities during this period had been happy and successful in the new home. Mr. Oliver W. Hutchinson was pastor from 1896 to 1899. The Stewards still had trouble in meeting their proposed budget each year, the deficiencies running from $300 to $500 at various times. Twice this sum was made up by special "Self-Denial" months, usually February, during which the extra money saved by denying oneself certain luxuries was given to the Church's special subscription. At various times Mr. Hutchinson felt that the labors incidental to the erection of the new edifice, the literary and social affairs born of the need for money, and a consequent enfeebled spiritual sense, caused our Church to be less successful in winning men to Christ than it should have been. "The Church," he declared, "is more than a club for ethical culture; we must be the means by which men are saved from their sins, or we shall fail to accomplish a large part of our true mission."
Many pastors following him have justly made the same decla- ration. It is, indeed, a state of affairs against which we always need to guard.
The church membership, balanced by withdrawals or deaths and the arrival of new members, remained about 190, and the vari- ous pastors' salaries stayed at about $1,400 or $1,500; the Sunday School, including teachers and Home Department, reported about 240 members (George R. Emerson, Superintendent), and the Epworth League about 122. Before Mr. Hutchinson left Water- town, he suggested that a flourishing Men's Bible Class on Sundays should be started, if a good teacher could be found. This suggestion was soon carried out by the minister following him.
The Rev. Isaac H. Packard came to the Watertown Church in April, 1899 and remained until the spring of 1904. Very few changes occurred in this pastorate except the innovation of individual cups at communion service in place of the big goblet, or "cup," at the suggestion of Mr. F. J. Berry and the vote of a Quarterly Con- ference. Mr. Packard was a conscientious minister. He longed for the church debt to be paid, and his encouragement was in a large part responsible for the gathering of new subscriptions which took place just after his departure in 1904. His personal efforts, likewise,
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were of no small measure, and in two successive years he gave stere- opticon illustrated travel lectures both in St. John's Chapel and in other churches, turning over the proceeds to the Trustees, $467 in 1900, and $430 the next year! He felt that a new era in church life would be far more easily started if the pew rental system were only to be removed, knowing dozens of families whom pride or prejudice kept at home on account of this system. No action was taken, how- ever, as no new system was advocated to take its place. Mr. C. C. Hodges, under the Packard ministry, had taken over one of the Class Meetings at the death of the revered Mr. Francis Whitcomb. Mr. Hodges had great success with the group, gaining a membership of 50, an average attendance of 23, and the increased usefulness of the members. Brother Hodges was also active in the Sunday School, Epworth League, and the speaking necessary under a Local Preacher's license. Every pastor who came to Watertown felt very grateful towards the energetic and talented Mr. Hodges.
At the Fourth Quarterly Conference of 1904, a heated discus- sion arose over the advisability of keeping a minister in the same charge for more than five years. It was voted by ballot, however, nine to six, to ask that the Rev. I. H. Packard be returned to the Church (necessary for choice, eight affirmative votes). Then it was likewise voted to instruct the delegate to the Lay Electoral Con- ference to request that body to petition the coming General Con- ference in favor of restoring the old "time-limit" rule.
The Rev. Charles W. Holden took over the Watertown Church in April, 1904, and became one of the most beloved pastors on record. He stayed until 1912, the Quarterly Conference in 1909 having repealed a vote they had taken in 1904 concerning the inad- visability of keeping a pastor for more than five years. Mr. Holden continued the popular Men's Class on Sunday noons, conducting it in a manner to include timely topics. Under Mr. Packard, the Junior League had been revived, and it was now a flourishing organi- zation under Miss Gertrude Stevens, leader. The Ladies' Aid Society became a part of the Quarterly Conference by the approval of Mrs. Mary W. Priest, president, as a member of the Conference. Thus from here on we have an annual Ladies' Aid report in the records to give a better idea of the women's activities in supporting the Church. It was in 1904, too, that Mr. Albert F. Leigh was confirmed as leader of the other class, the Church thus having two new and sincere members as leaders of this educational and spiritual work,
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Mr. Hodges and Mr. Leigh. Mr. Hodges at the same time, 1905, was also Superintendent of the Sunday School, which had increased to 372 members with a yearly budget of $214. The Ladies' Aid always hummed with activity, and one of their annual reports is included here, to give you a good idea of the hopes and fears of our predecessors:
"Report of the Ladies' Aid Society (1905). President, Mrs. Mary W. Priest. Vice-Presidents, Mrs. Chester Sprague, Mrs. Henry Chase, Mrs. William Daniel. Secretary, Mrs. Harry E. Hartford. Treasurer, Mrs. Nellie C. Stanton. Managers: Mrs. Nathan B. Hartford, Mrs. L. Sidney Cleveland, Mrs. Ambrose Shipton, Mrs. John Starr, Mrs. Frederick Ritchie, Mrs. Bartlett M. Shaw, Mrs. Curtis Bixby, Mrs. Anna M. Condon.
The regular business meetings, which are held the 2d Tuesday of each month, are well attended. They are opened with devotional exercises and though the business routine is not conducted in a strictly parliamentary way, we all understand what is meant. The spiritual tone of the meetings is above the average, and the important affairs of our church are discussed with great earnestness. Loving messages, signed by all present, are sent to the ill, and to the sorrow- ing - calls are advised - plans for earning money are made. There have been 10 meetings, average attendance 9, none in July or August. Several special meetings for sewing have been held. The first Wednesday in each month is reserved for the church social and supper. There have been 4, the one last Feb. 1904 being given by the Men's Club. We have an excellent kitchen and well-stocked pantry, capable of supplying the proper amount of dishes, etc. for about 200. The supper work is divided into committees arranged alphabetically. The patronage of the suppers varies, and we regret to say that a 25c bill of fare with ice cream free, advertised for 15 cents, packs the dining room, but we hope the time will come when we can cater to 200 people, who are willing to pay what the food is worth - to say nothing of the hard work of preparation. Feb. 1904 there was a Rummage Sale. April 19, an entertainment was fur- nished by our young people, and the same evening a sale was held of useful and fancy articles contributed by this society. In May we assisted at the reception tendered Rev. Mr. Holden and Mrs. Holden. There have been 2 cake sales, and selling Larkin's Soap has helped us out. Oct. 28 we entertained the Methodist Ladies' Aid Union. Over 200 women were present. All our members belong
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to the visiting committee. We especially call upon strangers and those who are ill, not neglecting our well-known friends. Our report is not complete because we have not had our business meeting for this month, but the number so far recorded is 504. There have been several deaths, two of our members having been former Secretaries. The Ladies' Aid is a member of the following societies: The Dea- coness Aid Society - The Meth. Ladies' Aid Union, one of our ladies is on the advisory board - The District Nurse Association of Watertown. One of our ladies is treasurer of the Crittenden Home. We have attended to the parsonage, where call for replenish- ing was very moderate. Pledged $2 per Sunday for current expenses. Bought 10 doz. spoons, 2 doz. tumblers. A gas range for the church kitchen (not paid for). We are always glad to pay the janitor for his invaluable services at the suppers and entertainments.
A little more than a year ago the Ladies' Aid gave to the Trustees toward the church debt $600. For years we had had a bank account, but after that transaction we felt like the parents of Christopher Columbus, poor but respectable, having in our treasury only $2.58.
(Signed) MARY PRIEST, President."
The Ladies Aid annual report for 1905-06 is also full of inter- esting facts. The ladies of the Church had become more and more fond of their pastor's wife, Mrs. Holden, and felt very grateful for her constant hospitality and beautiful courtesies. In October, 1905, the society bought a new gas water heater for the church kitchen, and in the same autumn were urged to give a larger subscription to the new mortgage fund. Although not enthusiastic over the prospect, Mrs. Mary W. Priest, the president, reported that they finally voted $500 more towards the church debt. In November, an automobile trip (!) was made to raise money, and the annual fair and festival was in April. Another constant problem of the group was to decide on what entertainment should be provided after the Ladies' Aid monthly suppers, which should be sufficiently attractive to interest the young people. In this problem how little have the times changed !
The end of the annual Ladies' Aid Society report for 1906-07 will likewise be included in this chapter, as it illustrates very well the activities of more than half the church membership - the ladies:
"Gentlemen! In 10 years the Ladies' Aid has helped you from the getting of this land, to the raising of the debt on the church.
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We have helped in cellar, kitchen, dining room, classroom, library, pastor's room, auditorium, even the vested choir, chairs for chapel, but now we are done (we have plans of our own) as we draw the line on repairing this miserable roof.
TREASURER'S REPORT April 19, 1906
Fair
$343.20
Membership
15.50
Gift from Sunshine Band
5.00
Supplies
I25.34
Lecture.
35.00
$524.04
Paid
Church debt
$400.00
Church expenses
104.00
W. D. N.A.
5.00
Sundries
9.97
$518.97
Belong to the Ladies Aid Union, Deaconess Aid Society, Morgan Memorial, Watertown Woman's Club, Associated Charities, W. D. N. A., W. C. T. U. All doing good work and not neglecting the home.
(Signed) MARY W. PRIEST, Pres."
The Sunday School continued its good work under Mr. Cor- nelius C. Hodges, Superintendent, using its collection from the first Sunday in each month for missions, and from the fourth Sunday for new library books. The largest membership enrollment for the decade was in 1906, 442 names.
The Epworth League also continued as a firmly established part of the church life, holding regular Sunday devotional meetings and monthly socials for a membership ranging from seventy to eighty-five in this period. There is not space to enumerate all the cabinets, and their activities, but a list of all those who are recorded as having held office in some capacity in the 1897-1907 decade can be put down, since many of them later became valuable workers in other church organizations: Willis Hamlin (president), Louise Hutchinson, Marion Townsend, Mabel Cleveland, Lulu Cleveland,
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May Howard, Albert Daniel, Ada N. Tillson, Lucy Lugues, C. C. Hodges, Dwight MacAfee, Eunice Critchett (president), Agnes M. Learned, Edward Chick (president), George B. Hinckley, Mrs. George Hinckley, Curtis W. Bixby, A. W. Cousins, Wallace A. Shipton (president), Mrs. Eva Shipton, W. O. Packard, Nelson Davis, Bernice Hill, Viola Harlowe, Alton Hartford, Mildred Paine, Mabel Perkins, Bertha Packard, Leslie Jarvis, Harry Goding (presi- dent), Gertrude Stevens, Bessie Miller, Evelyn Dailey, Luther Holmes, Ernest C. Morse (president), Eva Latham, Ethel Wells, Alice Corson, Idella Berry.
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