History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 138

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1464

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II > Part 138

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dollars. After nearly two years the Rev. Henry was composed of twenty-eight members, equally di- vided between the sexes. The first pastor was in- stalled on the same day. Mr. Wilson became one of Blanchard was installed on the 4th of May, 1873. Mr. Blanchard came into the parish from among the Universalists, and when he left returned into that fold. | the deacons, and probably the first. He had long But while with the Church of the Unity, he sought, in a printed letter addressed to his parishioners, to define more exactly their dogmatic position by this utterance : " We stand for liberty of thought and Christianity. We define this latter, in the words of Noalı Webster, to be 'the system of precepts and doctrines taught by Jesus Christ.' We learn these from the words of the teacher as they are taught in the New Testament." Mr. Blanchard's resignation was dated March 4, 1880, and was accepted to take effect on the Ist of April following. The Rev. Roland A. Wood, by birth an Englishman, was installed as his successor on the 1st of June, 1881. On the 14th of September, 1884, he resigned his office, and on the 1st of January, 1885, the resignation took effect. A year elapsed before another minister was settled ; during this interval extensive improvements were made upon the church edifice by the construction of parish rooms and a general application of decorative art. The cost of this outlay was fifteen thousand dollars. In this renovated and attractive editice the Rev. Calvin Stebbins was installed as the fifth minister of the Church of the Unity in January, 1886.

In the autumn of 1888 Mr. Stebbins and other Unitarians began a mission of that order near New Worcester. By the 27th of Jannary, 1889, the enter- prise had made such progress that measures were then adopted for the organization of the third Unitar- ian Society in Worcester. At that date every pros- pect favored the consummation of the plan.

BAPTISTS-First Baptist Church .- James Wilson was the founder of the Baptist Societies in Worces- ter. He was a layman who came here from England, bringing his Baptist principles with him. On his arrival he found no one in Worcester like minded with himself save two old persons and Dr. John Green, who soon disappeared, leaving him alone. Trinitarian Congregationalism and Unitarian Con- gregationalism were in complete possession of the ground, with two doughty doctors of divinity to maintain it against all comers. But Mr. Wilson was neither dismayed, nor converted, nor driven away He had a great staying quality, and because of it the Baptist idea at last took root and flourished. From 1795, the year of his coming, until the constitution of the First Baptist Church, in 1812, he kept the faith, occasionally had meetings for religious worship in his dwelling-house, and did what he could to nourish the seed he had planted. In time an association was formed, occasional preaching was had and the Cen- tre School-house was rented for Sunday service. "Opposition applied the spice." On the 28th of September, 1812, the Rev. William Bentley was em- ployed on a salary; on the 9th of December "the Baptist Church in Worcester " was constituted. It

before won the respect and confidence of his fellow- townsmen, so that, in 1801, he had been made the postmaster of Worcester, and he so continued until his removal to Ohio, in 1833. The creed of the church is given at length in Lincoln's "History." In the year 1813 the first meeting-house was begun and completed, and on the 23d of December was dedicated. It stood on the site of the present build- ing. Mr. Bentley remained in charge until the 3Ist of June, 1813, when he asked and obtained a dis- mission. On the 3d of November, in the same year, the Rev. Jonathan Going accepted a call to the va- cant pulpit. He remained till January, 1832, when, at his own request, he, too, was dismissed. The rea- son which he assigned for this step was, " that he might devote himself to the interests of home mis- sions, especially in the valley of the Mississippi." He had visited the West the year before, and had come back greatly pressed in spirit to go to its help. Dr. Going was a remarkable man. He had been edu- cated beyond many of his Baptist brethren, while his natural powers were of a superior order. In advance of his contemporaries he had a vision of the wonder- ful future of the great Western valley, and deter- mined to do his part in giving it a set towards the right. Without loss of time the Rev. Frederic A. Willard stepped into the pulpit left vacant by Dr. Going. He was a graduate of Amherst in the class of 1826. The year before coming to Worcester he had received, but declined, an appointment to the professorship of chemistry in Waterville College. Having remained with the Worcester church till July 30, 1835, he then resigned, to become later the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Newton. He was succeeded, on the 27th of October, by the Rev. Jonathan Aldrich, who, after seeing the church en- larged, by the addition of two hundred and eighteen members, took his dismission in May, 1838. In April of the following year the Rev. Samuel B. Swaim became the pastor, and so remained for more than fifteen years. He was a graduate of Brown University in the class of 1830; in 1835 he had ac- cepted a professorship of theology in Granville Col- lege, which the poverty of the college had not al- lowed him to retain. His ministry was one of great power. Under it the church " attained its highest numerical, social and financial condition." His

death, at the age of fifty-five years, was felt to be nothing less than a calamity. In 1855 the Rev. J. D. E. Jones became the next pastor. After holding his office during four years he resigned it, in 1859, to be- come superintendent of public schools. He was suc- ceeded by the Rev. Lemnel Moss, on the 14th of Au- gust, 1860. Remaining until the 25th of July, 1864, he then resigned his pulpit. Dr. Moss subsequently

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became president of Indiana State University. On the first Sabbath in April, 1865, the Rev. H. K. Pervear entered upon his duties as the next pastor of this church. On the last day of the year 1872 his pastorate came to an end, and on the 1st day of April, 1873, the Rev. B. D. Marshall began his la- bors as the ninth pastor of the First Baptist Church. After a service of fourteen years Dr. Marshall re- signed his office on the last Sabbath in March, 1887. His successor, the Rev. George C. Craft, was in- ducted iuto office in January, 1888.

The present church was erected in the time of Mr. Aldrich, on the site of the original building, which had been destroyed by fire. It was a larger and finer building than the first, and from time to time under- went important improvements, the latest of which, in 1888, involved an expenditure of nine thousand dollars.

Second Baptist Church .- This was a colony from the First Church. It was constituted on the 28th day of December, 1841, with ninety-eight members, of whom eighty-nine were from the parent church. Iu one year one hundred more were added. The first preacher was the Rev. John Jennings, and the first place of worship was the Town Hall, where religious services continued to be held till the close of 1843. On the 4th of January, 1844, the new house of worship on Pleasant Street was dedicated. No society was organized; the business of the body was transacted by the church, which was the owner of the property. The Rev. Mr. Jennings had be- come the pastor early in 1842, and he resigned his charge on the 27th of November, 1849, after nearly eight years of successful service. His succes- sor was the Rev. Charles K. Colver who accepted a call to the pastorate on the 14th of April, 1850. After four years of service failure of health obliged him to resign his place. The next pastor was the Rev. Daniel W. Faunce, who entered upon his duties on the 1st of September, 1854.

In the year 1856 the house of worship was repaired and remodeled "at a large expense." The front was rebuilt because of the change in the street grade ; the style of architecture was altered and a tower added. In 1860 Dr. Faunce tendered his resignation, to take effect on the 30th of April. On the 11th of June following the Rev. J. J. Tucker accepted a call to the pastorate, but after a service of fifteen months felt compelled, by the force of circumstances, to re- sign his place on the 30th of September, 1861. For nearly a year the church was without a pastor; then it was fortunate in securing the services of the Rev. David Weston. Having accepted a call some weeks before, he was duly ordained in August, 1862, as the fifth pastor of the Pleasant Street Church. Dr. Weston fulfilled his office with great satisfaction to the people of his charge for more than eight years, and then, on the 25th of November, 1870, laid it down " to engage in another sphere of labor." The

church, in a series of tender resolutions, bore its tes- timony to him as "a ripe scholar, skillful sermouizer and sound theologian."

Two ministers in succession were now called, but both declined the call. Ou the 7th of June, 1872, the Rev. I. R. Wheelock received a call, accepted it on the 10th of July, aud was ordained on the 1st of August. After nearly three years his resignation was accepted on the 28th of March, 1875. He was followed by the Rev. Sullivan S. Holman, who was installed on the 10th of June of the same year. Having accepted a call to another field of labor, Mr. Holman offered his resignation, which was accepted on the 10th of March, 1882, " with feelings of sor- row." Six months after Rev. J. S. James, of Allen- town, Pa., received and declined a call. On the 7th of December following the Rev. Heury F. Lane ac- cepted a unanimous call, and on the first Sunday in January, 1883, entered upon his new ministry. On the 1st day of March, 1888, his term of service was terminated, by the joint action of pastor and people, after five years of uninterrupted harmony. On the 27th of June the Rev. H. J. White accepted a call which had been given on the 6th of that month.

Main Street Baptist Church .- This was a second colony from the First Baptist Church. In June, 1852, a petition by Eli Thayer and fifteen others was presented to that church, expressing a desire to form a third Baptist Church. They declared their readi- ness to begin at once, and dutifully asked for the support and approval of the mother church. The maternal sanction was promptly and cordially granted; the City Hall was at once engaged, and there, in July, the Rev. Dr. Sharp, of Boston, preached the first sermon for the new colony. Pub- lic worship was maintained in the same place until November, when the place of meeting was trans- ferred to Brinley Hall. There a Sunday school was organized, and there preaching by the Rev. S. S. Cut- ting was continued through the winter. In the even- ing of February 26, 1853, a parish organization was duly perfected under the name of the "Third Bap- tist Society in Worcester." The business was done iu the law-office of Francis Wayland, Jr., under a warrant issued by Isaac Davis. On Sunday, the next day, a committee was appointed to prepare Articles of Faith and a Covenant with a view to a church organization. Ou the 6th of March what were known as the "New Hampshire Articles of Faith " and "Covenant" were adopted, a clerk was chosen, and the church constituted with thirty-three members. At the same time the Rev. William H. F. Hansel was chosen to be the pastor ; but the call he declined.

On the 18th of May the society voted to build a chapel at the corner of Leicester (now Hermon) and Main Streets. On the 23d of June the recognition of the new church took place with a sermon by the Rev. Dr. Ide, of Springfield. In the course of the year the chapel was completed at a cost, including

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that of land and furnishing, of $6461.17. On the first Sunday in January, 1854, it was occupied for the first time for public worship. On the 18th of Sep- tember following Mr. H. L. Wayland was unanimously called to the pastorate. In accepting the call he re- linquished two hundred dollars of the moderate sal- ary which had been voted to him, as a contribution to the expenses of the society. On the 1st of November occurred his ordination, President Way- land preaching the sermon. On the 12th of Febru- ary, 1855, plans for a church edifice were adopted and a building committee chosen. Early in May ground was broken ; in the course of the year the house was finished, and on the second Sunday in January, 1856, was occupied for public worship. The whole property, including church, chapel, land and furnishing, had cost $25,174.01.

After a highly successful ministry of seven years the resignation of Mr. Wayland was accepted, with much regret, on the 4th of October, 1861. A week before he had left his home 'to enter the service of the Republie as chaplain of the Seventh Connecticut Volunteers. For twenty-eight months he continued in that service; then became successively a home missionary in Tennessee, a teacher in two Western colleges, an editor in Philadelphia. On the first Sunday in May, 1862, his successor, Rev. Joseph Banvard entered upon the duties of his office. On the 15th of February, 1864, the parish voted to change its name, and take the name of the " Main Street Baptist Society," and at the same time took measures to obtain the legislative sanction thereto. Dr. Banvard having resigned after a ministry of nearly four years, adhered to his purpose against the earnest wishes of the church expressed in its vote of March 9, 1866. The church then elected as his suc- cessor the Rev. George B. Gow, in recognition of whom public services were had on the 18th of April, 1867.

In the next year an attempt was made to introduce the system of free seats; but, though the church adopted a vote affirming it to be " nuscriptural and unehristian to rent seats," and offering to sustain the society in abolishing rentals, the latter hody was found to be not then prepared for the innovation. In 1872 Mr. Gow's resignation was accepted, to take effeet on the last Sunday in October. His suceessor was the Rev. F. W. Bakeman, who, after a pastorate of about three years and three months, terminated the same ou the 1st of July, 1876. After au interval of sixteen months the Rev. George E. Horr became the fifth pastor of the church. He entered upon the duties of his office on the 4th of November, 1877, with services of recognition on the 20th. Before the elose of this year the chapel was enlarged and im- proved at a cost of $4829.40.

discourse full of interesting reminiscences was deliv- ered by Dr. Wayland, and afterwards printed by re- quest. In honor of him it was voted, about this time, " that the bell to be placed on the tower bear the inscription, Wayland Memorial." By a change in the by-laws on the 10th of February, 1881, no person was thereafter to be admitted to membership in the parish who was not already a member of the church. On the 24th of October in the same year the resignation of Mr. Horr was accepted; and on the 3d of October in the next year, by a vote of thirty-nine to three, the Rev. Henry A. Rogers, of Montpelier, Vt., was called to the pastorate.

In 1883 an aet was consummated by the parish that was, perhaps, without precedent. Acting upon the written opinion of the Hon. Peter C. Bacon, L.L.D., the Nestor of the Worcester bar, the parish, at a meeting held on the 24th of April and 8th of May, under a warrant drawn by Mr. Bacon, transferred, in the way of gift, its meeting-house and all its other property, real and personal, to the deacons, " for the use of the church." In the warrant was an article "to see if the society would take any action in re- gard to dissolving the society." No formal action was taken under this article. After provision had been made for transferring the property it was " voted to adjourn without day." No meeting of the parish was ever held after that, and evidently it was assumed that the parish was " dissolved." But to all appearance the " Main Street Baptist Society " still lives and has a name to live.

Mr. Rogers continued his ministry with the Main Street Church until 1886, when a growing disagree- ment between him and certain of the membership, and also within the membership itself, culminated in the summary dismission of himself and fifty-six others on the 27th of October, "for the purpose of forming a Baptist church in the south part of the city." At the same time the pastor gave in his res- ignation, to take effect on the 31st. On the next day it was unanimously accepted. On the 19th of De- cember the Main Street Church proposed a mutual council to the "South Baptist Church," but the over- ture was declined. On the 31st of January, 1887, Professor C. R. Newton was employed to supply the pulpit as acting pastor. This continued until the 23d of September, when the Rev. Charles H. Pendleton was duly installed.

Dewey Street Baptist Church .- As in many other cases, a Sunday-school was the beginning of this church. It was organized in the Mason Street school-house on the first Sunday in August, 1867. Mr. L. M. Sargent and other laymen from the First Baptist Church were the original movers in the en- terprise. For several years Joseph H. Walker, mem- ber of Congress elect, was its superintendent. Under his efficient administration the school prospered so greatly that more ample accommodations were

On the 2d of November, 1879, the twenty-fifth an- niversary of the ordination of the first pastor, Rev. Dr. H. L. Wayland, was appropriately observed. A | speedily ealled for. This led to the building of the

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chapel on Dewey Street. The lot on which it was erected was the joint gift of the late Judge Francis H. Dewey and Joseph Mason, Esq. Including this land, valned at $750, the cost of the property was $4,570. Of this sum, $1000 was the gift of Mr. Walk- er. The dedication of the chapel took place on the 8th of February, 1872, and from that date it was oc- cupied for the Sunday school and religious services. The church was organized on the Sth of July in the same year with a membership of twenty-eight. Its first pastor was Mr. Sargent, the layman to whose zeal and efficiency the church had owed its origin. During five years of devoted service he had approved himself in that and other ways, worthy of recognition as one among the clerical brethren. Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1872, he was called to the ministry of the Dewey Street congregation. This was two months before the church had been formed. On the 5th of September it was recognized by a council convened in the chapel, and at the same time Mr. Sargent was ordained to the work of the ministry and installed as pastor of the church. His ministry was brief. On account of ill health he resigned on the 2d of May, 1873. At the close of his term of service the mem- bership of the church had increased to forty-fonr persons. The next pastor was the Rev. D. F. Lam- son. Coming on the 1st of July, 1873, and remain- ing nine and a half years, he left, on the 1st of Janu- ary, 1882, a church embracing ninety-five members. His successor, Rev. B. H. Lane, entered on his office on the Ist of June, 1882, and vacated it on the 15th of October, 1884. On the 19th of the same month the Rev. D. H. Stoddard assumed the office. Growing congregations and consequent prosperity soon made apparent the inadequacy of the chapel accommoda- tions. Mr. Stoddard therefore took in hand the busi- ness of building a church edifice; and the Baptist City Mission Board, seeing the importance of the field and its manifest needs, cordially co-operated with Mr. Stoddard in his scheme of church-building. With the aid of $7,000 from this source, more land was bought and a commodious edifice, with " perfect ven- tilation," was erected at a cost of $14,844. The value of the enlarged lot was reckoned at $2,000 additional. On Thanksgiving day in 1886 the vestry was first oc- cupied, and on the 13th of January, 1887, the com- pleted building was dedicated. The property is held by trustees, there being no parish organization. The seats are free and the current expenses are paid by weekly contributions. At the close of the year 1888 the membership of the church was one hundred and forty-seveu.

Lincoln Square Baptist Church .- This church grew from very feeble beginnings. Sunday schools had been begnn and discontinued ; only occasional preach- ing had been had. Material resources were limited and lack of courage prevailed. Many years elapsed before the decisive step of forming a church was taken. There came a time, at last, when some of the

waiting ones " heard a call from God to go forward," and on the 4th of April, 1881, the church was organ- ized. The original membership consisted of thirty- one persons, largely from the Pleasant Street Church. Public services of recognition were held on the next day in accordance with the vote of council. Through the summer following preaching was supplied by the Rev. D. F. Lamson, of the Dewey Street Church. In October the Rev. J. J. Miller entered upon his work as the first pastor. Till then public worship had been conducted in a hall ; but the new pastor made it his first business to provide a church edifice. To his un- wearied endeavors and personal influence it was owing that the enterprise was successful. In May, 1882, a building-lot on Highland Street near Lincoln Square was purchased and a substantial edifice of brick and stone of excellent architectural design was erected. The lower part of the house was occupied for relig- ious services on the 8th of July, 1883. On the 10th of June, 1884, the dedication of the complete build- ing took place. The cost of land, building and fur- niture was about thirty thousand dollars. Of this amount Joseph H. Walker, of the Main Street Bap- tist Church, was the largest contributor. Gifts also were made by friends outside the Baptist fold. "The property is held and controlled by the church through its appointed officers." The seats are free and current expenses are met by weekly offerings. In 1888 the membership was three hundred and seventy.

South Baptist Church .- The inception of this youngest of the Baptist Churches was as early as 1883, and was due to the Rev. Henry A. Rogers, then re- cently installed as pastor of the Main Street Baptist Church. Mr. Rogers believed in " missions," and had passed much of his life in setting them on foot. 1m- mediately on beginning work in Worcester he took note of the fact that the whole section lying south of the Main Street Church was without any kind of Baptist organization. He therefore proposed to his own church the establishment of a mission in that quarter. The proposal met with little encourage- ment. Then he began a mission at his own charge. One day in June, 1883, he was casually introduced to a young Frenchman named Isaac B. Le Claire. This man had led an abandoned life, had been a Roman Catholic, and not very long before had been converted to the Baptist faith and was now living a sober life. A brief interview ended in his being em- ployed by Mr. Rogers as a colporteur. He at once went to work holding meetings in school-houses and private houses. The results of his work proved him to be the right man in the right place; and, indeed, his subsequent career in a far wider field showed that he had a remarkable fitness for his work. His immediate success in South Worcester was such that by August the Main Street Church felt constrained to assume the charge of the mission. By the winter of 1884, every available place of meeting had become so crowded that Le Claire was moved to ask for the build-

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ing of a chapel ; his request was promptly heeded, and the chapel at Jamesville was the result. All this was preparatory for the South Church scheme. The first suggestion for a chapel on the site which it after- · wards occupied was made in January, 1884, at a prayer·meeting in the house of William A. Norton. In February Mr. Rogers urged the new chapel upon his people, expressing with much detail the reasons for the enterprise. After a time the Baptist City Mis- sion Board became possessed, as not before, with the mission idea and adopted a comprehensive plan for the city, including the South Worcester Mission. On the 14th of September, 1886, the Board took measures to secure the lot already mentioned, on the corner of Main and Gates Streets. On the 1st of October the Main Street Church, at a very large meeting of eighty- oue members, unanimously voted in favor of the South Church enterprise. In view of this action, the board on the 19th made over all claim to the lot in favor of the South Church. On the 21st a large number of the Main Street Church agreed together to ask letters of dismission for the purpose of organ- izing the South Church. On the 27th, at a coreuant and business meeting of the Main Street Church, where one hundred and thirty persons were present, of whom not less than one hundred and twenty were, by estimation, of the membership, fifty-seven were dismissed by a large majority vote. But of the fifty- seven only forty were present at the meeting. On the next day, October 28th, the fifty-seven members, including Mr. Rogers, assembled in the chapel on Canterbury Street and were constituted a church by the adoption of Articles of Faith and the election of deacons and clerk. At the same meeting was con- summated the settlement of Mr. Rogers as pastor of the new church. On the 27th of February, 1887, the church was publicly recognized by a council duly con- vened. The Baptist Mission Board, having acquired possession of the old Dewey Street Chapel, conveyed the same to the new organization and it was removed to the lot already described, and there, fronting Clark University, on the 30th of December, 1887, it became the church home of the South Baptist Church. No parish was organized, but the deacons were made trustees, to hold the property for the use of the church, after the method advised by Mr. Bacon in the case of the Main Street Church: Land, chapel and other property cost the South Church $5,000. The membership was one hundred and fifty-seven at the close of the year 1SSS.

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History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 138

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1464

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1464