USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > History of the Old South church (Third church) Boston, 1669-1884, Vol. II > Part 47
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1 [Panoplist, vol. xvi. p. 553.]
440
HISTORY OF THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH.
to the active and constant interest which he manifested in their concerns during all his mature years. As a youth, he was in- strumental in preserving the sacramental silver during the siege of Boston,1 and in his manhood he consecrated his business ability and experience to the service of the church. There had been Winslows in the Old South almost from the beginning. John Winslow, father of John, became a member in 1742 ; Ed- ward, who joined in 1692, was his grandfather ; John and Mary (Chilton), who brought letters from the Plymouth Church in 1671, were his ancestors. His father died at about the time of his coming of age, and he had to push his fortunes for him- self. At the age of twenty-two he entered the Revolutionary army, as deputy-paymaster-general, with the rank of lieutenant. He joined the army before Quebec under General Montgomery, and was in the battle there. In June, 1777, he received a commission as captain of artillery, and was placed under the command of Major Ebenezer Stevens. He was in the battle which resulted in the capture of General Burgoyne, and was one of those appointed to take account of the stores found in his camp ; he also had charge of many prisoners.
When the American army was retreating from Quebec, under General Wooster, and the enemy was close upon them, Captain Winslow saved the public chest, and lost his own baggage, as valuable as that of any officer in the line. He was thus left destitute of clothing, not having sufficient to make a change of linen for many days. He received on the settlement of his accounts as paymaster- the foot of which was $865,700.81 - a certificate from the paymaster-general, wherein his conduct was highly approved ; it was said that he was almost the only pay- master who had faithfully accounted for the public moneys. He was at the battle of Ticonderoga ; and when the army under General Sinclair retreated from that place, he again saved the books and other public property in his charge, and again lost most of his own effects. He was soon after relieved, and made a second satisfactory settlement of his accounts, the amount of which was $104,518. He was honorably discharged, November 5, 1778. .
When the militia of Boston was organized, John Winslow was elected major, and, soon after, colonel. In 1799 he was chosen brigadier-general of the legionary brigade; in 1809 he was chosen major-general, but declined the position and resigned the
1 See ante, vol. ii. p. 190, note.
44I
DEATH OF JOHN WINSLOW.
brigadiership. Twice he was captain of the artillery company, and for several years its treasurer, and also treasurer of the Society of the Cincinnati. He was president of the board of health, and many times a member of the house of representa- tives. In 1810 he lost his property by an unexpected failure,1 and his pecuniary embarrassments continued to the end of his life. His integrity and honor, however, were never called in question, and during his last years, he filled the responsible office of county treasurer. The fidelity with which he dis- charged the duties of this position led his constituents to pro- nounce him the best treasurer they had ever had.
As a neighbor and friend he was zealous and charitable - frequently employed by the rich to bestow their secret alms upon the virtuous poor. He was not by talent or education a great man, but formed by nature an upright one. The numerous instances of his being guardian, referee etc. prove his integrity. He was prompt, but prudent ; rigid, but not austere ; independent, yet popular ; shrinking from . public honors, yet deserving them ; fearless in the discharge of public, social and moral duties, yet amiable and beloved by all. The composure with which he met his troubles, and even saw the approach of death, show the sterling value of his heart and mind. He never communi- cated his troubles, because it might disturb others ; but rather suffered them to gnaw upon him in secret, while the world supposed him cheer- ful. In his family, he was spotless, kind and affectionate ; his fireside was the seat of hospitality, his home, the mansion of happiness.2
President Kirkland preached the Quarterly Charity Lecture at the Old South, Sunday evening, December 5, taking the place of Mr. now Dr. Channing, who was prevented by the state of his health from performing the duty. On the evening of Christ- mas Day, the annual meeting of the Peace Society was held there, and an address was given by Mr. John Gallison, a young lawyer of high promise, and an active member of Dr. Channing's
1 He was in partnership at one time with Deacon Jonathan Mason, who died in 1798. In the Directory for 1816 his name appears as county treasurer, with an office in the Old State House; in- spector of nails, 2 South Row.
2 [See Whitman's History of the A. and H. Art. Co., 2d ed., 1842, pp. 331-333.
In an obituary notice of General Winslow, it is said : " He was a man of extensive but unostentatious benevo-
lence ; a cheerful but sincere Christian, and the best of citizens and of men." At his funeral, the Society of the Cincin- nati, the artillery company, and a light infantry company called in his honor the Winslow Blues, were present to pay respect to his memory. He was buried in the family tomb in the Chapel burying ground. His daughter Mary Ann, who joined the Old South in 1833, and died in 1882, was buried in the same tomb.]
442
HISTORY OF THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH.
church, who died after a short illness on the eve of the next Christmas Day.1
There was a touching scene at the Old South on Sunday, January 30, 1820, when the late pastor's widow presented her infant son for baptism, the Rev. Daniel Huntington, of Bridge- water, officiating. Writing to a sister-in-law, in anticipation of the service, Mrs. Huntington said : -
Next Sabbath I expect to carry my little Joshua to the sanctuary, and devote him to that God whose gift he is. May the offering be accepted ! May the first lispings of his infant tongue, be the expres- sions of holy and grateful affections to his Maker and Redeemer. I expect our dear brother Daniel to administer the ordinance, and Dea- con Phillips has kindly offered to stand up with me, and present the child. I sometimes fear it will be more than I can bear. But I feel it to be a duty to have him baptized in public; and his dear father always objected to private baptisms, except on extraordinary occa- sions. 2
An honored member of the church died, February 23, in her eighty-seventh year - Mary, widow of Deacon Jonathan Mason, a granddaughter of the Rev. Mr. Pemberton, and a great-grand- daughter of James and Sarah Pemberton, founders. She be- came a member in 1755, three years before the death of Mr. Prince ; and during her long life, she faithfully loved and de- votedly served the church for which her ancestress, Sarah Pemberton, suffered and wept.3 She is described to us as "the disinterested friend, the judicious adviser, the affectionate coun- sellor, the mild but faithful reprover, the humble, self-denying, fervent, active, cheerful Christian." " For more than seventy years she hath not only professed but adorned the gospel - and till within three months has continued to tread with delight, and almost without interruption, the courts of the sanctuary."
On the 23d of February the Rev. Warren Fay was installed pastor of the First Church, Charlestown, as the successor of Dr. Morse. Professor Woods preached the sermon, and Dr. Holmes, Mr. Greenough, Professor Stuart, and Mr. Codman, took part in the services.
1 John Gallison, Harvard College, 1807, studied law under Joseph Story. He died December 24, 1820. His mother was Katharine, daughter of Deacon Samuel Sewall ; she was baptized at the South Church, June 8, 1760.
2 [Memoir, pp. 218, 219. This dear
child, " who never looked into his father's face " here, was soon called (August 25, 1821) to join him in the heavenly home. A few days later, one of his sisters died.] 3 She was suspended by the First Church, May 15, 1671. See Felt's His- tory, vol. ii. p. 443.
443
THE REV. MATTHIAS BRUEN.
The attention of the church was called at this time to a bril- liant young Presbyterian clergyman, the Rev. Matthias Bruen, who graduated at Columbia College in 1825, studied theology under the Rev. Dr. J. M. Mason, and went abroad with that divine in 1816. He spent several years in Europe, and for six months preached in the American Chapel of the Oratory, in Paris. The following letter to Mr. Charles Cleveland was writ- ten by the Rev. Philip Melancthon Whelpley, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, New York, and himself a young preacher of high reputation : 1 -
NEW YORK, Feby. 28, 1820.
My dear Sir :
For some time previous to the reception of your favor, 22 inst. it had been matter of conversation, and I may say of opinion, in my family, that Mr. Bruen would be the most suitable successor of Mr. Huntington that could be named among us. I was therefore agree- ably surprised by your communication, and am happy to give you the information you desire, while at the same time I express my opinion.
The advantages of education he has enjoyed, both at home and in Europe, have been superior, and he has made no slight improvement of them. With much of the ease and polish of a gentleman, I believe him to possess a large share of the humility and benevolence of the Christian. His compositions manifest a cultivation of taste and senti- ment, rare among us, - are not deficient in judgment, and abound in what we call the solidities of gospel truth. His sentiments are highly orthodox, and I esteem him to possess, in an eminent degree, that col- lectedness and cautiousness of spirit, united with firmness, which so distinguished our lamented Brother Huntington, and which will enable him to stand in the midst of enemies with dignity and without danger. His manner in the pulpit is unimpassioned, his voice good, and his whole appearance simple and solemn. In short, Dear Sir, to express my opinion in one word, I think him vastly better calculated for Bos- ton people generally, and particularly for the Old Church, than any one I know, and earnestly do I wish you may obtain him.
Report names him as the probable successor of Dr. Ingliss, in the First Church at Baltimore. But I am assured by himself that he is perfectly free to listen to any propositions from any quarter. He is now contemplating a short journey eastward ; how far he will go, I know not. I make no doubt, however, that, if duly requested, he would have no objection to spend a week or two in Boston, and supply
1 Mr. Whelpley succeeded Dr. Miller, when he was called to a professorship at Princeton. He and Mr. Bruen married sisters, daughters of the Hon. James
Davenport, of Stamford, Conn. The original of the letter copied above is in the possession of Professor Salisbury, of New Haven.
444
HISTORY OF THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH.
your vacant pulpit ; if authorized by you, I should be very happy to give him an intimation of the kind. As I esteem him one of those young men concerning whom it is sometimes said, they can command any situation, and as you know the interest that, on various accounts I feel in the cause of religion in Boston, I am disposed to be urgent on this subject. Could you through me, or otherwise, invite him to supply your pulpit one or more sabbaths in the coming month ? I should rejoice to be the bearer of such an invitation for my Brethrens' sake in Boston, and because I think the probability strong, that, when you hear him, you will say with one voice, " Arise, anoint him, this is he."
Mr. B. is not anxious for immediate settlement, but the opportunity may soon pass. May I hear from you soon? Love to the Brethren. That grace, mercy and peace may be multiplied to them is the fervent prayer of Yours in Christ
PHIL : MEL: WHELPLEY.
CHARLES CLEVELAND Esq. Boston (Mass.)
We have no record of Mr. Bruen's visit to Boston. He went to Europe again in 1821, and, on his return, organized and was settled over the Bleecker Street Church in New York. He died in 1829, in his thirty-seventh year. Dr. Samuel Hanson Cox wrote of him: "Few of his contemporaries could enter the sacred desk with more theological wealth, discrimination of truth, general reading, or sincere desire to be useful." But with all his gifts, it is said that he failed to impress himself upon audiences as many men of less ability were able to do.
March 17th. 1820. Friday evening.
The Church tarried, after the assembly at the sacramental lecture was dismissed, by notice given from the pulpit.
On motion, it was Voted, To observe Friday next, March 24th, as a day of Fast, Humiliation and Prayer, in reference to the particular circumstances of this society.
Voted, To request the Rev. D. Huntington of Bridgewater to attend and to preach to us on that day.
Voted, That besides the usual exercises in the meeting house on that day, the vestry be opened at suitable hours for the accommoda- tion of those who may choose to attend, and there to unite in social prayer.
Boston, April 6th. 1820.
At a meeting of the Brethren of the Old South Church and Congre- gation (Pew holders) held this day in compliance with a notification from the Desk, It was
445
SUNDRY EXPENDITURES.
Voted, That David W. Child be clerk, vice General John Winslow deceased.
Voted, That the Hon William Phillips be Moderator.
The Standing Committee for the past year, to superintend the Tem- poral concerns of the Society, made their Report, as follows, -
They have expended $350. for the support of the singing ; they have also expended $856.10 for repairs on the Meeting House, Stores and Parsonage houses ; also $666.49 incurred by the Sickness and Death of our late beloved Pastor, and which was paid, in compliance with a wish of the Church, to defray all the expenses thereof ; also $59.80 for printing 500 copies of the Rev. Mr. Dwight's Sermon, delivered on the day of his funeral ; and also $25. paid as a reward for the recovery of the effects of Mrs. Huntington, which were stolen from her House. The Committee presented the eight yards of Broad Cloth, which clad our Pulpit in mourning, on the late afflicting Dispensation of Provi- dence, in equal parts to the Revd. Mr. Dwight and to the Revd. Mr. Daniel Huntington, and twelve yards of the black Flannel that sur- rounded the Gallery on the same mournful occasion, to the Widow of our late Sexton, and the remaining forty-six yards to the Female Aux- iliary Society, for the moral and religious instruction of the poor of Boston. Your Committee have let all the Gallery Pews on the same terms as heretofore, and the easterly Parsonage House for one year for $750. The stores are yet occupied on leases which do not expire untill October 1821, and the Committee have the satisfaction of being able to say that the Rents have heretofore been punctually paid.
All which is respectfully submitted.
FRANCIS WELCH pr. Order.
Voted, That the foregoing Report be accepted, and that the Commit- tee have thanks, of the Society, for their past able and faithful services.
Voted, That we now proceed to the Choice of a Standing Com- mittee for the year insuing, and that said Committee consist of nine.
Voted, That Messrs A. P. Cleveland, and Bela Hunting be a com- mittee to collect sort and count the Votes, who Reported that William Phillips, William Homes, Samuel Coverly, David W. Child, Edward Phillips, Benjamin French, Abraham Wild, Francis Welch and Samuel Davis had a majority of the Votes and were chosen.
Voted, That the Clerk be requested to prepare a list of the Pew holders.
Voted, That Messrs Welch, Child, Cutler, Salisbury and A. P. Cleveland, be a Committee to examine the Treasurer's accounts.
Voted, That the Standing Committee be the Committee to take into consideration the expediency of procuring an Organ for the use of this Society, and report at our next meeting.
Voted, That the Deacons, with Messrs. Welch and Davis, be a Committee for supplying the Desk with a minister.
446
HISTORY OF THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH.
The thanks of the Society were Voted to Messrs Cutler and Cleve- land for their past services.
Voted, That this meeting be dissolved, and it was dissolved accord- ingly.
Attest DAVID W. CHILD Clk.
Mrs. Huntington wrote, April 23, 1820: "There was a very sudden death, by typhus fever, last week, -a young man, one of our church, a member of Cambridge College, and a frequent visitor here. What a world is this! When this youth came to condole with me, after the departure of his minister, how little I thought that he would follow him so soon !" This young man was Henry Maurice Lisle Whitman, a son of Benjamin and Han- nah (Gardner) Whitman. He joined the church in 1816, and was a member of the Sophomore class in Harvard College (the class of 1822) when he died.1 Mr. Benjamin Whitman was a practising attorney, a member of the legislature, and, after Bos- ton became a municipality, chief justice of the police court.2
The pew proprietors met on the Ist of May, when the com- mittee on accounts made their report, and Mr. Phillips was re- elected treasurer. The standing committee asked for further time, for the consideration of the question of buying an organ.
On Tuesday evening, May 20, the Rev. Brown Emerson, of Salem, preached before the Massachusetts Missionary Society. On the following day, in the forenoon, the Rev. William Jenks preached the Election Sermon ; and, in the evening, there was a meeting of the New England Tract Society, at which Dr. Woods, Mr. Daniel Huntington, Mr. Jenks, Mr. Storrs, and Mr. Jeremiah Evarts were the speakers. All these services were held at the Old South.
Monday, Septem. 18th 1820.
At a Meeting of the Old South Church and Congregation (being Proprietors) agreeable to notification from the Desk yesterday by the Revd Professor Newman, - the Hon William Phillips was chosen Moderator.
The Standing Committee to whom was referred the expediency of procuring an Organ for the use of the Society at our last annual Meet- ing, Reported as follows -
That as an Organ appears to be wished for by many of the Society, the Committee would recommend to the Pew holders to cause one to
1 For an obituary by one of his class- mates, see Col. Centinel, May 3, 1820.
South Bridgewater in 1768, and graduated at Brown University in 1788. He died
2 Benjamin Whitman was born at in 1840.
447
LETTER FROM MRS. HUNTINGTON.
be procured and placed in the Meeting House forthwith, and in order to carry this object into effect, they would recommend that a Com- mittee of three should be chosen to provide the same, with full power to have it built of the size, form and price as they in their discretion shall think proper and most suitable for our House of Worship, and that the said Committee or the major part of them should be author- ized to draw on the Treasurer for the cost thereof, and for the ex- pences in putting up the same ; all which is respectfully submitted.
F. WELCH pr. order.
Voted, That the foregoing report of the Standing Committee be accepted, with the amendment that the Committee to be chosen shall consist of five, instead of three, and the following Gentlemen were chosen i. e. Hon. William Phillips, F. Welch, D. W. Child, Josiah Salisbury and Benjamin Whitman.
Voted, That the Clerk notify Mrs. Huntington (Widow of our late beloved Pastor) that it is the wish of the Society, if agreeable to her, that she continue to occupy the Parsonage House where she now resides, until notified by the Standing Committee that the said House is wanted by the Society.
Voted, That the Standing Committee be authorized to subscribe for sixty copies of the first volume of the Handel and Haydn Collection of Sacred Musick, for the use of the Society, and the Treasurer is requested to pay the amount of said subscription.
Voted, That this Meeting be dissolved, and it is dissolved accord- ingly. D. W. CHILD Clk.
Tuesday, Sept. 19th. A copy of the above Vote respecting the Parsonage House was sent Mrs. Huntington by the Clerk, and the following reply received on the 20th, which was recorded in com- pliance with a wish of the Standing Committee, viz.
Wednesday Morning
Mr. DAVID W. CHILD Dear Sir
A copy of the vote taken by the Old South Society relative to my continuance in the Parsonage house, I received through you yesterday. As it would be stupidity in me not to feel, so it would seem ingratitude in me not to acknowledge my obligations to the Society for this renewed act of kindness. The prospect of remaining a short time longer in a habitation which has been rendered dear to me above every spot on Earth, by so many strong and endearing associations, cannot but be pleasant. I receive this favour with gratitude, not merely as it is an important personal benefit and convenience, nor yet as a testimony of affection for me, but as it indicates on the part of this dear People, a continued remembrance of him whose memory will always be so dear to me, and whose sudden removal, at the same moment that it sun-
448
HISTORY OF THE OLD SOUTH CHURCH.
dered me from one of the best of Husbands, dissolved also my peculiar relation to that flock over whom the Holy Ghost made him an over- seer.
May the best of Heaven's Blessings rest upon that beloved People, my connection with whom I shall always regard as one of the happiest circumstances of my life. May they be richly rewarded for all their kindness to me and mine, with better than earthly prosperity, and may we one day meet in that world where the relations of this shall be once more recognized, so far as they have affected our Christian characters, and where the changes and trials of this, shall be remembered only with gratitude, as so many instruments of facilitating our progress toward Heaven, hopes and prays, their grateful and most sincere friend S. HUNTINGTON.
The officers of the church had been in correspondence with some of the professors in Princeton Theological Seminary, in reference to Mr. Wisner, a young man who was just completing his studies there. As soon as practicable after graduation he ac- cepted an invitation to visit Boston and to supply the Old South pulpit. His first sermons here were preached on Sunday, Oct- ber 8, and made a very favorable impression, especially the dis- course in the morning, which was from the text, "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else."
Benjamin Blydenburg Wisner was born in Goshen, Orange County, New York, September 29, 1794. His father removed to Geneva, Ontario County, when this son was three years old ; he was an active member of the Presbyterian Church, a lawyer by profession, and, for several years, district attorney for the western part of the State of New York. The son entered the Sophomore class in Union College, Schenectady, in 1810, and graduated in 1813. He took charge of the academy at Johns- town for a year, and was about to commence the study of the law, when he was offered a tutorship in Union College ; this he accepted and held for four years. In 1816 he became a member of the Presbyterian Church in Schenectady, and soon after en- tered upon the study of theology. In 1818 he went to Prince- ton, and in June, 1820, he was licensed to preach. Dr. Sprague made his acquaintance in the seminary, and afterward wrote of him : " I was impressed from the beginning, as I believe all who knew him at Princeton were, with his substantial and enduring qualities, particularly his sound judgment, his severe intellec- tual discipline, his thoroughness in everything that he un-
449
THE REV. B. B. WISNER.
dertook, his unvarying cheerfulness and good nature, and his deep interest in the work to which he had devoted himself. . . His preaching was eminently sober and instructive ; his style was rigidly correct, without any attempt at ornament ; and his delivery was somewhat that of a lawyer engaged for a client." Dr. Wayland, a college classmate at Schenectady, said that Mr. Wisner was one of the two best scholars in his class ; a sound and accurate linguist, a correct and forcible writer, but most distinguished as a mathematician. He had a strong and disci- plined memory, superior command of language, a clear voice, and a distinct utterance. " He was certainly," added Dr. Way- land, "one of the best extempore speakers of his age I have ever known. As he grew up, and especially after he was set- tled in the ministry, I think he did not improve as a speaker, but the contrary. The reason I supposed to be that the delivery of written discourses was less suited to the habits of his mind than the speaking in debate ; and that being obliged to preach in a house of worship too large for the powers of his voice, the simple effort to be heard destroyed many of those more delicate intonations on which effectiveness of public speaking so much depends." 1
Nov. 5. 1820. The Brethren of the Church were requested by the Deacons to stay after the usual services of the day. The Senior Dea- con, His Honor William Phillips, being the presiding officer of the Church stated - that the time for which the Rev'd Benjamin B. Wisner had been requested to preach on probation by the Committee of the Church and Congregation having elapsed, it was desirable that the Brethren should express their minds in regard to the expediency of choosing him for their Pastor. After some of the Brethren had ex- pressed their approbation of the Reverend candidate, it was
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