USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > One hundred years of Mount Vernon Church, 1842-1942 > Part 4
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On October 17, 1890, Mr. Woods reported that his offer of $5.50 per square foot for this lot of 15000 square feet had been accepted by the Boston and Roxbury Mill Corporation.5 The purchase price6 was $82,500. Later records show that Mr. Woods advanced $25,000 cash, and on May 20, 1891, Thomas Y. Crowell paid to the Boston & Roxbury Mill Cor- poration $30,000, on the account of "Mortgage Note of $57,500 for 5 years." The balance of $27,500 was paid in 1895, plus the interest.
Subscriptions to the building fund from 1891 to 1896, not including the $25,000 advanced by Mr. Woods, amounted to $68,593.98. The in- dividual donations ranged from five cents to $25,000. To this fund the following items were added: sale of three pews in the new church, $1440; the sale of the Ashburton Place building, land, and old materials, $115,- 377.50;7 rebate from the City of Boston on sidewalk assessment, $403.04;
4 West Chester Park was named Massachusetts Avenue in 1894.
5 In 1814, Uriah Cotting and others secured a charter for the Boston and Roxbury Mill Corporation to build a series of dams connecting Boston, Brookline, and Roxbury, to use these dams as toll roadways, and to develop water power to run mills. The Mill Dam- today known as Beacon Street-was built from the Common at the foot of Beacon Hill to the solid land at Sewall's Point-now the junction of Brookline and Commonwealth Avenues. (From Building the Back Bay, copyright in 1926 by the Old Colony Trust Company.)
6 To the purchase price of $82,500, was added interest on the mortgage amounting to $5843.21. Walker & Kimball, the architects, received $5168.51; Whidden & Co., the builders, received $86,814.70; the steam heating plant, plumbing, organ, pews, cushions, carpets, taxes on real estate (valued at $90,000 @ $12.60), electric lighting, assessment for sidewalk, and other bills, such as $4.95 for "cleaning the bust of Dr. Kirk," totalled $24,553.50. Interest on borrowed money totaled $10,294.84. The sum of these six items totals $215,174.76.
On July 29, 1895, the Society authorized the treasurer to give a deed to Boston Uni- versity for the sale of the real estate in Ashburton Place, "having received an offer of $115,000 cash, less one per cent commission for the brokerage charges of Brice S. Evans & Son." The sale of old materials, including the piano, cushions, gas fixtures, clock, and stove, amounted to an additional $377.50.
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ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF MOUNT VERNON CHURCH
and borrowed money, $97,063.14. This makes the total amount of the receipts $282,877.66.
The corner stone of the new church was laid at noon on November 5, 1891. The Reverend Reuen Thomas of the Harvard Church of Brookline gave the prayer of invocation; the Reverend Morton Dexter of Boston, a member of the church, read Psalms 84 and 122; and the Reverend Samuel E. Herrick gave the address. Dr. Herrick stated that Mount Vernon Church "stands for humanity and not for creed." Referring to the archi- tecture, he said: "In planning for this structure certain proprieties were kept in mind. The Society wanted a building that some good person com- ing over Harvard Bridge would not mistake for a railroad station, or entering it mistake it for an opera house." After the laying of the corner- stone8 by Dr. Herrick, prayer was offered by the Reverend George A. Gordon of the Old South Church, and the benediction was pronounced by the Reverend Nehemiah Boynton of the Union Congregational Church.
The first Sunday service was held on November 13, 1892. On the pre- ceding Wednesday evening, November 9, the church was dedicated.9 The Reverend George A. Gordon of the Old South Church preached the ser- mon, and the Reverend W. Elliot Griffis of the Shawmut Church offered the dedicatory prayer.
The following description of the new church, written by the architects, Walker and Kimball, appeared in the Boston Daily Advertiser on No- vember 6, 1891:
The church building will occupy a ground space 92 by 130 feet, and have three façades. The principal one will be on Beacon Street, where will be a triple entrance way, the gable above which will be pierced for a rose window. A square tower will rise at the West Chester Park and Beacon St. corner to a height of 85 feet, and will form the base of a 45-foot octagonal spire. The walls of the building will be of Roxbury stone, with buff Amherst stone trim- mings.
The West Chester Park front will have the appearance of a double transept, with entrance way between the two. Both the transepts will have two-storied triple arched windows, with rose windows in the gables above. On the river front, the north side, it will be also two-storied, and have three stone dormers. The interior of the church will be on a cruciform plan, with the nave 60 feet in
'For a list of the documents, deposited in a copper box in the corner-stone, see the Preface of this book.
9 Assisting in the service were: the Reverend Andrew P. Peabody, who was Plummer Professor and Preacher to Harvard University, 1860-1881; the Reverend William Fair- field Warren, president of Boston University; the Reverend Leighton Parks of Emmanuel Church; the Reverend P. S. Moxom of the First Baptist Church; and the Reverend Nehemiah Boynton of the Union Church.
DANIEL SAFFORD (1792-1856) Deacon from 1842-1856
JOHN M. PINKERTON (1818-1881) Deacon from 1860-1881
DWIGHT LYMAN MOODY (1837-1899) Joined the church in 1856
THOMAS Y. CROWELL (1836-1915) Deacon from 1872-1907
DE
MOUNT VERNON CHURCH ON ASHBURTON PLACE
From Life of Edward Norris Kirk, D.D., by David O. Mears. Published by Lock- wood, Brooks and Company, Boston, 1877
....
4
INTERIOR OF THE ASHBURTON PLACE CHURCH
THE ORGAN IN THE ASHBURTON PLACE CHURCH
ORDER OF SERVICE
AT THE
DEDICATION OF THE CHURCH
ERECTED BY THE
MOUNT VERNON CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY, BOSTON,
THURSDAY EVENING, JANUARY 4, 1844.
1. Sentences.
2. Selection from Psalms 122, 124, & 132.
1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.
2 Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem ; Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together.
3 Whither the tribes go up; the tribes of the Lord, Unto the testimony of Israel, To give thanks unto the name of the Lord.
4 For there are set thrones of judgment, The thrones of the house of David.
5 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, They shall prosper that love thee.
6 Peace be within thy walls ; And prosperity within thy palaces.
7 For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.
S Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek thy good.
PROGRAM OF DEDICATION OF THE ASHBURTON PLACE CHURCH
25
CHURCH BUILDINGS AND HERRICK HOUSE
width and 79 in height, and the transepts each 30 feet wide and 13 feet deep. The organ gallery will be on the east transept. The roof will be supported by hammer beam trusses, and the ceiling sheathed in ash. The distance will be 50 feet from the floor of the church to the peak of the roof. The north transept will contain on the first story a vestry and four class rooms, so arranged that the wall partitions can be pushed up and all the space thrown into one apartment. The second story of this transept will contain a dining room 30 by 50 ft. It will have an open timber roof, and there will be adjacent ladies' parlor, minister's room, kitchen, pantries, dressing rooms, etc.
At the north end of the church roof will be placed a tall copper fleche, into which will be carried all the ventilation ducts. The height of exterior walls will be 20 feet in the church walls proper and 32 feet in the transepts. The in- terior finish will be in ash, with floors of hard pine. Work was begun on the building the first week in August. The walls are now up to the plates, and ready for putting on the roof. The vestry part of the building will be at once made ready for occupancy in the spring. It is expected that the entire building will be finished by next August.
In 1898 the artists of the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company decorated the walls back of the pulpit apse with nine panels. The five center panels contained paintings of Christ and the four Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, clothed with garments of deep and rich colors. Each of the figures is accompanied by a distinguishing emblem, in use from the beginning of Christian architecture and decorative art. Over the head of Christ is the Greek Monogram of the sacred name- Christ in union with the Alpha and Omega-and over the heads of the evangelists are respectively the face of a man, the head of a lion, the head of a calf, and the head of an eagle, in accordance with the book of Revelation: "The first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle."
Over the arch of the chancel was a Greek cross in the middle of an ornamental circle, on either side of which was printed the appropriate passage of Scripture: "Blessing and honor and glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth."
The semidome of the apse, Byzantine in color and form, was decorated with an allover pattern and bands. The gold background was enriched by color in such a way as to give the ornamentation the value of precious stones. Generations of restless children have entertained themselves counting the repetitions of the motif which resembles Shakespeare's head.
The paintings of Christ and the four Evangelists have since been tem-
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ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF MOUNT VERNON CHURCH
porarily covered with removable board. Two years ago the Reverend Carl. Heath Kopf, with the approval of the committee, had the covering removed for the day and preached a powerful sermon on the paintings. Imagine the surprise of recent members and friends who thought the five paintings had been executed in one short week!
In 1927, the main auditorium of the church was redecorated. The dec- oration committee succeeded in giving visual expression to "the harmony, simplicity, and dignity" of the church. The following description gives a vivid picture of the redecorated auditorium.
The walls, formerly a sombre green, are now of a warm, neutral, light stone color, both in the church and the vestibule. The decoration around the chancel arch is now a very simple moulding, cleverly done in paint to suggest carving.
The chancel dome is unchanged in design, but softened in color ; the panelled walls have been changed to a dull gold color, relieved by rich velvet curtains at the two small doors and in the large center panel, upon which hangs a gold cross. This velvet is also hung in the choir doors at the front end of the audito- rium.
The new carpet, which covers all the aisles and the chancel, not only adds immensely in warmth and beauty to the appearance of the church, but improves the acoustics and quiets the sound of footsteps as well.
The color of the carpets and curtains is an unusual deep red-brown, with the coppery tone of the pews, and cushions in the high lights, and the darker mahogany of the chancel woodwork in the shadows. The effect is one of quiet harmony with the neutral walls. In this setting the memorial windows show to better advantage than ever before.
The new lighting fixtures are of beautifully wrought antique iron. The main body of the church is lighted by four ring-shaped chandeliers hung by chains from the cross beams. They are supplemented by wall brackets of similar de- sign in the transepts, the rear wall, and the vestibule. Specially designed for us by Bigelow Kennard and Company from old ecclesiastical sources, these fix- tures are worthy of special notice, although it has been the purpose of the committee not to permit any one feature to distract attention from the restful effect of the interior as a whole.10
The spire,11 for safety reasons, was taken down several months before the hurricane of 1938. It did not fall down in the hurricane as many friends have believed. The church, anticipating the possible danger of a heavy wind, solved the problem then and there.
10 Margaret C. Craig, "The Redecorations," an article printed in the Mount Vernon Messenger of January, 1928. See Chapter IV for a description of the Memorial Windows. 11 In 1896, Dr. Herrick recorded: "The church still remains unfinished both within and without. The carvings are lacking upon cornices and capitals; the spire is wanting to complete the tower; grills and hinges are demanded for the suitable adornment of the doorways ;
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CHURCH BUILDINGS AND HERRICK HOUSE
In the summer of 1941, preparatory to the centenary celebration, many necessary improvements were made in the interior of the church, under the supervision of the House Committee, Miss Ruth F. Higgins, Mr. Eskel O. Carlson, and Mr. Louis Gegenheimer. Mrs. Eskel O. Carlson supervised the furnishing and decoration of the first floor Ladies Parlor.
The church owes its beautiful home mainly to the generosity of Mr. Henry Woods. It is fitting, therefore, that we conclude this section with Dr. Herrick's tribute, given in the memorial sermon to Mr. Woods.
This sanctuary in which we worship could never have been built but for his [Mr. Woods'] generous initiative. He bought the land on which it stands and held it for a long time-until, indeed, it had nearly doubled in value-waiting for our faith and courage to come up to the level of his own. And then, after paying the taxes and losing the interest, taking no advantage of increased valu- ation, he turned it over to the society at its original cost, and gave us besides $25,000. towards our new building.
I must put on record here and now, the pleasant surprise which he gave me one morning, after he and I had walked and driven together to every available site in town, and canvassed their advantages and disadvantages over and over again. He asked me suddenly,"Now where would you put a church, if you could choose your own location ?" I answered immediately, "The finest site would be the corner of Beacon Street and West Chester Park-but that, of course, is out of the question." "I don't know about that," said he, in his quiet way, "for I have bought it."
He had bought it, and thereafter he patiently held it at our convenience. It was a fine, concrete illustration of what the apostle calls "the patience of hope." And then his "faith" began "to work by love." He said nothing, but went around everywhere (often taking me with him) looking at churches, studying plans, materials, magnitudes, arrangements, costs. And when the plan was chosen and the work of building at last began, he followed it, stone by stone, course by course, as faithfully as if he were building it for one of his own children. It is too long a story to detail. But you will understand that I in no wise underrate or disparage what was done or given by others when I say that it is mainly to his generosity, his courage and his faith that we owe our beauti- ful church home.
HERRICK HOUSE
Herrick House, at 490 Beacon Street, named in memory of the Rever- end Samuel E. Herrick, was given to the church in 1923 by Mrs. Helen M. Craig. Her mother, Mrs. Henry Woods, originally gave to the church the property at 383 Marlboro Street, to be used for a parsonage and parish house. The proceeds accruing from the sale of 383 Marlboro Street were utilized towards the partial purchase of Herrick House. The Sophia and
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ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF MOUNT VERNON CHURCH
Margaret Herrick Fund was established by Mrs. Herrick and Miss Her- rick towards the maintenance of the property, and several other members gave liberally towards the furnishing of the house.
Through the inspiration of Mrs. Craig and the Reverend Sidney Lovett, Herrick House, the first student residence to be established in Boston under church auspices, proved to be an outstanding contribution to the life and usefulness of the church and to the great student community which surrounds it. Until 1935 Herrick House was a home for men stu- dents. Miss Helen Ordway and Miss Eugenia Parker, directors of social and religious activities in the parish, also at one time lived at the House. The resident directors-in chronological order of service-have been Miss Mary A. Ballou, Mrs. Florence Glazier, and Miss Mary G. Perry.
"The combination of personalities and interests in the group at Her- rick House was an education for us all," writes the Reverend Everett M. Baker. "I think the outstanding achievement of my time was the success of the House. ... The opportunity we had to live with men like Bill Shao and General Lee of China and the German boy, Hans Oskar Kundt, was a rare privilege."
The Reverend Edwin E. Aiken, Jr. adds: "Parallel with the three years in Mount Vernon Church were three years spent in Herrick House. With Miss Mary G. Perry, as its gracious and able hostess, life that was both gay and serious went on within its walls. . . . The students worked hard, thought deeply, and played vigorously. When a serious project was before them they carried it out thoroughly. When a prank was under way they carried that out thoroughly, too. .. . "
Since September, 1935, Herrick House has been the home of the min- ister and his family, and the meeting place of many of the church organi- zations. This account would be incomplete without an expression of ap- preciation of the gracious hospitality of Mrs. Kopf-always cordial, cooperative, and infinitely patient, notwithstanding frequent interrup- tions.
HENRY WOODS (1820-1901) Chairman of the building committee of the present church
MRS. HENRY WOODS (1836-1912)
MRS. DAVID R. CRAIG (1864-1941)
JAMES W. CRAIG Treasurer 1922-
4 Memorials
For the common man, the best memorial is some beneficent thing or function that shall bear his name. -CHARLES TOWNSEND COPELAND
T HERE HAVE been so many hidden streams which have added their waters to the Church's life and made Mount Vernon a dear and beau- tiful place ... and there are so many silent gifts that it seems almost invidious in speaking of the Church's beauty to single out only those which have taken visible form."1
The first gift to the church (of which there is record) is the bust of the Reverend Edward N. Kirk by the eminent sculptor, Henry Dexter.2 This bust, which used to stand in the vestry in the Ashburton Place church, now stands in the present church auditorium at the right of the chancel.
Also from the old church was brought an engraving of Holman Hunt's The Light of the World. This was later replaced by a photograph of the painting, and was presented by Mr. Benjamin F. Brown.
The six windows with the rose window above, in the west transept, are a memorial to Dr. Kirk and the original founders. The windows were unveiled on May 13, 1893. Mrs. Samuel E. Herrick had volunteered to raise the necessary money. "This involved writing all over the country, as the relatives of the original founders were scattered in every direction, but the response was prompt and generous; and having in hand a goodly sum, Mrs. Herrick went to see Mrs. Samuel D. Warren about the rest. Mrs. Warren stipulated as a condition of her gift that the window be made by Mrs. Henry Whitman."
John La Farge3 made the stained glass double window on the west wall of the nave. The window, which was unveiled on October 10, 1897, was given by the children of Mr. and Mrs. William G. Means in memory of their parents. The twenty-third Psalm is the subject of the window.
1 Margaret F. Herrick, Mount Vernon Memorials, in the Mount Vernon Messenger of May, 1920. For most of the material in this chapter the writer is indebted to Miss Herrick. 2 Among other famous busts sculptured by Dexter are those of Dickens, Longfellow, and Agassiz.
8 John La Farge (1835-1910), the eminent American figure and landscape painter, was elected president of the Society of Mural Painters in 1876. He turned his attention about this time to stained glass, a field in which he gained distinction. His windows may be seen in Mount Vernon Church, Boston; Trinity Church, Buffalo; Memorial Hall of Harvard University; Judson Memorial Church, New York City; the Crane Memorial Library, Quincy ; and the Second Presbyterian Church, Chicago.
29
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ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF MOUNT VERNON CHURCH
The light from behind the two Pilgrims strikes into the Dark Valley of the Shadow of Death, and illumines the face of the Savior as He turns to reassure them. The artist spent a whole year in completing the beauti- ful face of the Savior.
John La Farge also made the double window,4 on the east wall of the nave, which was given by Dr. James B. Ayer in memory of his father, Dr. James Ayer (1815-1891), who for many years was an officer of the church, having joined in 1864. He was the beloved physician of several of the church members, and few were the troubles of mind or body which he could not and did not help. Miss Margaret Herrick has re- corded her reminiscences of Dr. Ayer and his family:
There were "Old Doctor" Ayer and his wife, and a son in the Medical School; before long the son married and there were soon little tots who came with their mother to call. They were always close neighbors and friends, and when his father died the "Young Doctor" took care of us and brought me through my second attack of measles-a bad one-and many colds and other childish troubles.
The subject of this Ayer Memorial Window-a very fitting memorial to an eminent physician-is the Angel troubling the water of the Pool of Bethesda, and a cripple being helped down into the water by a sturdy youth, according to John V, 4: "For an angel went down at a certain sea- son into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." The figure of the bending angel is reflected in the water-an effect never before attempted in stained glass-and the artist had a pool constructed in his studio to enable him to study reflections. The window is considered so remarkable that artists have come from all parts of the United States to see it.
The group of windows beneath the organ pipes on the east wall, the work of the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company, was given by Mr. Benjamin F. Brown in memory of his daughter, Mrs. Edith (Brown) Pinckard. The windows were unveiled on Easter Sunday, April 2, 1899. The text of the sermon was, "They shall walk with me in white." The subject of the window is Resurrection. The Angel stands among the white lilies in the opalescent light of sunrise.
On a side wall of the west transept is the memorial window to Miss Sarah Pratt. It was unveiled on December 17, 1899. The subject is the Widow's Mite and the coloring is very rich. The artists were Messieurs Redding, Baird and Company. The donors of the memorial were Mr. and Mrs. Frank Shapleigh, the niece and nephew of Miss Pratt.
4 The window was unveiled on November 20, 1898. See illustration.
31
MEMORIALS
There are many of us {Miss Herrick has recorded } who need no memorial of the dear little lady-gentle always, yet not lacking in spice and fun, whose burdens were borne so gallantly that they became a grace and a glory. Not a few of us pay tribute in our hearts for the things which she built into our char- acters in the years of our childhood, and many others acknowlege a debt un- payable to her high example of courage and cheer.
The marble bust of the Reverend Samuel E. Herrick, by the sculptor, Mr. Bela L. Pratt,5 was dedicated on November 11, 1906, on which oc- casion the Reverend Albert Parker Fitch preached a sermon on The Abiding Influences of a Good Life. The donors of this memorial were Mrs. Henry Woods, Mr. George H. Bradford, Mr. Charles H. Paine, and Mr. Albert Stone.
Mrs. John Cummings of Woburn, Massachusetts, gave the pulpit and communion table, the former in memory of Dr. Kirk and the latter in memory of Deacon John M. Pinkerton. In 1927 Mrs. Cummings also gave the Cross and the curtain background.
The brass font was given by Mr. and Mrs. David R. Craig in memory of Mr. Craig's brother, Dr. James Wallace Craig. The first child to be baptized in it was his nephew and namesake, the present treasurer.
The organ in the Beacon Street Church was the gift of Mr. Henry Woods, father of Mrs. David R. Craig. In the organ balcony are two memorial bronze tablets. The first bears the inscription, "Organ built 1893. Gift of Henry Woods, 1820-1901," and the second, "Organ re- modelled 1918. In Memoriam, David Rankin Craig, 1854-1918."
The remodelled organ was officially dedicated at an evening service on Sunday, December 30, 1917, with a special service followed by an organ recital by Mr. Kenneth Shaw Usher.6 At this time, the set of organ chimes was given to the church by Mr. and Mrs. Usher, in memory of their son, Kenneth Shaw Usher, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Usher also gave the beautiful seven branch candelabrum in the church chancel in loving memory of Mr. George H. Bradford, who as chairman of the Music Committee for many years personally as- sumed the music expenses as his gift to the church.
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