USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Medway > The history of Medway, Mass., 1713-1885 > Part 15
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67
I2I
THE OFFICIAL REGISTER OF THE FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST. THE PASTORS.
Rev. DAVID DEMING, ordained Nov. 20, 1715 ; resigned Oct. 16, 1722. Rev. NATHAN BUCKNAM, ordained Dec. 23, 1724 ; died Feb. 6, 1795. Rev. BENJAMIN GREENE, ordained June 25, 1788 ; resigned Feb. 28, 1793. Rev. LUTHER WRIGHT, ordained June 13, 1798 ; resigned Sept. 20, 1815. Rev. LUTHER BAILEY, ordained Nov. 20, 1816 ; resigned Dec. 29, 1835. Rev. SEWALL HARDING, installed Nov. 1, 1837 ; resigned Dec. 3, 1851. Rev. JOHN O. MEANS, ordained Dec. 3, 1851 : resigned Sept. 4, 1855. Rev. JACOB ROBERTS, installed Oct. 9, 1856 ; resigned Nov. 15, 1871. Rev. E. O. JAMESON, installed Nov. 15, 1871.
THE DEACONS.
JONATHAN ADAMS, elected ; died Jan. 24, 1718.
SAMUEL HILL, elected - ; died March 24, 1723.
PETER ADAMS, elected -; died Dec. 8, 1723.
JOHN PARTRIDGE, elected Jan. 12, 1724 ; resigned Feb. 18, 1731.
EBENEZER THOMPSON, elected Jan. 12, 1724.
PETER BAULCH, elected July 31, 1730 ; resigned 1732.
SAMUEL PARTRIDGE, elected Feb. 18, 1731.
JOHN BARBER, elected Sept. 22, 1732 ; died June 20, 1754. THOMAS HARDING, elected -; died Oct. 15, 1754.
ELISHA ADAMS, elected Sept. 6, 1754 ; died March, 23, 1781.
EDWARD CLARK, JUN., elected Dec. 27, 1754 ; died Feb. 7, 1799.
GEORGE BARBER, elected Aug. 7, 1756.
ASA DANIELL, elected Sept. 29, 1769 ; died Oct. 18, 1815. ASA ELLIS, elected
SIMON HILL, elected -; resigned Aug. 4, 1814.
ASA DANIELS, JUN., elected Nov. 21, 1805 ; resigned Nov. 3, 1829.
JOSIAH BLAKE, elected Sept. 29, 1814 ; died Aug. 3, 1858.
TIMOTHY WALKER, elected Dec. 7, 1827 ; resigned February, 1850. PAUL DANIELL, elected Jan. 25, 1839 ; died Feb. 15, 1876.
ELBRIDGE CLARK, elected March 4, 1853.
JAMES MITCHELL, elected March 4, 1853 ; died Aug. 19, 1863.
CHARLES H. FITTS, elected March 4, 1864 ; resigned -, 1864. MILTON DANIELS, elected March 4, 1864 ; died March 3, 1871.
HORATIO JONES, elected May 26, 1871.
WILLIAM DANIELS, elected May 26, 1871.
The membership of the church as recorded from its organization to the present date, February 24, 1885, including but a few names prior to 1724, makes a total of seven hundred and seventy-five members. There are now one hundred and eighteen members.
During the fourteenth year of the ninth pastorate, the easterly portion of Medway which was embraced in the First Parish, was incorporated February 24, 1885, as the town of Millis, so that the First Church of Christ in Medway will henceforth be known as THE CHURCH OF CHRIST IN MILLIS, MASS.
9
I22
THE ROCKVILLE CHAPEL. ERECTED IN 1877.
For many years there had been a branch Sabbath School in Rockville, connected with the First Church of Christ, and a monthly religious service had been held in that part of the parish, but there was no suitable and per- manent building for such purposes. In 1874 the teachers and scholars of the Rockville Sabbath School organized a society, called the Rockville Improvement Association. This society had for its object the raising of funds to erect a building in which the Sabbath School might be accommo- dated, and also other social gatherings and religious meetings.
The first contribution made towards the Rockville Chapel was a FIVE CENT NICKEL, with these accompanying words, " For the Rockville Chapel, toward one of the towers thereof." The chapel was completed at a cost of $1,604.78, and it was finally dedicated, without debt, Thursday afternoon, July 26, 1877. The sermon was preached by the pastor of the First Church of Christ, the text being, Psalms xc., 16-17. Addresses of congratulation were made by other clergymen and gentlemen present.
This chapel is a beautifully located and a very well-arranged building for the purposes of its erection. The Rockville Sabbath School has a flourish- ing life, and numbers some one hundred members.
The EAST MEDWAY CIRCLE OF INDUSTRY connected with the First Church and Society celebrated, June 5, 1884, its semi-centennial anniversary. Address, by the pastor. Poem, by Deacon Anson Daniels.
THE MAIN STREET, WEST MEDWAY, IN 1885.
123
THE SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST.
1750 - 1885.
THE WEST PRECINCT, as already mentioned, was incorporated Decem- ber 29, 1748, with a view to the organization of a second church on account of the great distance to attend public worship.
A meeting-house was raised on Thursday, April 6, 1749, which was completed very soon after. It stood a little to the northwest of the old cemetery, and almost opposite the site where Dr. Ide afterwards erected his residence, in which he lived so many years. This first meeting-house of West Medway is described as a building " forty feet long and thirty-four feet wide, with posts twenty feet high between joints, without a steeple, and having two rows of windows and a gallery."
THE SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST was organized October 4, 1750. The day was memorable, being set apart as a day for fasting and prayer.
There were present with this little company of Christian believers, the Rev. Mr. Prentiss, of Medfield, and the Rev. Mr. Bucknam, pastor of the First Church of Christ, of whom it is recorded : " After the exercise ye Rev. Mr. Bucknam gathered a church, and pronounced them the Second Church of Christ in Medway." The Covenant was signed by thirty-four persons.
It is recorded that "The church were desired to meet on Monday, the Sth of October 1750. After, when met the church made choice of Capt. Nathaniel Whiting to be their moderator till they should have a minister or- dained, Ezra Pond clerk and also voted to call Mr. Jonathan Derby to be their Pastor." At the end of three months Mr. Derby declined the call. They then invited Mr. Samuel Haven to settle with them in the ministry, but he also declined.
In February, 1752, the Rev. David Thurston, of Wrentham, Mass., was invited to become their pastor ; he accepted the call, and was ordained June 23, 1752. The record reads : "The council being met, the church were called upon to renew their choice, whereupon they voted unanimously, upon which the council and church went to the meeting-house, and the busi- ness of the day was accomplished."
The Rev. Nathan Bucknam, of the First Church of Christ, preached the ordination sermon. The Rev. Mr. Dorr gave the charge, and the Rev. Mr. Webb extended the right hand of fellowship. Nathaniel Cutler and Joseph Holbrook had been chosen deacons, and soon after the ordination, Jonathan Metcalf was added, and, a few months later, Samuel Fisher. And May 7, 1753, Captain Nathaniel Whiting and John Pond were chosen ruling elders. They appear to have been the only persons who have held this office in the history of the church.
The Rev. Mr. Thurston, March 18, 1761, asked his dismission, " in consideration of the insufficiency of his support, and the repeated denials he had met with from the parish of any further support." The church voted not to grant the dismission, but to refer the matter of salary to the parish. But Mr. Thurston again asked, February 22, 1769, his dismission on account of impaired health from the " prosecution of constant study and preaching," and the church, " in consideration of his present indisposition," granted it.
Mr. Thurston was pastor of the church for seventeen years. After his
I24
dismission he retired from the ministry, and settled upon a farm in the town of Oxford ; he subsequently removed to Auburn, and afterwards to Sutton, where he died May 5, 1777, at the age of fifty years.
During this first pastorate there were seventy-nine persons added to the church, and twenty-three came under the bonds of the covenant. In a brief biographical notice contained in the History of the Mendon Association, the Rev. Mr. Blake says : " No materials are in our possession for forming an opinion of Mr. Thurston's literary abilities. No writings of his are known to exist as an index of his attainments as a theologian, or skill as a preacher." At the close of Mr. Thurston's ministry there followed much discouragement and spiritual declension in the church. Few members had been added for many years. We have a hint of the state of things in a vote passed September 2, 1770, "to put off the administration of the Lord's Supper for the present, because of the uneasiness among some of the brethren." And April 11, 1771, was passed the following remarkable vote : " After prayer for direction and assistance, and some debate, Voted, to blot, cross, or wipe out sundry votes that are relative to unhappy differences and disturbances that have arisen in said church, and touch particular members of it, that so all things in the church and every member of it may now and forever hereafter, as far as possible, be as though these difficulties and dis- turbances had never been."
The church were now looking for a pastor, and October 11, 1771, held a meeting to confer with the Rev. Nathaniel Niles relative to his sentiments respecting the doctrines of the Gospel. Mr. Niles was present at the request of the church, and read a confession of his faith, which he appears to have prepared for the occasion. The church was satisfied, and gave him a call ; but Mr. Niles declined. This was the second refusal ; for Mr. Samuel Wales, who had been called the year before, after three months' consider- ation, declined. These refusals made an impression upon the church, for we again find them trying to reconcile differences, " with a view to the glory of God and the settlement of a Gospel minister." For this purpose they sum- moned the Rev. Mr. Bucknam and some other neighboring ministers to revise and "assist them in renewing church covenant one with another."
Soon after, having been destitute of a pastor almost four years, the church called the Rev. David Sanford, who accepted, and was ordained April 14, 1773. The Rev. Dr. West, of Stockbridge, preached the sermon, and the Rev. Samuel Hopkins made the ordaining prayer.
Mr. Sanford was a native of New Milford, Conn. He graduated at Yale College in 1755, commenced the study of divinity with the Rev. Dr. Bel- lamy, but completed it with the Rev. Dr. Hopkins, who was his brother-in- law. At the age of thirty-six he settled in Medway. During the Revolu- tionary War he was appointed Chaplain in the army. The Rev. Mr. San- ford died, April 7, 1810, in the thirty-seventh year of his ministry, and seventy-third of his life. " He was a man of fine personal appearance, with sharp, piercing eyes, a commanding presence, and a strong, clear voice. He was possessed of rare abilities, well learned in the Scripture, and usually preached without notes."
The church abolished, November 16, 1775, the practice of the Halfway Covenant, by which persons professing belief in the doctrines of the Gospel,
125
placed themselves under the watch and care of the church by subscribing to the covenant, and thereby promising to perform the duties of religion and to seek for regeneration, and were permitted to be baptized and to have their children baptized. The church adopted, January 25, 1776, a written con- fession of faith. It appears that Deacon Samuel Fisher, Daniel Pond, and Samuel Hayward, and certain sisters of the church, had been dissatisfied with the pastor from the time of his settlement. At length they absented themselves from the ordinances of the church, and said, in self-justification, of the pastor that " (1) He denies imputative guilt; (2) He denies impu- tative righteousness ; and (3) He makes God the author of sin." One of the sisters was not edified by the manner in which he taught the doctrine of free-will ; and the other found the alteration of the covenant a stumbling- block. These reasons did not satisfy the church, but out of the discussion that ensued grew the necessity for a written statement of their faith, which was drawn up by the pastor and adopted by the church, only one member objecting. The dissatisfied ones, however, were not reconciled, and after many meetings and much debate they were placed under censure. They then sought for a Mutual Council, to advise respecting their difficulties, but the church refused to join with them, and they called an Ex-parte Council, which met at the house of Deacon Samuel Fisher. The record of which is as follows :
A COUNCIL AT WEST PARISH, MEDWAY, MASS. " NOVEMBER 11-12, 1777.
At an Ecclesiastical Council convened at Medway 2d Parish 11th of November 1777, composed of the Chh. of Christ in Walpole, the Chh. in Holliston and the Chh. in Dedham, the Chh. in Sherborn, and the Chh. in Medfield, at the request of Deacon Samuel Fisher, Mr. Daniel Pond and sundry sisters in said Parish, to advise them respecting some matters of uneasiness subsisting between them and the Pastor and Chh. in said Parish.
Voted Ist, The Rev. Mr. Phillips Payne, Moderator.
Voted 2d, Rev. Elijah Brown, Scribe.
And after solemn and devout Prayer for light and direction
Voted 3d, That a Committee wait on the Rev. Mr. David Sanford requesting that he and his Chh. would join with the aggrieved in calling a Mutual Council. Which request was not granted.
In the evening the Council received a message from the Rev. Mr. Sanford propos- ing, if it was the desire of the Council, said Chh. would by their Committee, wait on the Council when most agreeable. Accordingly by vote the Council desired their attend- ance at 8 o'clock next morning. To which time the Council adjourned.
Novemt 12th. The Pastor and Committee of said Chh. appeared before the Council in conformity to their agreement. When said Pastor & committee of the Chh. & ag- grieved freely and fully rehearsed matters in which the Council were concerned.
And the Council entering upon a consultation of the matter laid before them came into the following result :
Ist. That the Council mean not to infringe the right of private judgment that this Pastor and people have, on matters of religion, and wholly disclaim all dominion over their faith.
Yet claiming the same liberty to judge for themselves, which they allow to others, they are obliged to declare their disapprobation of several of the religious sentiments of the Rev. Mr. David Sanford which are matters of grievance to those persons at whose desire this Council was convened. And exercising equal tenderness for the consciences of the aggrieved, they cannot but say, they think their desire to enjoy Chh. privileges elsewhere, reasonable under such circumstances, justifiable upon the prin-
I26
ciples of Christian liberty, and accordingly they do not view their withdrawing a breach of covenant, & therefore not deserving the censure of the Chh. And in order that the harmony of this Chh. and the interest of Religion may be promoted in this place it is the opinion of this Council that the censure ought to be removed upon the aggrieved, complying with some articles of advice hereafter mentioned.
2nd. As to the charge of Hypocrisy & unfaithfulness exhibited by the said Chh. against Mr. Daniel Pond, the Council are sorry to find by the evidence produced a want of that simplicity and openness which the Gospel requires (in some part of his conduct) previous to the Ordination of Mr. Sanford, and though they charitably be- lieve it arose from his particular situation at that time, and that fear of Men, that bringeth a snare. Nevertheless they judge it reasonable that he should ask the Chris- tian candor & forgiveness of his brethren, who are offended with him on account hereof & accordingly advise him to do the same.
3d. Although in these unhappy disputes, there may have been some other things said and done on the part of the Chh. & the aggrieved, which have not savored so much of Christian Candor & meekness as could have been wished. Yet the Council imagine that the proper exercise of Christian love might be sufficient to remove all uneasiness and dissatisfaction thereby occasioned.
4th. The Council advise the aggrieved to apply to the Chh. in a Christian way to have the censure they have laid them under removed.
5th. Provided. The Chh. shall not upon the compliance of the aggrieved with the advice before given them, remove the censure, the Council judge them to stand fair to enjoy Christian privileges in other Churches to which they may apply for the same.
Finally the Council advise & exhort the aggrieved to endeavor to walk circum- spectly, to cultivate a Christian temper, & to live in love and peace that the God of love and peace may be with them.
(Signed) Phillips Payson, Moderator, Joshua Prentice, Jason Haven, Elijah Brown, Tho. Prentice, Joshua Clapp, Aaron Phipps, Timothy Rockwood, Jonathan Metcalf, Benjamin Kendall, Benjamin Whitney, James Boyden, Daniel Perry."
"Sherborn, April 6th, 1795.
A true copy - attest
ELIJAH BROWN."
Acting, as it appears, by the advice of this council, those concerned soon after requested that the censure of the church might be removed, preliminary to their asking for letters of dismission and recommendation to some other church ; whereupon the church voted to send a "second admonition, that should contain a suspension from all church privileges." They then applied to the First Church for admission without letters ; and in view of what the council had done, and after much inquiry and deliberation, the First Church received them. In consequence of this procedure, after some correspond- ence, this church withdrew fellowship from the First Church.
Although several attempts were made to restore harmony, this estrange- ment between the churches lasted for thirty-two years. At length, when all the members respecting whom the controversy originated were gone to appear at a higher tribunal, and the members of the churches were completely changed, by the efforts of the Rev. Mr. Wright, pastor of the First Church, and the assistance of Drs. Prentiss, of Medfield, and Emmons, of Franklin, the breach was healed. The case being submitted to these clergymen, they advised that, without concessions on either part, the churches embrace each other in church fellowship, in the spirit of love and tenderness. And the advice was mutually accepted.
The church seems to have been paralyzed by these trials, and diminished in numbers, until it had become "a small and feeble band, consisting of some eight or ten male members, with a proportionate number of females."
Immediately after the adoption of the written Articles of Faith, February
127
8, 1776, the church held a meeting for the confession of sins. This confes- sion was drawn up in writing, and the church confessed the following sins :
(1) The Halfway Covenant ; (2) The neglect of Christian watchful- ness ; (3) The neglect of the Discipline of the Church ; (4) The neglect of the means of Grace. The influence of this meeting was most favorable. Subsequently several seasons of revival interest were enjoyed. In 1785 the church was greatly blessed, and as the result, eighty-five persons were re- ceived into the church, mostly on confession of their faith.
There are no records of the doings of the church for a period of thirty years prior to 1809 ; and only a few items are recorded until 1814.
After an interim of four years from the death of Mr. Sanford, and of seven years from the end of his active pastorate, the Rev. Jacob Ide, of Attleborough, was ordained pastor, November 2, 1814. Dr. Woods, of Andover, preached the ordination sermon, and the Rev. Mr. Wright, of the First Church, gave the right hand of fellowship. Mr. Ide was graduated from Brown University, in 1809; studied theology at Andover, where he graduated in 1812. Beside his pastoral labors, he was an editor, an author, and a teacher of theology, some forty persons having come under his instruction, in preparation for the ministry.
The period of an entire generation had passed since the last revival under his predecessor, with only rare and solitary additions to the church. The members of the church were few, and most of them advanced in age. Eighteen months before, they had discussed the subject of disbanding and returning to the First Church, so feeble and discouraged had they become. The people had contracted habits of neglecting worship and otherwise mis- spending the Sabbath. These circumstances rendered this an uninviting field. But the new minister soon brought a revived life into the church.
In 1832 Dr. Ide received repeated invitations to assume the chair of the- ology in the Bangor Seminary ; but, although urged very persistently to ac- cept the position, he finally concluded to remain with his people. He was pastor for fifty-one years, and his colleague successor was installed on the anniversary of his own settlement. In 1838, a portion of the members, with the approbation of the church, formed, with others, a new church at the Village, over which the Rev. David Sanford, grandson of the second pastor of this church, was installed, October 3, 1838.
The Rev. Dr. Ide preached a centennial discourse October 20, 1850, which the church voted to publish. The text was Psalms lxxiv., 2.
On the fiftieth anniversary of Dr. Ide's settlement, November 2, 1864, a commemorative service was held. A multitude gathered ; more than could find seats or even standing-room, and many were obliged to retire. The pastor preached in the morning a historical sermon, in which he says: " I have attended one hundred and seventy-five ecclesiastical councils, have preached twenty-seven ordination sermons, five funeral sermons of ministers and four of ministers' wives," and enumerates other special and important occasions upon which he had been called upon to preach. Of his sermons he says : " I have printed about forty in pamphlet and other forms." He had solemnized four hundred and thirty-two marriages, administered five hundred and ten baptisms, and attended seven hundred and forty-three fu- nerals within his own parish, besides a large number in neighboring towns
128
and parishes. The afternoon was occupied with the recital of reminiscences, enlivened with anecdote and humor, by Dr. Ide's clerical friends. About seventy clergymen were present. Among the speakers were Professor E. A. Park, D. D., of Andover, Dr. A. L. Stone, Dr. Anderson, and Dr. Nehe- miah Adams, of Boston, the Rev. J. T. Tucker, the Rev. H. D. Walker, and Charles Thurber, Esq.
The Rev. Dr. Ide lived to a great age. His ministry and life were a great power for good. Vid. BIOGRAPIIIES.
The Rev. Stephen Knowlton was settled colleague pastor, November 2, 1865, and was the fourth pastor of the church. Dr. Park, of Andover, preached the ordination sermon, and Dr. Ide offered the prayer. Mr. Knowlton was an instructive preacher, and many were brought to receive Christ as their Saviour during his pastorate of seven years. He resigned November 20, 1872, in order to accept an invitation to New Haven, Vt.
The Rev. S. W. Segur, of Gloucester, Mass., was installed May 7, 1873, the fifth pastor. After a short and efficient ministry, he died, September 24, 1875, in the midst of great usefulness, universally beloved and lamented. His death occurred while on a visit to the place of his first pastorate, Tallmadge, Ohio. Vid. BIOGRAPHIES.
The Rev. James M. Bell, after successive pastorates in Ashby, Water- town, and North Hadley, covering a period of nearly twenty years, accepted a call to become the sixth pastor of this church, and was installed September 26, 1876. The Rev. Edwin B. Webb, D. D., of Boston, preached the sermon, and the installing prayer was by the Rev. Jacob Ide, Jun., of Mansfield, Mass. The Rev. Mr. Bell's ministry continued about nine years. He read his resignation May 3d. 1885, to take effect the first of the following July. He removed to Watertown, Mass., but continued to supply the pulpit of the church during the summer and autumn of that year.
A plan was adopted by the church, in 1815, for the public religious instruction of the children, who were divided into classes, according to their ages, and instructed by the pastor once a month. The Sabbath School was established in May, 1819. It was first placed under the care of Mr. Sewall Harding, then a theological student, afterward the seventh pastor of the First Church. The subsequent superintendents were Moses Felt, Daniel Wiley, Elihu White, Joshua Sevey, George S. Partridge, Charles H. Deans, the Rev. S. W. Segur, Warren E. Adams, and Addison A. Smith.
The present church edifice, the second built by this parish, was dedicated a few weeks before the ordination of Dr. Ide, in 1814. At that time there was but one dwelling in its vicinity. The change of location from the old site caused some dissatisfaction and unpleasant feeling for many years. In 1846, the spire, after standing thirty-two years, was re-built, and the body of the house much altered, externally as well as internally. It was newly seated throughout ; the pulpit was re-constructed ; the gallery was lowered and extended over the porch ; the windows in the wall opposite the entrance were closed up, and blinds applied to those that remained ; the ceiling and walls were frescoed by the generosity of Christopher Slocum, Esq., and the aisles for the first time carpeted. During the summer of 1873, it was again re-seated, the recess built for the platform, the present mode of warming adopted, and the interior greatly beautified. The next summer the chapel
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.