USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Wenham > The history of Wenham : civil and ecclesiastical, from its settlement in 1639, to 1860 > Part 9
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In private life, Dr. Kilham was a man of quiet manners and retiring disposition. He was a fine specimen of a gentleman of the old school, some- what formal and reserved in his habits, but always kind and courteous, independent in his opinions and fearless in expressing them, a faithful friend, as well as a resolute and determined opponent, an excellent type of a class of men, which has now
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almost passed away. He retained as long as he lived, the old-fashioned small clothes, thus pre- serving the dress as well as the manners of his younger days. Dr. Kilham was never married, his house being kept by a widowed sister. He was a kind and loving brother, and for his sister's children he felt a father's care, and acted a father's part. In all that concerned the well-being of his native town, he evinced a deep interest, and repeatedly received the public thanks of his fellow citizens for his services in their behalf. He died quite suddenly at the advanced age of eighty-eight, as was supposed of a disease of the heart. He was found dead in his garden, among the trees and flowers, which he had planted and so dearly loved, his countenance retaining in death the same calm and pleasing expression, which it had borne through life.
Among the distinguished citizens of Wenham no name has been so generally known, or so high- ly honored as that of the Hon. Timothy Pickering. He was born in Salem, July 17, 1745, where his father was a respectable merchant. After graduating at Harvard in 1763, he pursued the study of the law, and was in due time admitted to the bar. In the difficulties which about this time arose between the mother country and her colonies, he took from the first an active and decided part, and soon became the leader and champion of the Whigs in the region where he lived. He was a
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member of all the committees of correspondence, and performed himself the entire labor of the writing. The address voted by the inhabitants of Salem to Gov. Gage, disclaiming all desire to pro- fit by the closure of the port of Boston, and the transfer to that place of the meetings of the Legis- lature, was from his pen. On hearing of the battle of Lexington, he marched the regiment of which he was commander to Charlestown, but arrived too late to cut off the retreat of the British. In the same year, upon the organization of a provisional government, he was appointed a Judge of the Com- mon Pleas for Essex County, and sole Judge of the Maritime Court, which had cognizance of all prize cases for the Middle District, including Boston and Essex County. He retained these offices till 1777, when he joined the continental army in New Jersey, and received the appointment of Adjutant General from Washington. He was present at the battles of Brandywine and Germantown, and con- tinued with the army until they went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. About this time, he was chosen by Congress, a member of the Board of War, then sitting at Yorktown, Penn. Here he remained until he was appointed to suc- ceed Gen. Greene, as Quarter-Master-General, an office which he held to the close of the war, and in which his energy and efficiency contributed much to the surrender of Cornwallis, at Yorktown. His services and fidelity during the Revolution, had se-
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cured the confidence and esteem of Washington, who, soon after his election to the Presidency, ap- pointed Mr. Pickering Postmaster General. He was also charged with several important negotia- tions with the Indian tribes. Upon the resignation of Gen. Knox, in 1794, he was transferred to the place of Secretary of War. In 1795, he was ap- pointed Secretary of State, in the place of Mr. Ran- dolph. This office he continued to fill through the rest of Washington's administration and during a part of that of his successor. He was removed by Mr. Adams, in May, 1800, but was soon after elect- ed Senator from Massachusetts, to fill up the unex- pired term of Mr. Foster, who had resigned. In 1805, he was re-elected Senator, for the full term of six years. After its close, he was chosen a member of the Executive Council, and during the war of 1812, was a member of the Board of War, for defence of the State. In 1814, he was elected Representative to Congress, from the Essex dis- trict, which station he resigned, March, 1817, and retired to private life. His death occurred at Sa- lem, Jan. 29, 1829, in the 84th year of his age.
For many years, Mr. Pickering occupied the place in Wenham, now owned by Messrs. A. & J. Lowe, upon which he resided during the intervals of leisure from public life. He was very fond of agriculture, and displayed the same energy in the management of his estate, which had made him so distinguished in public affairs. He was a man of
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large stature and great industry. Many now liv- ing, can remember him as he appeared leading the mowers upon his farm, in the morning, when per- haps he would be summoned and set out on horse- back before evening, for Washington, to consult on affairs of the highest national importance. He was the first president of the Essex Agricultural Society, in the proceedings of which he took much interest and contributed several valuable articles still preserved in their published Reports. He was beloved by his neighbors and townsmen, and always manifested a deep interest in all that con- cerned the well-being of his rural home.
In the various public stations which he filled, Mr. Pickering showed a clear and penetrating mind, sound judgment, and indomitable energy. His stern, unbending patriotism, the lofty dignity of his public character, and the simplicity of his manners in private life, remind one of the ancient Roman. Perhaps no one was ever more trusted and confided in by his friends, or more bitterly de- nounced by his enemies. The numerous public stations to which he was called, are the best testi- monials of the regard in which he was held by his cotemporaries. It is enough for us to say, that he possessed through life, the esteem and confidence of Washington.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
THE early settlers of New England fled from persecution at home, that they might worship God according to the dictates of conscience. Their first work after landing on our shores, was to or- ganize a church, and make arrangements for the regular performance of public worship; and as their settlements extended, no sooner had they built houses to shelter themselves and their fami. lies from the severity of the climate, than they proceeded to erect a sanctuary and secure the ser- vices of a regular pastor.
For the first three or four years after the earli- est settlements were formed in Wenham, the inhab- itants probably attended public worship in Salem. The first sermon preached within the limits of the town, of which we have any record, was delivered by the celebrated Hugh Peters,* in 1642. The
* Mr. Peters afterwards returned to England. where he performed a conspicuous part in the changes which followed upon the Civil War. He became a famous preacher among the Puritans, and was appointed by Cromwell, as one of his chaplains. After the resto- ration of Charles II. he was publicly beheaded on Tower Hill.
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village was then called Enon, and in allusion to it, doubtless, the text, " In Ænon, near to Salem, for there was much water there," John iii. 23, was selected. The grassy hillock, then occupied by the distinguished preacher, long retained the name of " Peters' pulpit," but it has recently given way, like many other relics of antiquity, to the en- croaching spirit of enterprize which marks our age. The little eminence has been entirely remov- ed, and the place where it stood is now occupied by the extensive ice-houses of Gage & Co. It re- quires some effort of imagination to recall the scene as it existed two hundred years ago. The lake in- deed remains, and still reflects from its crystal sur- face, the overarching sky. But the dense forests which then lined the shores, and cast their shad- ows upon the glassy waters, have long since disap- peared. The very hills have been smoothed away by the art and industry of man. The " salvages " who then fished in the quiet lake, or pursued their game through the tangled wilderness,have passed away. The wolf and the deer have given place to herds of grazing cattle. The shores and slop- ing hills, then covered with tangled thickets, gnarled oaks, and lofty pines, the haunts of wild beasts and venomous reptiles, now exhibit a pros- pect of cultivated fields and tasteful dwellings.
" Where peeped the hut, the palace towers, Where skimmed the bark, the tall ship lowers ; Joy gaily carols where was silence rude, And cultured thousands throng the solitude."
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Nor is it the outward face of nature alone, that has changed. Those stern and hardy men who were striving to subdue the howling wilderness, and thus secure for themselves a free and peaceful home, and who had that day met to hear the word of God for the first time, at their own doors-they too have passed away, and even their graves can now scarcely be traced. But the preaching of the gospel and the regular worship of the sanctuary, then introduced within our borders, have never failed.
The next year, Mr. John Fisk, who had taught the first grammar school established in Salem, and while thus engaged, had occasionally assisted Mr. Peters in his ministerial labors, removed to Wen- ham, and through his efforts a church was regular- ly organized, on the 8th of October, 1644. He at once became its pastor, and continued his labors in the town till 1656, apparently much to the satisfac- tion of the people. To the duties of the pastor he added those of physician, so that Cotton Mather re- marks concerning him : " Among the most famous preachers and writers of the gospel, with whom the primitive church was blessed, there was Luke, the beloved physician, the blessed scholar and col- league of the apostle Paul. And among the first preachers and writers which rendered the primi- tive times of New England happy, there was one who might be called the beloved physician ; one to whom there might also be given the eulogy
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which the ancients think was given to Luke - a brother whose praise was in the gospel, through- out all the churches. This was Mr. John Fisk."
This appears like high eulogy, but for the times in which he lived, Mr. Fisk was evidently a superi- or man. He was descended from a pious ancestry, and was early devoted to the service of Christ and the church. His parents, after carefully instruct- ing him at home, sent him to the grammar school, and afterwards to the University. He graduated at Immanuel College, Cambridge, and after study- ing theology, was engaged for several years, in the work of the ministry. In consequence, however, of the persecution then carried on against the Pu- ritans, and the difficulties and annoyances in the way of preaching, in accordance with the advice of his friends, he turned his attention to medicine, and obtained the usual license to practise as a phy- sician. Yet he was still so desirous to resume the labors of the ministry that he determined to re- move to America. He had previously married a lady of high rank and uncommon worth. To her parents, his purpose to come to America was so disagreeable, that they resolved to deprive him of several hundred pounds, which were the just share of his wife in her father's estate. At the call of duty, however, he did not hesitate to sacrifice property, and all the endearments of home and kin- dred. Disguising himself to escape the fury of his persecutors, he embarked, in company with the
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Rev. John Allen, afterwards the first minister of Dedham. Of the voyage, Cotton Mather says :- "They entertained the passengers with two ser- mons every day, besides other agreeable devotions, which filled the voyage with so much of religion that one of the passengers being examined about his going to divert himself with a hook and line on the Lord's day, protested that 'he did not know when the Lord's day was ; he thought every day was a Sabbath day, for,' said he, ' they do nothing but pray and preach all the week long.'"
After arriving in this country, Mr. Fisk appears to have taught some years in Cambridge, and af- terwards in Salem. Of his services in the latter city, the Mayor of Salem, in a public address in 1842, says, " We may all well be proud of the hon- est fame of the first teacher of our grammar school. He was, by the concurrent testimony of the most learned and honored of his day and generation, ranked high in the list of able, useful and devoted ministers of the gospel. One of his scholars was Sir George Downing, who was a member of the first class that graduated at Harvard College." His pupils, it is said, were fitted " to read any classical authors into English, and readily make and speak true Latin, and write it in verse as well as prose, and perfectly to decline the paradigms of nouns and verbs in the Greek tongue."
Preferring, however, the work of the ministry to the labors of the teacher, he gave up his school in
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1643, and, removing to Wenham, joined his for- tunes to those of the infant plantation. Upon what salary he was settled, we have no means of ascertaining. A piece of land appears to have been granted to him, and in addition to this, he had probably such contributions as the people were able to raise. It is stated that "he drew largely upon his own estate, for the benefit of the new plantation."* In 1654, it was voted by the town, that, " the yearly maintenance of our minister shall bee fortie pounds a year, whether Mr. Fisk stay among us, or we procure another ;" and again, that " Mr. Gott, James Moulton and John Fisk are chosen to go to Mr. Miller, to give him a call in case Mr. Fisk leaveth us." December, 1655, it was ordered " that in case Mr. Brock be procured to stay amongst us, whatsoever the town hath en- gaged, or shall be levied on any land, shall be paid, two-thirds part in wheat, barley or peas, butter or pork, and the other third part in Indian corn." In consequence of the extreme scarcity of money, taxes and contributions were very generally paid in produce. According to the expenses of living and the means of the people, £40 a year would seem to be full as large a salary as is now usually paid in country towns.
From the previous votes, it appears that Mr. Fisk had already formed the purpose of leaving
* In 1643, he gave ten acres of land for the benefit of the church and society.
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Wenham. He remained, however, till 1656, when, with a majority of the church, he removed to Chelmsford, where he lived for twenty years, dis- charging the duties at once, of the minister and the physician. "For twenty years," says Cotton Mather, " did he shine in the golden candlestick of Chelmsford, a plain, but an able, powerful and use- ful preacher of the gospel, rarely, if ever, by sick- ness hindered from the exercise of his ministry. He died in his new field of labor in 1676, at the ad- vanced age of seventy-five.
Rev. W. Allen, in his history of Chelmsford, has given high testimony to the value of Mr. Fisk's la- bors in that town. The trials and hardships which he was there called to endure, might have dis- heartened youthful vigor, but were borne with fortitude and even cheerfulness. For the use of his flock, he wrote a catechism entitled, “ Water- ing of the Olive Plants in Christ's Garden." This little work is moderate in doctrine, catholic in spirit, and admirably suited to the purpose for which it was designed." His epitaph in Latin, is as follows : "Vixi et quem dederas cursum mihi Christe peregi, pertæsus vitae, suaviter opto mori. (I have lived and finished the work which Thou, Saviour, didst give me ; weary of life, I long to de- part in peace.")
After the departure of Mr. Fisk, with a majority of the church, those who remained, were left in a very low and enfeebled condition. It has been
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supposed by some that no ecclesiastical organiza- tion existed till, as they say, the church was again gathered, in 1663, and the Rev. Antipas Newman was ordained as its pastor. There are, however, reasons to believe that the remaining members continued to act as a church, though no distinct record of their proceedings has been preserved. At a town meeting held Dec. 6, 1656, it was voted that, " Whereas the town hath taken into consider- ation the great want of a minister amongst us, it is therefore ordered that Mr. Gott and James Moul. ton are hereby chosen to endeavor to procure one, and to present him with the promise of £45 a year, for his yearly maintenance." The next year they obtained the services of Rev. Antipas Newman, and we find recorded a vote of the town, Nov. 8, 1657, that his salary should be paid half in wheat and half in Indian corn ;" and again it was unani- mously voted, that " the town will allow towards Mr. Newman's house the sum of £40 sterling, and £10 more towards the providing of other accom- modations." Two years later we find a vote to raise the sum of £50 for their minister's support, which was £10 more than they had ever given to Mr. Fisk. These facts abundantly prove that though the church must have been very much weakened by the loss of a majority of its members, yet the remainder were not at all despondent, but rather aroused to new effort. Mr. Newman was married in 1658, to Elizabeth Winthrop, a daugh-
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ter of Gov. Winthrop. He appears to have preached for several years, as a regular supply, but for some reason was not ordained till Dec. 8, 1663. At that time, the church appears to have been re- organized and a new covenant adopted.
The first house of worship was small, and de- signed to be only temporary. It stood upon a small eminence near the house of Mr. Henry Tarr. As early as 1660, we find a vote of the town, to build "a new meeting-house, twenty-four feet square, and twelve feet stud, the old meeting-house to be sold, partly to defray the cost, and the se- lectmen empowered to put it out to be built." But afterwards it was determined to repair the old one, and the new house was not completed till 1663. The expense of this work was defrayed, partly, by a rate of £80 3s. 8d.
The ministry of Mr. Newman does not appear to have been distinguished by any remarkable event. He was a man of excellent religious character, and his services were acceptable to his people. In 1665, his salary was raised to " £50 a year, and two pounds of butter for every milch cow in the parish, and this sum to be paid promptly." More- over, as was customary in those days, a house and land enough for a small farm was given him by the town. His residence is supposed to have been the place where the house of Dr. John Porter now stands. Here he died, Oct. 15, 1672, nine years after his ordination, and fifteen years from the
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commencement of his ministry. Tradition says that he was buried near the grave of Rev. Mr. Swain, but there is nothing now to mark the spot. He left five children, and a widow, who afterwards married Zerubabel Endicott, a son of Gov. Endi- cott, of Salem.
The church did not long remain destitute. At a town meeting, Jan. 5, 1673, or within less than three months of Mr. Newman's death, we find the following record : "For the encouragement of Mr. Gerrish to settle amongst us, it is voted, that dur- ing the time that God shall continue him with us, he shall have £50 within the town, per year, and twenty cords of wood, with the use of the minis- ter's house and land, with the appurtenances." From other records, however, it appears that Mr. Gerrish did not come to Wenham till May 31st. He was born at Newbury, March 23, 1650, gradu- ated at Harvard College, 1669, and was ordained pastor of the church in Wenham, Jan. 13, 1674. Here he remained in the active discharge of the duties of the ministry, till his death, Jan. 6, 1720, in the seventieth year of his age, and the forty-sev- enth year of his ministry. During this long peri- od, he preserved, in a remarkable degree, the con- fidence and affection of his people. Soon after his settlement, a house was built for him by the town, and a little later, a grant was made to him of twelve acres of land, and a share in the common lands.
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The town taxes at this period averaged about £30 a year, while the State and County tax, (or county rate as it was called,) varied from £4 to £8. Thus the amount paid for the support of the gospel, at this time, exceeded the entire taxes of the town, for all other purposes. This sum was raised partly by renting a portion of the common lands, but principally by subscription. The mode of proceeding, when any were unwilling to con- tribute their share, may be seen from the follow- ing record : " Voted, 3d of 11th month, 1659, that Richard Coy and Thomas Fisk are chosen to take an accompt of our neighbors what they will allow for our minister's maintenance, and to collect his said maintenance for the year ; that is, to demand it in case of defect of payment, and to distrain, if need require." As new families moved into town, seats in the church were rented to them, at prices varying from six to eight shillings a year, with the condition of contributing their share to the ex- penses of repairing the house. The seating of the people in the meeting-house, appears to have been left to the care of the selectmen.
Some of the people from the southern part of Ipswich, who were in the habit of attending church here, being negligent about paying their share for the support of public worship, it was promptly voted that " the selectmen shall agree with them upon such terms as they shall see meet, and in case they shall not comply, to discharge them from
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coming." An amicable arrangement was at length formed, by which they were to pay to Wenham one-third of the expense of building the house, and also their share towards keeping it in repair, and paying the salary of the minister. Accordingly, the west gallery and several seats in the body of the church were assigned to them.
Records like these are interesting, as throwing light upon the spirit of the times. No individual was then allowed to evade obligations, which were regarded as resting equally upon all. Every male member of the parish was taxed at five shillings per head ; a contribution was taken up every Sabbath, and any one who failed to do his part was immedi- ately fined. The money appears in all instances, to have been promptly paid at the beginning of the year.
In 1688, an agreement was signed by thirty-eight persons, to pay to Mr. Gerrish annually, the sum of £60- £10 of it in money, and to increase his allowance of wood to thirty cords a year. At this period, the fees of the sexton for taking care of the house and ringing the bell, were about twenty shillings a year.
The early part of Mr. Gerrish's ministry was a period of trial and suffering in Wenham, as well as in other New England towns. In 1675, or two years after his settlement, King Phillip's War broke out, and five men were impressed from the town for the service of the colony. The fury of
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the enemy, it is true, fell mostly upon the frontier and more exposed towns. Yet against such an en- emy, lurking in swamps and forests, and always most dangerous when least expected, security could only be obtained by constant vigilance. The influence of these exciting times could not fail to be unfavorable to the moral progress and spirit- ual interests of the little community. Yet in spite of all difficulties, the church and parish continually prospered. The pastor, by his zealous and faithful labors, was able to preserve the confidence and af- fection of his people. Every reference to " our minister," in the records of the town, gives evi- dence of their general esteem of his character.
About this period, a practice was introduced, which afterwards became the occasion of many dif- ficulties. We refer to the "half-way covenant." One of the earliest measures after the colony was organized, was a law, requiring that church mem- bers alone, should be allowed to vote in civil af- fairs, or to hold any office. This was evidently a great error, yet less surprising, when we consider the spirit of the times and the peculiar circum- stances of the people. The religious principles and character of the earliest settlers were such as to occasion no inconvenience from this regulation. When, however, a second generation grew upon the soil, many of them not church members, but whose claim to all the rights of citizenship, could not properly be disputed, the injustice of this law be-
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came manifest. To obviate this difficulty, a scheme was introduced by a synod, which met in 1662, to determine who were proper subjects for baptism. By this scheme, "Persons baptized in infancy, understanding the doctrines of faith, and solemnly owning the covenant before the church, wherein they give up themselves and their chil- dren to the Lord, and subject themselves to the government of Christ and his church, their children are to be baptized, although still excluded from the communion." They were, moreover, allowed cer- tain privileges, and permitted to act in ecclesiasti- cal affairs. In this way, too, they became voters, and obtained the right to hold office, and these privileges furnished strong inducements for all moral and respectable people to become thus con- nected with the church.
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