USA > Maryland > Anne Arundel County > Historical notices of St. Ann's parish in Ann Arundel county, Maryland, extending from 1649 to 1857, a period of 208 years > Part 6
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Mr. Allen's last attendance in the meetings of the vestry, was November 24th, 1767. He got into an- other very serious quarrel it is said, with Daniel Du- lany, Esq., who visited him with personal chastise- ment in the street of Annapolis.
On the 2nd of February, 1768, it was ordered by the vestry, that the Register search for a deed of the lot K in Annapolis, whereon the parsonage then stood, as it still does. It was dated - 1759, and was from Philip Key of St. Mary's, and Theodosia his wife, who was the widow it may be recollected, of the Rev. John Humphreys, to the Rev. Alexander Wil- liamson and the vestry. The consideration named was .£20. The lot is described, as lying on the South West side of Hanover Street, running south 156 feet, and north west 192. The purchase embraced all the houses, &c., formerly bought of John Lomas.
In June, 1768, the Rector of All Saints being now dead, Mr. Allen was presented to that Parish. On taking charge of it he was mobbed on the very first Sunday, under the influence as he said of the Dula- neys. And a long paper controversy in the Mary- land Gazette ensued. Mr. Allen now resigned St. Ann's, but appears to have held on to St. James', till in June 1769, when he resigned that also. All Saints, Frederick is said at that time to have been worth $4,000 per annum. Indeed Eddis, page 49, says it was estimated at £1,000 sterling or $4, 666. 7*
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Mr. Allen was a tory, and as by the bill of rights, the support of the clergy ceased in November, 1776, he left and returned to England. How he was em- ployed there is not known. But on the 18th of June, 1782, he challenged Mr. Lloyd Dulaney, formerly of Maryland, but then in London, and killed him. It is said of Allen that he died in wretched poverty, be- ing intemperate and degraded, in the street in Lon- don. He is stated to have been a man, not only of finished scholarship, but of fine personal appearance and address. He was however destitute of principle and piety, profane, grasping and haughty-poor wretched man !
REV. WM. EDMISTON, EIGHTEENTH INCUMBENT. .
On the 3rd of March, 1768, Mr. Edmiston present- ed his letters of induction from Gov. Sharpe to the vestry, and was recognized as rector.
Mr. Edmiston was a native probably of Pennsyl- vania, and a graduate of the college of Philadelphia. He was ordained deacon by the Bishop of Lincoln, March 15th, 1767, and priest, on the 29th, by the Bishop of Oxford, at St. James', Westminster. The next day, he was licensed for Pennsylvania by the Bishop of London, and returned to that Province, where he remained till he came to Annapolis.
This year 1760, Hanson, chapter 14, the General Assembly appropriated £7 500 sterling, to build a new (the present) State House. The foundation stone was laid March 28th, 1772, by Gov. Eden. It was finished in Its length is 120 feet, and width 82, exclusive of the octagon. The dome was not put up till after the Revolution. Itrises to theheight of 200 feet.
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISHI.
July 4th, 1769. The taxables for 1768 are sta- ted at 1217. Such had been the increase since 1730, when last mentioned, being then 367.
September 4th, Mr. Eddis arrived in Annapolis. " Understanding," he writes, "that I was in time for divine service, I availed myself of an immediate op- portunity to offer up my fervent acknowledgements at the throne of grace * The exterior of the church has but little to recommend it, but the congregation was numerous. The solemn offices were performed with a becoming devotion, and my mind was in perfect unison with the important duties of the day. " By invitation he dined that day, with a din- ner party at Gov. Edens-was it Sunday ?
Mr. Edmiston's last meeting in vestry was in April, 1770. Very soon after, he removed to and became rector of St. George's Parish, now in Harford Coun- ty. In a few days, May 19th, 1770, he received the appointment of Rector of St. Thomas' Parish, Balti- more County, on which he at once entered. There, he was warmly partizan against both whigs and dis- senters, and for an offensive expression of his, in con- demnation of the whigs in his pulpit on a Sabbath in 1775, he was taken before the County "Committee of Observation," where he made some recantations and a promise in future to avoid offence. But he had gone too far, and in September he felt himself compelled to abandon his parish, and sailed for England. He left his wife and daughter behind him, but sent for them as soon as he was able.
February 20th, 1770, Eddis, page 31, writes thus, on Saturday last was the Anniversary of the Proprie- tary's birth-day. The Governor gave a grand enter- tainment to a numerous party. 'The festivity conclu- ded with cards and dancing, which engaged the at- tention of their respective votaries, till an carly hour.
Annapolis, he tells us, boasts of a great number of
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fashionable and handsome women, and were I not satisfied to the contrary, I should suppose, that a ma- jority of our belles possessed every advantage of a long and familiar intercourse with the manners and habits of London.
During the winter, there are assemblies every fort- night, the room for dancing is large, the construction elegant, and the wholeilluminated to great advantage. At each extremity are apartments for the card tables.
REV. JOHNATHAN BOUCHER, NINETEENTH INCUMBENT.
Mr. Boucher received his letters of induction from Gov. Eden, and presented them to the vestry, June 12th, 1770.
In early life he had come from England to Virgin- ia. In 1762 he returned to England, and was or- dained priest on the 26th of March, and licensed for Virginia by the Bishop of London the same day. On his coming home, he first took charge of Hanover Parish, in King George County, and subsequently of St. Mary's Parish, in Caroline County. From thence he came to Annapolis.
He remained here but a year. His last attendance with the vestry, was June 4th, 1771. Soon after this, he became the Rector of Queen Anne's Parish, Prince George's County.
September 9th, 1771, Mr. Eddis writes: The new theatre was opened, and had a numerous and bril- liant audience. It was a handsome structure of brick. It was built on ground leased from St. Ann's Parish. The lease expired about 1814. And the vestry then took possession of it and sold it. It was soon after
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISH ..
pulled down, and a carriage manufactory, 1840, oc- cupies its place, as we learn from Mr. Ridgely.
Mr. Boucher was a tory. In 1773, he had a con- troversy in the Maryland Gazette, with Messrs. Chase and Paca, on the reduction of the pay of the clergy, which was conducted with much ability. In 1775 he left the province, and returned to England. After the peace had been proclaimed, in 1784, he was pre- sented to the Vicarage of Epsom, Surry, where he re- mained till 1799, when he removed to Carlisle, where he died in 1804.
Mr. Boucher was a man of clear head, sound mor- als, evangelical doctrine, and an able writer. In 1797, he published a thick octavo volume of discour- ses, political mostly in their bearing, preached while in Prince George's County, Maryland, to which, he prefixed a history of the causes and the consequences of the American Revolution. This may be consider- ed the tory view of it. It is certainly very able, and apparently candid, and is well worthy of a careful perusal, by all who would understand that period of American history.
REV. JOHN MONTGOMERY, TWENTIETH INCUM- BENT. .
The parish remained vacant six months, when on the 21st of January, 1772, Mr. Montgomery present- ed his letters of induction to the vestry from Gov. Eden. He was ordained by the Bishop of London, and licensed by him for Maryland, July 23rd, 1770. On his coming to the province he became the Rector of Worcester Parish, Worcester County, and it was from thence, that he came here.
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The church was originally built in the form of a letter T, says the Annals of Annapolis, page 123, and neatly finished. The principal entrance was towards the East. It was in a ruinous condition. Its minis- ter often remonstrated with his congregation and urg- ed them to repair or re-build it, but did not succeed until the following poem appeared in the Maryland Gazette, September 5th, 1771 :-
"To the very worthy and respectable inhabitants of Annapolis, the humble petition of their old church sheweth :-
"That late in century the last, By private bounty, here were placed, My sacred walls, and tho' in truth, Their style and manner be unconth, Yet, whilst no structure met mine eye, That even with myself could vie, A goodly edifice I seemed, And pride of all St. An's was decmed. Ilow changed the times ! for now all round, Unnumbered stately piles abound, All better built, and looking down On me, quite antiquated grown, Left unrepaired, to time a prey, I feel my vitals fast decay, And often have I heard it said, That some good people are afraid, Lest I should tumble on their head. Of which indeed this seems a proof, They seldom come beneath my roof. The stadt honse, that for public good, With me co-eval long had stood,
With me full many a storm has dared, Is now at length to be repaired, Or rather to be built anew, An honor to the land and you.
Whilst I alone, not worth your care, Anı left your sad neglect to bear, With grief, in yonder field, hard bye, A sister ruin I espy :- Old Bladen's palace, once so famed, And now too well 'the folly,' named, Her roof all tottering to decay, Her walls a monldering all away, She says, or seems to say to me,
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISHI.
'Such too ere long thy fate shall be.' ** * *
Of sunshine, oft a casual ray Breaks in upon a clondy day. O'erwhelmed with wo, methinks I see, a ray of hope thus dart on me. Close at my door, on my own land,
Placed there it seems, by your command,
I've seen, I own with some surprise,
A novel structure sudden rise. I would not if I could restrain,
A moral stage, yet I would fain,
Of your indulgence and esteem,
At least, an equal portion claim.
And decency, without my prayers,
Will surely whisper in your ears,
'To pleasure, if such care you show,
A mite to duty pray bestow.' Say, does my rival boast the art, One solid comfort to impart,
Or heal, like me, the broken heart,
Does she like me pour forth the strain,
Of peace on earth good will to man?
Merit she has, but, let me say, The highest merit of a play,
Tho' Shakspeare wrote it, but to name,
With mine, were want of sense or shame.
Why should I point to distant times,
To kindred and congenial elimes, Where spite of many a host of foes, To God a mighty temple rose ?
Why point to every land beside,
Whose honest aim it is, a pride,
However poor it be, yet still,
At least to make God's house genteel ?
Here in Annapolis alone,
God has the meanest house in town.
The premises considered, I
With humble confidence rely,
That phanis-like, I soon shall rise,
From my own ashes to the skies :
Your mite at least, that you will pay,
And your petitioner shall pray -. "
The second line it will have been seen, is histori- cally incorrect, it was not built by "private bounty."
This work had been before the public four years, and now at length on the 9th of June, 1772, the vestry gave notice, that they would apply to the next Gen-
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eral Assembly for an assessment of £10.000, to build a new church in Annapolis.
By a reference to 1742, we may be reminded what is here called "Bladen's palace," "the folly." It is at this time, that Eddis speaks of it thus, "it has re- mained to this day, October 4th, 1773, a melancholy and mouldering monument of the consequences re- sulting from political dissensions. The depredations of time have very greatly injured the interior parts of this edifice, which in an unfinished state has con- tinued many years exposed to the inclemency of the weather. However on a late accurate survey, the out- side structure and the principal timbers are found in a condition so perfect, that it is determined to repair the damages sustained, and to apply the building to the purposes of collegiate education, for which every circumstance contributes to render it truly eligible." This determination however was not carried out for fifteen years.
Another thing nevertheless was determined at the December session of the General Assembly, Hanson, chapter, 28th, and that was, to take away one fourth of each clergyman's support, by reducing the 401b. per poll to 30. This bore hard on parishes like St. Ann's. It cut off in the parish more than $200, when before it was but little over $800. Had this been pros- pective, in reference to clergymen afterwards to be settled in parishes, it might have been just, but how could it be considered to be so, in the case of those al- ready settled.
On the 15th of March, 1774, it was ordered by the vestry, that the Rev. Mr. Montgomery wait on John Ridout, Esq., for the various accounts of public money expended in building a glebe house in this city. This item in the records, doubtless shows when the pres- ent parsonage of St. Ann's church was built.
Two years had passed away since the vestry deci-
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISII.
ded to ask an assessment for building a new church, and now at length, at its March session, Hanson, chapter 11, 1774, the General Assembly appointed John Ridout, Samuel Chase, William Paca, Upton Scott and Thomas Hyde, trustees for building in An- napolis an elegant church, to be adorned with a stee- ple. The old church was to be taken down, and the centre of it, to be the centre of the new one. It was supposed, it would cost the £3,000 already subscrib- ed, £1,500 to be received from the commissioners of the loan office, and 160,000 lbs. of tobacco to be le- vied on the parish. In return for the £1,500, there was to be provided a pew for the Governor, a large one for the Council, one for the Speaker, all to be properly ornamented, and other pews for the mem- bers of the Lower House, one for the Judges of the Provincial Court, and one for strangers. One was to be for the Incumbent, one for the wardens, and two for the provincial juries. When completed, the sub- scribers were to choose their pews, preference being given to the largest subscribers, no one being enti- tled to a pew subscribing less than £20. Then, 20 pews were to be sold to the parishioners by auction. There was to be a common gallery for the parishion- ers, one for servants, and another for slaves.
January 5th, 1775. At their meeting this day, the vestry refused Mr. Montgomery, to pay him for the improvements which he had put up on the ves- try's lot. Whether it was owing to this refusal, or to some other cause, this was the last meeting at which his name is found recorded. He seems to have resigned immediately.
Very soon after this, he became the rector of South Sassafras, or Shrewsbury Parish, Kent County, where he continued three years. Whether at the end of that time he died, or went to England has not been ascertained.
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REV. THOMAS LENDRUM, TWENTY- FIRST INCUM- BENT.
Eleven days after the last mentioned meeting of the vestry, January 16th, 1775, Mr. Lendrum pre- sented his letters of induction from Gov. Eden. Mr. Lendrum had been ordained February 2nd, 1773, by the Bishop of Limerick, Ardfert and Aghadoe. His letters of orders are mentioned as having been record- ed in another book, than that of the record of the ves- try's proceedings. There were then consequently this, and the treasurer's book of a former day, not now in their possession. He was licensed by the Bishop of London, February 2nd, 1773. Where he had been from this date, to that of his becoming the incumbent here, we do not learn.
At the vestry's meeting of March the 7th, the or- gan was directed to be taken down and packed up in boxes. The work thus of preparing for the erection of a new church edifice was now commenced.
Still the old church was occupied, for it was not till the 5th of June, that steps were taken for hold- ing public worship elsewhere, and then the vestry agreed that the play house (theatre) should be fitted up for a place of divine service. On the 5th of Sep- tember following, the vestry agreed to allow £20 a year for the use of the play house as a church. The organ had again been put up, and Mr. Woodcock was allowed £30 a year as organist. The old church was soon level with the ground.
But these were the times of vengeance. The war trumpet had now blown its blast. Ticonderoga and Crown Point had been taken from the British, the battle of Bunker Hill had been fought, and Wash-
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISH.
ington had taken command of the American Armies. And unsparing censure and condemnation fell on those who dissented from the popular opinion of the day. Annapolis had already presented scenes of riot and confusion. The country was in commotion, ag- riculture and commerce were at a stand, and marks of distress were imprinted on every countenance, and every face was darkened with anxiety and suspicion. Mutual confidence was destroyed. Po- litical prejudices erased the remembrance of former attachments, and friends and kindred forgot the en- dearing bonds of amity and love. Such was the testimony of an eye-witness. And what was the effect here? On the 21st of November Eddis writes: " Annapolis is daily more and more deserted; some families have quitted us, from an apprehension of a bombardment, others on account of the distressed times, bad markets and a general scarcity of money. Even tradesmen and mechanics have quitted their habitations and are retired from the vicinity of navi-
gable waters. Agriculture is neglected, and the mil- itary science is the universal study." And on the 1st January, 1776, he writes: "Our harbors, our riv- ers are deserted. The cheerful sound of industry is heard no more, activity is only exerted in warlike preparations, every visage is clouded with apprehen- sion." Where was the church?
On the 4th of July the Colonies declared themselves free and independant, and on the 14th of August, the convention of the delegates of the counties and cities of Maryland met here, to form a State Consti- tution. The next day, the Rev. Mr. Lendrum was desired to read prayers before the Convention, at 9 o'clock A. M., during the session, and Mr. Paca was directed to wait on him for that purpose.
At that convention, the act of religion of 1692 as finally established in 1702, was repealed, having ex-
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isted more than eighty years. From the following November, therefore, the clergy of the church of Eng- land in Maryland ceased to receive any legal support. And Mr. Lendrum's last meeting in the vestry was in that month. He is not mentioned after that in the vestry's records, or in any other documents which have been examined. We learn, however, that he married in Annapolis, that on leaving it he removed to Virginia or North Carolina, and there died, leaving a family, among which was Capt. Lendrum. So end- ed the last rectorship, under the establishment, of the Parish of St. Ann's.
Were the Records of King William's school in ex- istence, more, doubtless, could be learned of several of the clergy, who have been mentioned, who probably were connected with that institution. Their loss therefore is much to be regretted.
It was now a dark day for the church in Annapo- lis. Her church edifice had been taken down, her congregation scattered, her minister deprived of his support, and the Parish was vacant!
In the last twenty-six years, St. Ann's had had the services of eleven clergymen, not averaging two and a half years, to each one, yet no one of them had died while in the service of the parish. It seems to have been the Point Look-out of the church in the Province. All save one had continued in the parishes of which they became the incumbents on their leav- ing here, till their death, or till the present time. Malcolm, Keene and Boucher were certainly eminent in their profession. One was indeed a bad man, and perhaps two others were of doubtful character. But Myers, McPherson, Edmiston, Montgomery and T. Lendrum all were of fair, if not of excellent standing. Still, what had been gained for the church ? The population of the parish had increased probably one third during the period under review, and wealth also
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISH.
had increased. But the theatre had been introduced, and horse-racing, card-playing, dancing and drink- ing had become unrestrained, and Governors and of- fice-holders had upheld and patronized them, not less, than did the Proprietaries themselves, and the church had shown itself powerless. And now, it was in the dust, a time of retribution had come, and every thing was dark.
REV. THOMAS READ, TWENTY-FIFTH MINISTER.
Mr. Read was a native of Matthew's County, Vir- ginia, born March 17th, 1748. He was ordained dea- con by the Bishop of London in 1771, and licensed by the same for Maryland, February 2nd, 1773. Soon after his return he appears to have been curate in Prince George's Parish, now in Montgomery County.
On Easter Monday, 1777, as the records state, Mr. Read made application to the vestry, for their appro- bation to officiate as minister of this parish, which was granted. No one can read this record and not be sensible of change. Before this, the vestry had nothing to do but to receive submissively the minister, who came with authority to receive their support and offi- ciate among them. Now, the authority to appoint had passed into their hands; and of the amount to be given, they were the determiners. The clergy had passed from their independent position, into the pow- er of vestries and the laity, a change which they were soon made to feel.
Mr. Read did not continue to officiate here long, but soon went to Prince George's Parish, Montgom- ery County, where he continued to the end of his long
8*
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IHISTORICAL NOTICES
life. He died January 5th, 1838, at. 90. During his last 20 years, he had ceased to officiate. From 1790 for fifteen years, he was a member of the stand- ing committee, and in 1798 preached the convention sermon. He is remembered as a mild, pious, indus- trious, venerable man.
During this year, there is the record of a baptism by the Rev. Mr. Braithwaite, who was licensed for Maryland January 6th, 1776, by the Bishop of Lon- don, and was the last one so licensed. But we find his name nowhere else mentioned.
REV. WILLIAM HANNA, TWENTY-SIXTH MINISTER,
At the next meeting of the vestry recorded, it is without date, it is stated, that the Rev. Mr. Hanna applied for permission to officiate as minister of this parish, which was granted.
Mr. Hanna was educated at Dr. Finlay's Academy, Nottingham, Prince George's County, Md., and re- ceived his degree from Princeton, 1759. He was the first Presbyterian Minister in the church in Albany, N. Y., where he continued five years. He then left that ministry, and was admitted a member of the bar in 1767. But about 1772, he conformed to the church, and went to England for orders. He was according- ly ordained, and licensed for Virginia, June 11th, 1772, In 1778 he came from Virginia to Westmin- ter Parish, and took charge there. And it is proba- ble, that it was soon after that his application was made to St. Ann's vestry. But he did not officiate long.
There appears to have been no meeting of the ves- try after the one above mentioned, till June 7th,
1
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OF ST. ANN'S PARISH.
1779, when a select vestry was chosen, agreeably to the Act of the Assembly of the preceeding March, called the "Act for the establishment of select ves- tries." Hanson, chapter 9th, 1779. The members elected subscribed the oath of fidelity to the Govern- ment, as required; and a subscription was opened for the support of a minister.
On the 11th of November occurs this entry: The parish being without a minister, and the vestry hav- ing no means of procuring one, it was unanimously agreed, that Mr. Hanna have all the benefits of the glebe land, (being £11.5s. as before shown,) and the house he now has, in the city of Annapolis, for one year from date, or until the parish can otherwise pro- vide a clergyman, Mr. Hanna preaching in the city every third Sunday, provided a proper place can be had, and on his attending all funerals and baptizing all children in the parish, when requested by the pa- rishioners.
It appears from this, that although not considered the minister of the parish previous to this, he was re- siding in the city, and occupying the parsonage. Di- vine service it seems was now held in the free school, King William's, as before called.
On December 28th, 1785, we have this minute, Mr. James Ringgold was requested to pay Mrs. Hanna, widow, and administratrix of the Rev. Mr. Hanna deceased, £8.8.9. currency, out of the rents of the leased ground to be received by him, for his officia- ting as a clergymen of this parish for nine months, from November, 1779 to August, 1780, agreeable to contract. This was not very punctual on the part of the vestry it must be admitted, six years having pass- ed away since he left.
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