USA > Maryland > Anne Arundel County > Annapolis > The Ancient City.: A History of Annapolis, in Maryland, 1649-1887 > Part 8
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[1704.] In 1704, the State House was burned down. From what cause it was ignited is left to conjecture. Gov. Seymour in his mes- sage on the subject said :
"The late melancholy accident might have been prevented had my often admonitions took place ; for I never saw any public building left solely to Providence but in Maryland. I hope this sad experi- ment will awaken your care for time to come, and in the interim your best considerations to secure the laws and records of your country for the advantage and quiet of future generations. What is proper to be done in rebuilding your Stadt-house, so very necessary for the accom- modation of the public, I leave entirely to your own serious debates and decision, for I have no other aim than the true interest and service of your country." **
This State House had been ordered to be built by the Legislature of 1694.+
$ Ridgely's Annals of Annapolis, p. 104.
** Ridgely's Annals of Annapolis, p. 105.
$ Ridgely's Annals of Annapolis, p. 93.
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''THE ANCIENT CITY.""
CHAPTER XIX. ST. ANNE'S PARISH .*
1692-1887.
[1692.] This parish is one of thirty which were established under the Act of Assembly, of 1692. The loss of the first twelve pages of the parish records has robbed us of much of its valuable history. In the returns, however, of the several vestries in the province to the Governor and his Council in 1692, St. Anne's was designated by the. name of Middle Neck Parish, and consisted of the territory between South and Severn rivers.
The destruction of these pages of the records of the parish has left to speculation the origin of the name of the parish. There is, however, hardly any doubt but that it was named in honor of the reputed mother of the Virgin Mary, St. Ann ; and so designated because it wasa happy coincidence with the name of the Princess Anne, afterward Queen Anne, of England.
[1694.] On the 8th of October, 1694, the Governor proposed to his council that, at the port of Annapolis, a lot be laid off for the minister nigh to where the church is to stand, and that the minister be obliged. to read prayers twice a day. On the 7th of May 1696, Mr. Coney, supposed to be the incumbent of St. Anne's Parish, preached before the assembly, and this sermon he was desired by the assembly to have printed.
[1696.] When St. Anne's returned its proceedings, as required by ch. 2d, acts of 1696, under the name of Middle Neck Parish, the taxable persons in it were stated to number 374. The vestrymen of the parish were given as : Thomas Bland, Richard Warfield, Lawrence Draper, Jacob Harnass, William Brown, Cornelius Howard. When King William's school was established the same year, 1696, Rev. Peregrine Coney, the supposed rector of St. Anne's, was one of its trustees.
On September 30th, the Lower House sent to the Upper the follow -- ing message : "To show our readiness to contribute to the utmost of our abilities to the service of God, in building a free church and school at Annapolis, we have proposed and resolved, that out of the revenue raised for the charge of the Province, by 3d per hhd, on tobacco, one year's revenue so raised be for defraying the charge of the church at Annapolis."
The Lower House, preparatory to passing this Act, appointed a committee to inspect the proposals for building the church ; which re- ported that there was in bank for this purpose £458 sterling. This. had arisen from the sale of the tobacco which had been collected. They also reported that the church would cost £1200 sterling, about $7,000.
These were busy times in Annapolis. The State House, King Wil- liam's School, and St. Anne's, for, on the 2d of October, the Governor * For the early facts of this chapter I am mainly indebted to Rev. Ethan Allen's History of St. Anne's Parish.
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HISTORY OF ANNAPOLIS.
was selected by the council to employ workmen to build the church, were all in course of erection.
This was the first brick church in Maryland, but not the first place of worship in Annapolis. There was a meeting-house of the Puritans in Annapolis thirty years before this and the records show there was also a house dedicated to the service of God on Greenbury's Point that also antedated St. Anne's.
[1697.] On the 30th of June, 1697, a petition from Ruth Gregg was laid before the Governor and his council. Rev. Peregrine Coney was defendant. This document, with Mr. Coney's defence, was ordered to be given to Mr. Carroll, "the said Ruth's procurator." The nature of the complaint has not come down to us, but Mr. Coney appears to have enjoyed, and never to have lost, the fullest confidence of Governor Nicholson, who gave him the duty of issuing marriage licenses. His sermons were frequently asked for publication by the Assembly.
[1699.] Gov. Nicholson selected the site of St. Anne's, and was the active agent in its erection. Gov. Blackiston succeeded Gov. Nichol- son, and, in the former's term, July 22, 1699, an Act of Assembly im- posed a fine of £333, 6 s. 8 p., on Edward Dorsey for not fulfilling his agreement to build the church ; and another Act of the same session ap- pointed persons to treat with workmen to build it.
[1704.] Rev. Mr. Topp followed as the second rector of St. Anne's and Rev. James Wootten was the third, and, in 1704. the vestrymen were recorded as Col. John Hammond, Mr. William Bladen, Mr. Wil- liam Taylard, Mr. Amos Garrett, Mr. John Freeman, Mr., Samuel Norwood. An entry on the parish records. ordering payment for altering the gallery seats, shows that the church was finished. Thomas Ffielder was the architect of the edifice. The entries in the parish re- cords also discover to us that the first St. Anne's had both bell and belfry, and a golden ball adorned the spire.
The church was build in the shape of a T, and was neatly finished inside. The principal entrance faced east, that is toward the State House.
[1706.] In 1706, the General Assembly, ever mindful of St. Anne's, directed that, of the three lots originally laid out within the city, one should be for the rector of the Parish, one for the Sexton, and a third for the clerk of the vestry and commissary's clerk. The revenues of St. Anne's were further exhanced by an order requiring 40 shillings for every corpse buried in the church yard. This was the ground about the church and is embraced in the present circle. The grave- yard extended beyond its present limits into the streets as excavations within its beds painfully proved a few years since.
The revenues at this period were exceedingly meagre, and it is es- timated that in 1717 the rector did not receive over $350 per annum.
[1719.] May 15, 1719, the vestry of St. Anne's laid before the Lower House of Assembly the grievances under which the parish labored. The gravamen of their burden was that the parish church, by being built near the utmost verge of the parish, is hereby rendered very in- convenient to a great part of the parishioners, some of these living twenty miles, and others at a greater distance from it, so that were "it not that the rector voluntarily goes up at appointed times and preaches among them, a great part of them would be without the benefits of a minister ; that to add to this difficulty the church is much
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too little for a parish church, many of the parishoners being obliged to stay at home for want of room, but that this is most visible at pub- lic times, as we humbly conceive is apparent to the constant experience of this Honorable House, that there is no visible way to remove the first of these difficulties, but by contracting the parish into narrower bounds, or dividing it, nor is there any means to remove the latter but by enlarging the church, but no both these are rendered imprac- ticable to us by some other difficulties which we shall take the liberty of naming to your honors."
The first remedy was open, the report continued, to the objection that the benefits of this parish are already so small, that it is but a bare support for "a single man in a parish," but to that is added that being "Chaplain to the public," he "is unavoidably exposed to much greater expense than the benfits of the parish can defray" which has often been the cause of the parish being without a minister.
The second remedy could not be applied as the vestrymen had no means with which to enlarge. The Legislature took no notice of this printed applications for an increase of revenues.
At this time one family came thirty miles to church, having to drive on Saturday into the neighborhood, so as to be able to reach Church on Sunday.
[1723.] May 7th, 1723, Alexandria Frazier, Robt. Gordon, Thomas Worthington, Vachel Denton, Joshua George and William, obtained permission to build at their own expense a gallery at the west end of the church.
[1727.] April 4th, 1727, several parishoners of St. Anne's, V. Den- ton, Thomas Worthington, John Beall, and Philip Hammond, with A. Frazier, rector, obtained permission to build a chapel in the upper part of the parish. This wasasked on account of the inconvenience of reaching Anna: olis for church. The site selected was the head of South River. No church, or chapel could be built in the province without the permission of the Lord Proprietory, and he had delegated his power to his Governor, Charles Calvert, who gave the requisite license.
May 2nd. 1727, permission was granted to Mr. Richard Claggett "to erect a pew where the font stood," and on July 4, the vestrymen granted permission "to erect a gallery over the pews appointed for the gentlemen of the Assembly." On May 7, 1728, the following petition on the same subject was presented to the vestry as the humble peti- tion of some of the parishoners of said Parish :
[1728.] "That, in consideratio .: of the s.nallness of the parish and that there was mue i want of room, you were pleased to encourage your parishioners by giving them leave sometimes since to build a gallery towards the north-east end of the said church, and your peti- tioners made provisions according thereto, but some vestries after, we understood you were inclined to enlarge the said gallery by making it extend from near the pulpit all over the assembly pews and over the chancel, until it should reach near the Governor's pew. a design very much wished for and of a general good and service, and by these con- trivances the church may be made to hold almost as many above as below. And we are humbly of opinion, as we believe all good and considerate men will be likewise, that the best ornament to a church is a good pastor and a large flock, we thank God we are blest with the
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HISTORY OF ANNAPOLIS.
one, (Rev. John Humphrey, ) but want of room obstructs the other. In consideration of which. we with patience waited to know your reso- lutions, and, at length, being ordered to go on with your first direc- tion which we did accordingly till we were prevented by Mr. John Beale, who told us not to proceed any further until further orders We, therefore, having been at considerable charges, and loss of time in proceeding with the said work according to your orders, humbly hope your honors will take it into your consideration. And we beg leave to know your commands, being fully persuaded that it will be most consistent to the honor and praise of God, and to the great benefit and advantage of the said church and people. In hopes of which with humble submission your petitioners as in duty bound shall ever pray.
"Richard Tootell, Simon Duff, Peter Werard, Wm. Ghiselen."
The vestry ordered the petitioners to proceed with the erection of the gallery.
[1740.] In 1740, St. Anne's was enlarged, but this enlargement did not accommodate its increasing congregation, and, in 1741, leave was given to build a gallery to hold eleven pews.
[1750.] In 1750, the assembly passed a tax bill to raise a sinking fund to protect the colonists from border ravages by the Indians. In the taxables were bachelors. A list from each parish was ordered to be returned to the Government. The list in St. Anne's Parish included Gov. Sharpe and Rev. John McPherson, the rector of St. Anne's, who, not caring to determine whether they came under the list of taxables, or : ot, the vestry settled their status for them by ordering them on the list. All over 25 years of age, assessed under £300 and over £100 were taxed five shillings each, and the law re- mained in force six years. Joshua Frazier, Richard Green and Allen Quynn paid till 1751, Baldwin Lusby paid for 1756 ; Caleb Davis and Emanuel Marriott for 1756-7, and Rezin Gaither, at the head of Severn, for 1756-7-8.
[1756.] Those assessed over £300, were taxed 20s. each and Wil- liam Stuart, John Ridout, John Gilliss, and Daniel Wolfstenhome, Stephen Bordley, and Charles Carroll, barrister, paid it for six years. James Maccubbin, Beall Nicholson, of Annapolis, William Gaither, head of Severn, Charles Hammond, of Philip, and John Griffith paid it for five years. Col. Benj. Tasker and Lancelot Jacques ; paid the tax for four years. James Johnson, John Leadler, and Zachariah Hood ; paid it for three years. The last was the stamp- officer in 1765, and had to flee the city before the wrath of the people. Moses Maccubbin and John Davis paid the tax for two years ; and S. Lowe, Charles Cole, William Thornton. Charles Carroll. Esq., Dr. Upton Scott, Robert Stram, Robert Conden, Benj. Beall, and John Bennett paid it for one year.
Non-attendance upon the services of the church about this time be- came such a serious evil, that on March 6, 1751, the wardens of St. Anne's gave this public notice in the columns of the Gazette :
"The Church wardens of St. Anne's Parish, in Anne Arundel county, do hereby signify that we shall be under a necessity of ob- serving the Laws of this Province, and the Statutes of England, re- lating to religious worship ; and more particularly the 14th section of the first Elizabeth, Chap. 2, which oblige all persons, not having law-
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ful excuse, to resort to their Parish Church, or Chapel, on every Sun- day, and other days ordained and used to be kept as Holy Days, and then and there to abide in decent manner, during the time of common prayer. preaching, or other services of God ; and therefore request all concerned to take notice.
"Samuel Howard, Camaliel Butler, Church Wardens."
On the 29th of June 1761, an organ loft was ordered, the first men- tion looking to the use of an organ in the church.
On the 2nd of February, 1768, the vestry ordered a search for the deed of the parsonage, lot K in Annapolis. It was found, and was dated 1759. It was from Philip Key, of St. Mary's and Theodosea, his wife, to the Rev. Alex. Williamson and vestry ; consideration £20. The lot is described, as lying on the Southwest side of Hanover St., running South 156 feet, and Northwest 196, the whole correspond- ing with the parsonage used until the present decade, and which is now owned by Mrs. Owen A. Iglehart.
[1767.] It was at this period that St. Anne's had a notorious pas- tor, the Rev. Bennett Allen, the seventeenth incumbent. His was a spirit born to intrigue and violence. A graduate and fellow of Wad- ham College, Oxford, April 20, 1767, he presented his letters of intro- duction to the vestry from Gov. Sharpe. Mr. Allen was a particular friend of Lord Baltimore, who wrote Gov. Sharpe to give him what- ever he wished in the province. Mr. Allen had his eye on All Saints Parish, in Frederick, which was worth nearly $5,000 per annum, and whilst he was waiting for the aged rector to drop into his grave, he accepted St. Anne's. For a year all went well, the rector being held in general esteem, and with lavish hand spending a whole year's in- come to improve the glebe house. On the 24th of October, Mr. Allen received from the Governor, a license as curate of St. James, Anne Arundel, and the rector soon after dying, he received letters of induc- tion and became its rector, whilst still holding on to the rector- ship of St. Anne's with the consent of both vestries. This permission he obtained by unfair means, and for it received a challenge from one of St. James' vestry. He also became involved in a quarrel with Daniel Dulany, Esq., it is said, who visited him with personal chastisement in the streets of Annapolis.
[1768.] In June 1768, the rector of All Saints being dead, Mr. Allen was presented with that parish. He was mobbed on the very first Sun- day of his appearance, under the influence, he said, of the Dulanys. Mr. Allen resigned St. Anne's and after holding on to All Saints one year resigned that also.
Allen was a tory and, as by the bill of rights, the support of the clergy ceased in November, 1776, he returned to England. There on the 18th of June, 1782, he challenged Mr. Lloyd Dulany, formerly of Maryland, but then in London, and killed him. It is said of Allen that he died in wretched poverty, being intemperate and degraded about the streets of London. He is said 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 !"*
[1770.] Nothing went on in Annapolis at this time that escaped the eye or ear of the observant Eddis, who arrived in Annapolis, t.Allen's History of St. Anne's.
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HISTORY OF ANNAPOLIS.
September 4th, 1770. "Understanding" he writes, "that I was in time for divine service, I availed myself of an immediate opportunity to offer up my fervent acknowledgement at the throne of grace.
The exterior of the church, (St. Anne's,) 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."
[1771.] St. Anne's was the only church in the city and notwith- standing it was the protege of the State, it was allowed to fall into a ruinous condition. Its minister often remonstrated with his congre- gation and urged the repairing or rebuilding of it. September 5, 1771, the following poem appeared in the Maryland Gazette, addressed : "To the very worthy and respectable inhabitants of Annapolis, the (humble petition of the old church, showeth :
"That, late in century the last,
By private bounty, here were placed,
My sacred walls, tho', in truth,
Their style and manner be uncouth ;
Yet, whilst no structure met mine eye,
That even with myself could vie,
A goodly edifice I seemed,
And pride of all Saint Anne's was deemed.
How changed the times ; for now, all round,
Unnumbered stately piles abound,
All better built, and looking down On me quite antequated 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,
Least I should tumble on their heads.
Of which, indeed, this seems a proof-
They seldom come beneath my roof. The stadt-house, that, for public good, With me co-eval long had stood ; With me full many a storm had dared,
Is now at length to be repaired : Or, rather, to be built anew, An honour to the land and you.
Whilst I alone, not worth your care, Am left your sad neglect so bear.
With grief, in yonder field, hard by,
A sister-ruin I espy ; Old -Bladens place, once so famed, And now too well, "the folly" named. Her roof all tottering to decay, Her walls a mouldering all away ; She says, or seems to say, to me, 'Such too, ere long, thy fate shall be.' Tho', now forever gone and lost, I blush to say, how little cost, The handsome pile would have preserved, Till some new perfect had deserved
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A mansion here, from us, to have
As good as Carolina gave. But party. faction ( friends that still
Have been the foes of public weal )
The dogs of war against her slipped,
And all her rising honours nipped,
Of sunshine oft a casual ray. Breaks in upon a cloudy day.
Overwhelm'd with woe : 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. There let the stranger stay, for me, If virtue's friends, indeed one be. I would not, if I could. restrain. A moral stage : yet. would I 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 shew,
A mite to duty, pray bestow.' Say. does my rival boast the art One solid comfort to impart.
Or heal. like me, pour forth the strain
Of peace on earth, good will to men ?
Merit she has ; but, let me say, The highest merit of a play,
Tho', Shakespeare wrote it, but to name
With mine, were want of sense of shame.
Why should I point to distant times, To kindred and congenial climes, 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 if be. yet still,
At least, to make God's house genteel ?
Ilere, in Annapolis alone,
God has the meanest house in town,
The premises considered, I With humble confidence rely. That, Phenix-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 poem accomplished what the pastor could not. The congrega- tion resolved to erect a new church.
[1774.] The General Assembly was appealed to for aid, and at its. March Session. 1774, Chapter 11. the General Assembly appointed John Ridout, Samuel Chase, William Paca, Upton Scott, and Thomas
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HISTORY OF ANNAPOLIS.
Ilyde, trustees, for building in Annapolis. an elegant church adorned with a steeple. It was to cost £6,000, and £1,500 was to be received from the State. In return for it, there were 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 members of the Lower House, one for the Judges of the Provincial Court, and one for strangers. One wasalso to be for the incumbent. one for the Wardens, and one for the Provincial Juries. When completed, the subscribers were to choose their pews. preference being given to subscribers of the largest amounts ; no one who subscribed less than £20 being entitled to a pew. Then twenty pews were to be sold to the parishioners by auction. There was to be a common gallery for the parishioners, one for servants, and another for slaves. July 1775, Mr. Woodcock was allowed £30 a year as an organist. The revolution prevented the erection of the church. and the theatre was used to worship in.
"It was now, " says the faithful chronicler of St. Anne's, "a dark day for the church in Annapolis. Her church edifice had been taken down, her congregation scattered, her minister deprived of his sup- port" and the Parish was vacant.
"In the last twenty-six years, St. Anne's 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 incum- bents on their leaving here, till their death, or till the present time. Malcolm, Keene, and Boucher were certainly eminent men in their profession. One was indeed a bad man, and perhaps, two others were of doubtful character. But Myers, McPherson, Edmyston, Mont- gomery, 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 re- view, and wealth also had increased. But the theatre had been in- troduced, and horse-racing, card-playing, dancing and drinking had became unrestrained, and Go: ernors and office-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 everything was dark."
[1792.] The church was finally completed in November, 1792, eigli- teen years after it was commenced. It cost £6,000, nearly $30,000. The church was 110 feet long, and 90 broad, and was surmounted with a tower. On the outside were pilasters, which divided the wall into panels, and long windows gave it, with its time-colored bricks, a sombre and religious appearance. Inside, the church was frescoed. This church, with its modern panels and posts, in green and white, encircling the yard, remained until the night of Sunday, February 14th, 1858, when it was destroyed by fire. This originated . [1858.] from the furnace below which ignited the flooring. About eleven o'clock the ringing of the bell of the church summoned the citizens to the destruction of this ancient edifice. At first the bell seemed to be only the nine o'clock curfew ; but the dole- ful cry of "fire," resounding through the dark and quiet streets told another story. For two hours the flames, unseen and inaccessible, lay hidden in their lairs, pouring forth volumes of stifling smoke.
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