USA > Maine > Washington County > Milltown > Annals of Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick; including the village of Milltown, Me., and the present town of Milltown, N.B. > Part 12
USA > Maine > Washington County > Calais > Annals of Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick; including the village of Milltown, Me., and the present town of Milltown, N.B. > Part 12
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Rev. E. D. Very, the first pastor was a scholarly, energetic man and an able preacher. But the growth of the Church did not meet his expectation, there was difficulty in raising the money to pay his salary, he felt qualified for a larger and more diverse field of labor, and hence in June, 1843, he resigned his pastoral charge and soon after left town. Subsequently he became the editor of a religious paper in St. John, N. B., and a professor in Acadia College. He eventually perished by the swamping of a boat on the coast of Nova Scotia.
Thus far the growth of the Church had been slow. But in March, 1845, Rev. H. V. Dexter, now of Bald- winville, Mass., a native of Wyane, Me., a graduate of Waterville College and Newton Theological School, visited Calais and preached for a time in the new meet- ing-house. Immediately a deep religious interest be- gan to be manifested ; and it continued through the entire Spring. The Spirit was poured out without measure, and many were added to the Church. Thus strengthened and encouraged, in May. Mr. Dexter was unanimously invited to become the pastor of the Society. He accepted ; and the following September he was in-
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SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH,-CALAIS.
stalled. Being a learned, talented and devoted minis- ter, prosperity attended his entire pastorate.
The same month, Sept. 1845, James W. Smith, a son of Hon. Noah Smith, was licensed to preach. He is now one of the most eminent Baptist Divines in Phil- adelphia, and a D.D. Thus the fire kindled here, burns and shines there, and in many other places, with heal- ing in its beams.
The affairs of the Church from this time have flowed on with general peace and prosperity. Blessed with an excellent pastor, the meetings were pleasant and profit- able, and but few incidents of anything that needs to be recorded, occurred.
In May, 1847, the Church ordained Rev. John Johnson who recently died in China, Asia. Mr. John- son married a wealthy German lady, and together they became missionaries among the heathen. Mrs. Johnson for many years has taught a school consisting entirely of Chinese girls, and in that way has donea vast amount of good. Some of the women thus educated are now teaching others, and thus the good influence will long continue to radiate. Mr. Johnson was also an able and efficient worker among the benighted.
In the Spring of 1850, there was another refreshing season of religious interest, and quite a large accession of members to the Church. The same year, E. D. Green was chosen Deacon ; and J. C. Washburn, Esq. having died, Geo. W. Dyer was elected Clerk. Again the wheels turned smoothly.
In 1854, after a pleasant and profitable pastorate of nine years, Dr. Dexter, hoping probably to do more good in some other locality, resigned his parochial of- fice, and went away. Every person in the Society de- sired him to remain ; but he would go, and the people were compelled to submit to his departure. When he left, the many kind words spoken and the many tears shed by his people, evinced the sincerity and depth of their esteem.
In May, 1854, the Society invited Rev. E. C. Mitchell to become its pastor. He was a grandson of
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SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH,-CALAIS.
Judge Whitman and a nephew of Rev. Jason Whitman, of Portland. He accepted the invitation, and was or- dained and installed in June ;- Rev. Dr. Stockbridge of Boston preaching the sermon for the occasion. Mr. Mitchell was a well educated and pleasant man, and an easy extemporaneous speaker ; and the parish was well satisfied with his labors. In Nov. the late G. D. King was chosen a Deacon, to supply during the frequent ab- sences of Dea. N. Smith. The next Spring, 1855, there was another religious revival, and more additions to the Church. Mar. 5, 1856, Mr. Mitchell's health having failed, and there being some pecuniary embarassments, he resigned and went away. He is now a professor in a Theological Seminary in Chicago.
Early in 1856, the meeting-house on Main St. being too small for the Society and not suited to its taste and needs, was sold to the Methodists, who took possession on the first day of April, and preparations for erecting a new house, on Church St., were at once begun.
The next pastor, Rev. A. F. Spaulding of East Cambridge, a graduate of Brown University,-a pleas- ant, stirring man and an agreeable speaker,-assumed the formal charge of the Society in Dec. 1856. The next Spring there was another revival of religious in- terest and more additions to the Church. These annual revivals kept the parish wide awake, and inspired it with large hope and healthy ambition.
Meanwhile the late Dea. G. D. King having assum- ed the main financial responsibility in building the new meeting-house, the work was pushed on so vigorously that the structure was completed and dedicated in May, 1857. The building cost about $13,000, and a consider- able debt was incurred in its construction ; but so well pleased were the brethren with their new, religious Home, that all of them contributed generously, and the entire debt was soon liquidated.
In Oct. 1860, Mr. Spaulding resigned, and the same month, Dr. Dexter again became the pastor. This change of ministers was effected with the best of feeling, and to the entire satisfaction of the Society. Mr.
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SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH,-CALAIS.
Spaulding now resides in Norwich, Ct. In 1861, Wm. Woods was chosen Clerk. He still retains that office, and to him the writer is indebted for many of the facts contained in this sketch.
With its talented pastor and excellent meeting- house, the Society continued to prosper. But in 1869, Rev. Dr. Dexter again resigned, and soon after, Rev. E. B. Eddy, a native of Providence, R. I., a scholarly and zealous worker, was selected ashis successor. Dur- ing his pastorate thus far, sixty eight members have been added to the Church. The whole number of mem- bers at the close of 1874, was one hundred and ninety.
The Deacons of the Church have been,-Hon. Noah Smith, E. D. Green, Elijah Stearns, G. D. King, O. B. Rideout, Samuel Kelley, Wm. Woods, C. R. Pike. The first four have passed on to the higher life.
In closing this chapter, it is but justice to add that the success of this Church is the result, under Divine Providence, of the sterling integrity of its founders, the faithful ministry of its able pastors, and the constant zeal of its members. Besides defraying the ordinary expenses of the Sabbath service, it has generally con- tributea to the support of feeble churches in the vicin- ity, of the Bible and Tract Societies, of Academies and Colleges, and of the Home and Foreign Missionary So- cieties. It has given $500 to the Baptist Society in Houlton, $1800 to Colby College, and pledged as much more to other denominational schools. Dea. Samuel Kelley gives $1000 for this purpose ; and he has also liberally contributed toward the endowment of a school in Burmah to educate young men for the ministry.
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SMUGGLING.
XXXI.
SMUGGLING.
Calais and St. Stephen being border towns with only a narrow river between them, their citizens have often been accused of evading the revenue laws ; and certainly there have been some temptations in this di- rection. Various articles of merchandise 'in common use,-coffee, tea, sugar, tobacco, beef, butter, friction matches, gloves, silks, jewelry, ardent spirits, etc.,- have often been from ten to thirty per cent. higher on one side of the river than on the other. Four bridges span the river, and there are other easy ways of cross- ing. All the people in the vicinity are neighbors and friends to each other, and not a few are relatives and business partners. The gripe of poverty and the desire for wealth, alike prompt men to buy and sell to the best advantage. The ingenious can readily find some way to . escape detection, and some good citizens are unable to perceive any sin in purchasing goods on one side of the river and quietly carrying them to the other side. In view of all these circumstances, it is logical to infer that every week, some of Adam's fallen posterity will export and import merchandise without consulting the author- ities of either the United States or Great Britain. The -contraband traffic has generally been carried on in good nature ; and when, as has frequently happened, the un- wary are detected, they submit to the awards of the law, without a murmur. A thousand stories are told, of de- tection or escape, some comic and some serious but only a few are worth repeating.
About the year 1832, a large quantity of smuggled goods were seized in Milltown, N. B., and the revenue
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SMUGGLING.
officers sent several teams to carry them to the Custom- house. The goods were quietly loaded ; but suddenly, as the teams were about to start, a large force of white men disguised as Indians and fantastically armed, rush- ed in, seized the teams and drove them to the American side of the river. This was a grave crime, and for a few hours there was intense excitement and imminent dan- ger of hard blows. But wise counsel prevailed, a com- promise was effected, and the affair was settled without any violence, arrests or permanent ill feeling.
A few years later a somewhat similar occurrence took place in Calais. The tributaries of the St. Croix flow from both Maine and New Brunswick ; and lumber is cut and logs driven from nearly all of them. The mill men of Milltown had no means of knowing on which side of the State line the trees grew, which they were manufacturing into boards, hence they very natur- ally fell into the lawless habit of sending the sawed lumber down to that side of the river from which it would be shipped to the best advantage. But every now and then a valuable raft of lumber that happened to reach the wrong bank of the river, would be seized and con- fiscated by the American officers. At length these an- noying events became so alarmingly frequent that it was evident that some unknown and unofficial person was acting as a spy and informer. This angered the lumbermen, and after vainly trying in a peaceable way to ascertain the name of the informer, some forty of them, painted and disguised as Indians, and armed with old muskets, war clubs and tomahawks, seized two U. S. revenue officers, placed them in wagons and drove into St. Stephen. As they went, some of them sharpened their bayonets on the rapidly rolling wheels, and threat- ened violence ; though probably without any murderous intention. Arriving at a secluded spot, a long consul- tation was held, and the name of the spy, without being told, was indicated with sufficient clearness. The pris- oners were then released. But in the meanwhile the Calais militia had been called out, and a great tumult ex- cited. However, no one was arrested or injured ; the
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SMUGGLING.
suspected informer left town that night to be absent many years, and the honest lumbermen were troubled no more.
On one occasion, a pious smuggler on the English side of the river, by a very long, family praver detained the revenue officer until the contraband merchandise was removed and secreted. A strange use of prayer.
In 1843, an English, Custom-house spy was cloth- ed with a coat of tar and feathers, generously given him by a party of Caucassian Indians. The spy aban- doned his business, and none of the Indians were called to account.
But in general, the officers are faithful and the citizens loyal ; and all that John Bull or Brother Jona- than, really requires, is circumspectly done.
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NEW CHURCHES.
XXXII.
NEW CHURCHES.
Faith deals in the abstract and invisible, and not unfrequently, speculation supplants the keen eyed ser- aph, and fills our minds with vain imaginings. As re- sults, schism after schism rends the one true Church, and a thousand sects and schools spring to life ;- each one positive that it has "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth." In every community, there is a variety of religious opinions ; and as soon as those in agreement become sufficiently numerous, a new Church is instituted. In Calais and St. Stephen this has fre- quently been done, and as the towns continue to increase in population, the number and variety of their religious sects will probably also increase. Within a few years, three new places of worship have been erected, and three new congregations gathered. As yet they are too young to have a history, but a statement of their birth seems proper. The first, largest and strongest, is the
BAPTIST CHURCH,-ST. STEPHEN.
When Rev. Duncan M'Coll came to St. Stephen. in 1785, he found a Baptist minister there. Neither his name nor the length of time he remained in the place, is now known ; but he was without question, the first clergyman that preached in the vicinity. For some reason, he failed to make any lasting impression, and men of other sects took and occupied the field. Still, probably there have been some Baptists in St. Stephen, ever since that early date.
ยท The number gradually increasing, and it being somewhat inconvenient for them to attend the churches
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NEW CHURCHES.
of their faith in Milltown and Calais, it was at length deemed advisable to erect a meeting-house for their tise, on their side of the river. The work began in 1867. The leading man in the enterprise was C. B. Eaton, Esq., without whose wise counsels and generous assist- ance, the structure could not have been completed. The house was finished near the close of 1869, and dedicated in January, 1870. The cost was about $9000, and the edifice is handsome, pleasant and satisfactory.
Soon after, a Church was organized. At first it contained only seventeen members ;- half of whom had previously belonged to the Baptist Church in Calais. The present number, January, 1875, is seventy-six. The deacons are Geo. S. Mckenzie and George DeWolfe. The first pastor, Rev. I. E. Hopper, settled in August, 1869, and retired in May, 1872. The pres- ent pastor began in the following August. The Society is healthy and prosperous, and hopes by the continued generosity of Mr. Eaton, to be soon free from debt.
FREE WILL BAPTIST CHURCH,-CALAIS.
The religious sect that bears this name originated about a century ago, in New Hampshire, under the min- istry of Rev. Benjamin Randal, a convert of the cele- brated George Whitefield. It insists on baptism by immersion, holds the Arminian phase of faith, and is Congregational in policy. In 1815, Rev. John Colby, a zealous advocate of Freewillism, visited Eastport and succceeded in converting quite a number of people to his faith and feeling. A church was instituted; and from that day to this, the citizens of Calais have often heard of the Free Will Baptists. Still, no society of this denomination was formed here until six or eight yars ago ; when a small meeting-house was built by Wm. Poole, at the Union village, and a small congre- gation gathered. There is no other Society in the vi- cinity, and this one ought to prosper, but it has not. In 1872-3,Rev. Matthias Ulmer did succeed in awaken- ing quite an interest ; and Rev. Mr. Harding, the pres- ent pastor, is doing all that can be done ; yet the Church
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NEW CHURCHES.
only languishes. It is not improbable, however, that at no distant day, assisted by the factories that may be erected in that vicinity, this Church may become as a "city set on a hill.
SECOND ADVENT CHURCH,-MILLTOWN.
Ever since the days of the Apostles, the startling rumor has occasionally gotento circulation, that the end of the world and the great day of judgment were at hand. The last instance of this delusion occurred about thirty-five years ago ; when Wm. Miller of New York, predicted and tried to prove by Daniel and John that the great event would transpire April 23, 1843. It was reported that at one time there were a thousand preach- ers and a million believers of Miller's theory. But the dies ira quietly passed, the good old world did not end, and Millerism exploded. Yet somehow there arose from its debris, a new sect,-the Second Adventists, which holds that the end of the existing dispensation is near, and when it arrives, Christ will come again, and, having annihilated the wicked, will establish his pure and perfect kingdom on the earth ;- "a consummation devoutly to be wished."
To promulgate and defend this pleasing theory, some of the more zealous Second Advent preachers, not long ago, used to travel around the country, hold- ing "protracted meetings" beneath the roof of a mam- moth tent. In their peregrinations, about 1867 or 8, they came to Calais and pitched their tent in Milltown. A multitude flocked to see and hear the novelty, smart sermons were preached, converts were made and a Church, not large but zealous, was soon started. The tent having been removed, the Society purchased a hall of Hon. J. S. Hall, and there held its meetings and prospered. But becoming dissatisfied with the hall, in 1873, it built and paid for, a substantial and comfort- able meeting-house, on the very spot formerly occupied by the sacred tent. The inside of the house was paint- ed by the ladies of the Church. The present pastor is Rev. W. M. Corliss-a zealous and faithful minister.
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CEMETERIES.
XXXIII.
CEMETERIES.
Man is mortal. Go where he may, death finds him, and causes his body "to return to the dust, as it was ;" and then comes the need of some sacred locality in which to bury the dead. Very soon after their arrival here, the early settlers felt this need, and were com- pelled to select suitable places for the interment of their deceased friends. The natural desire of the survivors, when a dear one dies, is to bury the precious remains in some pleasant spot within sight and near home. Obeying an impulse of this kind, many New England farmers, a generation or two ago, had small, family grave-yards on their own land, and not far from their houses ; and quite probably some of the Calais and St. Stephen people in the early days, indulged in this practice. Subsequently however, as the population in- creased, and deaths became more frequent, it seemed more convenient and sympathetic, for several neighbors to unite in locating and using a common burial ground.
Among those in Calais, was one at Red Beach, still used ; another at Bog Brook, still used ; another quite large one on. the land south of B. M. Flint's resi- dence, long since abandoned and the site occupied by a school-house ; and another in the village of Milltown, also long ago abandoned. About 1840, the town pur- chased ten acres of land on the hill near South Mill- town St., and consecrated it as the Calais Cemetery. Recently more land adjoining it has been bought and devoted to the same purpose. A portion of it is set
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CEMETERIES.
apart for the use of the Catholics. The site of this cemetery is so elevated as to command a view of a large portion of Calais and St. Stephen. There are in it many graded avenues and paths, and not a few hand- some monuments and head stones. The city every year appropriates several hundred dollars for its im- provement ; and at no distant day it will rank among the most beautiful cemeteries in the State.
The St. Stephen people have, until recently, fol- lowed the English fashion of using land adjacent to a church as a grave-yard. Hence in addition to the buri- al grounds at Milltown, on the Barter road, and on the Old Ridge, there was a cemetery connected with each of the older churches. But it having long been perceived that this fashion served to perpetuate, neg- lected, forlorn and repulsive looking grave-yards, in April, 1856, S. H. Hitchings, Wm. Todd, N. Lindsay, N. Marks, Timothy Crocker, A. H. Thompson, Daniel Harmon, F. H. Todd, Z. Chipman, Daniel Sullivan, and S. G. Stevens, by an act of the Provincial Parlia- ment, united in a corporate capacity for the purpose of providing and maintaining a cemetery worthy of the town and its thrifty inhabitants. Soon after, they bought sixty-five acres of land, near the Hanson road, and laid it out and enclosed it for a "City of the Dead." Much good taste is displayed in the selection of this site and the arrangement of the grounds. Two miles of avenue and path wind through the neatly trimmed trees. Skilfully chiseled marble and granite tell where the dear departed repose ; while in front of the main entrance of the enclosure, the visitor may see a long sweep of the river and the homes of the living on either bank. Requiescant in pace.
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APPENDIX.
APPENDIX.
The following items of incidents, facts and genealogy, seem essential for the completion of these annals. They relate only to families that came here prior to 1840, and only to such of them as haye occupied somewhat conspicu- ous positions ; and even many of them are left out for lack of space. If errors are discovered in names or dates, the writer can only plead that he reports what was told him by those who seemed to be best informed.
BARNARD,
JOHN, of Boston, married Anna Kendall of Dorchester ; came to Calais about 1818, though his family remained in Massachusetts; in company with Amaziah Nash, turnpiked the road from Calais to Robbinston, about 1820; built the house now used by W. H. Young as a hotel; engaged in trade ; in 1836, returned to Boston ; and died at his home in Dorchester, in 1859.
His son Edward A. Barnard, came to Calais in 1836; engaged in trade ; has been a successful merchant; mar- ried Mary Ann Shepherd of Jefferson. Children :- Mrs. Anna K. Kummel of Milwaukee, Wis .; Mrs. Harriet L. Porter, G. T., M. D .; Frank A., mortally wounded in the U. S. army at Rappahannock Station ; Henry H. ; Clara E.
BOARDMAN,
WILLIAM, was born in Newburyport, Mass., in 1789; married Esther W. Tappan, also of Newburyport; was for a time, a successful merchant in his native town; in 1826, came to Calais with his family; never after engaged in any very extensive business ; was ever kind, upright and gen- tlemanly. At the fiftieth anniversary of his wedding, in 1865, when each one of his living children and grandchildren brought to him and his wife some golden token of esteem, he became over excited and was never after entirely well. He died in 1867.
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APPENDIX.
Children :- Adaline Todd, F. H .; William Henry; George A .; Caroline M. Hayden, C. H., of Eastport, d .; Anna L. Eaton, H. F. ; Gorham, of New York city ; Charles E. ; Mary E. Dexter, Rev. H. V., D. D., formerly of Calais ; Emily F. Lowell, Elwell.
DEMING,
WILLIAM, son of Charles and Mehitabel, came to Cal- ais from Brighton Mass.,in 1824; has ever since been a suc- cessful merchant; married Sarah Wilcox, of Dartmouth. Mass. Children :- William, d .; Mrs. Sarah J. Purington, Capt. Isaac; Mrs. Emma Granger, Gen. G. F .; Charles L .; Mrs. Rebecca Eaton, C. B.
DUREN,
HON. WILLIAM, came from Waterville, Me., about 1827 ; engaged in lumbering and trade ; has served as rep- resentative and senator in the Legislature of Maine, and as mayor of Calais ; been successful in business ; married Mary Dutch; and has two children, viz :- Mrs. Adelaide Saw- yer, E. D., of Cambridgeport, Mass. ; Jed Frye.
DYER,
JONES, came from Machias with his family, 1784. His children were, James, Jones, Jr., Nathan, Mrs. Thomas Hill, Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Henry Knight, all deceased.
The children of James were, James, Jr., Samuel, Mrs. Chase, d., Mrs. Westbrook Knight, d.
Jones, Jr. married Lydia Knight, and their children were, Mrs. Maria Sawyer, Thomas; Mrs. Harriet White, L. C., d. ; Edward S., of Washington Territory ; John H., d. ; Harrison, d .; Mrs. Lydia Kettelle of Boston; Mrs. Sophia Porter, C. C. Dr .; Geo. W. of Washington, D. C .; Mrs. Helen Bradbury, A. R., Dr .; Mrs. Josephine, Dodge Dr .; the last two of Santa Barbara, California.
EATON,
JOSEPH EMERSON, a native of Groton, Mass .; born in 1809; came to St. Stephen in 1830, and at once engag- ed in lumbering. Soon after, the death of his brother-in- law, David Wright, left to him the management of a large business, which he conducted with great energy and abil- ity. He continued in the lumbering business until the brief illness which terminated his life in 1869. His fortune at death amounted to nearly $1,000,000. His children are, Charles B., of St. Stephen; Joseph E., of Calais ; Herbert; Albert; Bradley, of Calais ; Elizabeth Benton, Philadelphia.
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APPENDIX.
EATON,
HENRY FRANKLIN, born in Groton, Mass., in 1812, a brother of J. Emerson Eaton, came to St. Stephen in 1833. He soon became a partner with his brother in the firm of J. E. Eaton & Co. In 1842, the name of the firm was changed to H. F. Eaton & Co., and the partnership contin- ned until 1864. Mr. E. is still engaged in business and is esteemed as one of the most energetic, reliable and wealthy men on the river. His children are, George : Henrietta May; Henry ; Annie R. ; Frank ; Wilfred.
EMERSON,
CAPT. SETH, came to Calais from Bridgeton, Me., in 1825; built the lower bridge; framed the first Congrega- tional church; built several saw-mills, and a grist-mill which he ran for several years: married Mary Knight; and had two children, viz: Edward E .; Mrs. Elizabeth Lowell, R. B.
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