Illustrated history of Kennebec County, Maine; 1625-1892, Part 31

Author: Kingsbury, Henry D; Deyo, Simeon L., ed
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York, Blake
Number of Pages: 1790

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No man ever instituted a more earnest search for the truth; far and near he sought for a teacher who could really teach him; he was ready to listen on his knees to such an one when he found him, but though he traveled as far as London he could find no man who could lift a jot of the weight from his burdened heart. The answers he received would have completely discouraged a less earnest youth, but he was on a quest he could not abandon: "Be sure they sleep not whom God

* At first a nickname started by George Fox's telling a magistrate to " Quake at the word of the Lord."

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HISTORY OF KENNEBEC COUNTY.

needs." At length, when all his hope in men was gone, and as he tells us, " When I had nothing outwardly to help me, nor could tell what to do; then O! then, I heard a voice which said: 'There is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition.'"

He had always heard a dead Christ preached in the churches, but he sought a Christ who could teach him and act upon him so as to change his life; only a living Christ could do that. Doctrines about Christ and what He has done for man are not Christ himself; and at length Fox reached the great truths, as Kingsley says, " That Christ must be a living person, and He must act directly on the most inward, central personality of him, George Fox;" or again in his own words, "Christ it was who had enlightened me, that gave me his light to be- lieve in, and gave me hope which is in Himself, revealed Himself in me, and gave me His spirit and gave me His grace, which I found sufficient in the deeps and in weakness."

He and the early Friends were orthodox in regard to the atone. ment, but this has sometimes been overlooked, owing to the emphasis which they put on the spiritual Christ who is the Light within, the constant guest of the soul. Their characterizing peculiarities were, then, obedience at all times to the voice within, the maintenance of a life in full harmony with their profession, protestation against all shams and formality, the use of "thee " and "thou" to show the equality of all men," and their refusal to doff the hat to so-called social superiors. Still, farther, they declared the incompatibility of war with perfect Christianity; oaths, even in courts of justice, they utterly refused; in regard to the two sacraments, baptism and the Lord's supper, they held that " they were temporary ordinances, intended for the transition period, while the infant church was ham- pered by its Jewish swaddling clothes, but unnecessary and unsuitable in a purely spiritual religion." Men and women were equal in the sight of God and " the gift for the ministry " was conferred upon both by the Head of the church. It was wrong for a minister to receive pay- ment for preaching the Gospel, whether from the state or from the congregation. Silent communion was an essential part of their wor- ship and it was believed that the true voice could be best heard at such seasons.

To note these distinguishing points in belief, life and conduct, taken with the successful efforts of George Fox to gain light and per- fect peace, will help the reader to form a just conception of the Friends of Kennebec county, who were the inheritors of the princi- ples and practices of the men who so aroused and influenced the world a hundred years before them. We do not need to speak of the fearful persecution which attended their labors; suffice it to say that

* The use of " you," the plural to superiors, and " thou," the singular to in- feriors, was very common then, as it still is, in Germany.

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in central Maine they were allowed peacefully to pursue their manner of life, and no remonstrance was raised against their tenets. Here, as in England, the Friends marked out no creed, but contented them- selves with the life and words of the Lord as recorded by the holy men who received the revelation, and they strove to be in their meas- ure reproductions of Christ. The following words used by a recent writer on the "Quakers " very nearly express their views at all the different epochs of their existence:

" Christianity is a life; the true life of man; the life of the spirit reigning over all the lusts of the flesh. *

* * Christianity, we call it, because first in Jesus, the Christ, this life was manifested in its highest perfection. * * Our creeds and theologies are human conceptions of what the Christian life is; but the Christian life was before them all, is independent of them all, and probably no one of them is a perfectly true and adequate description of the reality. Their diversities, their mutations, prove that they are imperfect. Christianity is the life which Christ lived, which lives in us now by His Spirit.'

Such, then, was the belief and such, in a measure, the life of the little company which met in Vassalboro, on the hill side overlooking the Kennebec valley, in the year 1780. The history of the Friends in this county can never be adequately written, since from their first ap- pearance until the present time they have done. their work in a quiet, unobtrusive way, leaving behind them little more record of their trials and triumphs than nature does of her unobserved workings in the forests; but this fact does not make their existence here unim- portant, and no careful observer will consider it to have been so.

In 1779 John Taber and family moved from Sandwich, Mass., to- gether with Bartholomew and Rebecca Taber, brother and sister, and established themselves in Vassalboro, being the first Friends to settle in this locality, excepting Jethro Gardner, who lived on Cross hill. They soon held a meeting at John Taber's house. In 1780 Jacob Taber, aged eighty-one, father of the above mentioned John Taber, together with Peleg Delano and their families, settled in Vassalboro. About two years later Moses Sleeper joined this little group of Friends. In the 3d month of 1786 Stephen Hussey and Rebecca Taber were married at the house of John Taber, this being the first marriage in this meeting. The same year Joseph Howland moved hither from Pembroke and brought the first removal certificate which was placed upon the records of the meeting.

Friends Meeting House at Vassalboro was built from 1785 to 1786, only one half being finished, and the little company met one, if not two, winters without any fire, meeting holding sometimes three hours. The meeting house at Vassalboro was rebuilt about fifty years ago. In 1787 Joshua Frye moved to Vassalboro. In 10th month,

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HISTORY OF KENNEBEC COUNTY.

1788, Joseph Howland and Sarah Taber, and Pelatiah Hussey and Lydia Taber were married, being the first married in the new meeting house. It then being the custom to request for membership, verbally and in person, Anstrus Hobbie, Levi Robinson and wife, John Get- chell, John Baxter and wife, with Ephraim Clark and George Fish, of Harlem, went up to Falmouth in 1782 to request the "care of Friends," i.e., the rights of membership.

In most other parts of the land opposition brought out the char- acter of the Friends more distinctly and their lives became a part of written history; here they were allowed to worship God unhindered, and the leaven which they became in the various communities was a constantly active, though often unnoticed, force.

Remington Hobbie was at first undoubtedly the strongest and most influential member of the little society at Vassalboro. He was a magistrate in the place and inhabited a spacious house built like the old English homes, with a front hall so large that a " yoke of oxen with cart attached could be driven in the front door, up the hall and turned around in it," as the neighbors said. When David Sands and his companion were in Vassalboro holding their first meetings, Remington Hobbie said to his wife: " I hear these Quakers are decent, respectable looking men; I believe I shall invite them to my house, as they must be but poorly accommodated where they are." She agreed and they were invited. When they came they were shown into the common room or kitchen. After being seated, they re- mained in perfect silence. Remington Hobbie being entirely unac- quainted with the manners of Friends, was at a loss to account for their remarkable conduct, and attributed it to displeasure at being invited into his kitchen. He at once had a fire made in his parlor, saying to his wife: "I believe these Quakers are not pleased with their reception; we will see how they like the other room." He in- vited them in, but the same solemn silence continued, at which he became almost vexed, and thought to himself, "they are certainly fools or take me to be one."

As these thoughts were passing in his mind, David Sands turned and fixed his eye full in his face and in the most solemn manner said: " Art thou willing to be a fool?" when he paused and again repeated, " Art thou willing to become a fool for Christ's sake?" He continued with such power that Remington Hobbie could not withstand it, and in a short time he was fully convinced of Friends' principles and prac- tices. He was ever after a most intimate friend of David Sands and often his co-laborer. "His gift for the ministry was acknowledged," and for many years he preached the Gospel acceptably. In the affairs of the church he was a " weighty man."

Moses Starkey was another strong pillar in this Vassalboro meet- ing, and he, too, was convinced under the preaching of David Sands,

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in the following remarkable manner. He was a carpenter by trade, and if not a rough man, he was at least one who was unconcerned about spiritual things. As he was one day riding along the newly made road, he was asked by a neighbor passing by if he was going to hear the Quaker preach? To whom he replied that he had not thought of doing so. A little farther on, the road divided, one branch going by the meeting house, where David Sands was to have his meeting, the other going to where the village now is. It came into his head to let his horse take whichever road he would, and if he should go by the meeting house, to go in. The horse took the road leading to the meeting house. Moses Starkey went in and sat down by the door. As he entered David Sands was preaching. He stopped in the midst of his discourse and looking at the new comer said: "So thee left it to thy horse, did thee. It would have been well if thee had left it to thy horse years ago;" and thereupon he continued his former line of thought with wonderful power. Moses Starkey was so deeply stirred that his conversion soon followed; he became a Friend and was ap- pointed to the station of minister in due time, sitting for many years at the head of the meeting.

John D. Lang was born in 1789 in Gardiner, Me., where he lived until he was six years of age. He went to school only about three months, and so was forced to educate himself. While still a young boy he worked in the wool carding mill at Fryeburg. He worked much of the time with his Bible open before him, and thus early in life he became acquainted with the teaching of the Scriptures. In 1820 he was married to Ann Elmira Stackpole, and about a year later they both joined the Society of Friends. They began their married life in North Berwick, and at about the age of thirty his gift asa min- ister of the Gospel was recognized by the Friends' meeting in that place. In the year 1840, in company with Samuel Taylor, he visited the Indian tribes west of the Mississippi, and they made an exhaustive report of their travels and the condition of these Indians to the yearly meeting of Friends for New England, and when U. S. Grant became president he appointed John D. Lang commissioner to the Indians. In 1846 John D. Lang came to Vassalboro and gained possession of the Vassalboro Woolen Mills, which owe much of their prosperity to him, he having formerly owned and managed the woolen mill at North Berwick, in company with William Hill. For the remainder of his life he resided at Vassalboro, near the Kennebec river, where he had a beautiful home and entertained many friends. He sat for nearly thirty years at the head of the meeting at Vassalboro, and for many years occupied the same position at the yearly meeting of Friends at Newport, R. I. He died in 1879.

In four years from their first assembling for worship in Vassalboro, a preparative meeting was held there, and in 1787 a monthly meeting

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HISTORY OF KENNEBEC COUNTY.

was established in that place. This meeting included all the Friends in this county, there being no meeting nearer than Durham, Me. The system of their meetings was as follows: As soon as a family or two settled in a place they held meetings for worship on the Sabbath and in the middle of the week. As the number of Friends increased a meeting for transacting the business affairs of this little branch of the society was held, called the preparative meeting. The members of two or more preparative meetings in easy access of each other met together once in the month, a week after the several preparative meetings, for the transacting of further business. This was called the monthly meeting. Again, two or more monthly meetings joined to make a quarterly meeting, and, finally, all the quarterly meetings of New England were subordinate to the yearly meeting, then held annually 'at Newport, R. I. This system applies to the present time, except that the yearly meeting is held every other year at Portland, Me., and the alternate years at Newport, R. I. The chief settlement of Friends was on the eastern bank of the Kennebec river; but in a few years a "goodly number " gathered in the easterly part of the town near the outlet of China lake.

An early writer says: "Toward the close of the year 1797 it was found expedient to establish a meeting for worship there. In the summer following, i.e., in 1798, a meeting house was built there. It was called the ' East Pond meeting,' to distinguish it from the River meeting." Two years later a preparative meeting was granted them and the Vassalboro monthly meeting was held there half the time.

Thomas B. Nichols, a minister of the gospel, for many years occu- pied an active and prominent place in this meeting, not only being a man of weighty counsel, but possessing as well a gift for the ministry. His influential life and his gospel labors made him well known throughout New England yearly meeting.

Anna Cates, granddaughter of Benjamin Worth, was one of the " endowed women " of the East Vassalboro meeting. She was brought closely under the power of the Divine Life while still quite young, and through faithfulness to the Master, whom she loved, she became of great service to Him in the community, by her words of truth and her practical Christian life. Besides her work in New England she took a message of the gospel to the yearly meetings of New York and Baltimore, closing her earthly life in 1865.

Sarah W. Newlin, the daughter of Elijah Winslow, was born in China, 5th mo. 27, 1826. She was married to Henry Goddard in 1847. A great change in her life was wrought by a message which Benjamin Jones, a minister among Friend's, felt called to deliver to her person- ally. Her gift in the ministry was acknowledged by Vassalboro monthly meeting in 1872. The next year she went on a religious visit to Canada, attending the yearly meetings and all the meetings of

FRIENDS' MEETING HOUSE, EAST VASSALBORO, ME.

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THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS.

Friends in Canada. In 1876 she attended Ohio and Iowa yearly meet- ings, working for nine months in the latter state, holding meetings, visiting families, jails, prisons and reformatory institutions, and ac- complishing great results. Her first husband having died in 1875, she was married in 1883 to Jehu Newlin. Since her last marriage she, in company with her husband, also a minister, visited England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France and the Holy Land, in all of which countries much service for the Master was accomplished. She has attended all the yearly meet- ings of Friends on the American Continent, working throughout the territory which such meetings cover, while she has been a faithful messenger of the Gospel in her own community, exerting a wide in- fluence by both life and work. Her membership until her second marriage was at East Vassalboro meeting.

The well known red brick meeting house at East Vassalboro was built sixty years ago and remained unchanged until 1891, when the inside was entirely remodeled. It is now a very convenient and at- tractive place of worship. Vassalboro monthly meeting is now held in it every month and the quarterly meeting twice in the year. Be- sides those already mentioned, Charles B. Cates, Rachel B. Nichols, William Cates and Eliza P. Pierce have been prominent among its members. This meeting has recently risen in importance by a large addition of new members.

Prior to the year 1795 Salem quarterly meeting included all Friends east of Boston. In 1781, about the time Friends began to settle in Kennebec county, to accommodate the members in Maine, the Salem quarterly meeting met once during the year in Falmouth, Me. Thither the Friends in this county traveled on foot and on horseback to attend this meeting and to hear the gospel messages from the min- isters who were generally in attendance. In the year 1795 the yearly meeting divided Salem quarterly meeting and established Falmouth quarterly meeting, which was held circular. viz., at Falmouth, Vassal- boro, Durham and Windham, including all the meetings of Friends in Maine, except those at Berwick and Eliot, who found it more con- venient to remain attached to Salem. From this date Vassalboro meeting held a prominent position and received visits from the gospel messengers coming from the other states and from England.

Vassalboro quarterly meeting proper was established in 1813, and then included the monthly meetings of Vassalboro, Sidney, Leeds and China, with the smaller meetings in their boundaries. It was held four times a year at the " River meeting house," viz., in the 2d, 5th, 9th and 11th months.

The provision of Article VII, Section 5, of the State Constitution, exempting Friends from military duty, was secured largely through

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HISTORY OF KENNEBEC COUNTY.

the efforts of the Vassalboro quarterly meeting. On the meeting records is spread the report of its committee:

" The object of our appointment, it seems, was to use our endeavor to have our rights and privileges as a society secured in said conven- tion, more especially as respects military requisitions, and finding many members of the convention, who upon the principles of impar- tiality, were not willing to give any sect or society the preference in point of privileges, and who thought it but right and just that all of every denomination should be involved and equally liable to perform military duty, or pay an equivalent, we found it incumbent to urge the justice, and, on gospel principles, the necessity of exempting all who were principled against war.

" When we found that to urge so general an exemption was of no avail, we then confined ourselves to the narrow limits of our society, on behalf of whom we plead that we as a religious society had found it incumbent to bear our testimony against war, and that the society had for almost two centuries, amidst severe persecutions and suffer- ings, supported the same with a firmness and constancy from which, under the guardianship of superintending goodness, no penalties in- flicted by human policy, however severe, had been able to turn us; a testimony and faithfulness to that testimony unexampled by any so- ciety on the earth; that while we were engaged, as one general peace society, in support of this all important testimony, it would entail great hardship and suffering on our society, and on our young men in particular, to impose such military requisition, from which we had been in great measure exempt under the then existing laws. After much labor and care on the part of your committee, with the aid of faithful and zealous advocates not of our profession in the convention, a clause is inserted in the new constitution by which Friends may be exempt from military duty.

"Now, on our part, we can say with gratitude that the success our cause met with was not owing merely to human exertions, but to the interference of the hand of Providence, as a member of the conven- tion said, 'the hand of Providence is in it.'"

The report is a long one, and the committee go on to say that the statement was made in the convention, as an argument against their plea, that " many shelter themselves under your name and yet in their external appearance afford no evidence of their scruples as to military duty, and though nominally of your religious body, there are some among you and especially young men who so nearly assimilate with us in dress and address and in their deportment generally, that you ought to turn them out, that we may enroll them in our ranks. ' Your members,' said they, 'ought to certify by their appearance to whom they belong,' from which we are led to infer that, though the constitution makes provision for our exemption from military requisi- tion, yet the enjoyment of this privilege depends principally, if not wholly, on our demeaning ourselves in accordance to our high and holy purposes."

OAK GROVE SEMINARY .- It is to the honor of the Society of Friends in Kennebec county that its members espoused so zealously the cause of education. Although the early Friends here were unlettered in

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large degree, and perhaps partly for this very reason, they resolved that their children and those of future generations should be wisely and carefully taught. The grove of oak trees crowning the top of the hill to the northeast of the village at Vassalboro was chosen as the location of the school which these Friends founded thirty-four years ago. There are few more striking landscape views in the state. The eye follows the winding Kennebec through its beautiful course among farms and forests until it reaches Augusta, and far beyond the city, to where the horizon is skirted with hills. The noted peaks in the range of western Maine mountains are prominent in the northwest, while Mt. Washington and Mt. Adams are visible over the western hilltops. The position could not fail to be a constantly inspiring influence; then, too, only a few rods from this spot the first Friends' meeting in the county had been held in 1780, and a large body of Friends still assembled there for worship. Furthermore, this was a center to a large community in which the children had no educational advantages beyond the ordinary town school; and, finally, in or near this neighborhood lived men who had hearts large enough to use their means in laying the foundation to an institution, the good work of which had only begun in their life time.

. About the year 1850 John D. Lang and Ebenezer Frye, of Vassal- boro, Samuel Taylor, of Fairfield, and Alden Sampson and Alton Pope, of Manchester, all prominent members of the Society of Friends, advocated the establishment of a school where the children of Kennebec county might receive careful training, cultivating influ- ence, religious impression and broad teaching. To secure its estab- lishment they individually gave $1,000. William Hobbie (grandson of Benjamin Hobbie), a vigorous spirited man and a natural teacher, was the first principal, but the school in these first years not being a financial success, it was closed.

In 1856 Eli Jones, the Friend minister and missionary, whose home was in the town of China, advocated that an effort be made to open the school; $15,000 being necessary to secure the success of the new undertaking, he became chairman of a committee to raise that amount, which was nearly all subscribed by six hundred Friends in the state. Eli Jones was made principal for the first year and had a large and successful school. A large part of the children of Friends in the county had the benefits of a longer or shorter period at the Oak Grove Seminary, as it was named, and here they have been helped to become good citizens and to lead noble and valuable lives.

In 1880 a fire destroyed the academy building, necessitating the close of the school. Five years later a large building for school pur- poses was constructed joining the boarding house on the south side of the road. In the autumn of 1887, as a large school had just begun, the entire structure was burned down by an incendiary. In this time

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of discouragement friends were not wanting and the present set of buildings was raised, Charles M. Bailey, of Winthrop, paying for their construction in order that all other funds might be used as a permanent fund, which has now reached $20,000. Besides the princi- pals already named, it has been under the instruction and care of Al- bert K. Smiley, Augustine Jones, Elijah Cook, Franklin Paige, Rich- ard M. Jones, Edward H. Cook, Charles H. Jones and Rufus M. Jones, some others serving for a short period.

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Illustrated history of Kennebec County, Maine; 1625-1892, Part 31

Author: Kingsbury, Henry D; Deyo, Simeon L., ed Publication date: 1892 Publisher: New York, Blake Number of Pages: 1790

Author: Kingsbury, Henry D; Deyo, Simeon L., ed
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York, Blake
Number of Pages: 1790