USA > Michigan > Washtenaw County > Ann Arbor > A history of St. Andrew's Church, Ann Arbor, Michigan > Part 2
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tants of the village generally. The village is healthy and beautifully situated, inhab- ited by an enterprising and intelligent peo- ple and is fast rising into consequence." He reports the number of communicants as about fifty-four, which, if correct, marks a relatively striking increase within two years.
In his annual address to the convention, held 6-8 June, 1839, the bishop, in alluding to the recent consecration, states that the congregation have sold the pews subject to an annual rent, and have given up the "miserable system heretofore pursued of relying upon subscriptions. . . . This," he continues, "is the only proper plan, and tends to make the pastor independent and his labors profitable. Nothing has given me more anxiety, in reference to the success of the church at various points, than the wretched plan of supporting the pastor by subscriptions. It trammels him in the performance of his duty, and puts it in the power of the ungodly completely to defeat his ministrations. I never consider the
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church as established where this system pre- vails." The same address contains an in- teresting reference to the infant university : "And here I would beg to notice," says the bishop, "the praiseworthy efforts of the Regents of our State University. In every instance, I believe, they have ap- pointed professedly religious men to take charge of the branches of the University, and also have provided that every day's duties shall be commenced with prayer and reading a portion of the Holy Scriptures."
At last, after a period of uncertain wan- derings, the congregation of St. Andrew's was settled in a permanent home. The various places of worship before the church was finally built cannot be fixed with cer- tainty : at least the accounts are somewhat conflicting, and no means of satisfactory verification are open to the present writer. Without attempting to reconcile the seem- ing discrepancies, it may perhaps be well to state, as they are given, the different accounts of the journeyings of the congre- gation.
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The missionary church was organized in the house of Mrs. Hannah Clark, mother of General Edward Clark and Mrs. James Kingsley. Mrs. Kingsley's daughter, Mrs. Charles A. Chapin, now has in her posses- sion a silver tankard, without a cover, formerly belonging to Mrs. Clark, which was used for the earliest communion ser- vices, and once, at least, for a baptism.
Miss Corselius states that, after holding services for a time in the houses of parish- ioners, they went into a wooden building in old Jail Square, bounded by Liberty and William Streets, and Fourth and Fifth Avenues. The building faced on Liberty Street and stood near the corner of Fifth Avenue. Later, services were held in what afterwards became a carpenter shop. Ac- cording to the Washtenaw County History, for some years after the organization of the parish, the congregation worshipped in a small building on Washington Street, east of Fifth Street; afterwards in a brick school house in the old Jail Square. Bishop Gillespie's account is more circum-
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stantial ; and, from the care he took in such matters, as well as from the fact that he had the advantage of conferring with Gen- eral Clark and others, has much in its favor. Moreover, it is possible to verify at least one of the places in his list not mentioned by the others-the Court House, where Mr. Marks preached for a time. On the other hand, unless it be the school house on Fourth Street to which he alludes, even Bishop Gillespie omits to mention the Acad- emy where Mr. Bury held a service when he came out from Detroit; but perhaps this was an exceptional case. The places of worship mentioned by the bishop are: the Goodrich house ; a school house on Fourth Street ; a mansion or store at first situated on Main Street, later moved to Huron Street opposite the Presbyterian Church and finally converted into a dwelling house ; the Court House ; a little building near the site of the Congregational Church, fitted up with a temporary pulpit, possibly the carpenter shop mentioned by Miss Cor- selius ; and, finally, the basement of the church.
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The ground now belonging to St. An- drew's formed originally a part of a quar- ter section purchased of the United States by John Allen, in 1824. From time to time he disposed of various portions to different persons. Among them was George Cor- selius, who, in 1834, conveyed an acre to St. Andrew's, giving a warranty deed recorded on the day of conveyance. Seven years later the church purchased of John Allen and William S. Maynard another strip, south of the acre already owned. This lat- ter strip had six rods frontage on Division Street and, joining Mr. Maynard's land on the south, ran east twenty-six and two- thirds rods. The present church and chapel are in this strip, while the rectory stands on the site of the old church, on the piece originally purchased.
The Michigan Whig for 9 April, 1835, contains the following interesting adver- tisement concerning the building materials for St. Andrew's: "The estimate of timber having been made, this is to give notice that any person who may be desirous of furnish-
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ing either sawed or hewed timber to apply on his subscription will please call on Henry Rumsey, Esq., or the subscriber, and take a list of such timber as they will undertake to furnish, and it will be neces- sary that such call be made by the 20th inst. Any person who has not subscribed but will contribute timber or other mate- rials for the said church, will confer a great favor. By order of the Building Com-
mittee. George W. Jewett." No records seem to be extant by which the cost of the original structure may be determined. But Bishop Gillespie was fortunate enough to get hold of a subscription list throwing some light on the matter. It bears the following heading: "The members of St. Andrew's in Ann Arbor have with great exertion obtained subscriptions at that place amounting to $1,300 toward the ex- pense of erecting a church edifice, the cost of which is estimated at about $2,000. For the difference between these two sums they rely upon the sister churches in the dio- cese, but more particularly upon the well-
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known liberality of St. Paul's Church in Detroit, and they take this method, through their pastor, the Rev. Mr. Bausman, to declare their wants, in the hope that their expectations will not be disappointed. Feb- ruary, 1835." The paper contains a list of twenty-four names, whose total subscrip- tion aggregates $267, headed by General C. C. Trowbridge with $50. General Trowbridge, it is interesting to note, was the first to respond to Bishop Gillespie's appeal for subscriptions from Detroit toward students' pews for the new church over thirty years later. The $1,300 from Ann Arbor plus the $267 from outside corresponds roughly with the $1,500 men- tioned by Mr. Bausman in his report to the convention of 1835 already alluded to.
An interesting description of the old church as it appeared about the middle of the century may be found in a letter, quoted by Miss Corselius, from Mrs. Fennel (formerly Miss Jessie Clark), of Linden, California. Standing at some elevation from the street, it was approached by a
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THE OLD ST. ANDREW'S CHURCH
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flight of twenty steps. The edifice was surmounted by a belfry, later provided with a bell, which was procured mainly through the kindness of Volney Chapin and Judge Kingsley, who went security for the requisite amount-$320. By ac- tion of the vestry, 14 November, 1843, and 15 January, 1844, these two gentlemen were given the subscriptions and pew rents in addition till they were reimbursed. During the period of building, the base- ment, as we have seen, was used for ser- vices ; but subsequently it was let to one Mr. Branigan for a school. Mr. Bran- igan, a queer Irishman, according to Col- onel Dean, one of his pupils, performed the duties of janitor by way of rent. It was only after the lapse of some years that the church was adorned with white paint and green blinds. The interior arrangements were as old-fashioned and primitive as one would expect. There was a high pulpit and reading desk, each provided with black cushions decorated with yellow cord and tassels. Pulpit and desk were lighted by
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candelabra with glass drops, furnished, in 1841 or 1842, by the ladies, who raised $30 for the purpose by means of donations and the sale of needlework. Pews of a uniform size ran through the middle of the church. Each pew-holder furnished a bit of carpet, together with cushions and footstools. At first the wall pews were all square struc- tures, each containing a table in the center and a shelf running round the walls, where lamps or candlesticks, brought by the occu- pants, were set for the evening service. In 1848 money was raised for lamps. Among Mrs. Chapin's papers is a list, dated 1 June of this year, containing twenty-seven names and a total subscription of $94.50. Sub- sequently the square pews were taken away, except one in the southeast corner which was retained for a Bible class.
A box-stove, standing for some years near the door, apparently did not furnish com- plete satisfaction since a note in the Vestry Book for 6 October, 1848, informs us that " Messrs. Millen, Clark and Loomis were appointed to devise and carry into effect a
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plan for warming the church, with full dis- cretionary power." This, too, seems to have proved inadequate, for, in 1855, a con- tract was awarded to Dudley and Holmes to put in a furnace for $250. This same year the present organ was built by F. G. Merritt, of Detroit, at a cost of $1,000. There was no font until one was provided by the Sunday school after the advent of Bishop Gillespie. Mrs. Kingsley gave the first white linen cloth for the communion table, and from the rector's report of 1841 we learn that "the ladies of the parish have, by most untiring exertions, succeeded in raising money enough, principally by means of the needle, to procure a handsome communion set." He adds that " probably there are not to-day six communion sets in the diocese."
The vestry room was in a small building to the left of the church. Many years ago it was merged into the kitchen of the Wil- coxson house, and has since been torn down. The church was lowered and extended in 1856, and still further enlarged and im-
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proved in 1863. After the present edifice was built, the old church continued to be used as a chapel till 1881. At that time the front, with the little room over the ves- tibule, added at the time of the second alter- ation, was sold to Mr. Stähler, who tore it down and removed the heavy timbers to his farm. The rear now forms a part of Mr. Ross's carpenter shop on the opposite side of the street. Such was the old church and its appointments, a description of which has led us beyond the chronological limits set for this chapter.
CHAPTER II.
THE MIDDLE PERIOD, 1838-1861.
T HE five years of Mr. Cuming's rec- torate, to return from this digres- sion, were marked by a steady and encouraging growth in temporal and spir- itual concerns, a growth interrupted by only two vicissitudes. In 1840, Miss Cor- selius states that St. Andrew's was sold on a mortgage, the sheriff's foreclosure being for $494.55, and that Mr. Volney Chapin and Judge Kingsley advanced the money to pay the debt. Since the vestry records do not reach back that far, and since there is a gap in the annual reports from 1836 to 1839, we have but scanty evidence for the financial condition of this period. How- ever serious the situation may have been, it passed the critical stage in 1840, for Mr. Cuming reports that the temporal affairs are in a much better condition than they have ever been ; that a debt of $2,800 has
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been liquidated by the efforts of the parish alone; and that a parsonage costing $600 is nearly finished; while $40 has been con- tributed for benevolent purposes. He hopes that there has been a corresponding im- provement in spiritual things. " Our ser- vices have been well attended, and with marked seriousness on the part of the con- gregation generally." He has conducted missionary services in many taverns and villages in the State, though St. Luke's, Ypsilanti, until recently under his charge, now has a rector.
The bishop's statements in his annual address are equally encouraging : " It gives me much pleasure to state," he says, "that this church, also, has been entirely relieved from debt, and has disposed of its pews in such a manner as to secure for its pastor a competent support. In addition to this I record with the greatest pleasure that the parish have nearly completed a beautiful parsonage house for their rector. As might naturally be expected, I am also per- mitted to notice the prosperous condition
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of this parish in a spiritual point of view. Their rector, the Reverend Mr. Cuming, has indeed been 'instant in season and out of season,' and the happy state of his parish must prove that God will not long permit faithfulness to go unrewarded, how- ever severe may be the trials which for a time he laid upon his servants." Evidently the double strain of building a church and a parsonage one after the other had been successfully met.
It was during this same year that the church was partially destroyed by fire, but the loss was more than made up by the lib- erality of the congregation, generously as- sisted by friends in the east, whom Mr. Cuming succeeded in interesting. "At the time of my visitation," said the bishop in his address of 1841, "it was entirely repaired and such improvements made as to rank it among the most beautiful edifices in the west." Among other changes, the old organ, not the present one, was rebuilt, and the pulpit and desk were moved to give room for four more pews. The rector,
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reporting these facts in 1841, pictures a parochial condition rarely equalled : "We are out of debt-we are at peace among ourselves." He also announces that "the parsonage alluded to in the report of last year . . . is entirely finished and is uni- versally admired for its beauty and conve- nience, and for the economy observed in its construction." Certainly there can be no doubt in the latter point. The deed was recorded 16 June, 1840.
Occupied by Mr. Cuming during the re- mainder of his rectorate, the building was sold during the term of his successor and is at present the property of the Misses Ladd. Miss Corselius prints, from the papers of Miss Chapin's father, a list of the original subscriptions which well illustrate the prim- itive condition of the time. The list is as follows: "Charles Kellogg, goods, $40; Brigham and Platte, lumber, $25; F. H. Cuming, $15; George Danforth, store pay, $15; A. M. Gould, note, $20; Miles and Wilson, store pay, $30; James Kings- ley, order, $20; Chapin, note or store pay,
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$3 [$30?]; Charles Tull, lumber, $15; W. M. Sinclair, goods or lumber, $15; James Orr, $10; L. Stillson, goods, notes, or store pay, $10; J. Wallon, store pay or cash, $10; Eben Wells, note or store pay, $1 ; Willard Parker, glass, $10; John Branigan, labor, $12; Sam. Baldry, labor, $6; Wm. G. Tuttle, work, $1; H. Good- speed, store pay, $10; D. Cleaveland, work, $10; G. W. Jewett, work or store pay, $30; Robert Clark, goods or note, $10; E. Mundy, lime or note, $25; J. H. Lund, lumber, $12; E. R. Everest, shoes, $15; Dan. W. Kellogg, $15 ; J. C. Mundy, lum- ber, $10; W. F. Brown, store pay, $10; John S. Reade, store pay, $6; Shepherd, glazing, $10; Thomas Butler, lumber, $5; David Page, lumber, $10; W. W. Green, work, $10." The total pledged by these thirty-three subscribers was $491. The last considerable improvement during Mr. Cuming's term was a fence around the church lot, for which $65 was collected in 1842-43. Apparently still further changes on the church were contemplated, for at a
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vestry meeting of 17 April, 1843, on the motion of G. W. Jewett, it was "Resolved, That the Rector be authorized to extend the present limits of the church edifice : Provided, he does not thereby involve the corporation in any expense, and provided further, that if any surplus means are ac- quired in consequence of the extension, they shall be placed in the hands of the treasurer for the general uses of the Society." For the time, however, the project seems to have come to nothing. In this year, apparently for the first time, the diocesan convention met in Ann Arbor, with G. W. Jewett, G. P. Williams, and J. H. Lund as delegates.
In spite of the generally favorable esti- mation in which he seems to have been held, Mr. Cuming was unable to escape opposi- tion altogether. At a meeting of the vestry, held 24 July, 1843, a paper, signed by George Miles and other pew-holders, was submitted in which they stated it as their opinion "that the welfare of the said church will not be promoted by the contin- uance as rector of the present incumbent."
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Since no reasons were given, the vestry asked that they be furnished before 29 July. At the same meeting the rector was asked for his accounts as collector of assessments, none having been rendered for several years. On the thirty-first of July, Miles and six others presented a document formulating the reasons for their previous action. Whatever they may have been, for they are not recorded, the board decided by an overwhelming vote of 9 to 1 that they were insufficient. At this meeting Mr. Cuming submitted a report of his accounts, and a committee was appointed to audit them. By a resolution of the board made 31 December, 1839, the rector had been given by way of salary all the pew rents under $800. The audit, recorded 10 Au- gust, disclosed the fact that he had $168.54 still due him, which he not only relinquished but paid some contingent expenses besides.
Whether the attack on him, successfully as it had been met, determined Mr. Cuming to seek another charge, is uncertain. At any rate, 11 September, 1843, he announced his resignation in the following letter :
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TO THE WARDENS AND VESTRYMEN OF ST. ANDREW'S CHURCH, ANN ARBOR.
Gentlemen : Having received an invitation to the Rectorship of St. Mark's Church, Grand Rapids, under circumstances which induce me to believe it is the will of Provi- dence I ought not to decline it, I herewith very respectfully tender my resignation of the Rectorship of St. Andrew's Church, Ann Arbor, to take effect at the expiration of the present year of my engagement with the parish.
With my fervent prayer that in all their deliberations and acts the members of the corporation, with which I have now been associated for nearly five years, may be guided by wisdom from above, and that the parish may enjoy peace and prosperity, I am, gentlemen,
Your affectionate friend and pastor,
F. H. CUMING.
While deeming it their duty to assent, the vestry recorded their attachment to him and their appreciation of his services in this resolution :
"WHEREAS, The Reverend F. H. Cuming has, by his zeal and his efforts since his connection with our Parish, been eminently
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successful in the promotion of its prosper- ity, devoting his time, his talents and his substance to that object-possessing as he does the strong attachment of very many of his parishioners, who feel a deep interest in his and his very interesting family's wel- fare, we deeply regret that any reasons exist in his mind which are deemed of suffi- cient weight and importance to determine him to resign the situation he has so use- fully occupied, and the duties which he has so faithfully discharged."
· At the same time, an address to Mr. Cum- ing, in the form of a letter, was approved by the board, who voted to present him with a certified copy of the resolution quoted above, together with the letter. The letter, too long to quote, may be found in full in the Vestry Book. It recalls in detail what he had accomplished during his five years of service, in freeing the church from debt, securing a parsonage, raising money to repair the losses of the fire, in adding to the numbers, and in deepening the spiritual life of the congregation. Altogether, it pays a glowing tribute to his achievements both in temporal and religious things. The
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statistics of his ministry will serve to give, in some respects, a more specific idea of his work. They are: baptisms, adults 13, in- fants 38, total 51 ; confirmations, 48 ; mar- riages, 20; burials, 43. The number of communicants was increased from 28 to 76, and $4,065.69 was received in contributions.
Directly after leaving Ann Arbor, Mr. Cuming took up the work of St. Mark's, Grand Rapids, where he remained till his death, 26 August, 1862. An extract quoted by Bishop Gillespie from one of the many obituaries which appeared at the time is worth reproducing again. "Dr. Cuming was no ordinary man. United to great respectability of talent and acquirements he possessed a native energy of character which contributed to his success in the ministry. Whatever objects he thought worthy of his attention he pursued with an unfaltering purpose and the most untiring industry, and seldom failed of their attainment. As a preacher he was sound, direct, plain and forcible. There was an earnestness of manner both of preaching and conducting
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the services of the church that could not fail to arrest and hold the attention of a congregation. As a parish minister he had few equals in the church. His supervision of his flock was most faithful. His parish work was wonderfully systematized, and he had the happy faculty of enlisting his people in his plans and securing their cor- dial cooperation in their execution. . While the death of such a man is a loss to the whole church, to the Diocese of Mich- igan it is one that cannot soon be repaired."
Following Mr. Cuming's resignation, in October, 1843, the parish was without a settled pastor till July, 1844. The par- sonage, thus left vacant, was leased to a Mr. Harris for one year for $100, on con- dition that he make the necessary repairs, the cost of which was to be deducted from the stipulated rent ; while if such costs ex- ceeded the amount due for rent, the balance was to be made good to him. The Rev- erend W. N. Lyster, a worthy missionary, who came to this country in 1833 and spent the remainder of his life in the service of
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the diocese of Michigan, supplied the va- cancy till Easter, holding services every second and fourth Sunday of the month. There is little of interest to record during this period; the Easter report, signed by the wardens, W. G. Tuttle and Zenas Nash, shows very little evidence of growth, and the fact that the board time and again fails to secure a quorum for its meetings indicates a discouraging lack of concern for the business of the church.
As one means of supplementing the parochial income, the committee on pew rents was authorized to let the basement of the church to Mr. Branigan, to whom ref- erence has already been made, for a school. Subsequently, 20 May, 1844, Mr. Bran- igan agreed to act as sexton by way of pay- ment. A minute for the ninth of March indicates that the franchise at this time was comparatively wide. Any male person, of twenty-one years of age, residing in the parish and owning or renting a pew or slip in the church or in any way contributing $2.00 to the funds of the corporation dur-
REV. CHARLES C. TAYLOR
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ing the year was entitled to vote. Rates of payment were correspondingly small. The organist was allowed $25 for her services ; in 1846, George Bailey and his son were en- gaged as sexton and organ-blower at a salary of $40 for both. When, on 20 April, 1844, it was resolved to invite the Reverend W. N. Lyster to assume the rec- torate, he was offered " a salary of not less than $400 per annum with the use of the parsonage." On his declining, the Rev- erend Charles C. Taylor, of Rhode Island, was called on the same terms, and entered upon his duties 22 July. Harris, how- ever, whose lease did not expire till the fol- lowing October, refused to leave the par- sonage. In consequence, a house on Ann Street was hired of Leo Ward for three months at $2.50 a week, and on the seventh of August Mr. Taylor's salary was fixed at $500 for the ensuing year, exclusive of the parsonage.
Mr. Taylor was twice rector of St. An- drew's, the period of his first encumbency extending to 1850. In his first report he
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notes that the parish, besides paying cur- rent expenses, had been able to cancel a debt of $700, and, exclusive of moneys con- tributed for missionary and religious pur- poses, had appropriated $50 for improve- ments. An extract, in his own words, may not be without interest : " Much credit," he says, "is due to the ladies of the parish who appropriated $120, received at a sale of fancy and useful articles, towards pay- ment of the parish debts and improvements in the church. If we have not been favored by any remarkable outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we think we may say that He has shed upon us the continual dew of his heav- enly grace. Attendance upon the services and ordinances of the church is regular and devout. Her Apostolic Order and Primitive Worship have been steadily gain- ing the favor of the community, as they become acquainted with her doctrine and service. The recent assaults from without and alarm cries from the timid within have tended to increase our long-suffering Christian charity, union, strength and
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