USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Plymouth > History of Plymouth, New Hampshire; vol. I. Narrative--vol. II. Genealogies, Volume I > Part 19
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According to congregational usage, the call of the church must be supplemented by the assent of a body exercising the func- tions of a parish. Either the town of Plymouth or the propri- etors must act in this capacity. Undoubtedly this problem was fully debated. At a meeting of the proprietors, assembled at the house of Samuel Cummings in Hollis, Feb. 12, 1765, an article in the warrant to organize the town was dismissed. Compre- hending the effect of such action, the proprietors at the same meeting, in the capacity of a parish,
Voted to give Mr. Nathan Ward for his yearly salary one hundred and fifty ounces of silver or the value of it in New Hampshire money
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and also thirty cords of wood annually until the town shall increase to the number of one hundred families ; and then to add five ounces to his salary every year till it amounts to two hundred ounces and so remain during the time that he is able to carry on the work of the ministry.
Voted to give Mr. Nathan Ward one hundred and twenty dollars for his encouragement for his settling in the work of the ministry at Ply- mouth, besides the right given him by the charter.
Voted Ensign David Hobart, John Brown, and Abel Webster be a committee to wait upon Mr. Ward to see if he will accept of the in- couragement given him by the proprietors.
The details of the mission of the committee and the formal answer of Mr. Ward are not preserved. The continued progress of the work, preliminary to an ordination, was not suspended. A meeting of the proprietors was called April 3 to assemble April 25 at the house of Samuel Cummings. At this meeting the pro- prietors " chose David Hobart, Abel Webster, John Brown, Wil- liam Nevins, and Stephen Webster to act in behalf of the proprietors in respect to the ordination of Mr. Nathan Ward." This was the last meeting held in Hollis. At a meeting held at the house of David Webster in Plymouth, June 13, 1765, provision was made for the salary of Mr. Ward.
Voted to raise seventeen pounds fifteen shillings, old tenor, upon each right for Mr. Ward's salary for the year ensuing [£1065].
Voted to raise twelve pounds fifteen shillings, old tenor upon each right for Mr. Ward's settlement.
Voted to raise three pounds, old tenor, upon each right for ordination expenses.
There were sixty taxable rights. The sum of the three votes in old tenor was equivalent, at prices then prevailing, to over six hundred days' labor.
There is no original record of the installation of Mr. Ward. Plymouth was then a frontier town, and remote from the homes of the ministers invited to solemnize the event. Influenced by the conditions prevailing, a council frequently assembled at a con- venient point and remote from the church which called it. In this instance it would be anticipated that the ministers invited
2
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would assemble in southern New Hampshire or in Massachusetts. A church manual was printed in 1830. The little pamphlet is pref- aced by one page of historical record, containing the statement that Mr. Ward was ordained over the church in Plymouth, at New- buryport, July 10, 1765. The Ward Genealogy repeats the record, giving the date July 11, 1765. The eleventh of July was Thurs- day, and is a more probable date for a church ceremony.
The records of twenty-three churches have been examined, with- out results, for incidental reference to this council. The exam- ination neither proves nor disproves anything in this connection. In most instances there were found no references to any councils to which the churches were invited.
The terms " ordination " and " installation " were often con- fused in the early records. It is probable that the council which asembled at Newburyport in July, 1765, recognized the previous ordination of Mr. Ward at Newton, Mass., and that the ceremony was an installation.
The town was organized in July, 1766, and at once assumed the duties of a parish, relieving the proprietors from respon- sibility. The second meeting, held at the house of James Hobart in October, was called to raise money for town purposes and " to see if the town will give Rev. Mr. Ward the same salary and settlement that was formerly voted him by the proprietors." The town voted: -
To give the Rev. Mr. Ward fifty pounds in money and thirty cords of wood the present year for his salary.
To give the Rev. Mr. Ward thirty six pounds in money for settlement and whereas Mr. Abel Webster has paid the foregoing thirty six pounds to the Rev. Mr. Ward for settlement that the town shall pay to the said Abel Webster the aforesaid money with interest till paid.
The proprietors had assessed and Abel Webster had collected the sum voted for a settlement, but had not assessed the first year's salary. In refunding to the proprietors the money paid for set- tlement, the town assumed the contract with Mr. Ward from the date of his settlement. The proprietors paid only for the preach-
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ing preceding, and the expenses of, the ordination. In the fol- lowing years the town adopted several measures for procuring the stipulated amount of firewood, and raised the salary for many years in the use of a phrase that remained unchanged : " Voted Mr. Ward his contract."
In the progress of years, and while prudently and successfully exercising the functions of a parish, the town shared the experi- ence of many communities of the State. In many towns there were a few persons who embraced the Baptist faith, and who generally absented themselves from the stated meetings of the Congregationalists, and who frequently paid the ministerial tax under protest. It was the beginning of a separation of the town and the church and the acceptance of the more rational and equit- able regulation of the toleration act. There is no recorded evi- dence of any failure of a perfect concord and unity of opinions in Plymouth until 1777, when eight taxpayers entered their dissent to the vote to raise the money by town tax for the payment of the salary of Mr. Ward. In the following year seven dissented. In the years 1778 and 1779 these men petitioned the town to be excused by vote from the tax. Their request was denied by the town. The petitioners then refused to pay the ministerial tax when assessed, and the collector proceeded by process of law against their estates. The issue was made. Abel Webster, one of the persons who refused to pay the tax, hastened to Exeter in February, 1780, with a petition, signed by the dissenters, praying for an act of relief. There he met Francis Worcester, who was a member of the council. They were able men, and both were in -. fluential in the town. In the matter of taxation for the support of the minister, Mr. Worcester was a leader of the majority, while Mr. Webster, holding the confidence and respect of all, was a potent factor of the minority. They conversed at Exeter upon the situation, and finally Mr. Webster accepted the advice of Mr. Worcester to suppress the petition for the present and to ascertain what the town would do in the premises. Viewed in the fading light of one hundred and twenty-five years, and from the stand-
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point of amended conditions, many issues of moment to our fathers appear trivial to us. The situation was critical. In many towns the majority unduly oppressed the minority, excluding them from office and denying them the privilege of participating in town affairs, except the payment of taxes. In Plymouth none were elected to office more frequently than the dissenters, and there appears no breach in social relations. Under such condi- tions, a wise decision could not be delayed. In 1780 an agree- ment was made between the parties. The dissenters agreed to pay all taxes for the support of Mr. Ward that had been assessed, and to pay the costs made by the collector of taxes. The dignity of the town was maintained, and the majority promptly assented to the conditions proposed by the dissenters that hereafter "all persons of the Baptist principles who are not inclined to hear Mr. Ward be excused from ministerial taxes." The dissenters, at the cost of yielding to the supremacy of the town in the past, won the essential feature of the contention. Thereafter all was peace. After Abel Webster returned to Plymouth Mr. Worcester wrote the following letter, which is complimentary to the writer and voices the sentiment of the town in the final measures of con- ciliation. The letter was written on one side of a large half-sheet of paper, and in using the reverse side to record the minutes of a town meeting, the letter is preserved for use in this connection.
EXETER Feb'y 17, 1780.
To the Selectmen of the Town of Plymouth Gentlemen.
Mr. Abel Webster informed that Distress is made by the Con- stable of Plymouth upon the goods and estates of some of those persons in said Town who have absented themselves from Mr. Ward's Meeting, by means whereof Mr. Webster attended the General Court with a Petition signed by a considerable number of the Inhabitants of Plymouth praying to be released from paying any taxes towards the support of Mr. Ward, which is as they set forth contrary to Liberty of Conscience as they are of a different persuasion. I desired him not to present the Petition to the Court until such time as the opinion of the Town might be taken upon it, to which he consented and is returned home again.
Our Town is young and small ; disputes in any public Court will serve
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to weaken and lay a foundation for malice ill will and party spirit, instead of promoting and cultivating Peace Union and Harmony, which is so necessary to the happiness and well being of every community, especially Towns in their infant state.
With such like views, I apprehend that it would be best to return to the owners all goods taken by Distress in that way and let another trial be made to settle and accomodate these difficulties among ourselves and thereby lay a foundation for Peace in the Town, which is the hearty desire of
Humble Servt
FRANCIS WORCESTER
The persons who entered a protest against being taxed for the sup- port of a minister not of their faith in 1777, 1778, and 1779 were Thomas Lucas, Zebadiah Richardson, Ephraim Keyes, Stephen Webster, Stephen Webster, Jr., Abel Webster, Amos Webster, Joseph Wheeler, Stephen Wells, Simeon Hovey, Paul Wells.
The persons who were excused from paying taxes for the support of Mr. Ward after the compromise of 1780 were Stephen Webster, Stephen Webster, Jr., Daniel C. Webster, Abel Webster, Nathaniel Webster, Stephen Wells, Zebadiah Richardson, Abijah Wright, Ephraim Keyes, Samuel Ambrose, Jacob Draper, Joseph Kimball, Simeon Hovey, Thomas Lucas, Henry Erving. This record ends with the close of the year 1783. There were addi- tions in subsequent years, but the names of those who made the issue and established the innovation are given.
Until the beginning of this movement the salary of Mr. Ward had been raised and paid with uniform regularity. On account of the burdens incident to the Revolution, and the refusal of the Baptists to pay their proportion of the tax, it appears in 1780 that the salary for the two preceding years had not been paid. A part of the sum due had been tendered in depreciated currency, which Mr. Ward had refused.
Having come to a permanent understanding with the Baptists, the town, in April, 1780, offered Mr. Ward three hundred ounces in silver for the salary of the past two years, which was accepted.
In March, 1781, the town offered Mr. Ward £50 in silver, at
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six shillings and eight pence per ounce [150 ounces], deducting the proportion of those persons who withdrew from his preaching. At the same time Col. Joseph Senter, Lieut. Josiah Brown, and Ebenezer Blodgett were requested to wait upon Mr. Ward and learn his decision. To this proposition Mr. Ward made reply that he would be content with £40 and no deductions, to which the town assented. In 1781 the town gave Mr. Ward £50, and he returned £10 as a voluntary contribution towards the expense of building Baker's River bridge. As long as money was com- puted in sterling the salary was £50. In 1783 Mr. Ward came forward with a proposition to give the town one-half of his salary, and only £25 was raised that year. After the Revo- lution the town increased in wealth and population, and the salary of the minister was fully paid without complaint or un- usual sacrifice.
Mr. Ward was often invited to preach or attend councils in other towns, and he frequently held week-day services in many settlements destitute of a pastor. It is stated in the Diary of Matthew Patten of Bedford that Mr. Ward of Plymouth preached in Derryfield, Sunday, June 23, 1771, and in Bedford, Sunday, March 1, 1772. He preached for Rev. Timothy Walker of Con- cord, Sunday, Nov. 19, 1780, and often he rode to New Chester, Bridgewater, and other near-by towns and preached to willing listeners in barns and in groves.
Rev. Nathan Ward, the first pastor of the Congregational Church of Plymouth, was born in Newton, Mass., April 11, 1721. His parents were Joseph and Esther (Kenrick) Ward, and many of his kindred were distinguished in civil and church affairs. In early life Mr. Ward was a farmer. He was not a college graduate, but he was not an uneducated man. He was nearly or quite thirty years of age when he began to preach and assumed the solemn obligations of ordination.
Rev. George Whitefield, in 1740, made his first visit to New England. His fame had preceded him, and multitudes from near and far flocked to hear him. To the churches of New England
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he did not preach new doctrines, but with the force and eloquence of an impassioned nature he persuaded men to fervid resolutions and denounced the churches for any failure in maintaining the standard of his exalted ideals. If he was not approved by some of the ministers he was welcomed to the pulpit of many churches. During a later mission to America, in 1748, Mr. Whitefield preached in Newton, and among the many who were awakened was Nathan Ward. A large majority of the followers of White- field remained within, or subsequently were connected with, the Congregational churches. Those who withdrew from the churches and founded independent churches were called New Lights or Separatists. In Newton an independent church was organized, and Mr. Ward was invited to become their pastor. The meetings assembled at his house. He was regularly ordained, and min- istered to his devoted flock about seven years.
By the law and custom of the time, ordained ministers were exempt from taxation. The town authorities of Newton, with- holding the privilege granted to other ordained ministers, con- tinued to tax Mr. Ward, who preferred the following memorial, which was presented in town meeting March 3, 1755: -
Gentlemen : - It hath pleased a sovereign and all wise God, who is wont to choose the weak things of the world to confound the wise, as I humbly trust and believe, to call me, who am less than the least of all saints, to preach his gospel, and also to take the pastoral care of a church in this town, who, some few years past embodied into a church for the carrying on the Worship of God agreeable to his word and their con- sciences ; and I have been, as some of you are eye witnesses ordained and solemnly set apart to the work of the gospel ministry by prayer and the laying on of hands.
And now, gentlemen, you well know that it ever hath been the case that those who hath been ordained to the work of the gospel ministry ever hath been freed from all taxes or rates, and indeed they are so both by the Divine and Civil law. But yet, notwithstanding my calling as a minister of God's word and ordinances, the assessors of this town have been pleased, since the time of my ordination, both to rate my person and assess my estate, which, I apprehend, is not their duty to do, nor indeed mine to pay. And now, gentlemen, as it is in your power to
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grant me freedom in this matter, my humble petition and request unto you at this time is, that you would free me, together with my estate under my particular improvement, from being rated or assessed so long as I shall aet in this public character, that I may enjoy the like privi- leges of this nature as do other ordained ministers. And so doing you will oblige
Your most humble servant, NATHAN WARD.
In the course of a few years a majority of the little church in Newton became Anti-pedobaptists. Mr. Ward adhered to his belief in infant baptism. There is no evidence of any discord between the pastor and his church, but they were living in an age when slight differences in the creed were regarded as conse- quential. The relations were amicably dissolved. In 1760, and while an effort was being made to found a church and parish, comprising the towns of Walpole and Newcastle in Maine, Mr. Ward preached there several months, dividing his labors between the two towns. The union was not consummated, and Mr. Ward remained, preaching wholly in Newcastle. A call was ex- tended May 8, 1761, and was accepted. In the mutual arrange- ments for the installation, the time and place of the ceremonies were referred wholly to Mr. Ward. According to Congrega- tional usage a number of churches were invited to meet in council. The churches invited to the contemplated installation were: Concord, Mass., Rev. Daniel Bliss; Hollis, Rev. Daniel Emerson; Boston, Mass., Brick Church, Rev. Ebenezer Pember- ton; Boston, Mass., Old South Church, Rev. Joseph Sewall, D.D .; Sutton, Mass., Rev. David Hall, D.D .; Bridgewater, Mass., Rev. John Porter; Ipswich, Mass., Chebacco Parish, Rev. John Cleaveland.
The law of the province required that the settlement of a min- ister was not legally consummated until the proceedings were approved by a majority of the ministers of the county. At this time there were no settled ministers in the county, and time was consumed in seeking advice concerning the legality of the arrange- ments. In the meantime the question was raised whether Mr.
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Ward had been regularly dismissed at Newton, and a committee was appointed to enlighten the people of Newcastle on that point. In the report of the committee, says Rev. David Quimby Cush- man, " Mr. Ward stood before them as a man of candor and uprightness and a minister of blameless conversation, rectitude of character, and success in his work."
It is more than probable that the council was not convened, and in the summer of 1763 Mr. Ward, who was absent at the time, wrote the people of Newcastle requesting them to withdraw the proffered call, to which the town assented in September following. The proprietors living in Hollis were seeking a minister to preach in Plymouth. Undoubtedly they consulted their pastor, Rev. Daniel Emerson, whom they respected and loved. If not pre- viously acquainted, through the arrangements for a council to settle a minister in Newcastle, Mr. Emerson learned of Mr. Ward. The orderings of a human life are mysterious. Perhaps in a little settlement on the coast of Maine the hand was extended that opened the door to a lifework in Plymouth. Soon after a call had been extended to Mr. Ward, and possibly before the fact was known to the pastor and officers of the church in Che- bacco Parish, Ipswich, Mass., they gave Mr. Ward the following letter of commendation, which is recorded in the records of that church : -
To whom it may concern.
Greeting. These may testify that Mr. Nathan Ward, of Newtown in the Massachusetts Province, about five years ago preached several Sab- baths to us to very good acceptance. And divers times since he has occasionally preached the Gospel to us. His preaching is sound, me- thodical and lively and has a Tendency to awaken the secure, to lead the convinced to Christ and to comfort and establish such as have found Christ. He appears to us to be free from a bitter party Spirit, but to have such a measure of Qualifications for a Gospel Preacher that we can find a Freedom to recommend him to the Saints to be improved in the Gospel and to any People that shall incline to improve him as a Gospel Preacher and pray God that wherever he shall be improved he may have the Blessing of many souls ready to perish come upon him.
And now wishing Prosperity to Zion and to all that love her and pray-
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ing that God would give the word and the Company of well qualified and faithful Preachers to publish it may be great, we subscribe,
In the Name and Behalf of the
fourth Church in Ipswich.
JOHN CLEAVELAND Pastor. FRANCIS CHOATE R. Elder. DANIEL GEDDINGE R. Elder.
Chebacco in Ipswich August 19, 1764
By the terms of the charter the first settled minister was entitled to land equal to that received by a grantee or proprietor. His four fifty-acre lots are mentioned in another chapter. He also received a lot of interval in the great horse pasture, which he exchanged for the eleventh lot on Baker's River. He directed and assisted in the cultivation of his farm. In 1778 he was assessed for land and buildings and one horse, four oxen, five cows, and eight young cattle. Only David Webster, Josiah Brown, and Samuel Emer- son paid a larger tax. During the Revolution he was an ardent patriot, and in town and school affairs he was a good citizen. In qualities of mind and in temperament Mr. Ward was eminently qualified for his mission in Plymouth. On account of the infirmities of age he was dismissed, at his request, Jan. 4, 1798. He continued to reside in this town, and died June 15, 1804. 1
The traditions of the ministry of Mr. Ward are uniformly that he was an able, fearless preacher, that he impressed his hearers with his sincerity, his faith, and his earnest solicitude for the salvation of men. If he did not bring to the pulpit or to the fireside the conventional manner of the old school, he failed not in kindness of manner and in gentleness of spirit.
Through years of labor, through seasons of hope and hours of despondency, his labors for his people were incessant, and he wisely laid the foundations which have safely borne the structure reared by his able successors. It was said of Mr. Ward while living, " He is a good man." This sentiment in the congregation
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added force to his sermons, and as he mingled with the people he was continually preaching with the power of a devoted life.
As he paled and grew aged in the service of his people, their love was not lessened, and when his tired hands fell from the plough and his weary feet no longer trod the furrow in the vineyard he had tilled with pious care, their respect was renewed in the living memory of his constant ministrations.
In April, 1798, two months after the dismissal of Mr. Ward, a meeting was called " To see if the town will take some probable and effectual measures to procure an honest, learned, ingenious, and well qualified candidate for the Gospel ministry." The speci- fied qualifications were exacting, but the town chose a committee fully competent to execute the trust. They were Judge Samuel Emerson, Lieut. Josiah Brown, Elisha Bean, and Capt. William Webster. The committee procured Mr. Daniel Hardy, who preached several months. A call by the church and the town was extended, but for reasons not now discernible he was not in- stalled. The church records in this connection are not preserved. Rev. Daniel Hardy, son of Daniel and Sarah (Greenough) Hardy, was born in Bedford, Mass., 1773. In his childhood the family re- moved to Pelham. He graduated from Dartmouth, 1789, and was a tutor there several years. After preaching in Plymouth he was ordained and preached occasionally through life, but was not settled over any church. His years were mainly devoted to teaching. He was principal of Chesterfield Academy about two years, and of Bradford (Mass.) Academy, 1808-10, and subsequently he re- ceived pupils at his home in Pelham. He died in Dracut, Mass., Nov. 25, 1833.
The following year the same committee invited Rev. Drury Fairbank to preach as a candidate. He received a call from the church and the town, which was accepted. His salary was £100 ($333.33). The churches invited and joining in the council of ordination were Holliston, Mass., Rev. Timothy Dickinson; Con- cord, Rev. Asa McFarland, D.D .; Thornton, Rev. Noah Worces- ter, D.D .; Boscawen, Rev. Samuel Wood, D.D .; Salisbury, Rev.
VOL. I .- 15
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Thomas Worcester; Andover, Rev. Josiah Badcock; Sanbornton, Rev. Joseph Woodman; Hebron, Rev. Thomas Page. Mr. Fair- bank was ordained Jan. 8, 1800.
As a preacher he was more tranquil and composed than Mr. Ward. If he preached with less animation and vigor, his sermons were timely, penetrating, and spiritual. He was a faithful and devoted pastor, and was constantly employed in parish labors. He lived near the people, and the records and traditions of his min- istry testify to the kindness of the man and the friendship of the pastor.
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