USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Antrim > History of the town of Antrim, N.H. for a period of one century from 1744 to 1844 > Part 5
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As stated in another place, the first sermon preached in Antrim was in Sept., 1775, by Rev. Mr. Davidson, of Derry, in Dea. Aiken's barn ; and, in a few weeks after, the Rev. Mr. McGregor, of Londonderry, preached a sermon in Francestown, in the barn of Dea. Hopkins, who lived on the well-known Gibson place. " To this meeting several chil- dren were carried from Antrim for baptism. In the two or three following years a sermon was preached here occasionally, and gratui- tously, by clergymen in the county ; as the Rev. Messrs. Morrison, of Peterboro', Goodridge of Lyndeboro', Heuston, of Bedford, Moor, of New-Boston, and Barnes, of Hillsboro'.
The year after the incorporation, the town granted thirty-two dol- lars, to which they made, at a subsequent town-meeting, an addition, to obtain preaching ; a liberal grant for a community so small and poor. They obtained the services of Mr. Aaron Hutchinson, then a candidate for the ministry, afterwards an attorney at Lebanon, N. H.,
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and of the Rev. Mr. Clarke, a native of Ireland, each a few Sabbaths. Mr. Clarke was a learned and good man, but full of eccentricities and oddities. In 1779 they voted to procure eight Sabbaths' preach- ing, and obtained the services of Mr. James Miltimore, afterwards minister of Stratham, N. H., and Newbury, Mass. Mr. Miltimore was again engaged here for some Sabbaths in 1780, when the people gave him a unanimous invitation to become their pastor, offering him a lot of land as a " settlement," and an annual salary of $233. This was a truly liberal offer for so small a people. For reasons not appear- ing on the town records, Mr. Miltimore declined an acceptance; but preached in town some Sabbaths in each of the years 1781, 1782, 1783. He was a worthy man, and possessed in a high degree the confidence of the people. The reasons of his declining the invitation are supposed to have been, that the Portsmouth proprietors were not inclined to give the town a lot of land for the first settled minister ; an impression on his part that his support might overburden his friends, and that he might be more useful in a larger field.
In 1782, Daniel Nichols was chosen by the town "to read the Psalm." This vote may refer to religious meetings when no minis- ter was present, and lends probability to the inference that the early settlers sometimes held meetings for prayer, singing, and reading sermons, when they had no ministerial aid.
Rev. Mr. Whipple preached here a few Sabbaths in 1785, and it was then that, at a meeting at Mr. Miltimore's, the flooring gave way and precipitated the assembly into the cellar. Up to this date, the religious as well as the town-meetings had been holden in private dwellings and barns.
As the transactions in relation to the building of the first meeting- house, 1785, were matters of town business, the details have been already given in the civil history of the place.
From this period, onward, for six or seven years, the annual grants by the town for the supply of the desk were from fifty to eighty dol- lars. It was the day of small things; seed was however being sown, destined to yield much fruit afterwards In 1786-7, the Rev. Aaron Hutchinson, father of the aforementioned Aaron Hutchinson, for- merly minister of Grafton, Mass., preached here a part of each sum- mer : a man of many singularities, but possessing a memory sur- prisingly retentive. It has been said that were the Greek Testament lost, he could have restored it from memory, word for word ; doubtless an exaggeration; but that he was in a remarkable degree familiar with the Greek, cannot be questioned.
Though many of the first settlers and their wives were persons of piety, they had hitherto retained their relation to the churches with which they had originally united; attending sacramental seasons in those places when it was practicable, and often carrying their children thither for baptism. They, with a considerable number of new com- municants, were organized into a church, 1788, consisting of about sixty members. It is singular that the preliminary steps toward this important transaction were taken by the town in legal meeting. They
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appointed Isaac Cochran their agent, to apply to the Presbytery of Londonderry to authorize a minister to visit Antrim, and organize a church. They designated to this service the Rev. Wm. Morrison, of Londonderry, who preached here August 3 ; organized the Presbyte- rian church, and ordained a board of elders elected by the church and congregation ; viz : Deacons James Aiken, Isaac Cochran, and Jona- than Nesmith. ' He came a second time the same month and admin- istered, Aug. 24, for the first time in Antrim, the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. Mr. Morrison, afterwards D. D., repeated for many succeeding years, at the request of the people, his annual visits for the administration of christian ordinances ; was holden by them in the highest respect, and, indeed, regarded by them as their spiritual father. He was a native of Scotland ; educated for the ministry in Pennsylvania ; a man of ready talent, winning manners, and excel- lent reputation ; one of the most popular and useful ministers of that day, in New-Hampshire. He died, 1818.
The original members of the church, being chiefly of Scottish de- scent, educated in the Presbyterian faith and discipline, were strongly attached to the principles and usages of their fathers, and placed themselves from the very first under the care of the Presbytery of Londonderry. No other ecclesiastical connection would have been equally acceptable; it was a connection which has subsisted ever since. They, however, maintained a most fraternal intercourse with all the neighboring churches, freely uniting with them in all acts of christian fellowship. Between Antrim and Londonderry there was for many years a great deal of intercourse, social as well as religious ; numerous ligaments of consanguinity connected them. If, through lapse of time and change of circumstances, the mother and daughter are now partially estranged, it is only one of those mutations to which earth is subject.
The sacramental services of the church in Antrim were modeled after those of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. They had a sacramental season annually at least ; semi-annually if practicable. The Thursday or Friday preceding the Sabbath was observed as a Fast, there being two public services, and no servile labor being al- lowed. There were also public religious services on Saturday after- noon and Monday forenoon ; the latter being the usual time for the baptism of children. At the preparatory Fast, tokens, small pieces of lead stamped with the letter A, were distributed among the com- municants, as an indication of their right of access to the table : a practice borrowed from the church of Scotland, and continued by the force of custom long after the original and sufficient reason for its introduction had ceased to exist. When receiving the sacramental elements, the communicants sat at long tables, covered with white linen, and extended through the aisles; the tables were sometimes filled with guests three or four times successively ; the whole service being interspersed with singing, prayers, and exhortations. These were seasons of deep interest, drew crowded congregations, and were often productive of the most salutary religious impressions. Some,
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who came merely to look on, went away thoughtful and serious. This was the course of things almost to the time of leaving the first meeting-house. When the present church was built, 1826, the con- struction was such as to render the use of tables, extended through the aisles, inconvenient ; and for this reason they were laid aside. The tokens and the Monday service had been discontinued two or three years earlier. For almost forty years from its organization, the Presbyterian was the only church existing in town.
Reference to the tokens formerly used in Presbyterian churches may lead to the inquiry, What was the origin of this usage? It was this : during the progress of the reformation from Popery, in Scotland, three centuries ago, Presbyterian ministers and churches were few and far between, intermingled with a great mass of Roman- ists. To enjoy sacramental communion, many Protestants must travel great distances ; a Scottish sacrament brought together crowds of strangers. To prevent the intrusion of improper persons, tokens were introduced as a substitute for written certificates of membership in the church. A stranger might apply to some minister or elder, who could vouch for his christian character and standing, and receive a token, which at the proper time he produced as an evidence of his right of access to the Lord's table. In the state of society then ex- isting, the usage was proper and almost indispensable ; after the Refor- mation had become established, the power of custom continued the practice, long after the necessity for it had ceased.
From 1788 to 1791, inclusive, it is not ascertained what clergymen preached in Antrim, except that in one of these years the Rev. Mr. Clark, afterwards of Greenfield, supplied the desk for a time; a man so exemplary, that his host gave him the just and high commendation of being an " every day preacher." During this period, probably, a Mr. Carpenter preached here for some weeks. In 1792, the services of Rev. Mr. Tomb were obtained, and the town gave him an invita- tion to become their minister; offering him a settlement of $2663, and an annual salary of $233}, to be afterwards increased to $2663. He returned a negative, and left the town for a time ; the desk being supplied after his departure, for a few Sabbaths, by a Mr. Noble. In 1793 Mr. Tomb was requested to return, and the town renewed their invitation to him to settle here as their pastor. To their great dis- appointment he again declined. Mr. Tomb was a man of handsome talents and respectable character, and was afterwards settled in the ministry at Salem, N. Y., where he remained till his death, exten- sively known and valued.
Of the supplies of the desk in 1794-5 no record remains. A Mr. Duff preached here it is believed in the summer of 1796. Rev. Da- vid Goodall, afterwards of Lyttleton, supplied the desk in the latter part of 1796 and the former part of 1797. A meeting was called the latter year to invite him to become the town's minister ; but a vote to this effect was not obtained. Whether the people were not united, or whether it had been ascertained that Mr. Goodall did not incline to remain, is not now known. He was a man of great moral
:
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excellence, useful as a minister, a missionary and a legislator. His missionary labors were attended with some incidents of thrilling in- terest ; but this is not the place to tell the story.
In the five or six preceding years, the annual appropriation by the town for the supply of the desk had been gradually increased from eighty to two hundred dollars ; corresponding with the growth of the place. Rev. Mr. Howard preached here in the summer of 1798, and the town voted to give him an invitation to settle with them in the ministry. At a subsequent meeting, an article in the warrant to fix on the sum to be offered him as a salary was dismissed. It is not known whether this was meant by the town as a withdrawal of the call, or whether Mr. Howard declined to receive proposals. He af- terwards became the minister of Dunstable, Mass.
Mr. Walter Little, a native of Peterboro', and a graduate of Dart- mouth College, was employed here, 1799, as a candidate for settle- ment. Aug. 15, the church and town acting in concert, invited him to take the pastoral charge, offering an annual salary of $300, to which $20 more were afterwards added. He was not ordained till Sept. 3, 1800; on which occasion the Rev. Dr. Morrison, of London- derry, preached the sermon ; the Rev. Mr. Taggart, of Colrain, Mass., offered the ordaining prayer ; and the Rev. Dr. Dana, of Newbury- port, gave the right hand of fellowship. At that time the dysentery was raging, and the town was in affliction. During the twelve years from the organization of the church to the ordination of Mr. Little, forty-five had been admitted to membership; these, added to the orig- inal number, with some deduction for deaths and removals, would make the number of members at this period about ninety.
In addition to the existing session, the congregation elected, Sept. 25, as Ruling Elders and Deacons, John Duncan, Joseph Boyd, Dan- iel Nichols, James Nesmith, Arthur Nesmith, James Carr, Sutheric Weston, Barachias Holt, and John Alexander, who were duly or- dained, Oct. 17; making in all a church session of twelve members, exclusive of the pastor ; all of whom are since deceased. Though the Presbyterian form of church government recognizes a distinction between the offices of elder and deacon, and though some churches have a board of elders, and a distinct board of deacons, yet it has been the usage of this, and other Presbyterian churches in this State, to consider the same men as holding both offices, as being both elders and deacons.
Considerable religious interest existed in the first year of Mr. Lit- tle's ministry, resulting in the addition to the church of thirty-six persons. In the three succeeding years thirty-one more were added. For some reason he obtained an act of the Legislature changing his name to Fullerton. He possessed respectable talents, but, to a por- tion of the people, his manners were unacceptable ; dissatisfaction arose and increased. Finding his situation becoming unpleasant, he applied to the Presbytery, Sept. 4, 1804, for leave to resign his charge. The people, having been duly notified of his request, instructed the elder who represented them in Presbytery, to offer no objection ; and
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that body, at a special meeting, Oct. 4, dissolved his relation to his people. He was re-settled at Hebron, N. Y., and in a few years again dismissed. His death occurred on a journey, many years since, in the State of Maryland. It was during the brief ministry of Mr. Fullerton that some infidel publications, as Paine's Age of Reason, and other kindred works, found their way here, and infected a few persons with the moral poison ; whose unceasing efforts proselyted a few of the young to infidelity. It proved a root bearing gall and wormwood, the effects in relation to its votaries being, in most in- stances, profanity and intemperance, sometimes gambling and reck- lessness ; in two or three instances premature death. The great mass of the people, however, adhered steadfastly to the faith of their fathers.
Mr. Thomas Cochran, a candidate for the ministry, supplied the desk some part of 1805, and received from the town, in May, a call to become their stated minister. He declined the invitation, and was afterwards the pastor of a church in Camden, Maine. This year the session voted to admit persons of sober life and conversation, who had been themselves baptized, though not members of the church in full communion, to the privilege of bringing their children to baptism ; a considerable number availed themselves of the permission. In some portions of New-England this practice prevailed to some extent, and was called, in the language of the times, " the half-way practice," or, " owning the covenant." It was in use here but five years, when, on general conviction of its impropriety, it was given up.
Nov., 1806, Mr. Wm. Ritchie, from Peterboro', having supplied the desk for a time, was invited by vote of the church and congrega- tion in legal town-meeting, to assume the pastoral charge. He de- clined, and was soon after ordained at Canton, Mass.
The present pastor of the Presbyterian church came here to supply the desk, July 11th, 1807 ; remained with the people, that season, three months ; and received in September an invitation to become the town's minister, which he at that time declined. The call being re- newed, May, 1808, he returned in June, and was ordained as pastor, Sept. 28, by the Presbytery of Londonderry. Rev. Dr. Austin, of Worcester, Mass., preached the sermon; Rev. Dr. Morrison, of Lon- donderry, gave the charge ; and Rev. E. P. Bradford, of New-Boston, the right hand of fellowship. The church then consisted of about 125 resident members, only eight or nine having been added during the preceding four years.
From 1808 to the close of 1812, thirty-four persons were admitted into the church. The melancholy scenes of the spotted fever, in the latter year, were not productive, in this place, of that deep moral impression which might have been anticipated. They had, indeed, a salutary influence on some minds, and twelve persons in that year professed the religion of Christ. It is remarkable that in the neigh- boring town of Francestown, these scenes made a deeper impression than in the locality of their occurrence; there being in that town a general and powerful revival of religion, many of the subjects of the work referring to the ravages of death they had heard of in Antrim,
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as the first thing that aroused them to serious reflection. The years 1813 and '14 were years of religious declension. The events of the war engrossed the public attention. Six were added to the church in the former year; but in the latter, not one.
A day more favorable dawned, 1815, in which year thirteen indi- viduals united with the church. In July, 1816, some of the former elders having deceased, removed, or become enfeebled by age, the church elected Samuel Vose, Josiah Duncan, John Taylor, Epps Burnham, and Tristram Sawyer, to be elders, all of whom accepted and were ordained. Soon after this event an increase of religious interest became quite visible ; extended itself, without special efforts, silently and gradually, from one neighborhood to another, continued two years and a little more, in which period more than fifty were added to the church. It was like a copious, refreshing morning dew.
In the three years, 1819, 1820, 1821, the church received into its fellowship twenty-eight persons. The five succeeding years, begin- ning with 1822, exhibit a less favorable aspect of religious feeling, giving a total number of admissions of only fifteen. In 1825, there was not a single admission. The agitations and divisions then ex- isting in relation to the location of a meeting-house were adverse to spiritual prosperity. This year, Amos Parmenter, John Bell, Robert Duncan, and Robert Steele were added to the session. James Wal- lace, Jun., now a resident of Manchester, was elected with them to the office of an elder, but declined to accept.
Such a blending of town and society action is found in the transac- tions relative to the erection of the Central church, 1826, that the civil and ecclesiastical portions of our history are, on this point, strangely commingled. To the details given in the chapter of civil history it may be added that the Centre house was dedicated Nov. 15, 1826; sermon by the pastor, from Gen. 28 : 17. In accordance with a previous vote of the town, the congregation held the last ser- vice in the old house in the forenoon of Dec. 3, the sermon being from John 4 : 20, " Our fathers worshipped in this mountain." In the intermission, the assembly repaired to the new house for the af- ternoon service, the sermon being from Psalm 132 : 8, 9. The East church was dedicated Dec. 20th; sermon by Rev. Mr. Lawton of Hillsboro.' The society worshipping in this house obtained, not long after, the services of Mr. Roswell Harris, a candidate for the congre- gational ministry ; a respectable and estimable man, who preached to them somewhat over a year.
Without any anticipation of such a blessing, or the use of any special means whatever, by far the most general and powerful revival of religion ever enjoyed in Antrim, manifested itself in 1827. It was found in May that a few persons, hitherto void of special religious impressions, were inquiring what they must do to be saved. In a few weeks the interest spread into almost every part of the town ; religious meetings were crowded with thoughtful and listening hear- ers, and opposition stood dumb before the power of the Divine Spirit. Few were found hardy enough to deny the finger of God. The good
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work was at its height in August and September. In the course of sixteen months one hundred and three persons united with the Pres- byterian church; the greatest number received at one time being fifty-one; the greater part of whom ever after sustained, in the judgment of charity, the christian character. It was a merciful dis- pensation, following a scene of protracted controversy about the loca- tion of a church; coming to strengthen the cause of religion at a critical time; and exerting a great and lasting influence on the moral state of the community. The whole number of professed converts in the town was not less than one hundred and twenty.
Oct. 25, a Congregational church of seventeen members, chiefly subjects of the existing revival, was organized by a council, in which the pastor and session of the Presbyterian church assisted, at the east meeting-house ; to whom were soon added nine others, dismissed at their own request, from the Presbyterian church, and four more from other churches ; making thirty in all. The sermon at the or- ganization was by Rev. Mr. Cook, then of Acworth, from Ps. 4 :3, first clause.
In 1829 and 1830 the additions to the Presbyterian church were only four. William Little and Joel Wilkins were added in the latter year to the session ; John Vose was also elected an elder, but ex- cused himself from an acceptance.
Memorable in the churches of this region is the year 1831, as the season of "protracted meetings," so called. Such meetings were holden in very many places ; and though some objectionable features were discernable, the general results were in most instances decidedly good. The attention of great numbers was attracted to the truths and obligations of religion, and 'the moral state of society was ame- liorated. Such a meeting was holden here during three days the latter part of August, and was attended, with deep interest, by crowds of people from this and other towns, and by many ministers. A con- siderable number of hopeful conversions ensued, many of which appeared, ever after, to be genuine and abiding. Thirty-six persons were added to the church that year. It was at length found that such meetings, like other things good in themselves but liable to per- version, were not free from some ill consequences ; that some placed on them an undue reliance, to the disparagement of the ordinary means of grace ; that they created a taste for exciting rather than instructive preaching ; that some itinerant preachers used them as a means of disseminating unsound principles, and of introducing rash innovations. When these evils became apparent, the Spirit of God ceased to set on them, as heretofore, the seal of divine approbation, and the churches wisely returned to their former reliance on the or- dinary means of religious instruction.
About 1831, the Rev. Joseph Davis, of the Baptist denomination, was engaged to preach at the East house, and supplied that desk, some portion of each year, for a period of twelve or more years ; fre- quently preaching for a time in other places. Several families of that denomination in Antrim, Deering, and Society Land, together with
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deserted in Canada, and his fate is unknown. Boyd died at the ren- dezvous in Concord, before the regiment marched to the scene of action. Holmes fell into the hands of the British at Fort Oswego. They transported a force over the lake to attack the fort; the garri- son being weak, and finding that it would be impossible to make good the defence, retired from the fort soon after the assault began. Holmes, being later in retiring than the rest, turned about on his retreat and discharged his gun at the enemy, on which a British sol- dier shot him in the groin and he fell. The British rushed by and over him in pursuit of the garrison, who however escaped. On their return from the pursuit, four soldiers carried Holmes on a blanket, roughly and unfeelingly, toward the fort; a British officer, possessed of humanity, noticed their rough handling of the wounded man, and ordered them, under threat of striking them with his cutlass, to carry him gently. The British speedily evacuated and the Americans re- possessed the fort, when Holmes found himself again in the hands of his own countrymen. He never entirely recovered from the effects of the wound, and died a few years after the close of the war.
A considerable British force, both naval and military, entered Pe- nobscot bay in 1814, occupied some positions on the river, and threat- ened an attack on the seaports of New-England. Numbers of the militia of New-Hampshire either volunteered or were drafted to march for the defence of Portsmouth. From Antrim, John Robin- son, Charles Gates, Samuel Vose, Isaac Saltmarsh, William Roach, Moody Barker, John Barker, Ira Wallace, Alexander Parker, and Levi Thompson, entered the militia service, to be stationed on the seaboard of the State. These, with militia men from contiguous towns, constituted a company commanded by Capt. William Gregg, of Antrim. As the British soon left the coast, all returned in safety except Ira Wallace, who died of disease at Portsmouth. At the time these men (some of whom volunteered and others were drafted,) were designated, the leading citizens met with the militia and gave a pledge in behalf of the town of a considerable addition to the pay to which they would be entitled under the law of the United States.
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