USA > New Hampshire > Sullivan County > Newport > Tales from the history of Newport > Part 4
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citizens of "Newhampshire"-as it was usually spelled in the town records of the time.
Benjamin Giles lived five years after the close of these incidents and as we have seen, was buried under the name of "ye Honorable" Benjamin Giles, without the usual abbreviations, and it is noticeable that Wheeler, writing just about 100 years after his death, speaks of him in the same tone of respect-a procedure which he did not follow in the case of any other man.
While the grave of Benjamin is plainly marked, one looks in vain for any sign of his wife Abagail. She was considerably younger and, being both wealthy and comely, remained a widow but a short time, and then became the second wife of Deacon Josiah Stevens of South Church. With Ruth, whom we have met as one of Giles' three daughters, safely married to a prosper- ous young farmer, Abijah Wines, the widow and her new husband disposed of the house which still stands, almost on the golf links, Unity Road; and set off on a mission- ary journey. But instead of heading for China or some other far-off land to convert the heathen, they went to Star Island, Isles of Shoals, then fallen into a deplorable state, and there, if you knew just where to look, you would still find the low-lying prone grave stones which were erected to their memory. But we are going to hear more about this Josiah Stevens, and even more about Abijah Wines, who was a very early graduate of Dartmouth College.
If I have forgotten to mention that Benjamin Giles was redheaded, I'm sorry. He was, and so was his daughter Ruth, whose exploits in marrying all her six or seven daughters to ministers we believe to have been a very notable performance.
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CHAPTER IX WE BUILD A CHURCH
Two hundred years ago the 36 square miles of terri- tory which now goes by the name of Newport, New Hampshire lay untenanted save by wild beasts. The American aboriginies, often swept away by famine and disease, were too few to people so much land. The bet- ter-equipped white man had not yet arrived. When the first settler came it was to find such a tangle of new and old forests that becoming lost in them was one of the real hazards of existence. Unless the white man, like his predecessor the red, intended to live by hunting and fishing, his first task was to clear away the forest cover and expose the surface of the earth, for the first time since the creation, to the light of he sun and the breezes of heaven. Also, while in this particular spot the native was not a problem, the wild beasts of the forest were many and formidable, as was found when the first party of settlers left a hoard of crops upon de- parture in the fall for their old homes in Connecticut and found it totally despoiled upon their return the next spring.
It is difficult to imagine the profound silence of this deep forest, a silence ages old, broken when the wind was down only by the voices of the wild denizens of the forest, the murmur of its various streams and the crashing of some ancient tree whose time had come to replenish the forest mould.
Surveyors, however, had swept through and made a rough division into townships and a royal governor had given out the land to "proprietors" who, in turn, had sold their rights to the settlers, or more correctly to their fathers. The first settlers here were from fairly well-to-do families. They came from long-settled Con- necticut and were no more experienced in pioneering than you or I. It is not the purpose of this paper to recount their problems or their progress, but in the Autumn of 1779, after the crops had been stored and
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everything made snug for the winter, some of the people thought it time to establish a church. To be sure, the Revolutionary War was still going on and would be for another three years, but Bennington and Saratoga had been won, Burgoyne and his army were prisoners of war, the treaties with France and Holland had been consum- mated, immediate danger of invasion, for a time a very real threat, was over. The war had moved to the South, where it would be terminated. To be sure, Capt. Samuel Hurd and others were still off fighting Indians, there were calls for supplies, but it seems that a feeling of security was in the air. Church and other pressing matters could now be attended to.
The incorporators of the church were 17 in number, headed by Robert Lane. You will remember that Dea- con Stephen Wilcox was the original leader of the first group of settlers to invade and start clearing this area, but he, after seeing his sons and daughters well settled in their new homes, returned to Killingsworth, Conn., where most of them had lived. Robert Lane, probably the eldest of those remaining, was left as guiding spirit. Worship was held every Sabbath, mostly in his log cabin, conducted either by Benjamin Giles who, among other things, was the school master, or by Deacon Stevens. Robert Lane became the first signer of the Articles of Agreement upon which the church was founded, and, therefore, Member No. 1. The names of seven other men follow, and then the names of eight women. They were, in order, Daniel Dudley, Daniel Buell, Aaron Buell, Elias Bascom, Matthew Buell (Lieut.), Josiah Stevens, and Benjamin Giles. The women: Esther Buell, Su- sanna Dudley, Lydia Wilcox Hurd, Eunice Bascom, Mary Stevens, Hester Lane, Chloe Dudley Wilcox, Mary Buell, and Jane (Chalker) Buell.
After a while they met in the Proprietors' House, first public building in town, which was a general utility building about where Dr. Thorpe's residence now stands, but in 1793 a regular church building was begun. This building was on a small eminence at the very foot of Claremont hill. After a life of 25 years it was torn down
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and the timbers erected into a barn that many of us can remember, over on Charles Fryer's meadow, now the golf course. On June 26, 1793 the frame was raised. The raising was doubtless in the traditional manner with a free flow of rum and a spirit of carnival. No early local happening is so well remembered as the death of the 18-year-old son of Elder Job Seamans of New Lon- don, who was among the many present. He was sent aloft to secure the "crown piece" and the building or a part of it fell, carrying young Seamans to his death. A stone was erected in memory of this event over in the old Pine Street cemetery and can still be seen. One wonders if he were really buried there or whether he was taken home over the rough trail to New London.
Before going on with the history and progress of the church, let us examine briefly the careers of these 17 original members, because they were regarded with sufficient veneration to cause their names to be set apart in a separate list on the occasion of the 50th anni- versary, 1829, when the first church manual was printed.
Robert Lane lived to be 80 years old, dying the next year after the church was built; his wife, Hester, much younger, also lived to be 81; died in 1832. All four of their children were born in Lebanon, Conn., their old home.
Daniel Dudley and his wife Susanna. He was 59 at the time but lived to the age of 91. Susanna died ten years later, aged 68.
Daniel Buell and his wife Esther, the first woman signer, we have little record of, but the next signer was probably a brother.
Aaron Buell, who for reasons we know not of, was excommunicated the following year, but he lived to be 77. He was probably a widower at this time, although he eventually married a woman named Amy Park.
Elias Bascom and his wife Eunice Bascom both migrated to Orwell, Vermont, early in the 1790's. Their
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six sons all took up professions. Elias lived to be 96 and Eunice 94.
Matthew Buell, who is always called "Lieutenant" from his service in the Revolution, died at 72. He and the Connecticut company that he raised all fought at Bunker Hill. Esther, his wife, came from Somers, Conn. Wheeler's history says of her, "She cultivated the happy faculty of always looking on the bright side of every- thing, and hence lived to enjoy the glories of one hun- dred and two summers." She died in 1842, the very last of this group to succumb to the demands of nature. They too were migrants to Orwell.
Josiah Stevens, "Deacon & Rev.," died on the Isles of Sholes in 1804 at the age of 61. He was but 36 at this signing-was among the younger members. His wife, Mary Gray of Killingsworth, died only five years later, 1783, and the Deacon married the widow of Ben- jamin Giles, became a missionary, and tackled the heroic task of redeeming the 600 inhabitants of the Isles, who were reported on the verge of cannibalism.
This brings us to Benjamin Giles himself, who, though the last to sign, was actually the only settler who had previously belonged to any church. He came from Groton, Mass., was older and far better off than the other settlers, represented these back-woods towns in the provincial legislature, and was our first "great" man. He built the Fryer house on Unity Road. He was a powerful influence in giving this community and this church a good start. His gravestone over in Pine Street cemetery is one of the most notable I know. It stands near the center of the yard, is bigger than its neighbors, and it says:
Erected in memory of the Honorable BENJAMIN GILES, ESQ. who after serving his generation faithfully in public life then departed this in hopes of a better. Dec. 9, 1787 Age 70 years.
Has anyone ever received a better gravestone ?
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Wheeler's history, printed a hundred years after his death, always refers to him as the Honorable Benjamin Giles. His widow, Abigail, married Rev. Josiah Stevens, and doubtless accompanied him to the islands and died there.
Returning to the list of women whose husbands are not of the 17, Lydia Wilcox Hurd, wife of Samuel Hurd, is next on the list. Samuel was one of the origi- nal eight young men who came into the town in 1766. Lydia was 45 years old and her family was intact when she joined the church. Her son Elnathan became a deacon, at that time a lifetime position. Capt. Samuel Hurd, her husband, Indian fighter, did not find time to join until 1799, becoming the 110th member.
Chloe Dudley Wilcox seems, next to the fabulous Mary Buell, to have outlived the rest of the group, having died in 1817. As she was but 65 at the time, she must have been the youngest of the group, probably about 30.
The last , Jane Chalker Buell, we know little about except that she died in 1810 at 75 and had a son, Chalker Buell, who was a prominent member and deacon some years later.
Of this group of 17 persons, only one, Giles, joined by letter. The rest, therefore, although mostly in mid- dle life, had never belonged to a church.
Immediately the young church started a search for a pastor, but this did not prove easy of accomplishment owing, probably, to the meager suport these pioneers were able to offer. Finally, four years after the found- ing, an arrangement was made with the Rev. John Remele. There had in the meantime been about 20 accessions. Two who joined in 1782 were Ezra and Sybil Parmelee, original inhabitants, both of whom lived to be over 90 and were both living when the 1820 manual was printed. The church was then 40 years old.
Mr. Remele was pastor for eight years, and made but few converts. Not much knowledge of him remains
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except that he was dismissed in anger, went to Vermont, near Middlebury, and tcok with him all the records of the church, including the records of his own trial. The church made repeated efforts but was never successful in reclaiming them.
The very year that the settlement of Newport was begun there was born to a family named Wines in South- old, L. I., a son who was named Abijah. The father came here fifteen years later, and when 20, Abijah married Ruth Giles, daughter of Benjamin. Benjamin appears to have died the following year. The Wines family settled at the upper end of the village on what is now the Aiken place on Belknap Ave. They had a big farm and plenty of money, so Abijah, feeling the call, determined to enter the ministry. He commenced his studies. Ruth carried on the farm. Abijah graduated from Dartmouth in 1794, probably the first Newport man to do so, and, the church being then without a min- ister, he was ordained in 1796. He seems to have set up a sort of school for ministers in his home, where he aided several young men in preparing for the ministry, furnishing them not only with the learning necessary to a minister of the day but with what was equally ne- cessary, strong and courageous wives. Four of his daughters married ministers, two more married deacons, which in those days was next thing to being a minister. His eldest daughter, Nabby, married Silas Buell and lived and died at Orwell, Vt." Mr. Wines left the church in a highly prosperous condition.
Mr. Wines, who, by the way, was entitled to carry "D.D." after his name, probably never preached in the South Church. He may never have seen it. He was, however, probably instrumental in securing as his suc- cessor the son of the famous founder and president of Dartmouth College, Eleazor Wheelock. This man was James Wheelock, who was ordained here Dec. 2, 1818. "He was a man of scholarly tastes, ardent and energe- tic." A great revival soon commenced, and according to the record there were received into the church in the
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single year 1819 more than a hundred converts. Then the record suddenly becomes one of transfers only.
It was under the pastoral care of Mr. Wheelock that this church building was begun and according to contemporary accounts it is to his superior taste and culture that we owe its exceptional architectural merit. David Lewis Yale, pastor here at the one hun- dredth anniversary of the building, made a thorough in- vestigation of all matters connected with it and has left his findings in printed form. All the events so far nar- rated took place over on the west side of the river. That is where the town was established and where all shops and public buildings were placed. Then, in 1804, the Croydon turnpike was built and it came around the East flank of Croydon mountain, down through the Flat and straight down the valley and on to Goshen, Washington and Hillsboro. To have gone around by Newport Village would have involved too much of a detour, as well as the building of two very risky bridges. Quite slowly the village came over to join the turnpike. (A turnpike was a privately owned toll road) Daniel Dudley was the pioneer. He moved his grist mill over onto the East branch, or main river. Others followed in order to take advantage of the superior water power. There followed a period of about 25 years which I shall call the "cold war" during which there was a silent pulling, gouging and shoving to determine where the center of the new village was to be. The leaders of the two factions were Col. William Cheney and James Breck. Col. Cheney came to Newport from Alstead and established his store at the foot of Claremont Hill. In 1810 had abandoned "old main street" moved up onto the turnpike, where Richards Block now stands, and began to exert all his large influence in favor of that locality.
James Breck was born in Boston but lived at Croy- don Flat several years before coming to Newport. It was in 1816 that he removed to Newport, establishing his store at the corner of Main and Elm Streets. He erected the building that still stands there and the once stately house just to the South. He exerted all his large
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influence to make this the business center of the town. From here on I quote the careful paper of David Lewis Yale, pastor of the church when the one hundredth anni- versary of the building was observed in 1923. Mr. Yale says :
"Early in 1812 James Breck advised a new meeting house for the Congregationalists because the village was gradually moving away from the old meeting house at the foot of Claremont Hill, and naturally, he advocated a location at the south end. In the society records we find this entry under Jan. 29, 1821 'Voted that if there is a new meeting house built near Seth Richards, that it shall be the place of public worship.' (Capt. Seth Richards was at that time keeping the Rising Sun Tavern, where Charles Maxham now lives.) James Breck had won, and the new meeting house was to be South, and near his home,-and store.
"William Cheney was not idle. At about this time he gave land for a Baptist Church at the North end and led in rushing the building to completion that year, dedicating it October 11. The Breck forces moved more slowly, and did not obtain the deeds for the land for their meeting house until Nov. 14. This interesting contest between the two factions did not end until 1826 when James Breck and James Forsaith joined in building the Eagle Hotel (now Eagle Apartments) north of the river. This was a surrender. The more vigorous initia- tive of William Cheney had won. But the few years when the issue was uncertain were stirring times. This short summary-explains why our meeting house stands apart from the center of the present town.
"Tradition states that the plans were taken from the Acworth meeting house, which was erect- ed a year or two before, but examination proves this idea to be wrong. The source of the plans was prob- bably some book or books for builders, of which there were many at that time. John Leach was the
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master builder. Who he was or where he came from I cannot find, but he could not have been the originator of the plans for the South Church. Many ideas in this building ante-date Christopher Wren, who died about 100 years before the times of which we are speaking. Some of the ideas about the steeple and the pilaster effect about the building are the creation of Wren's marvelous genius.
"It is probable that both the Acworth and New- port churches were built after designs from such books, modified by local builders and committees to meet local tastes and needs. The six dollars paid to John Leach for plans was probably for the adapt- ation of such book designs. The exterior architec- ture of this building speaks for itself. It is excellent in proportion.
THE STORY OF SOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
In the first two years of Mr. Wheelock's pastorate about 100 were added to the church. In the next two years, only six. I have heard that he was, besides being scholarly, a man of much wit and humor. These were characteristics little understood by many in the parish, and their frustrations finally blazed out in accusations and charges, some of which were that the pastor and his family openly made fun of and sneered at members of the church. An ecclesiastical council was called on Feb. 21, 1823. It met at the house of Mr. Wheelock, which seems to be the one directly across the street from the church, now owned by Bertie Davis. The council con- sisted of five ministers, all from out of town. They de- clared most of the charges frivolous, others trival, and
some (there were eleven in all) not pertinent, but after gently chiding the proponents, wisely concluded that the minister's usefulness was at an end here, praised him liberally and recommended his dismissal. An innocent looking document which purports to be a copy of Mr. Wheelock's farewell sermon turns out to be a record of the charges and findings of the council, doubtless published at the instigation of the Wheelock party. In
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his sermon the departing minister took some good round house swings at such part of the congregation as had opposed him. It was dangerous business in those days to quarrel with the minister, who always had the last word in the argument. Mr. Wheelock expresses grave concern for the spiritual welfare of a large part of the congregation, implying that they were far from being in a state of grace, and recommending that re- forms be undertaken while there yet was time-remem- bering that dread day when we all must stand in the judgment, and woe to him who has an obvious blemish upon his soul.
It must be with a feeling of deep regret that we learn that Mr. Wheelock, who had watched over every step of the creation of the church, departed three weeks before its dedication. Col. William Cheney went on to his greatest triumph, the setting up of the County of Sullivan, seeing Newport become the county seat, with court house, scales of justice atop thereof, and all. A great day for William Cheney if, indeed, he could be present when the county building was dedicated, and we hope he was present, but his grandson, Major Wil- liam Cheney Manning of Portland, Me., in a paper pre- pared for Wheeler's History, and only partly used, says that he died in 1830 of consumption, caused by exposure in preparing the court house for use.
There is one sentence in the 1826 manual, which neither Mr. Yale nor any one else has undertaken to ex- plain. It says "There was a bell in the tower from the first, BUT TWO OTHERS HAVE SINCE TAKEN ITS PLACE." It is a certainty that the unknown writer of this was mistaken, the stock book of Revere and son, according to an invaluable publication by Eva Speare, of Plymouth, 1944 contains entries showing that the Baptist bell Revere, No. 265, was bought in July, 1822 and the Congregational bell, No. 275, billed to James Breck and weighing 1,212 pounds, three months later. Neither bell has ever been recast. There is no record that either of the Newport churches was one of the sev-
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eral from which the Reveres had great difficulty in get- ting their pay.
The Council which recommended the dismissal of Mr. Wheelock also decided that a day of fasting and prayer would doubtless be of inestimable benefit of New- port spirits, so sadly ravaged. The day was held ac- cordingly, and seems far from having been in vain. For the Rev. John Woods of Warner, a graduate of Williams College, felt its power, came to Newport, took over the church, bought a house, and, success having been as- sured, became a member-number 470, five years later.
Mr. Wood's pastorate opened with about 250 mem- bers. When he was released, in 1851, his last acces- sion was numbered 800-and it appears that the num- ber he added amounted to about 350. It must be un- derstood, however, that these were boom years in New- port. The fact that Newport was becoming the shire town of the new county of Sullivan induced many people to settle here. This fact is the more vivid to the writer, since his own great-grandfather was one, a lawyer, com- ing here, as near as we know, in 1822.
At the time of his induction he was neither young nor old. He was 38. His wife, Achsah, joined the same day, May, 1826. She was the second of three wives- a very usual record in days when people had usually to travel in double harness or perish. The church man- ual speaks of him as "a learned scholar and clear think- er-thoughtful and solemn. "Mr. Woods seems to have been indicated by the little girl who, seeing some one coming toward the house, called out "Mama, someone is coming and I guess it is God."
From an historical standpoint, the outstanding event of Mr. Woods' pastorate was the great historical celebration held on July 4th, 1846-the 80th birthday of the town. In this, South Church was the leader and the scene of the chief gatherings, which were very large- ly attended, but the chief address was by a Baptist, the Rev. Baron Stow of Boston, native of Newport, and at the moment one of the country's best known Baptist
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divines. Mr. Stow was never a pastor here, but was a graduate of old Newport Academy, precourser of our high school, in about 1819. Besides his address, a large number of papers by local citizens were read, which pre- served much history which otherwise might have been lost.
The really significant feature of this celebration was the presence of no less a person than Sarah Josepha Hale-the great and beloved editor of Godey's Ladies Book, Philadelphia. Soon after the death of her hus- band in 1822 she was obliged to leave Newport and went to Boston to pursue a literary career. To the mind of this writer she became the greatest woman in America, and still holds that distinction. I believe 1846 to be the first time she had revisited the town. Possibly it was also the last. For the reunion she contributed a hymn, "Gathering Song" which was "lined out" and sung to the tune of Old Hundred.
How blest to find a resting place A gathering goal in life's swift race, Where hands that Time untwined Once more in friendly clasp are joined.
Tho parted from our place of birth Yet still, like flower seeds left in earth,
Its deep remembrances remain And, waked to life, unfold again.
And thus, with hearts abloom we come, From many a dear and distant home, Like pilgrims to their own roof-tree, To keep this way of jubilee.
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