The history of Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, from 1752-1887, Part 8

Author: Norton, John F. (John Foote), 1809-1892; Whittemore, Joel
Publication date: 1888
Publisher: New York : Burr Printing House
Number of Pages: 1016


USA > New Hampshire > Cheshire County > Fitzwilliam > The history of Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, from 1752-1887 > Part 8


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On the front or south side of the meeting-house was an open common, which was used especially for military drill. West of the house, and at a suitable distance, was a long row of sheds


93


PREACHING IN MONADNOCK NO. 4.


for the protection of the horses and sometimes of the oxen that drew through the snow loads of worshippers.


The entire establishment would not be deemed as orna- mental and reflecting credit upon the taste of the builders and owners at the present day, but it was measurably convenient, and for a part of the year at least comfortable, as this word was then understood. Of course there was no heating appa- ratus in it, but the pastor's house was near, with its great fires for warming during the intermission, and at a little later date foot-stoves were a part of the common household furniture. This, with some occasional repairs and improvements, was the religious home of the entire population of Fitzwilliam for more than forty years, though we have no exact data respect- ing the year when it was first occupied for public worship, and no account of its dedication, if it was ever dedicated. For some years before occupying the meeting-house the people held their Sabbath services in private houses or at the inn of Mr. Reed, as circumstances or necessity required. Religious meetings during the week were then very uncommon.


As early as 1768 preaching was maintained in Monadnock No. + certainly for a part of each year. During the autumn of that year and a considerable part of the winter following the preacher was Mr. Nehemiah Parker, who had graduated at Harvard College in 1763. Soon after leaving this place he became pastor of the Congregational Church in Hubbardston, Mass., having been ordained under a great oak upon the com- mon in that town before a church edifice had been erected.


Whether there was constant preaching in Monadnock No. + after Mr. Parker left and before the arrival of Mr. Benjamin Brigham, about the middle of the year 1770, is uncertain. Mr. Brigham was a native of Marlborough, Mass., and had graduated at Harvard College in 1764. No church or eccle- siastical society had then been formed here, but the propri- etors, as already noticed, after a candidacy of a number of months, made out a formal call to Mr. Brigham to settle with the people here in the gospel ministry. The call was unani- mous. An affirmative answer was returned to this in the January following. In the call ample provision seems to have


94


HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.


been made for Mr. Brigham's pecuniary support, as we have seen in the preceding chapter ; for according to the funda- mental conditions imposed by the Masonian proprietors, two lots of land of one hundred aeres each had been reserved, which were to be given outright to the first settled minister ; also two lots more had been reserved for the " use of the min- istry," of which he would have the proper benefit .*


Moreover, a settlement was offered him of eighty pounds, lawful money. This was no part of his salary, but gifts like this were the rule rather than the exception a century ago, when our churches and religious societies invited the men of their choice to become their pastors. The settlement was of the nature of an inducement to accept the call. In this case the eighty pounds were estimated at a later period to have been worth two hundred and sixty-six dollars and sixty- seven cents. An annual salary was offered amounting to fifty- three pounds, six shillings, and eight pence sterling, which after three years was to be increased by two pounds annually till it should amount to sixty-six pounds, thirteen shillings, and four pence sterling, or something more than three hun- dred and fifty dollars. With a farm of more than two hun- dred acres, the settlement and the annual payment, this was certainly a generous support, especially as the purchasing power of money at that time was much greater than it is at the present day. The land was to be cleared indeed before it could be made to aid in the support of a family, but progress could be made in this work gradually. The proposals were certainly sufficient to place a pastor above want with common industry and economy.


All of the lands and improvements in the township, with the exception, for a time, of the twenty shares (forty lots) re- served by the Masonian Proprietors for their own benefit were taxable to raise the amount for the settlement and the annual salary, while all that purchased land understood the conditions of the bargain in this respect, so there could have been no oe- casion for hard feelings or disputes.


* The disposition made of the lots "for the use of the ministry" and the " school lots" is explained in Chapter XIII.


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CHURCH COVENANT.


In January, 1771, Mr. Brigham accepted the call that had been extended to him, and preparations were soon made for that notable event, the ordination of the first pastor.


The inn of James Reed was upon the old military road north-west of the village, and in sight of the house formerly occupied by Gilbert C. Bemnis, and recently destroyed by fire. As the meeting-house was not in a condition to be used, the ordination of Mr. Brigham took place at the inn. Mr. John Mellen provided for the council and other clergymen that might be in attendance for twenty-five dollars, this sum being paid by the proprietors.


It seemed needful that a church should be regularly or- ganized before the ordination of a pastor, and this was done by the council before Mr. Brigham was set apart as the pastor of Monadnock No. 4.


He had previously drawn up a covenant, to be accepted and signed by himself and others, for this purpose ; and as this ancient document reveals not a little of the inner and outer life of the Christian people that settled this town, it is here given entire :


COVENANT.


" A. D. 1771, ) Monadnock No. 4, in ye Province of New Hampshire. March 27. ( We whose names are hereunto subscribed being inhabit- ants of No. 4 aforesaid, knowing that we are very prone to offend and provoke God ye Most high, in Heart and life, thro' ye prevailing of sin that Dwelleth within Us ; and ye manifold temptations from without Us ; and for which we have great reason to be unfeignedly humbled be- fore him from Day to Day, Do in ye name of our Lord Jesus Christ, with dependence upon his gracious assistance and influence of the holy ghost, solemnly enter into Covenant with God, according to God as followeth :-


" (1.) That having Chosen and taken ye Lord Jehovah to be our God, we will fear him and cleave to him in Love, and serve him in Truth with all our hearts ; giving up ourselves to be his people ; in all things at his Disposal and Sovereign Direction, That we may have, and hold Com- munion with him as Members of Christ's Mystical Body according to his revealed will, to our Lives End.


" (2.) We further Promise to keep Close to ye Truth of Christ, Endeav- oring with lively affections towards it in our Hearts to Defend it against all opposers thereof, as God shall at any time call us thereunto-which that we may Do, we Resolve to Use ye holy Scriptures as our Platform, whereby we may discern ye Mind of Christ, and not ye new found in- ventions of men.


" (3.) We also Bind ourselves to Bring up our Children and Servants


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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.


in ye knowledge and fear of God, by holy instruction from ye sacred Scriptures, -(a Summary of which we have in ye Catechisms of ye Ven- erable assembly at Westminster,) that true Religion may Be maintained in our Families while we live, and among such as live when we are Dead and gone.


" (4.) We also Engage to have a Careful inspection over our own hearts, so as to Endeavor by Virtue of ye Death of Christ, ye mortification of all our sinful worldly frames and Disorderly affections, whereby we may be with Drawn from ye Living God.


" (5.) Moreover we Oblige our Selves to ye faithful improvement of our abilities and opportunities to worship God, according to all ye par- ticular institutions of Christ for his Church, under Gospel administra- tion ; as, to give Reverent attention to ye word of God, to pray unto him, to sing his praises, and to hold Communion with Each other in ye use of Both ye seals, viz : Baptism and ye Lord's Supper.


" (6.) We likewise promise that we will peaceably submit to ye holy Discipline appointed by Christ in his Chh. for offenders, obeying them that rule over us in the Lord.


" (7.) We Bind also ourselves to walk in Love toward one another, En- deavoring our mutual Edification ; Visiting, Exhorting, Comforting as occasion serveth ; Warning any Brother or Sister that offends ; not Di- vulging any Private offences unnecessarily ; But heedfully following the several precepts of Christ laid down for Chh. Dealing, Matt. XVIII : 15, 16, 17, willingly forgiving all that manifest to ye Judgment of Charity that they truly Repent of all their miscarriages.


"Now ye God of Peace, that Brought again from ye Dead, ye Lord Jesus Christ, ye great Shepherd of ye Sheep, through ye Blood of ye ever- lasting Covenant, make us all perfect in every good work to Do his will, working in us that which is well pleasing in his sight, thro' Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever, Amen.


" BENJAMIN BRIGHAM, Pastor elect.


" BENJAMIN BIGELOW,


" JOHN FASSETT,


" NATHANIEL WILDER,


" CALEB WINCH,. " JAMES REED.


"N.B. As to Discipline, this Chh. is founded upon ye Cambridge Platform, as it is commonly Received and Practised upon in ye New England Churches."


This covenant, it will be observed, was signed by the pastor elect and five other men. Of the proceedings at the organi- zation of the church no other particulars have been preserved.


Of the five lay members who, with their pastor, constituted the church thus organized March 27th, 1771, this brief notice may here be given :


Benjamin Bigelow was the first white settler of the town, and came from Lunenburg, Mass. He was not the ancestor of those recently and now bearing his name in Fitzwilliam, but belonged to the same family. Thirty-seven days after the


97


MR. BRIGHAM'S ACCEPTANCE OF IIIS CALL.


organization of the church he was drowned in the Ashuelot River at Winchester.


The next signer was John Fassett, from Boylston, Mass .. who lived quite a distance west of the village, on the spot where the house long occupied by the late Dana Davis now stands. Mr. Fassett was chosen the first deacon of the church, April 18th, 1771, and died January 12th, 1834.


The next signature is that of Nathaniel Wilder, from Lan- caster, Mass.


Caleb Winch came from Framingham, Mass., and lived in the northern part of Monadnock No. 4. That section of the township is now a part of Troy.


The last signer was James Reed, from Lunenburg (now Fitchburg), Mass., who was a noted man in his day, and kept the inn where the council assembled for the ordination.


The churches invited to compose, with their pastors, the council were those in Marlborough, Westborough, Shrews- bury, Lancaster, Southborough, Royalston, and Winehendon, Mass., and New Ipswich, Keene, and Swanzey, N. H .; but of these only Marlborough, Westborough, Royalston, Winch- endon, Keene, and Swanzey appear to have been represented. Of the organization of the council we have no record.


Mr. Brigham's answer to the call he had received (which was deemed of sufficient importance to find a place in the proprietors' records) is here given in full, as an essential part of the proceedings and also as giving us some view of Mr. Brigham.


Monadnock No. 4, January 29, 1771.


To the Proprietors and Congregating Society of Monadnock No. 4, in the Province of New Hampshire.


Grace, Mercy, and Peace be multiplied from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.


Brethren and Friends.


The great God who is Sovereign of universal nature and orders all things according to the Counsels of his own will, for his own honor and glory and the best interests of all who love and fear and obey him, has, in his all wise providence, brought me among you to preach the Gospel of his Son Christ Jesus, and also inclined you to make choice of me, who am very unworthy of the honor, to settle among you in the work of the Gospel Ministry. You have laid before me your proposals, bearing (late Nov. the 7th 1770 and January the 29th 1771, which offers I view as generous considering the infancy of the town and circumstances


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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.


of this people ; and cannot forbear returning you my sincere and hearty thanks for the great respect you have shown me thereby.


I have taken your invitation into serious and prayerful consideration, and when I reflect how great and arduous the work of a Gospel Minister is, how much grace and wisdom is necessary and how very unequal I am to such an undertaking, it makes me to tremble and to say with the blessed Apostle, " Who is sufficient for these things !"


Nevertheless when I consider the sufficiency of God's grace he affords to all them that sincerely ask it of him and the promise of Christ that he will be with his Ministers always to the end of this world, and the uncommon unanimity of the people in the choice of me for your Pastor, it supports me and I take courage.


I do therefore, viewing it my duty, and having taken the advice of my fathers and brethren in the Ministry, with dependence, upon grace and strength derived from Christ, the Head of all influences, accept of your invitation and offers, with this reserve that I have two Sabbaths annually allowed me during the time of my ministry, that I may have opportunity to visit my parents and friends.


I further entreat that you would remember me daily in your prayers to God, though an unworthy, yet that I may be a faithful Servant and watchman upon this part of Jerusalem's walls, instrumental of advanc- ing the Redeemer's Kingdom in the world and of promoting religion, piety, and true Godliness among you, that finally I, who sow and you who reap, may rejoice together in the kingdom of glory forever and ever.


Benjamin Brigham.


As it is uncertain whether the clerk of the proprietors, in recording this document, followed the original paper with re- gard to spelling, punctuation, and the use of capital letters, it is deemed advisable, without changing a word, to give the whole a modern form.


That Mr. Brigham was from Massachusetts and was prob- ably but little acquainted with the pastors in Cheshire County will doubtless account for the fact that our neighboring com- monwealth furnished so large a proportion of the ordaining council.


Mr. Brigham was then twenty-nine years of age, and being a man of industry, energy, and acknowledged capacity and worth, he entered zealously upon his work as the religious teacher and guide of this people. Two months after the or- ganization of the church Stephen Harris and Mary, his wife, joined it by letter from Framingham, Mass. These were the grandparents of the late Deacon Joseph Harris and Mr. Ebenezer Potter. The September following the wives of all the men who signed the covenant with the pastor also joined


99


THE HALF-WAY COVENANT.


the church by letter, with Henry Willard and Phebe, his wife. In 1772 five others became members, so that at the time of the incorporation of the town of Fitzwilliam there were not far from twenty members in full communion. Three weeks after the church was organized Mr. John Fassett was chosen deacon, and long and faithfully he served the church in this office. For many years he was almost always chosen one of its delegates, when the church was called in council to install or dismiss pastors or to settle difficulties. Very early in its history the church determined the time for observing the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, as it has stood through these many years-viz., on the second Sabbath of every other month, beginning with January. Why this time was selected, in deviation from the common custom of the churches, it is difficult to imagine, as it virtually prevents the minister from exchanging pulpits with the neighboring pastors nearly one fourth of the time.


July 9th, 1771, the church passed the following vote :


Persons shall have the privilege of taking the Covenant upon them and having their children baptized, though they cannot see their way clear to attend upon the Sacrament of the Supper.


The " half-way covenant,"' as it was called, to which allu- sion is made in this vote, had a measure of favor with most of the Congregational churches at that time ; but it was the source of almost innumerable trials and evils, and the action of the church given above was reconsidered and unanimously set aside October 3d, 1800. During the twenty-nine years succeeding the organization of the church, it appears that eighty-six in- dividuals became members of it in this partial manner under the vote of the church allowing them to do so, and many, probably most of these who had young children had them baptized, having taken the covenant chiefly for this purpose. Like those admitted to full communion, such as came in under the " half-way covenant" were propounded at least fourteen days before their admission ; and from time to time quite a number of these became regular members of the church. At the time when this inconvenient and troublesome practice was


100


HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.


discontinued, the church by vote invited all who stood in this relation to it to become members in full ; but it does not appear that this invitation was accepted to any great extent.


July 8th, 1773, or a little after the town was incorporated, Mr. John Locke was chosen the second deacon. He was a man of discretion and well-earned influence.


The calls upon this church to sit in council for the ordina- tion, installation, or dismission of pastors, but more especially for the settlement of difficulties in churches of New Hamp- shire and Massachusetts, have been, from the first, very nu- merous, a fact which proves that it and its pastors have enjoyed in an eminent degree the public confidence. For many years it was customary for the church to send, on such occasions, its pastor and two delegates.


September 7th, 1775, the church voted to take up a collec- tion at each communion for one year, in order to provide the elements for the communion-table. This plan, which is so easily carried into exeention and saves much trouble, was soon exchanged for occasional collections ; and this last-mentioned custom prevailed till within a comparatively recent period. In 1779 the church voted to purchase one table-cloth, two pewter platters, and four pewter cups for the communion- table, and that in making the contribution for the elements for the table during the succeeding six months, each member should write his or her name upon the paper containing the money. This requirement was made doubtless because the amount called for and expected from each member had not been contributed, and it was desirable to know who were de- linquent. A similar vote was passed at a later date for the same purpose, the members being called upon to contribute one shilling each, and the contribution to be in each case " subscribed"-i.e., enclosed in paper with the name of the contributor. Probably some in those days were unwilling to pay their proportion of the expense involved in the support of civil and religious institutions, though we are to bear in mind that the people in general had but very little money.


During the entire ministry of Rev. Mr. Brigham hardly any other single matter occupied the attention of the church in its


101


ATTENDANCE UPON RELIGIOUS WORSHIP.


business meetings so often as the supply of wine for the com- zniunion-table. The lack of system in providing this will ac- count in part for the numerous votes upon this subject ; but another, and this the chief reason, may be found in the habits of the times. It was customary then to more than taste of the consecrated element, for many communicants all over the country were in the habit of taking a considerable draft. The carrying back of the cups to be refilled and the refilling of the tankards during the solemnity are within the memory of not a few now living ; and the existing generation may certainly congratulate itself upon the extent and happy influ- ence of the temperance reform in this particular.


It should be added also that the cost of wine in this coun- try a century ago was very great, as all of it was imported, and the policy of our government has favored heavy duties upon it from an early day.


In those days the entire population of the town was inter- ested in the support of the services at the single meeting-house, and all seem to have regarded the industrious, discreet, and faithful pastor in the light of a personal friend and temporal as well as spiritual gnide. All then who were able attended public worship, and the long row of sheds west and south-west of the meeting-house upon the hill was filled from Sabbath to Sabbath with the horses or oxen of the worshippers. As al- ready noticed, large loads of men, women, and children came in the winter upon ox-sleds from the most distant neighbor- hoods of the town, and as the morning and afternoon services were very long and the days short, many of these could not have reached their homes till nearly dark.


In the summer the younger portion of the audience came with bare feet, and not a few of their fathers and mothers, who walked from two to five miles, brought their shoes and stock- ings in their hands till they approached the meeting-house, when they would stop at some stream or spring and wash their feet and make ready for God's worship. Upon returning home after the services this process was reversed, and so the carefully preserved shoes and hose would be good for such service a number of years. Upon a discontinued road sonth-


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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.


west of the spot where the old church stood there is a spring or little stream where these changes often took place, and the remains of the old overturned pine-tree upon which the peo- ple sat for this purpose and for rest were plainly to be seen in 1871.


Though there was no way of warming the church, and not more than two houses near, and the services very long (usually two hours or more each), the congregations were large and patient. The meeting-house was in that day the chief place of resort to obtain information upon all subjects. The news of the respective neighborhoods, of the town generally, and of the country was freely canvassed by the people at those Sab- bath gatherings, while many went to church doubtless to visit, and some possibly to do business.


There were very few books in the families, and newspapers were almost wholly unknown, so that the size of the congre- gations in those days was hardly a true index of the real inter- est in religious matters. Besides the property of all paid for the preaching, for the pastor's salary was raised by general taxation.


These things should be borne in mind when the past and the present are compared touching the attendance of the peo- ple upon public worship.


In those days the tithing-men preserved order in the sane- tuary, and, if necessary, waked up the sleepers. The boys certainly stood in awe of these officers .*


No musical instruments were used to aid in the service of song, and the chorister was appointed by the town and not by the singers ; and tradition is in fault if the musie did not sometimes lack sweetness and harmony. That the Psalms and hymns were heartily rendered and with strong voices, we can well understand.


At the close of each service the entire congregation rose and stood reverently with their eyes upon their pastor till he had passed down the central aisle, and this enstom, it is under- stood, continued for many years during the ministry of Rev.


* It would seem that the town continued to elect tithing men annually till about 1842 though for a considerable period before the office had ceased to be of any prac- tical importance. In 1843 the town voted not to choose tithing-men.


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REV. MR. BRIGHAM'S HOME.


John Sabin, or until the old church on the hill was abandoned for the new one on the common.


The salary of Rev. Mr. Brigham was paid by the propri- etors according to contract for the term of twenty-seven years, or until 1798, when, by mutual agreement, it was assumed by the town. Samuel Griffin and Oliver Damon were chosen deacons in April of that year. The number of members ad- mitted to the church during the ministry of Mr. Brigham was two hundred and eighty-five-males, one hundred and thirty- one, and females, one hundred and fifty-four. Many of these died or removed from the town during the same period. Of the two hundred and eighty-five members, seventy-six are recorded as coming from other churches with letters of dis- mission and commendation.


From everything that can be gathered from the church rec- ords, which seem to have been faithfully kept by Mr. Brig- ham as clerk of the church, there were no dissensions to mar its beanty and hinder its usefulness during the long service of its first and honored pastor.




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