USA > New Jersey > A history of Baptists in New Jersey > Part 26
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54
Central Atlantic Highlands Baptist church was constituted in April 1893, with ninety-eight members. Pastor Loux of first Atlantic Highlands church, preferred that the first church remove to the site chosen for the Central church, than that forty-nine members be dis- missed from the first church to unite in the constitution of the Central church. Inasmuch, as this could not be done unanimously, the other alternative was to dismiss the forty-nine who, with one other Baptist
250
NEW JERSEY BAPTIST HISTORY
numbered fifty, making a coustituency of ninety-eight for the Central church. With the organization of the Central church, the Navesink church disappears, its property was transferred to the Central church. Pastors of the Navesink body and all other members are on the register of the "Central" church and it is the Navesink church, including its history.
In 1893, Rev. F. C. Colby became pastor and a large and costly house was begun. It is said to seat more than a thousand persons and to have cost many thousand dollars. There is scarcely more evi- dence of incapacity than the folly of such an enterprise. The pastor ought to have had weight enough to prevent this blunder. There was not need of such a house and of its vast cost. The church has been burdened by its debt, which but for this mistake, might have been a large and efficient body. Mr. Colby resigned in 1897 and escaped from a coming woe, a debt that if it did not swamp the church, it was saved by a successor at vast cost. The people deserved a better leadership. Rev. W. H. Shermer en.ered the pastorate in 1897. Death terminated his usefullness the same year. He was a true and good man. Whether hopeless of bringing relief to the church had aught to do with his death is not stated. In 1898, Rev. J. S. Russell became pastor and is now (1900) ministering to the church. While only nine years have gone since the church was organized, three pastors have served the church. One of whom died in the year of his settlement.
Rev. A. B. MacLaurin became pastor in 1901. Under his able leadership the large outstanding debt was wiped out, May 1903.
Much the same causes originated the New Monmouth church as originated Navesink church. All of the temperance element had not gone into the Navesink church. Many older men and women, who in practice, were in sympathy with "Total Abstinence" still thought that a "little" for some people as allowable. They had been accustomed to its use and to the habits of a former generation. Neither was the pastor as outspoken as Mr. Roberts had been and such sheltered under his neutrality. Mr. Stout, personally, was right in his views and practice. But he loved peace and thus there was a temperance and an anti-temperance party in the church. An unhappy condition in a church on a moral question. In another body, there would have been dissention. Thus it was, that north of Middletown village, sixty-three members called for letters of dismission and on April 28th, 1854, organ- ized Port Monmouth Baptist church. Rev. William V. Wilson had been pastor at Navesink in 1853. Resigning there at the end of one year, he accepted a call to Port Monmouth in 1854. A house of wor- ship was built immediately, on a lot at New Monmouth and in 1899
251
NEW MONMOUTH
the name of the church was changed from Port Monmouth to "New Monmouth." The meeting house was opened for worship in January 1856. An active Christian life was early developed. A chapel was built at Port Monmouth in 1855. The nearness of New Monmouth to first Middletown and if Pastor Wilson had accepted a proposal to succeed Mr. Stout, when he had died, in 1875, a return of New Mon- mouth church to the mother church would have been effected. Pastor Wilson resigned in 1892, having been pastor about thirty-eight years.
Rev. C. E. Weeks became pastor in March 1892; his stay was short. In October 1894, Rev. P. A. H. Kline settled as pastor. But he died in the next June, 1895. Mr. Kline was a devoted and emi- nently useful minister of the Gospel. With their venerated minister living among them, they were in no haste to get a pastor. However, in February 1896, Rev. G. C. Williams entered the pastorate. But there was a vacancy at the end of a year, when Rev. M. M. Finch took charge of the church in December 1898 and was pastor in 1900. New Monmouth has a small field, and could be consolidated with first Middletown, especially as the cause of its separation in 1854, has wholly disappeared and the mother church can as well as not occupy the field where two churches exist.
CHAPTER XXVII.
PISCATAWAY AND SCOTCH PLAINS.
Many of the settlers in the locality of Piscataway were from Pis- cataway river dividing the provinces of Maine and New Hampshire and they called their Jersey home by that of their New England home. Linking thus the memories of persecution and of escape from bondage and of freedom. The colonists were usually Baptists and presumably had been identified with a Baptist church before their coming to New Jersey. Piscataway and Baptists are synomonous. Their early history is obscure. Maine was an appendage of Massachusetts, and Puritan intolerance could as well reach them in their hiding in the wilds as in the nearer dwellings. New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island were the only colonies in which free speech and free confession of God was allowed despite New England's littleness and conceit. New Jersey by its charter and its colonists assured to its settlers not only civil equality and religious liberty, but special educational advantages were accorded there only in North America. The first free public school was in New Jersey in 1668. (Report of State Board of Educa- tion, August 31st, 1879.)
The charter of Bergen of September 22nd, 1668, granted by Sir Philip Carteret, governor of the colony province of New Jersey, "stipu- lated that all persons should contribute according to their estates and proportions of land for the keeping of a free school for the education of our youth." (xn Literature Co., 94, Page 201. See also, Page 191.) Prof. Newman in his invaluable history of Baptists in the United States says: "It is one of the marvels of history that such a king as Charles II. should have sold to such a man as William Penn, so large and so valuable a territory as Pennsylvania on terms so highly favor- able to religious freedom and with the certainty that it would be used for the freest development of what was then regarded as one of the worst forms of radical Christianity." But Pennsylvania and New Jersey had previously been largely settled by the Hollanders, who had enjoyed for years, the liberties they guaranteed to their colonies. No other colonies had larger freedom. Rhode Island Charter might be revoked. at any time.
But the charters of Pennsylvania and New Jersey held Charles II and the "Stewarts" under obligations, which even Charles II. dared not ignore. William Penn was the son of Admiral Penn, who had
253
PISCATAWAY
rendered services to Charles I in the Civil War, which Charles II was glad to remunerate. William Penn was a "Friend." The Quakers stood aloof from the Parliament party and aided friends and focs in their need. Anthony Sharp the (writer's maternal ancester) gratu- ously clothed the ragged army of Charles I. The Welsh also, were not of the Parliament party. These and the Quakers were the chief colonists of Pennsylvania and of New Jersey. Anthony Sharp and other wealthy Quakers had bought large tracts of land in New Jersey, whither they sent their persecuted and needy "Friends" giving them a home. Thus the "Stewarts" were under obligations they dared not deny and these colonies had claims above any other. At this time, it was well known in court and in the kingdom that wealth and position were valueless to men who preferred their "rights" to their lives and were ready to endure any wrong than deny their Faith; men who knew that conscience, duty and liberty are Divine gifts, which God only may limit.
The thoughtful will note how thus, the minutia of Jehovah's plan affects and effects the mightiest forces for the betterment of mankind. A lowly, unknown man confers a good upon the hunted Loyalist, who expiates on the scaffold, the wrongs he had committed against the "rights" of humanity and a fugitive son regaining a throne, recalls the ministry of the lowly man and uses his power to restore to mankind the "rights" the Father had denied.
Judging by their names, the pioneer settlers of New Jersey were of various nations. Holland, France, England, Ireland, Scotland and Germany were among them, reminding us of the early and constant mission of the Gospel "to all men." Neither wife or child is mentioned as included in the emigrant company; there were such however. The names of but six men are said to have constituted Piscataway church in 1686. A year before 1685, a town house was built and the Baptists are stated to have swarmed into it and preached. The building com- mittee was composed largely of Baptists. Hugh Dunn, a constituent of the church, came to the place in 1666; Drake in 1669-70. Dunham was of age in 1682 and assumed the leadership. Each of these three were lay preachers. John Drake was the first ordained pastor. In -. stead of the constitution of the church having been in 1689, Mr. O. B. Leonard, authority in such case, states that it was in 1686. The same mistake occurs in the date of the origin of Middletown church, commonly, it is said to have been in 1688, it was known to have been twenty, if not more years carlier, in 1668. Pastor Stelle wrote a history of the Piscataway church in 1746; states that it was organized in 1686. Mr. Killingsworth is known to have been in Piscataway in 1686, "being a witness to a will" that ycar, and Mr. Stelle says: "Mr. Killings-
254
NEW JERSEY BAPTIST HISTORY
worth first settled this church about 1686 and preached the Gospel to them a considerable time."
Pastor Drake was ordained 1710-15 and was pastor until 1729 and then on account of old age ceased preaching being seventy-five years old. He died in 1741, having been pastor nearly fifty-five years, but administered the ordinances till his last illness. These data were given by Mr. O. B. Leonard whose familiarity with the wills and deeds and original sources of information endow him as an authority on all items of early history. The lack of mention of wives and daughters was not because of depreciation of them, as this extract shows:
"The old Constitution of New Jersey, adopted in 1776, provided that "All inhabitants of this Colony, of full age, who are worth fifty pounds proclamation money, clear estate in the same, and have resided within the county in which they claim a vote for 12 months immediately preceding the election, shall be entitled to vote," etc.
"This was coustrued literally, as admitting all persons, male and female, white or colored, having otherwise the proper qualifications, to the privilege of voting. When, in 1797, John Condit, of Newark, and William Crane of Elizabeth Town, were rival candidates for the Legislative Council, seventy-five women's votes were polled in Eliza- beth Town for Mr. Crane; but Mr. Condit was elected. In the Presi- dential canvass of 1800, the partisans of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson availed themselves alike of this provision; and females, es- pecially where the Society of Friends were in strength, voted in con- siderable numbers throughout the State. The precedent was sustained year by year. At first only single women voted; afterwards married women also, colored as well as white. In Hunterdon county a citizen was chosen to the Legislature by a majority of two or three votes, and these were cast by colored females.
"The circumstance which led to the abolition of this custom was the gross abuse of the franchise parctised in the contest over the bridge at Elizabeth Town in 1807, a bridge from Elizabeth Point to Bergen Point across Newark Bay. This bridge would open a route from New York to Philadelphia through Elizabeth Town, to the detriment of Newark, and, therefore, the Newark people hotly opposed it. When the day for deciding the contest arrived (Feb. 10) the excitement was intense. Everybody who could pssibly claim a vote was brought to the polls-not males only, but females, both white and colored. It was charged that not a few of these, by change of dress, voted more than once, and this whether worth £50 or not. The population of Essex county was computed to be 22,139. Never before had more than 4,500 votes been cast in the county at any one election. On this
255
PISCATAWAY
occasion the votes polled were 13,857 more than half of the whole population. So glaring were the frauds parcticed that the election was set aside by the Legislature, November 28th, 1807, and the law author- izing it annulled. Tne qualifications of voters also were more strictly defined, and none but free white males, of 21 years, worth £50, were allowed the elective franchise."
There were a great army of martyrs who died rather than deny Christ. They were an efficient force in our churches were essential to the Christian activities of modern times. After Cohansie, their names appear as constituents, beginning with first Cape May in 1712. The names of the early settlers in Piscataway are multiplied into legions and are scattered over nine counties.
In 1709, the membership of the church was reduced to twenty. The secession of Mr. Dunham and whom he could influence to accept the Seventh Day theory; the discord growing out of division and the activity of the seceders, explain this low estate. Even under the most hopeful conditions; the sparse population, the newness of the people to each other and to the country allowed small room for church work. After the ordination of Mr. Drake, however, a great improvement came. The financial ability of the church must have been limited. Probably he cared for himself, as the custom was, when pastors lived on their own farms or having a parsonage farm, derived their support from it. Ordinarily, pastors then acquired a competencey for their old age. Some of them had large estates. Missions and benevolences were few, the minister shared in abundant benefactions from their people. Then too, the habits of living were very plain. Preachers were not easily distinguished from their neighbors in either manners or dress. Rev. Benjamin Stelle followed Rev. Mr. Drake. He was born in New York City and was the son of a French Huguenot. Mr. Stelle was ordained when fifty-six years old in 1739. Mr. Stelle was an eminent pastor and judge in the courts. Even though one hundred years have gone by, his name is revered. While pastor for twenty years, until his death in 1759, at the age of seventy-six years, the church had continuous enlargement.
Under his ministry, Scotch Plains, in 1747, was constituted. His son, Isaac Stelle succeeded his father in 1752. Seven years before his father's death, he was assistant pastor to his father. Immediately upon his father's departure, he became pastor, continuing twenty-two years till his death in 1781, including the seven years in which he was assistant pastor, his pastorate was twenty-nine years. He died at the age of sixty-three years. Mr. Stelle was a remarkable man. Pre- eminent as a preacher, pastor and missionary to distant parts of the
256
NEW JERSEY BAPTIST HISTORY
country. Morgan Edwards said of him, and he was a most competent witness; "I need not publish the goodness of the man or the excellency of his preaching. He was remarkable for his travels among the American churches in company with his other self, Rev. Benjamin Miller of Scotch Plains church, lovely and pleasant were they in life and in death they were not much divided. The one, Pastor Miller, having survived Mr. Stelle but thirty-five days."
Rev. Reune Runyan followed Mr. Stelle. He also was of French descent; was born in Piscataway; was baptized and was licensed by the church in 1771. Mr. Runyan was a great grandson of the first pastor, Rev. John Drake. Called to Morristown, he was ordained pastor of that body in 1772, serving as pastor there, eight years, re- turning to Piscataway in 1780 and became pastor of Piscataway in 1783. Morgan Edwards says: "His ministry was with credit and success."
The colonies suffered in the Revolutionary War and long after its end a constant depletion of men and of means. Middletown by an inheritance of thousands of dollars from Jonathan Holmes, a grandson of Obadiah Holmes, Sr., alone escaped the exhaustion which imperilled our other churches. Piscataway on the line of travel and marches between Philadelphia and New York was ravaged by both armies as was all New Jersey in the line of their marches. Pastors and churches could do little more than "hold on." In 1785, the membership of Pis- cataway was only thirty-nine, one less than when he settled as pastor in 1783. Next year,however, a special revival was enjoyed in which seventy-eight were baptized and the year after, twenty-two were added to the church by baptism. In 1786, Henry Smalley was licensed to preach. Mr. Smalley became pastor at Cohansie and held the second longest pastorate charge of a Baptist church in New Jersey.
Pastor Runyan's oversight of Piscataway was the dividing line between periods of weakness and of growth. Up to and after 1800, the religious state of the nation was chaotic. A tide of continental infidelity that reached its flood in the French Revolution, overflowed into America. Jacobin clubs were formed among the people and Washington dismissed the French Ambassador, Genet, on account of his meddling with the Christian interests of the nation and pur- posing to introduce the infidelities of France. All the moral stamina of Presidents Washington and of John Adams was necessary to over- come the influence of France on our new nation. It was a period of the Divine keeping of the Christianity of the country, for what it was to be, in the relations of the nation to humanity. We cannot be too grateful for the elevation of the two presidents, George Washington and John Adams, in our early history, especially in their precedence
257
PISCATAWAY
of Thomas Jefferson. The tone they gave to the country had matured so positively as to have continued in subsequent generations.
There was an intermission of the growth of spirituality in Piscata- way church; when in 1795, the church observed four days of special prayer "on account of the coldness and barrenness of the affairs of religion." Following this special season of prayer, refreshing showers of grace visited the people and this pastorate of twenty-eight years closed amid revival blessings. Mr. Runyan died in 1811, seventy years old. Previous to his death, a house of worship was built in New Brunswick in 1810, where many members of Piscataway church lived and to whom Pastor Runyan ministered as often as his years and strength allowed. It must be remembered that pastors in these days were hard working men on their own, or on a parsonage farm and at seventy years, with pastoral duties and farm work, their natural strength was impaired as later, relieved of farm work they were not. These mission movements indicate aggression that the crises of recovery from the Revolutionary War and the anticipation of the war of 1812, which bespeaks the reality of vital piety and of financial ability.
On October 12th, 1812, Rev. J. Mclaughlin. He was the first pastor of Piscataway who resigned before "God took him." Mr. Mclaughlin lived in New Brunswick and made another change quite important. Preaching in the morning at Piscataway and in the evening at New Brunswick. Baptists in the town were thus associated with each other and having waited four years, organized a church in the city in 1816, composed of at least twenty constituents. Mr. Mclaughlin supplied the church till the spring of 1817. His measures originated the New Brunswick church earlier than it probably would have been and is really the chief agency of its constitution. The necessity of a pastor wholly devoting himself to the church in the city induced Mr. Mclaughlin to limit himself to Piscataway, and doing so, remained but a few months longer. A contemporary and deacon of Piscataway said of him: "He was a man of eminent piety, a good minister of Jesus Christ, grave in his deportment and unusually solemn in pulpit address." A successor wrote of him: "The memory of his many virtues and faithful labors, is still fondly cherished by those who were his contemporaries in the church."
Daniel Dodge became pastor about a year after Mr. Mclaughlin resigned, entering on his duties October 18th, 1818. Pastor Dodge while actively in the ministry, was a foremost man. Not on accaunt of being an eloquent preacher, nor educated or endowed with natural gifts of foresight and wisdom, but because "sound in faith," and having 17
258
NEW JERSEY BAPTIST HISTORY
a certain dignity of manner, which impressed people that he was not to be trifled with. The first year was a season of special blessing and many were baptized into the church.
But his pastorate, almost thirteen years, was full of troubles. Questions, questionable were insisted on by him. One, the lawful- ness of marrying a deceased wife's sister. Another, the laying of hands after baptism, a Gospel ordinance. These were contrary to the usage of the church and greivous to many of the members. Mr. Dodge was not disposed to give up his opinions or to assent to any compromise with those who differed with him. He was a high-toned Calvinist, a pious man and in every way a consistent pastor and preacher. His manner and speech expressed self-sufficiency and while neither wholly conceited or arrogant, he was certain that he was right. Appeals to the Association were his dislikes and finally, by advise of a "council" the church yielded in the matter of "laying on of hands after baptism." The later years of his stay were peaceful. In fact, the people were amiable and consented to harmless traditions, rather than quarrel. Mr. Dodge was highly esteemed on account of his integrity. He ans- wered to the Apostle's exhortation to be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, as he understood it. Mr. Dodge closed his labors at Piscataway in 1832.
Rev. D. Lewis settled as pastor in June, 1883. Good men differ on things essential to church membership. Mr. Lewis objected to "the laying on of hands after baptism" and to, "that the marriage to a sister of a deceased wife was incestuous." Discontent involved in these differences induced a spiritual drouth for the time. But in two or three years, seasons of refreshing cleared the skies, and showers of blessing were renewed. More than one hundred were baptized in an associational year. The beloved pastor died in 1849, at the age of seventy-three years, having served the church seventeen years. One who enjoyed his ministry said of him: "A plain man, unpretentious to learning or eloquence, modest and retiring, sound in the faith, seeking the honor of his Divine Master and the peace and harmony of his people.' The writer knew him well. It could be justly said of him: "A good man and full of the Holy Ghost."
Pastor Lewis lived in Piscataway. After his death, the church bought a parsonage lot, some two miles distant from the church edifice and built a fitting residence for the pastor. It was occupied by them until 1869, when it was sold and a larger and much better one built near the house of worship.
In 1850, Rev. H. V. Jones late pastor of 1st Newark began as pastor in April. Mr. Jones was noted for his executive ability. With
259
PISCATAWAY
his settlement, dawned an era of Baptistic life. At his coming, a new era began, realized not only relationship to the whole world, but the home field was infused with great activity. Seemingly, a calamity occurred on January 1st, 1851. The congregation was gathered for morning worship, when fire consumed the sanctuary. While the burning was in progress, a meeting was held and most of the money to build a larger and modern church edifice was pledged and within a few months the building was completed and dedicated at a cost of seven thousand dollars. A later pastor writing of Mr. Jones and of his pastor- ate says:
"The ministry of Mr. Jones was greatly honored of the Lord, both in adding souls to the church and in raising the membership to a higher standard of spiritual life and activity. At no time in its history had so much been accomplished towards awakening the spirit of benevolence and securing systematic contributions to the cause of Christ. Mission- ary societies were formed, and the whole parish was divided into dis- tricts with solicitors and collectors in each, so as to secure the co-oper- ation of every member.
"Some time before the close of Mr. Jones's pastorate his health so greatly declined as to disqualify him for much of the labor incident to so large a field. The Church, cherishing a most hearty appreciation of his ministry, granted him from time to time indefinite periods of rest, in the hope that he might recoevr his strength and for many years continue to go in and out before them, but in this both he and they were disappointed, and in March, 1856, he bade a tearful farewell to a deeply attached people.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.