USA > New Jersey > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, New Jersey, 1664-1920, Volume I > Part 38
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1859, and Dr. Howard Crosby, Professor of Greek in Rutgers College, was elected pastor on February 18, 1861. His occupancy of the, office was brief, as Rev. William Beatty was installed as pastor June 2, 1863. He was in charge of the congregation about four years, when he resigned to accept a call to the Shadyside Church of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The installation of Rev. A. D. L. Jewett took place March 2, 1868. The organization of the church was completed in 1871 by the election of deacons ; the eldership was increased in 1873. Dr. Jewett's labors during the latter portion of his term were interrupted by continued ill health. He resigned October 16, 1874, and on May 17, 1875, Rev. Thomas Nichols was installed. His successor in 1879 was the Rev. W. J. Mc- Knight, who continued in the pastorate until 1892, and the following year was succeeded by Rev. William W. Knox. Dr. Knox was to serve the congregation for nearly a quarter of a century. He was made pastor emeritus in 1917, and the next year the Rev. Cordie J. Culp, the present incumbent, was chosen his successor.
Hungarian Evangelist Reformed Presbyterian Church-This was organized July 21, 1904. The organization ceremonies were held in the chapel of the First Presbyterian Church, where the congregation commenced holding meetings. It was largely through the assistance of Rev. J. Kozma, of Perth Amboy, that the organization was effected. The rapid growth of the congregation soon required larger accommo- dations, and a church was procured on the corner of Easton avenue and Hamilton street. The first regularly installed minister was Rev. Paul Hamborsky, who served until he decided to join the ranks of those ministers who were working under the Conventus of the Reformed Church of Hungary. Through his influence the congregation for a time joined this church organization; the original members not being satisfied with this transaction, took the matter before the courts and eventually won the control of the church property. This litigation was the cause of a great unrest and difficulties amongst the congrega- tion, and religious services were suspended. The Easton Avenue Church was exchanged for the present edifice on the corner of Bayard and Schuyler streets, formerly occupied by St. James Methodist Epis- copal Church. After the retirement of the Rev. Hamborsky from the ministry, the Rev. Ladislaus Gerenday was called as pastor ; he remained in charge until 1916, when he was succeeded by the present pastor, Rev. Sigismund Laky, who resigned the charge of a large congregation at Bridgeport, Connecticut, to accept the position. The church is a member of the New Brunswick Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of the United States. There is a membership of two hundred, besides a large number of co-believers who attend the regular services. The auxiliary societies of the church are: The Lorantffy Sussannah Ladies'
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Aid Society, the Daily Vocation Bible Class, and the People's Christian Association.
Christ Church *- The Church of England early sent its missionaries into the colony of New Jersey. Along the Raritan there were established churches at Amboy, Spotswood and Piscataway. In 1701, "The Vener- able Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts" was formed, and its missionaries were sent out to the churches and formed new parishes. Keith and Talbot, the first missionaries from this society, covered New Jersey, holding services among the English residents of New Brunswick. One of the early historians of Christ Church laments the loss of its early records. The fragments which remain are largely the reports of these missionaries.
In 1745, Skinner, the first missionary to Perth Amboy, reports, "Zeal for God's work among the inhabitants of New Brunswick has stirred them up to the building of a Church." The next year he reports, "the inhabitants of New Brunswick have petitioned to send them a mission- ary ; they have erected a church of stone which may be of great service not only to themselves, but to the well settled country extending many miles, in which many of the inhabitants profess the faith of the Church of England, and others who were formerly dissenters seem well affected towards it."
New Brunswick's Carnegie, Philip French (1745), presented the tract of land on which the church was built. Mr. Skinner's statement, "they have erected a church," was somewhat premature, as the records show that more than ten years later the church was still in the course of construction, and in 1773 the steeple was nearing completion. The land given by Mr. French is that on which the church now stands on the corner of Church and Neilson streets. The size of the original structure, as reported by the Society, was fifty-five feet long, forty-five feet wide and twenty feet high. The first edifice followed closely the lines of the English parish churches which the builders had left behind; a "noble window of small panes of glass covered almost the entire east end." The building was of stone, and tradition has it that it was put together mainly by the hands of the faithful parishioners. The tower as originally constructed remains as a part of the present edifice, a monument of striking beauty, linking the present with the past.
The Society sent as its first stated missionary the Rev. Mr. Wood, characterized as "a gentleman, bred to physic and surgery," as well as theology. Mr. Wood's parish reached from Elizabethtown to Trenton, and his medical practice extended from New York to Philadelphia. He remained two years, and removed to Nova Scotia.
The Society "then thought proper to fix on the Rev. Samuel Seabury
.This narrative is by Dr. Fred B. Kilmer, of New Brunswick.
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who arrived happily on the 25th of May, 1754, and was received with a most hearty welcome from the inhabitants, who appeared very susceptible to the Society's goodness in sending a missionary to them, and disposed to do everything in their power to show their encourage- ment. *
* The church is a very handsome stone building which, when finished, will hold a large congregation, and this it is proposed to do the ensuing summer. It is generally well filled. * As there was no visiting teacher, at the present time, of any sort, he had the satisfaction of having persons of various denominations come to it, and he hoped they would in the course of time, through the grace of God, conform."
Rev. Samuel Seabury was the son of Samuel Seabury, an Episco- palian clergyman, who had formerly been a Congregational minister. After graduation at Yale (1748), he went to Scotland and studied medi- cine, but turning his attention to theology, took orders in England, and became the Society's missionary at New Brunswick. His is an illus- trious figure in the church annals. From New Brunswick, he removed to Grace Church, Hempstead, Long Island (1752), thence to St. Peter's, West Chester, New York, (1766). At the latter place he established a church school. At the breaking out of the Revolutionary War, he adhered to the Crown and became chaplain of the Royal forces. During the strife he was, on one hand, subject to severe handling by the patriots, and on the other hand given the degree of Doctor of Divinity by Oxford University. At the close of the conflict he went to England, bearing the recommendation of some of the clergy of New York and Connec- ticut, and was consecrated the first American Bishop of the Episcopal Church.
In 1757, the Parish of Christ Church "returned their thanks for the Society's goodness in appointing the Rev. Dr. Mckean to succeed their late missionary, Rev. Samuel Seabury. It was with great pleasure they saw the Church of England, by the benevolence of the Society, raising its head in an infant country." Dr. McKean arrived in New Brunswick in 1757, and was kindly received by his congregation. He had friends at court, and the second year of the reign of George II., Christ Church became a body corporate under the name of "The Rector, Wardens and Vestrymen of Christ Church of the City of New Brunswick." It is under this charter, bearing the great seal of his Majesty, that it still elects its vestrymen and wardens and holds its corporate power.
Dr. Mckean was a prominent figure in medical circles. He was active in organizing the New Jersey Medical Society, and was its first president. Upon the removal of Dr. Mckean to Pennsylvania (1763), the mantle fell upon Hon. Edward Antill, "a man of most exemplary life and singular piety, who undertook to read prayers and singing every two Sundays in New Brunswick, and every other two Sundays in Piscataway, until the arrival of a missionary."
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In 1762, it was agreed to unite Piscataway to the mission at New Brunswick, and the Rev. Leonard Cutting was appointed to the mission. In a report to the Society it is stated "in New Brunswick there are about 150 families, most of them in moderate circumstances. * In this * town there are three churches-the Church of England, the Baptist church, and a Presbyterian meeting house, the members of which live together in a friendly manner without disputes or animosities on ac- count of religion." He reports that "his communicants at present are about twenty-five. He catechises the children of New Brunswick and Piscataway every Sunday. The congregation at New Brunswick has agreed upon £40 per year, and will allow £20 currency for house rental until they can afford to purchase a glebe." In 1769, he reports "with pleasure that in New Brunswick the same catholic spirit prevails, all denominations living together without dispute or animosity." In Pis- cataway, he states "the church is well filled, and the people appear serious and affected." In removing to Hempstead, a year later, he reports that "the church had increased in numbers, and the communi- cants had increased to thirty-four."
The next incumbent was the Rev. Abraham Beach, who showed himself to be not only a missionary but a diplomat and leader of no mean order. His report to the Parent Society shows "that his con- gregation are frequented by serious people of all denominations." He organized the parish, taught catechism to the children and the negroes ; the church was repaired and the steeple completed. The Society Pro- ceedings for 1773 state that "The Rev. Dr. Beach's mission is in good state. He endeavoreth by kind and candid treatment to overcome the prejudice of dissenters; and hath experienced the good effects of it in several instances."
In 1774 Dr. Beach wrote the Society "how heartful are the American disputes to the clergy ;" he assures the Society "that he has endeavored to promote moderation, peace and good order." Then came the storm cloud of the Revolution. The parish was rent asunder, and received a baptism of blood and fire. Mr. Beach has been characterized as "mildly loyal," and as "neutral" he deplored the political agitation which preceded the struggle as "hurtful to the church and to the clergy." He strove "to promote moderation, peace and good order." He "hoped at all times to preserve a conscience void of offense toward God and man."
At the inception of the struggle, the congregation at once divided ; the Loyalists fled to the British lines; the Patriots, in fair numbers and of sturdy mien, remained until the British army took possession of New Brunswick. The Church of England and its adherents in this crisis were under the ban. Christ Church has the unique record of being open during the whole of the struggle. Mr. Beach's records show a fairly continuous regularity in church services even in times when
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shot and shell broke over the steeple. He went about attending to the sick, baptizing, uniting in marriage, burying the dead. He ministered in neighboring parishes from which the clergy fled. He was ever at his post. His home just without the city was supposed to be neutral ground, but this did not prevent its being pierced with bullets. During the whole time he received no remittance from the Society and no pay from the church. At the close of the Revolution, Mr. Beach accepted the position of assistant minister of Trinity Church, New York, but he still retained a fostering care over Christ Church. He became an important factor in the formation of the Episcopal Church in the United States.
Long prior to the war, efforts had been made to secure the appoint- ment of a Bishop for the Colonies, but strong forces opposed the setting up of a Bishop in America. The controversy waxed strong and became a part of the inciting cause of the Revolution. With the dawn of peace all changed ; the Church in the United States had become separated from the Church of England through the acts of war. At the invitation of Dr. Beach, a few of the scattered clergy from New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania gathered in Christ Church to "consider the state of the Church." Among them was the Rev. William White, of Phila- delphia (afterwards Bishop). The session continued for two days, and plans were laid to promote a union of the churches in the several States. During the session a document was made out in which the name "The Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States" was used for the first time. At this meeting the right of lay delegates in the councils of the churches was established. The sessions were the beginning of the line of general conventions-the great governing body of the Episcopal Church. Thus within the walls of Christ Church the American Church had its origin and received its name.
Rev. Mr. Beach was active in the formation of the diocese of New Jersey, in 1785; the first convention looking to that end was held in Christ Church. Mr. Beach preached the sermon, and was chosen president and delegate to the General Convention. All during the for- mation period of the diocese, Mr. Beach attended the conventions, giving wise counsel in the formation of the canons and regulations for the government of the church, and the revision of the Book of Common Prayer. With a record of seventeen years as minister of Christ Church, and twenty-five years in Trinity Parish in New York, he retired to his household at New Brunswick, where he died in 1828. He was buried in Christ Church yard, and a marble tablet to his memory adorns the walls of the edifice.
Hamilton Rowland was elected rector of the parish in 1786; he removed to Nova Scotia at the end of one year; from the time of Mr. Rowland's removal (1787), the church was without a rector until 1791,
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when the Rev. Henry Van Dyke was chosen minister of the parish; he served until 1793 or 1794.
The parish was again vacant until 1799, when the Rev. John Henry Hobart, then a student at Princeton, was "invited to perform divine service for the congregation for one year," and "the sum of $266.67 was allowed for such services." Rev. Mr. Hobart, apparently much to his disadvantage, fulfilled his contract for the year, and afterwards attained a high place in the church. He became assistant minister of Trinity Parish, New York, succeeding Dr. Moore as Bishop of New York. He was also Bishop of Connecticut for three years. He was instrumental in opening the Theological Seminary in New York, and a member of the faculty. He was a prolific writer and a most energetic Christian gentleman. With Mr. Hobart's departure from Christ Church, "Mr. Beasley was invited to read prayers until a rector could be pro- vided."
The minutes of the wardens and vestrymen beginning with 1790 have been preserved. The first pages of these records are filled with quaint references to the "Church Lottery." This calls to mind the fact that in the colonial days lotteries were the financial fashion, and were considered as legitimate as is today the placing upon the market of authorized financial securities. Colleges, churches, societies and indi- viduals floated lotteries under government license. At least three lot- teries were drawn for the benefit of Christ Church, and there is no record that any of them were markedly successful from a monetary point of view. The records of the "settlements" of the last one (issued about 1790) was disastrous. The church was defrauded of money col- lected by some of its agents, quarrels and lawsuits ensued. Much harm was done with little or no good. In 1800, Mr. Charles Cotton was engaged to take charge of the parish, and remained for one year.
A most auspicious era of the parish history begins with the record of the warden and vestrymen of March, 1801: "Resolved and agreed unanimously that the Rev. John Croes be invited to accept the perma- nent rectorship of this Church at a salary of $375 per annum." This call was made in conjunction with the trustees of Queens (Rutgers) College, who desired his services as headmaster of the Grammar School.
Mr. Croes' rectorship was long and eventful. His was the task of reconstruction of a parish which had been scattered and rent by war and by frequent change of ministers since the departure of Mr. Beach. He organized the congregation and established sound systems of finance ; the latter included the sale of pews at auction. He inaugurated a Missionary Society and opened a Sunday School. He overcame the long existing prejudice against the "English" Church, and made it a center of religious life in the community.
An interesting incident of his time occurred in February, 1803, when
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the spire of the church was struck by lightning and wholly consumed; the buiding itself was in imminent danger of being destroyed. This was a severe blow to the struggling parish. The spire had only recently been repaired and its restoration was a matter of over $3,000, a most formidable burden under the conditions. By heroic efforts of the con- gregation, the citizens of New Brunswick, and friends outside of the parish, the spire was rebuilt within a few months. In 1808, Mr. Croes gave up his position in the College, but for a time he taught in the Young Ladies' Seminary conducted by Miss Hay.
Rev. Mr. Croes took an active part in the work of the diocese, and in 1815 he was chosen as its first Bishop. He did not resign his rectorship, but cared for the parish and diocese conjointly. He was almost simul- taneously chosen Bishop of the Diocese of Connecticut, but chose to accept that of New Jersey. A notable event of his rectorship was the remodeling of the interior of the church edifice. In the first construction the chancel was placed at the east end (Neilson street) of the church, but the pulpit and reading desk were on the north or Church street side. In 1814 the whole was changed by placing the pulpit and reading desk and chancel at the east end and turning the pews so as to face that end. A gallery was also installed. In the early days a bass viol and a violin were introduced to furnish music; in 1788 an organ was installed which cost $100, but in Mr. Croes' time it is recorded that Mr. William Leupp presented the church with a new instrument and became organist. The services of the church under the Bishop would be con- sidered simple in these days of elaborateness. At the time, those not in sympathy with the church made strong objections to their ritualistic formality. The fast and festival days were observed in great regularity, Easter Day and Christmas Day being as now "high" days. Baptisms were mainly held in the church, the first font being a stone bowl carved by hand and set in a log. The present handsome marble font was the gift of Edward Antill, and has been in use since some time before the Revolution. Funerals were held at the homes of the deceased; the bodies were either buried on the land of the departed or in the church yards. Weddings were seldom held in the church. For many years the church was not heated in any manner. In 1800 wood fires were introduced ; coal fires came in 1829. The church was lighted with can- dles and oil, a feature being an elaborate glass chandelier hanging in the center of the nave.
During Bishop Croes' rectorship a Sunday school building was erected on the west side of the church lot. Following the lead of such parishes as Trinity, the church erected buildings on the Church street side of its property and rented them for business purposes. The venture was only moderately successful and later they were torn down.
The Rev. Mr. Croes was of Polish parentage (born 1762). While
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yet a lad he entered the Revolutionary army. His education was mainly under private tutors in Newark, New Jersey. He became a tutor in the Newark Academy, meanwhile preparing himself for the University. His first charge was at Swedesboro, New Jersey, and his second at New Brunswick. He was of commanding presence, being over six feet in height. His biographers pay great tribute to his urbanity, strong in- tellectuality, sound common sense, clear judgment, and general business qualifications.
In 1830, he asked that his son John Croes, Jr., be appointed assistant in the parish, and to this the vestry acceded. Bishop Croes entered into rest, July 30, 1832. He was buried under the chancel of the church wall. His son, Rev. John Croes, Jr., succeeded him as rector. This position he held until 1839, when owing to ill health he resigned, and took up missionary labors at Keyport, New Jersey. He died in 1849.
The year 1839 marks the beginning of a long and successful rector- ship of the Rev. Alfred Stubbs, who while still a deacon came into the parish almost directly from the General Theological Seminary. The following year he was elevated to the priesthood by Bishop Doane, and instituted to the rectorship of the parish. Though but twenty-four years of age, he grasped the responsibilities of his office and began a remark- able career. Time after time in reports to the convention appear state- ments showing an increase in the numbers ; "the parish is in a prosperous condition. * * the harmony and peace which prevail encourages the hope that our people are also increasing in spirituality."
Each year marked material progress, there were additions to the church property, new furnishings and adornments for the church. In 1842, Mr. Charles M. Leupp presented a new organ, and in 1846 a rec- tory was purchased at 100 Bayard street, and the same year a plot of ground next to that of the original tract, known as the "Vickers prop- erty," was bequeathed to the parish by Mrs. Mary Leupp. In 1852, the entire church edifice, with the exception of the tower, was taken down and rebuilt. During the rebuilding, services were held in the Presby- terian Session House on George street, which was kindly loaned for the purpose. In rebuilding the edifice, all of the stone of the first structure was utilized, together with a fresh supply taken from the original quarry. The new building consisted of a nave 50x75 feet, with a semicircular chancel 20 feet in depth. The architecture was Norman style, and with only a slight change constitutes the present edifice. It was at this time that the stained glass windows were installed. Out of the original par- ish, Dr. Stubbs created three new parishes-St. John's, Somerville (1852), St. Luke's, Bound Brook (1862), St. John the Evangelist at New Brunswick (1861). In 1874, a commodious brick Sunday school building was erected on the church grounds.
Some twenty young men who were members of the parish during
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Dr. Stubbs' ministry, were admitted to Holy Orders; these included two of the rector's sons, the Rev. Alfred H. Stubbs, the Rev. Francis H. Stubbs, and the Rev. A. B. Baker, Dr. A. B. Carter, Rev. Eugene and Charles Hoffman, Edward and Samuel Appleton, Rev. Guy Leacock, Henry H. Long, Edward B. Boggs and John Cornell.
One incident in Dr. Stubbs' life focused upon him, and incidentally upon the parish, a nation-wide and, at the time, unpleasant notoriety. This was the celebrated controversy with the Rev. Stephen H. Tyng, rector of the Church of the Holy Trinity, New York-the trial question as to whether the clergy are bound to obey the laws of the church. In later times he counted among his friends those who had opposed him at the trial, including Dr. Tyng himself. In 1882, failing in health, Dr. E. B. Joyce was called as assistant to Dr. Stubbs.
Dr. Stubbs entered into rest, December 12, 1882. He was buried in a spot selected by himself at the foot of the tower, and a tablet upon the wall of the tower and in the chancel of the church is erected to his memory. Dr. Stubbs had been entrusted with a prominent place in the councils of the church, and was beloved by his fellow-citizens; "the fine ability and excellent scholarship which distinguished him were intensely devoted to Christ and His Church."
The Rev. E. B. Joyce came to Christ Church Parish while yet in deacon's orders, as assistant in 1882; at the death of Dr. Stubbs he was called to the rectorship (1883). Under his guidance the congregation moved forward spiritually and materially, and was marked by an in- crease in church attendance and interest in the service and work of the parish. He formed many parish organizations and guided their work. The church was renovated throughout, hardwood floors put in, a new pulpit and chancel furniture installed. In 1892 he formed a surpliced choir of male voices under charge of Prof. George W. Wilmot. In the same year a new rectory was purchased at 56 Bayard street; a new and commodious parish house was erected at the corner of Neilson and Paterson streets. An innovation at the time was the organization of young men called Christ Church Club, who gave attention not only to the parish and church affairs, literature and the like, but who installed a bowling alley, gymnasium and poolroom. A week of service commem- orating the 150th anniversary of the church was held in 1892.
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