USA > New Jersey > Union County > Cranford > The First Presbyterian Church of Cranford, N.J. : a brief history of its first half century > Part 2
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CHURCH'S INTERIOR IN JUBILEE WEEK
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FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
The Young People's Society of Christian En- deavor was organized in December, 1888, with IO members. It has had 21 presidents, the first being Mr. N. R. Foster, and the present head being Mr. S. W. Winne. The membership is as follows: ac- tive members, 29; associate members, 3; honorary members, 3.
The Junior Christian Endeavor Society was or- ganized in 1892, and it has had three superin- tendents: Mrs. C. T. Bingham, Miss Jeanie Wat- son, and Mrs. F. E. Woodruff. It has 20 members.
The Women's Missionary Society is an indis- pensable adjunct of every prosperous Presbyterian church, and for a good many years such a society has been in existence in connection with our own Church. The object of the society is to foster and enlarge the missionary spirit, particularly among the women of the congregation, and to raise funds for missions. During the past ten years the so- ciety has contributed to missionary objects the sum of $2060.55. The president is Mrs. William Vigelius.
In 1897 the Young Women's Missionary Society came into existence-a live and interesting organ- ization. Its presidents in order have been: Miss M. N. Bradley, Miss M. I. Thornton, Miss M. E. Foster, and Miss J. L. Vreeland. Since its birth the society has contributed for missionary work of one form or another about $100.
In the spring of 1898 the chapel at Garwood came under the control of our Church. For sev-
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eral years a small religious organization of a union character had supported a Sunday School and held occasional devotional services in the public-school building and afterward in a room in the Lent build- ing in that place. It finally came to be the desire of those supporting the enterprise to be connected with our Church; and accordingly the Session as- sumed control at their request. Since then preach- ing services have been regularly maintained, and the Sunday School has steadily grown and pros- pered. Thus far it has been the policy of the Ses- sion, with the approval of those on the ground, to secure the services as preacher of a licentiate stu- dent of a near-by theological seminary during the greater portion of each year. The student preach- ers who have thus far engaged in this work have, without exception, done creditable service. These have been: J. Herbert MacConnell, J. Elmer Rus- sell, R. C. Dobson, and J. K. Howard. The super- intendents of the Sunday School, who have also had a general oversight of the work at the chapel, during the period we are considering, have been C. T. Bingham, John Sorter, and G. H. Krausè. The membership of the Sunday School is now 70, and it is not unusual to find in attendance upon a fair Sabbath as many as 60, or even more. The present treasurer of the chapel is D. B. Lent, and the treasurer of the Sunday School is W. W. Reeder. There is great promise in the work of this particular organization, situated as it is in a growing manufacturing center in Cranford town-
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ship. The financial support of the chapel is largely provided by the Church. It is to be hoped that in the not distant future a suitable house of worship -which is much needed-may be provided in con- nection with this department of the Church.
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V.
BENEFICENCE.
He is beneficent who acts kindly, not for his own bene- fit, but for another's .- Cicero.
FOR many years our Church has contributed money for causes connected with the kingdom of Christ, aside from self-support. In the early days, when the Church was small and struggling under a heavy load of debt, of course the average annual contributions to missionary and denominational in- terests must have been small. We have not at hand the data to determine the amounts given in these directions in the Church's early period. But we know that during the last fifteen or twenty years the Church has given each year quite a handsome sum in the aggregate for what is termed “ benefi- cence." And for many years, also, it has been the policy of the Church to give each year to each of the causes that have had the official indorsement of the General Assembly. Besides these the Church has contributed to worthy objects not strictly denominational-like the American Bible Society, for instance; and it has responded fre- quently to special calls for financial help for the needy. Thus on Sunday morning, June 9, 1889, the congregation gave over $80 for the sufferers by
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the Johnstown flood; and in 1900 it gave over $40 for the sufferers from the Galveston flood. But we cannot mention a goodly fraction of the worthy objects that have received aid from the Church in greater or less amounts.
For quite a number of years the Church has given a monthly offering to one of the approved causes of the denomination, and it has devoted a percentage of the funds received from the weekly envelope system, divided according to a regular schedule, to these ends. These causes, with the months in which they thus receive attention, are as follows: Foreign Mission, January; Aid for Col- leges, February; Sunday-School Missions, March; Session's Fund, to supplement other offerings, April; Home Missions in New Jersey (Synodical Home Missions), May; Temperance Work, June; Church Erection, July; Relief for Aged or Disabled Ministers, September; Education of Students for the Ministry, October; Home Missions, November; Missions among our Colored Population, Decem- ber. The offering for August goes to the Ameri- can Bible Society. Of all these objects the larger amounts have gone to the support of Home and Foreign Missions. It may be added that the Sun- day School contributes monthly to each of the ob- jects we have specified. Then, too, the various missionary societies of the Church have contrib- uted annually, often relatively large amounts, to various forms of missionary work.
It would hardly be profitable, even if we pos-
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sessed the data for the statement, to give the pre- cise figures to indicate what the Church has given in the line of beneficence throughout its history. It may prove interesting, however, to glance over the reports of the Church in the matter of benefi- cence to the General Assembly during the last ten years. During our last decade the Church has, ac- cording to these data, given in this line the sum of $12,330. Of course this statement is well inside of the actual total, since a considerable amount in the aggregate cannot have been covered by our formal reports. The following table will show the separate aggregates given for various causes during the years 1892 and 1901 inclusive:
Home Missions, . $4921
Foreign Missions,
· 3914
Education, . 248
Sunday-School Missions, 529
Church Erection, . 215
Ministerial Relief, 412
Missions to Freedmen, . 320 .
Synodical Home Missions, ·
977
Aid for Colleges, . 245 .
Miscellaneous,
549
For a long period the Church has taken an in- terest in Christian missions beyond that of many churches of equal membership and resources. A decided forward step was taken in the support of Foreign Missions in January, 1898. On the 23d
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of that month Mr. L. E. Wishard, representing the " Forward Movement " of the Board of Foreign Missions, addressed the congregation and urged that the Church undertake the support of a mis- sionary in the foreign field. A prompt and hearty response was made to his appeal; and for two years, 1898 and 1899, the Church paid the salary of Rev. John N. Forman, an able and well-known mission- ary of the denomination in India. Doubtless the Church received much good from this enterprise through being brought into personal touch with a particular servant of the Church in the out-field. Owing to the Church's recent effort to reduce its debt this particular work has been relinquished; but it is hoped that, as soon as the congregation is- relieved of the special stress of debt-paying, the undertaking may be resumed.
There are two ideals toward which every church should look in the matter of beneficence. It should work toward the point where as much is given an- nually for outside beneficence as for self-support; and it should work up to a condition where each member of the church and congregation gives regu- larly each week a fixed amount for the causes that have a claim upon the denomination. Gradual progress has been made toward these ideals by our Church, though it has not yet reached them; and it cannot but be believed that through all the com- ing years the Church will be known as a giving church.
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VI.
REVIVALS.
Christ-the one great word
Well worth all languages in earth or heaven.
- Bailey.
EVERY healthful church has its periods of special spiritual awakening, and ours has been no excep- tion to the rule. There have been at least four notable revivals in the Church during the half century.
During one of the years of the pastorate of Rev. W. H. Roberts a special regard for spiritual mat- ters appeared in the congregation, special services were held, and a number were brought into the membership of the Church.
In the early spring of 1891 special union services, in which the M. E. Church joined, were held in the church, under the direction of Rev. Frank Hall Wright. Although the evangelist, then quite a young man, was the son of a full-blooded Choctaw Indian, he was a highly educated and refined min- ister of the Presbyterian Church, a graduate of Union College and Union Theological Seminary. He was an able exponent of Gospel teaching and a deeply consecrated child of God. What attracted the public even more than his preaching was his
REV. WILLIAM HENRY ROBERTS, D.D., LL.D.
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rare gift of music; and seldom if ever had those who listened to him heard the Gospel sung with such cultivated sweetness as by him. He preached the Gospel and he sang the Gospel, and he talked the Gospel in private converse with those he came in contact with; and as a result of the work of the Divine Spirit through him quite a number, mostly young people, gave themselves to God and after- ward entered the fellowship of the Church. The general result of the ministration of Mr. Wright in our midst was most happy.
Another revival occurred in January, 1897. On the 15th of the preceding month the world-re- nowned evangelist, Dwight L. Moody, who had been holding services for several weeks in Cooper Union and Carnegie Hall in New York, preached in the afternoon and again in the evening in the church, to great audiences. The one-day visit of this great evangelistic genius served as an excellent preparation to two weeks of special services, be- ginning with the Week of Prayer of the New Year. These services were under the charge of Rev. Wil- liam Walton Clark, who had a wide repute as a " Bible reader " and evangelist, and who had long been a friend of Mr. Moody. A striking feature of the services was the unusually large volunteer choir that led the singing of the Gospel hymns that were employed. Services were held nightly, and on two afternoons of each week. The work was en- tirely free from sensational features, and it was al- together wholesome. A goodly number entered
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the Christian fold at the time, and some of the most faithful members of the Church at the pres- ent hour began their Christian course then. The new members received into the Church in 1897 numbered forty-nine.
But the Church's greatest revival was its last in the half-century-that of February and March of the present year. It sprang, as every revival must, from the earnest prayers of God's people, who were concerned over the worldliness and indifference to spiritual concerns that were manifested in the com- munity. Early in the preceding autumn, on the invitation of the pastor, Rev. George F. Pentecost, D. D., pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Yonkers, N. Y., and one of the ablest and best- known evangelistic preachers in the land, engaged himself to preach daily for two or three weeks, be- ginning on the 19th of February. In every sense Dr. Pentecost's mission was successful. On four afternoons of each week, and each evening, except Saturdays, he preached to large audiences, for three weeks. Daily reports of the meetings were printed in the Elizabeth Daily Journal, and the audiences were composed not only of Cranford people, but also of people of neighboring towns. The spiritual impression made on the community was pro- nounced. Quite a number were converted, and others who had grown cold in Christian service re-dedicated themselves to the Master. Including a number who brought certificates from other churches, thirty-seven united with the Church on
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last Easter Day. We cannot but believe that last- ing good will appear to have followed this special work of grace. The Church membership was surely entitled to rejoice over this ingathering dur- ing the first year of the new century.
While it is right for a church to pray and work for these special times of refreshing from the Lord's presence, Christian people ought not to for- get to magnify the ordinary means of grace. Con- versions ought to attend the regular preaching of the Word. Every Communion season ought to mark the beginning of an avowed Christian life on the part of one or more. Let the Church remem- ber that a life of service to the great Head of the Church may begin whenever a sincere dedication of self to God is made. The feeling ought not to be encouraged that the only right time to begin the Christian career is during a special term of evan- gelistic services.
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VII.
FAITHFUL UNTO DEATH.
Death is the privilege of human nature; And life without it were not worth our taking. -Rowe.
WE must not omit to refer with a feeling of rev- erent appreciation to those who have served the Church with unusual devotion and who rest from their labors, though their works follow them. We cannot mention them all, for the list has now grown long; nor can we dwell upon the names that occur to us sufficiently at length to permit the scope of the description to suit the theme.
Josiah Crane, Sr., and Samuel W. Thompson were the strongest pillars of the Church in its early years. It is probably just to say that the Church could never have lived through its infancy without the assistance these two devoted Christian men rendered. They were faithful to the Church in its every crisis and need: faithful in their presence, their counsel, their gifts of money, and their prayers. Other prominent workers in the Church, from the date of its founding, were William Crane, John Miller, and David Miller. Later in its history John R. Miller, Ebenezer Hart, J. A. Baldwin, Job Williams, John Seaton, C. D. Bigelow, Ira Can-
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field, and Alexander Stewart, as well as many others, were men of sterling character who were unfailing in their devotion to the Church.
Nor must we forget to give honorable mention to the lady workers of the Church during its first thirty years,-the Priscillas and Dorcases,-to whom an infinite debt of gratitude is due, and who are in Heaven's bright mansions. These include, among others, Mrs. Josiah Crane, Mrs. Phebe Garthwait, Mrs. Mary Bigelow, Mrs. John R. Miller; and of those belonging to a somewhat later period, but prior to fifteen years ago, Mrs. Cahill, Mrs. Partridge, Mrs. Foster, Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Wagner, and Mrs. Stewart.
Of the devoted friends of the Church who have died while members of the congregation during the past fifteen years, these may be mentioned, with the years of their death: Richard Hale (1886), E. K. Adams (1887), Joseph N. Ely (1888), William Woodruff (1890), John Cromwell (1891), Mrs. Phebe Rindell (1892), D. S. B. Bennet (1892), Samuel Brush (1893), Henry H. Cowan (1893), William D. Wood (1893), Mrs. J. K. MacConnell (1894), John W. Close (1894), Edwin Garthwait (1897), William D. Bigelow (1897), John Hegeman (1897), L. P. V. Brymer (1899), Mrs. Noel R. Park (1899), Moses T. Crane (1901). Of these several require more than a mere mention.
Richard Hale was the son of the David Hale well known fifty years ago as one of the founders of the New York Journal of Commerce. Like his
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distinguished father, he was a highly accomplished man, as well as a sincere and devout Christian. While a resident of Cranford he was a faithful sup- porter of our Church. He occupied a front pew in the house of worship, and he was always present at the evening as well as at the morning service on Sundays; and he was a regular attendant of the weekly prayer meeting. His death by accident was a great shock to the community, and the Church long and sorely missed his genial and inspiring presence.
In the summer. of 1893 a great blow fell upon the Church in the death of William D. Wood, after a painful illness. For many years Mr. Wood had been a ruling elder; but it was as superintendent of the Sunday School that he made an ineffaceable impression on the life of the Church. He possessed great executive ability ; he was exceedingly fond of young people; he was methodical and painstaking in method to a rare degree; he was extremely mag- netic in manner, and he was one among a thousand in punctuality and faithfulness to his trusts. Dr. Roberts, his pastor for four years, has declared that in his time he was the best Sunday-school superintendent in New Jersey; high praise, but not extreme, as many who knew him will be ready to believe. He well supported the Church on every side, and during a long period of years. He was always in attendance on the weekly prayer meeting, in which, with rare exceptions, he took active part. Not during the eight years that have elapsed since
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his death has the loss felt by the Church through his departure been wholly repaired.
It is probably not too much to say that the Church has never had among its women members a more loyal friend, or a more earnest, unselfish, and tireless worker than Mrs. J. K. MacConnell. She was one of those noble spirits who seem born to help their churches in practical ways. For a time she was an efficient president of the Ladies' Aid Society. She was ever ready to open her house for gatherings of the congregation of various sorts, and she wrought noble results for the social side of the Church life. She was greatly interested in the project of a new church, and her death but a few months before the dedication of the new edi- fice seemed peculiarly pathetic. The Ladies' Aid Society properly erected in the main vestibule of the new church a fine memorial window to her memory.
Edwin Garthwait was one of the original mem- bers of the congregation, and for many years prior to his death he was a faithful member of the Church. His great love for and loyalty to the Church were indicated by a magnificent gift that he left to it by bequest.
Moses T. Crane, who died early in the present year at an extreme age, demands special mention from the fact that he was the last to survive of the founders of the Church, and from the further fact that for many years in its early period he served the organization faithfully as treasurer.
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One solemn question presents itself as we con- sider this honor-roll of those who have joined the Church on high, and it is this: How many of the young men and women who are with us at this hour will so serve the Church that, fifty years hence, their names will demand honorable mention in the new pages that will be written to celebrate its cen- tennial? Who would not rather figure in such a history, and in such a light, than to have a monu- ment of marble or brass to mark his tomb?
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VIII.
THE JUBILEE.
And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year It shall be a jubilee unto you .- Lev. xxv. 10.
THE exercises in commemoration of the Church's jubilee began Sunday morning, June 9, 1901, and ended on the evening of the following Wednesday. The anniversary had been looked forward to dur- ing more than two years by the officers of the Church, and when it occurred it was not marred by the slightest hitch or other unpleasant feature. The original plan had been to have the anniversary exercises coincide with the exact date of the birth- day of the Church-June 26; but in order to avoid the greater risk of extreme heat the second week in June had been finally decided on. The weather proved to be almost ideal on the date selected.
When the large congregation assembled on the morning of Sunday, June 9, they found the audi- torium beautifully decorated with bunting and flowers. Mr. Calvin Voorhis had directed the dec- orations, and the perfect taste he had manifested was the comment of all. At the left of the pulpit appeared the date "1851 " and at the right the date " 1901." The desk was draped with the Stars and Stripes, and flags were festooned variously
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about the platform; while red, white, and blue streamers fell in graceful lines from the ceiling to the corners of the arches of the roof. The floral decorations of the platform had been beautifully arranged by Mrs. F. N. Brundage, and they con- sisted of shrubs, wild flowers, and cut flowers pro- vided in generous quantities. The members of the Junior Endeavor Society, under the direction of the superintendent, Mrs. F. E. Woodruff, provided the wild flowers.
The pastor was assisted in the service by Rev. E. Morris Ferguson, who offered the prayer. The sermon, which was a sketch of the history of the parish, was from the text, Lev. xxv. 10, " And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year. . . It shall be a jubilee unto you." A feature of the service was the singing of a hymn written by the pastor for the occasion .* A large choir, under the leadership of the Church's choirmaster, Mr. Edward A. Johnson, led in the service of praise, and Mr. William N. Bartow, a member of the Church, supported the organ with the cornet. The regular organist, Miss Minnie M. Vreeland, presided at the organ. The ushers were Messrs. N. R. Foster, Daniel Burr, Albert Tusch, Jr., and F. C. Blauvelt. There were quite a number of visitors from out of town, mostly of those who had formerly been related in some way to the Church.
The church was filled at 3.30 in the afternoon, when the anniversary of the Sunday School was * See p. 6. The hymn was sung to the tune " Louvan."
-
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observed. The superintendent, Mr. N. R. Foster, presided, and he was assisted in the introductory exercises by the associate superintendent, Mr. George G. Teller, and by the superintendent of Garwood Chapel, Mr. George H. Krausè. The principal features were an admirable address by Rev. E. Morris Ferguson, secretary of the State Sunday-School Association, and an interesting talk by Mr. W. W. Mendell, who had been a member of the Sunday School at the date of the organization of the Church. The singing was spirited, and there were a number of recita- tions by pupils. The latter were by the following children: Helen Severns, Mildred Crane, Denman Penniston, Rosa Ruhtard, ' Elsie Sorter, Vernie Yingst, Lulu Reeder, Lizzie Huber, Idell Reeder. Miss Edna Teller sang a solo, and a duet was sung by Misses Amelia Becker and Minnie Siegl. The Garwood School joined in the celebration.
A great crowd was in attendance at the evening service, when Rev. George F. Pentecost, D. D., of Yonkers, N. Y., preached an anniversary sermon. The pastor presided, and was assisted in the pre- liminary exercises by Rev. H. C. Thompson, pastor of St. Paul's M. E. Church of Cranford. The ser- mon of the distinguished preacher of the evening was worthy of the man and of the occasion. , Its text was Matt. ix. 17: " Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are
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preserved." The theme was "The Church and Gospel for the Twentieth Century." The service was in every respect memorable.
On Monday evening, June 9, the church was crowded to its utmost capacity to listen to a com- plimentary organ recital and concert. Every seat was taken, every inch of available space in the aisles was occupied, and a large number who were com- pelled to stand remained throughout the evening. This entertainment was pronounced by those quali- fied to judge the finest concert that had ever been given in Cranford. The following is condensed from the report of the concert which appeared the next day in the Cranford Chronicle:
" The programme opened with an organ solo, the composition of Flotow-' Overture, Martha '-by Mr. Homer N. Bartlett, who is the organist of the Fifth Avenue Baptist Church, New York. Henry Smart's 'Queen of the Night' was a trio sung by Mrs. Mina Schilling and Mrs. M. N. Robinson, sopranos, and Miss Maurer, contralto. This se- lection was splendidly rendered, and brought out the exquisite qualities of the singers' voices. The audience applauded so heartily that the trio sang as an encore ' Lift Thine Eyes ' from Mendelssohn's Oratorio, 'Elijah.' A solo, 'Celeste Aïda,' by Verdi, was the next number on the programme. This was sung by Mr. Charles Kaiser, who has an attractive personality, and a magnificent tenor voice. His tones are deep and full, and his voice has a sweet quality, especially in the high notes. For some
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