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GC 974.702 AL12DEH
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01863 2676
H ISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL GUIDE TO THE CATHEDRAL OF ALL SAINTS, ALBANY
PRICE 25 CENTS A COPY
HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL
GUIDE
TO THE
CATHEDRAL OF ALL SAINTS
ALBANY
0
PUBLISHED BY THE WOMAN'S CATHEDRAL LEAGUE
1905
J. B. LYON COMPANY, PRINTERS ALBANY, N. Y.
CONTENTS
PAGE
I. Introduction 5
2. The Purpose of a Cathedral. 7
3. History of the Diocese of Albany IO
4. Story of the Cathedral of All Saints and the Corning Foundation for Christian Work. I3
5. Description of the Cathedral by the Architect, Mr. Robert W. Gibson. 20
6. Description of the Cathedral in Detail : The Windows 29
The Pillars. 37
In the Nave and Transepts 45
The Choir 48
61
The Sanctuary
The Vestries.
65
The Guild House.
65
THE CHAPTER OF THE CATHEDRAL OF ALL SAINTS
The Rt. Rev. WM. CROSWELL DOANE, D.D., LL.D., D.C.L., Bishop.
The Very Rev. HENRY RUSSELL TALBOT, B.D., Dean.
The Rev. THOMAS B. FULCHER, B.D., Precentor.
The Rt. Rev. RICHARD HENRY NELSON, D.D., Chancellor.
The Rev. EDGAR T. CHAPMAN, Treasurer.
The Rev. FRANCIS B. BLODGETT, B.D., Minor Canon.
The Rev. EDWARD D. TIBBITS, Honorary Canon.
LAY MEMBERS
Hon. A. BLEECKER BANKS.
Mr. MARCUS T. HUN, Vice-Chancellor.
Mr. OSCAR L. HASCY.
Mr. WILLIAM BAYARD VAN RENSSELAER.
Mr. EDWARD BOWDITCH.
Mr. G. P. HILTON, Assistant Treasurer.
INTRODUCTION
T HREE editions of the "Guide to the Cathedral of All Saints " having been exhausted, it now becomes neces- sary to publish this, the fourth edition. While contain- ing portions of the earlier publications, there are, of course, many additions to it which have been rendered necessary by the growth of the Cathedral in its material prosperity.
The greatest change in the building is in the final comple- tion of the Cathedral Choir in all its beautiful dignity. Next in importance comes the installation of the great organ, with its later additions, and the completion of the Great East Window. With these have come many other donations, some made before the completion of the Choir, and some during its building, and some due directly to the inspiration of that splendid gift.
Among these may be noted the four beautiful wall mosaics in the Choir and Sanctuary, the Bishop's Throne, and the exquisite Pastoral Staff, a gift to the Bishops of Albany for all time. Then there is the great Choir Arch which so en- hances the beauty of the present building, the carving of the Arches in the Choir and Sanctuary and the completion of the carving of the Font. The great Rose Window, with its delicate tracery, in the North Transept; the filling in with glass of all the windows in the Baptistery; the three lesser windows in the North Transept and the great windows and wall in the South Transept are recent gifts that have added much to the beauty of the building.
To all this must be added the generous gift of the Guild House, that most potent factor in the institutional work of the Cathedral, and also the building of the Deanery, a large part of the payment of which has been accomplished by the
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gifts and work of many members of the Cathedral congre- gation, through the Cathedral League.
In publishing this edition special thanks are due to Mr. Augustus Pruyn, whose photographs add so much to the interest of the work.
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THE PURPOSE OF A CATHEDRAL
P ERHAPS the question arises, in the mind of some, What is a Cathedral? They have a general idea that it is distinguished from an ordinary parish church in that the building is larger; they know further that in some way it is peculiarly a Bishop's church; but beyond this they would be puzzled were they asked to give a more explicit account of the matter.
Of course, the name Cathedral is derived from the Latin word for a Bishop's chair, Cathedra, and the Cathedral is properly the church where the Bishop's seat is. Herein lies the first justification of the Cathedral system; it adds dignity to the Episcopal office. The Bishop is the chief pastor of the Diocese; as each priest has his own parish church in which it is his special right to minister, so it would seem fitting that the Bishop should have a church of his own, commensurate with the importance of his office, in which, when not absent on visitations, he can officiate. But however weighty this argument for a Cathedral, it may be doubted whether it has been the most influential in leading the American Church to adopt the Cathedral system. The Cathedral tends to bring the church life of the whole Diocese into closer unity-it binds the many into one; here lies its most important mission. Our ideal is not congregational isolation. A parish wrapped up in its own interests, and careless to a large extent of the corporate life which it shares with others, is detrimental to the catholic idea. The Cathedral subserves the desired end in manifold ways.
It is first of all the Mother Church of the Diocese; every parish priest has a stall in its choir and is always welcome at any of its services. It offers a natural meeting place for
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Historical and Architectural Guide
conventions and other Diocesan gatherings. When sufficient. endowment has been obtained it is hoped to add emphasis to this Diocesan character of the Cathedral by having various priests from different parts of the Diocese in residence for a month or longer as special preachers. The endowment of Missionary Canonries is hoped for, whereby there shall be attached to the Cathedral staff certain clergy whose duty shall be to go forth from the Cathedral, under the direction of the Bishop, and serve mission stations which may from time to time need such aid. Although at present it is im- possible to carry out this wider purpose to the full from lack of means, the closeness of the bond existing between the Cathedral and the Diocese as a whole is clearly recognized in the Cathedral Constitution; and as a matter of fact, the Diocese, under the Bishop's advice, governs the Cathedral much as the parish electors govern the ordinary parish church. The more immediate affairs of the Cathedral are indeed managed by a chapter consisting of the Cathedral clergy and certain laymen of the congregation under the presidency of the Bishop, but this chapter is itself elected by the Diocese as represented by its Board of Missions, Arch- deacons, Delegates to General Convention and others. Thus the whole Diocese has a share in the Cathedral, and the Cathedral is bound by special ties of interest and responsi- bility to every parish in the Diocese. Where these facts are frankly recognized and allowed their due influence, the result must needs be a quickening of sympathy and a clearer con- sciousness of that fundamental unity which characterizes a living organism.
Nor may we neglect the practical bearing of a Cathedral in the general religious life of the city where it is situated. It is a great free church, open to all, where strangers are always welcome, and providing three daily services for every one who may choose to attend. Its doors are open through- out the whole day, and its clergy are at the service of strangers as well as members of the regular congregation. This privilege it shares with some of the larger city churches,
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but there ought to be something in the very air of a Cathedral which makes the casual visitor feel peculiarly at home; its beneficence knows no parochial bounds.
That the Cathedral system has ceased to be a mere experi- ment in the American Church and has become an established fact instinct with large possibilities of usefulness is now patent to all. It is in substance the same as the English system, though the peculiar exigencies of our American life have modified it in some important details. The attempt has been made in the briefest form to show that the aim of the Cathedral is a practical one which must approve itself to all loyal churchmen.
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Historical and Architectural Guide
HISTORY OF THE DIOCESE OF ALBANY
T HE Diocese of Albany was organized by authority of the General Convention on November 15, 1868, out of what was, till then, a part of the Diocese of New York. It comprises nineteen counties (Albany, Clinton, Columbia, Delaware, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Greene, Hamilton, Her- kimer, Montgomery, Otsego, Rensselaer, St. Lawrence, Sara- toga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren and Washington) in the northern part of the State of New York and covers an area of 20,888 square miles. When organized it contained a population of 912,916 which, at the time of the census of 1900, had increased to 1,024,070. The primary convention of the newly founded Diocese was held in St. Peter's Church, Albany, on the 2d and 3d of December, 1868, the venerable Bishop of New York presiding and preaching. On the evening of the second day, Thursday, the 3d of December, the Rev. Dr. Doane, then the Rector of St. Peter's Church, was elected first Bishop of the Diocese by the joint vote of the clergy and lay delegates. The same convention also selected the name of the Diocese of Albany and made provision looking to a permanent Constitution and Canons. It completed the work of organization by the election of officers and the ap- pointment of trustees for the various funds, and making pro- vision for the continuance and enlargement of the work of missions within the Diocesan limits.
The Bishop was consecrated in St. Peter's Church on the Feast of the Presentation, February 2, 1869. For over thirty- five years he remained in sole charge of the ever-increasing work. Finally, the burden becoming too heavy, at his re- quest a special convention was held for the purpose of elect-
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ing a Bishop Coadjutor. This took place on the IIth of February, 1904. The Rev. Richard Henry Nelson, Rector of St. Peter's Church, Philadelphia, was elected Bishop Coad- jutor, and on the 19th of May he was consecrated in the Cathedral of All Saints.
The growth of the Diocese can perhaps best be seen from a comparison of the statistics embodied in the reports of the parishes in these nineteen counties to the Convention of the Diocese of New York in September, 1868 (immediately before the division of the Diocese), with those of the parochial reports to the last Convention of this Diocese, in November, 1904.
In 1868 there were reported 78 clergy, 135 parishes and missions, 11,600 free sittings, 50 rectories, 1,137 baptisms, 795 confirmations, 6,561 communicants, 915 Sunday-school teach- ers, 6,708 Sunday-school pupils, with a total of offerings of $118,433.87.
In 1904 there were 137 clergy, 173 parishes and missions, 33,999 free sittings, 106 rectories, 1,254 baptisms, I,II7 con- firmations, 23,167 communicants, 1,168 Sunday-school teach- ers, 9,337 Sunday-school pupils, and total offerings of $324,165.81.
In thirty-six years the Bishop (with the assistance of the Bishop Coadjutor during the last year) has ordained 168 deacons and 169 priests, consecrated 93 churches, laid 39 corner-stones, and confirmed 40,313 persons; 60,113 have been baptized.
For the better management and supervision of the missions the Diocese is divided into four Archdeaconries. The Bishop of the Diocese, ten members (five clergy and five lay), chosen by the Convention, and the Archdeacons constitute the Board of Missions. The work has had the best energy of the Bishop, seconded by the other members of the Board. Large sums of money have been given, and it has increased from 47 stations and 34 missionaries, in 1868, to 102 stations, 56 missionaries and one general or Diocesan missionary in 1905, notwithstanding the fact that a number of the stations
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Historical and Architectural Guide
have become independent parishes. At the first Convention of the Diocese in 1868 a committee was appointed to find a proper episcopal residence for the newly elected Bishop. This committee selected the present house, 29 Elk street.
The institutions that have been founded and become strong are: St. Agnes School, the Child's Hospital and St. Mar- garet's House-on "the Corning foundation for Christian work in Albany "-lying under the shadow of the Cathedral, and under the charge of the Sisterhood of the Holy Child Jesus; the Church Home in Troy; the Orphan House of the Holy Saviour in Cooperstown; the St. Christina Home and School in Saratoga.
The Bible and Common Prayer Book Society of Albany and its vicinity has continued to make annually large grants of bibles, prayer books and hymnals to parishes and missions.
Other institutions of more local character, very beneficent in their work, are Hoosac School (a church school for boys), at Hoosac; the Martha Memorial House, attached to St. Paul's Church, Troy, and the Mary Warren Free Institute (a school for girls), under the spiritual charge of the Rector of the Church of the Holy Cross, Troy.
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STORY OF THE CATHEDRAL OF ALL SAINTS AND THE CORNING FOUNDA- TION FOR CHRISTIAN WORK
F ROM its central and commanding position, the Bishop felt that the property lying in Elk street above Hawk street would be admirably adapted for such institutions as might grow out of his office and work. This property was accordingly bought by the first Mr. Erastus Corning, and was deeded by him to the corporation chartered under the name of " The Corning Foundation for Christian Work in the City and Diocese of Albany ".
Entering upon the active administration of the Diocese, and considering in what way the Church could be best strengthened at its center, the Bishop determined to begin as soon as possible a Church School for Girls, and St. Agnes School was opened in Columbia place in the autumn of 1870. During the following winter the money necessary for build- ing the new schoolhouse ($50,000) was by dint of hard work secured, and on the 19th of June, 1872, the corner-stone was laid. On the Ist of November the building, a large brick structure, was finished and in use.
The question of a place of worship for the children had now to be considered. The decision reached involved the deliberate laying out of the plan of a Cathedral organization. For temporary uses, the dilapidated remains of an old machine shop were floored, roofed over, glazed and made serviceable at as small expense as possible. The churchly furnishings of the Choir and Sanctuary were also as simple as could be, though conforming to the Cathedral plan.
On the morning of All Saints' Day, 1872, the Bishop form- ally opened All Saints' Chapel. This Chapel was used
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Historical and Architectural Guide
(though once enlarged) till the day of the Dedication of the Cathedral in all its dignity and beauty.
In March, 1873, the Legislature passed an act incorporating " the body known as the Cathedral of All Saints in the City and Diocese of Albany with powers to maintain and arrange a Cathedral Church and its appurtenances in the city of Albany, in accordance with the doctrine, discipline and wor- ship of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, together with such other Cathedral foundations, schools, faculties and other religious works as may be prop- erly connected therewith, in and for the said Diocese." The act required that the Bishop should be President of the Cor- poration, and that five of the Trustees should be laymen. It provided also that it could " enact its own constitution and statutes, and that the seats for the worshippers should be forever free". The first Chapter formed after the passing of this act consisted of the Bishop; the Rev. John Townsend. Chancellor; the Rev. E. T. Chapman, Treasurer; Orlando Meads, Vice-Chancellor; S. E. Marvin, Vice-Treasurer; Eras- tus Corning, George Evans, Thomas Hun and A. Bleecker Banks, lay members.
It is a great satisfaction to realize that as a matter of his- tory this Diocese took the lead in securing the legal incor- poration of a cathedral upon true cathedral lines, and in adopting the most complete statutes that exist to-day in the United States.
In 1873 the Bishop founded the Sisterhood of the Holy Child Jesus, whose work should be first and chiefly devoted to the care of children. Some of the Sisters began their work in the school, but they soon reached out in ministra- tions to sick and suffering children, and from the care of one poor child has grown the great work of the Child's Hospital and its allied houses. The Child's Hospital now accommo- dates seventy-five children. Since its foundation in 1874 the Hospital has been added to and improved from time to time. In 1877 it was enlarged, and in 1890 the present building was erected. Adjoining it is the Sisters' House. St. John's
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House, for quarantine purposes, stands near by. In 1883 St. Margaret's House, for the care of babies, was started. In 1884 St. Christina's House, at Saratoga, for the convalescent children from the Child's Hospital in the summer and for the training of older girls in winter, was a special gift to the work from two friends. The work at St. Paul's, Troy, in the Martha Memorial House, shows how the Sisterhood has in- creased, and what strength and growth this part of the Cathedral has made in the thirty-two years since its founding. The place where it had at first been proposed to build the Cathedral, having been found inadequate, Mr. Erastus Corning (son of the first donor) most generously gave the property on the south side of Elk street, at the corner of Swan street, as the Cathedral site. This property was held in small lots by many owners, and it involved most careful and painstaking searchings and laborious pursuits of every sort of legal technicality to procure it, and involved a long delay in beginning building. All this legal aid was most generously given by Mr. Marcus T. Hun.
In the meanwhile the Bishop had collected numerous sub- scriptions. The lay members of the Chapter and other mem- bers of the congregation subscribed $1,500 each, many others giving smaller sums. Much generosity was also shown in Troy and other places in the Diocese. The Chapter was unwilling to begin to build until at least $100,000 had been pledged, but decided to put the plans for the building into the hands of two architects, for competition, Mr. H. H. Richardson, of Boston, and Mr. Robert W. Gibson, of New York. The respective plans were carefully considered and Mr. Gibson's chosen as being in all ways better adapted to the needs and possibilities of the case.
By the following spring, the requisite amount of money having been secured, on Whitsun Tuesday, June 3, 1884, the corner-stone of the new Cathedral was laid with impressive ceremony. The work of the summer was the laying of the foundations of the whole building, including even the towers. This was covered over and nothing more was done till 1885.
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Historical and Architectural Guide
Then the Choir walls were carried up, and work stopped again for lack of means.
In February, 1886, the Bishop called a meeting of the women of the Cathedral. This resulted in the organization of the Woman's Diocesan League (now called the Woman's Cathedral League). From it have come results far greater even than the raising of $30,000 in the first two years of its existence. Under the wise and energetic guidance of its first president, Mrs. Corning, with the able and earnest assistance of the other officers, helped by the self-sacrificing devotion of very many members, the League added over $60,000 to the Cathedral Building Fund. As a result of this, and aided by most substantial gifts from outside sources, the work on the Cathedral was resumed and in the autumn of 1888 the build- ing stood completed in its temporary shape, churchly and dignified and ready for the sacred uses for which it was intended. It was not until March, 1892, however, that it was entirely freed from the debt incurred in its building. On November 20, 1888, with impressive ceremony the finished parts of the building were dedicated. From that time on it was the scene of many stately and impressive services, until in 1902 a most generous donation of $200,000, coming from an unknown source and given for the purpose of completing the Choir, again put the church in the builder's hands. During this period, services were held without interruption in the nave of the church. On November 15, 1904, the Choir was consecrated. The beauty of this part of the building is attested by the fact that artists and architects have traveled from far and near to study its beautiful proportions. At the time of issuing this Guide (1905) the Cathedral stands free from debt, finished at the east end, but with the roof of the nave and transepts as well as the lantern and towers still to be built.
Apart from the special gifts that have made the interior of the Cathedral so complete and beautiful something must be said of the character of the subscriptions toward the General Fund. These have ranged in amount from the gift
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for the Choir of $200,000 and the gift of the land of $80,000 to gifts from children and poor people of $1 and less and have come not only from every part of our own country and Diocese, but from England and Italy and Australia, and often quite unsought and unexpected.
During the long struggle to collect the necessary funds there had been one effort made which must have special mention. God had put it into the heart of one woman, Mrs. Abraham Van Vechten, to try "to get bricks for the Cathedral " by getting her friends to pledge a small sum of money monthly or annually, and to this effort of hers is due the gift of $1,000, to which sum these subscriptions had amounted when paid over to the Treasurer.
The first work of building was done by Messrs. Norcross Brothers, of Worcester, Mass., in laying the foundations. After that it was continued by Mr. John Snaith, under the supervision of Mr. John Pillett. The recent completion of the Choir has been done by Mr. John Dyer Jr., of Albany. The makers of various articles of furniture being mentioned elsewhere in this pamphlet, it is but right to say that the beautiful carving of the capitals, pillars, pulpit, and windows is due in great degree to the real artistic feeling and interest in his work, of Mr. Lewis J. Hinton, and his son, Mr. C. L. Hinton.
The story of the Cathedral would be incomplete without some account of the sources and inspiration and the con- tinued and ever-increasing benefit of the spiritual side of the work. For the long life of the Bishop, so full of examples of the highest type of Christianity, his people can never cease to be thankful. During the first years of his charge he prac- tically did the work and duty of a Dean, until in 1876 the Rev. James Haughton was appointed to that office. He remained till 1880. In 1883 the Rev. Frank L. Norton was elected and held the position till 1885. In 1888 the Rev. Wil- ford L. Robbins was installed and held the position until 1903, when to the deep regret of the congregation he resigned to become Dean of the General Theological Seminary in
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Historical and Architectural Guide
New York. On April 6, 1904, the Rev. Henry R. Talbot was installed as Dean of the Cathedral, which office he now holds.
The office of Precentor has been filled three times: by the Rev. C. F. Knauff, the Rev. Edwin Coan, and the Rev. Thomas B. Fulcher, who has long administered the office in the most faithful and painstaking way.
There have been four Chancellors, the Rev. Mr. John Townsend, who held the office while in Albany without parochial charge, and the Rev. Mr. George W. Dean, who dis- charged the active duties of the office with great ability and self-sacrificing devotion both in his relation to St. Agnes School and to the divinity students of the Diocese up to the time of his greatly lamented death. The third Chancellor was the Rev. George G. Carter, who gave generously of devoted and valuable service until his death in 1905, when the Bishop Coadjutor was elected to fill his place.
The Rev. Edgar T. Chapman has been Treasurer from the beginning of the work. The office of Assistant Treasurer of the Cathedral has been successively held by Gen. Selden E. Marvin, Gen. Robert S. Oliver and Mr. George P. Hilton and has been administered with conscientious care and fidel- ity of the highest type. The Chapter as now existing has in it only three of the original members, the Bishop, the Treas- urer and the Hon. A. Bleecker Banks.
Much earnest work has been done by the women of the Cathedral who organized and carried on for many years the first Industrial Society in the city. The first Branch of the Woman's Auxiliary in the Diocese was started here by Mrs. Norton, and much work has been done among the poor. The Cathedral has supported its own work and services, and in the matter of giving its record is certainly no mean one. From the beginning it led the whole Diocese in gifts to missions, averaging a thousand or more dollars annually, and to every canonical obligation and to every charitable and Diocesan work it has always given generously.
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