USA > New York > New York City > A history of the parish of Trinity Church in the city of New York, pt 1 > Part 27
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CHAPTER XIX.
THE REV. SAMUEL AUCHMUTY, D.D.
Election to the Rectorship-Rev. Charles Inglis Called as Assistant-Declines-Rev. John Ogilvie Elected-Inglis Accepts and Comes to New York-Political Excitement- Sir Henry Moore Governor-Convention of Clergy 1758-St. Paul's Chapel-Descrip- tion-Opened Oct. 30, 1767-Clergy Minister to Criminals under Sentence of Death- Rectory Built-Mortier's Paper Mill.
T T HE character and abilities of Mr. Samuel Auchmuty, the Assistant at Trinity Church marked him as the man to fill the place made vacant by Dr. Barclay's death. The action of the Vestry was prompt ; it had the approval of the entire community. Within a week, Mr. Auchmuty was elected and installed as Rector of Trinity Church.
On the 28th August, 1764, the following entry appears in the Records :
.
"It is unanimously Resolved and Ordered that the Reverend Mr. Samuel Auchmuty be and he is hereby elected, called and Chosen to be Rector of Trinity Church in the place of the Reverend Doctor Henry Barclay late Rector, deceased, and that Mr. Williams and Mr. Stuyvesant be desired to wait on the said Mr. Auchmuty to acquaint him with this resolution and to know if he will accept of the said Call and report his answer thereupon immediately to this Board."
Mr. Williams and Mr. Stuyvesant having waited on Mr. Auchmuty, pursuant to their appointment, reported his acceptance of the said call, and on being introduced into the vestry room he again declared his assent. Whereupon it is
" ordered that this Board present the said Mr. Auchmuty to his Honour the Lieutenant Governor, and desire he may be admitted & Instituted
307
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as Rector and Inducted into the said Church, and a presentation being prepared for that purpose & the same being read & signed & sealed by all the members present in the words following (to witt)." 1
Mr. Auchmuty was formally inducted by mandate of Cadwallader Colden, Lieutenant Governor, on the first day of September, having previously, in Fort George, taken the oath and subscribed the declaration enjoined by law.
On the 9th of September, 1764, Mr. Auchmuty preached "at both Churches " from 2 Corinthians, iv: 5, " For we preach not ourselves," this being, as he said, the first sermon " after my Induction to the Rectory." In this discourse he dwelt upon the ministry and its duties. In closing he says :
"God forbid yt any one who has ye honour to be called a minister of of the gospel sh'd so far prostitute both his office & his commission & at once betray ye honor of God & ye safety of the Souls committed to his care. I have too good an opinion of you, my B'n to think yt you will add to the Difficulty & toilsomeness of our Duty by such unreason- able expectations. No such culpable compliance, I am confident, will be expected from me. The honble regard & ye generous & affectionate treatment yt my excellent Predecessor (now with God) who was yr most faithful servant for Jesus' sake, always experienced from you, is ye best assurance to me, yt that you are indeed able to endure sound doctrine. And ye endearing manner the unanimous voice in which I was called to be your Rector, (however unworthy,) are such proofs of affection for me yt I cannot but flatter myself yt I shall always be heard favorably & candidly by you. Thus,"
he concludes,
" I have given you an honest specimen of yt plainness & freedom of speech with which you are like to be entertained, & by wch I hope to recommend myself to every man's conscience in the sight of God."
Early in September, the Vestry took action to provide an assistant to the new rector. The question was first 1 Records, i., 313.
,
The Rev. Samuel Sluchmaty. J.J. Appointed Rector.August 28 th, Jih. Bird . March 5th, 17".
309
Inglis Declines Assistantship
1764]
considered whether there should be two assistants instead of one, and, a majority being of the opinion that one would suffice, the Rev. Charles Inglis was called as such assistant minister, at a salary of two hundred pounds currency per annum, besides what might be raised for him by subscription, and it was further ordered that he should be allowed twenty pistoles for travelling expenses, for he was at that time incumbent at Dover, in the province of New Jersey.
Mr. Inglis, having had this call under consideration for some time declined it, for personal reasons, given by him in a letter to Mr. Auchmuty, at Philadelphia, Decem- ber, 10, 1764, from which I make the following extracts :
" When Mrs. Inglis lay upon her Death bed I foresaw the Difficulty that would attend my removal from Dover, and therefore wrote to you releasing you from your engagement to me and requesting you to pro- vide for some person to supply my place as Assistant. Every letter you received from me since was wrote in such distress and perplexity of mind, as you may naturally suppose, and in doubt as to my removal in consequence of those difficulties on one hand, and my inclination to settle in New York on the other. I have lately had a better opportunity of knowing the state of my mission than formerly when my mind was first overwhelmed with my loss. I shall therefore lay its state before you and then explicitly tell my resolution in consequence of it. This I should have done before had not my affliction and perplexity occa- sioned by it prevented me."
He then goes on to say :
"Mrs. Inglis' state of health was my principal reason for leaving Dover, altho' there was much discontent among my people at hearing of my Intended Removal, yet this Reason was in some measure silenced, tho' it did not fully satisfie them. On her death they renewed their solici- tations for my continuance with more warmth, and indeed the princi- pal cause of my removal was no more. When I engaged to settle at New York, Dr. Smith proposed to send another person to succeed me at Dover. My people, however, would by no means consent:to have him, nor is there any prospect of another to go there. There are two
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churches which were begun in my mission, chiefly through my Persua- sion, yet unfinished, and the congregations of the churches absolutely declare they will lay aside all thought of finishing them if I go away. A new mission is on the point of being opened, and that design must also of necessity drop, if I remove. Presbyterianism, and Quakers are making daily encroachments, but especially a mad enthusiast who has lately started up where the New Mission is to be opened, has seduced many to his pernicious delusions, and even the Rumour of my going away has gained him some Proselytes, and elated him much. All these particulars put together will leave no doubt I think with any impartial Person that it is my duty to continue in my. mission until it can be better settled. For my part my Conscience would ever reproach me to leave it thus, nor could I in that case expect a blessing from Heaven. Believe me, sir, it is with reluctance that I lay aside the thought of settling in your city. I have the most grateful sense of your kindness, as well as the kindness of the several worthy members of your Church with whom I had the honour to be acquainted. Be pleased to return to them my sincere thanks, especially to your Church Wardens and Vestry. This I should do now in person myself ; but it is my opinion, as well as the opinion of all My Friends, my going to New York now, as matters are situated, would answer no good end, perhaps perplex matters more. I shall be detained in this city a few days by the death of an uncle in law. It would give me much pleasure to hear from you in that time. If anything I can do or say consistent with what conscience assures me to be my duty, will give any further satisfaction to you or your People, you may readily command me, being with sincere esteem to them and you, Rev. Sir, your Affectionate Brother and Servant in Christ, CHARLES INGLIS." 1
Mr. Inglis having declined the call, the Vestry pro- ceeded to another election, and it was voted
" that the Rev. Mr. John Ogilvie (a gentleman well recommended by the Church Wardens) be called as an Assistant Minister to the Rector in his Parochial duties and that he be allowed for that service by this Corporation as a Salary two hundred pounds currency p. annum, besides what may be raised for him by subscription."
A committee, upon the passage of the resolution, went out and brought Mr. Ogilvie, "who being acquainted by 1 Records, i., 318-19.
311
The Rev. John Ogilvie
1765]
the Board with their Resolution declared his assent and accepted the call." His salary was subsequently increased to three hundred pounds, including house rent, to be paid quarterly.2
This clergyman was already favorably known in the Church and province. Of Scotch ancestry, but born in New York in 1722, he graduated at Yale College in 1748, with Samuel Seabury. It is probable that he went to England for ordination soon after leaving college, as he began his work in Albany, March 1, 1749. He succeeded the Rev. Dr. Barclay in the Mohawk Mission and also ministered in the Church at Albany. He had been with the army under General Amherst in 1760, and had done service among the Indians. At Oneida, Amherst found the Indians at worship, and " expressed a vast pleasure at the decency with which the service of our Church was performed by a grave Indian sachem." Mr. Ogilvie bap- tized a number of adults and children, married nine couples, and administered the Holy Communion to whites and Indians, at Oneida, and held regular services for the Indians, by direction of General Amherst. He appears to have been a man of parts and culture ; a fine picture of him, by Copley, is in the collection of portraits in the possession of the Corporation.
At a later date, June 7, 1765, Mr. Inglis was again called to the parish, when, finding himself free, he ac- cepted the position. He ultimately became rector, and, as will be seen, occupied the position with credit and hon- or during the crucial period of the history of the parish. When, at length, he was obliged to leave New York, and took refuge, outcast and proscribed, under the English flag, his merits were properly recognized in his appoint- ment and consecration as Lord Bishop of Nova Scotia,
? Records, i., 315-16.
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the first of the luminous galaxy of Missionary Bishops of the Anglican Communion.
The peace which reigned within the Church formed a strong contrast to the growing disorder in the world out- side. The British Ministry, assuming a bolder attitude towards the people in the North American Colonies, had imposed heavier taxes, and obtained the passage of the Stamp Act, a measure which excited almost universal re- sentment and opposition. The obnoxious Act was to take effect in November, 1765. Meanwhile a Provincial Con- gress was held, in which the deputies from several of the colonies, including New York, Massachusetts, and Vir- ginia, denying the right of Parliament to tax the people, drew up an Address to the King protesting against the Stamp Act. The agents for the sale of the stamps, fore- seeing and dreading the rising storm, very generally re- signed their positions, though not before some of their number had been burned in effigy. McEvers, the agent for New York, took that course, returning the stamps in his possession to Colden ; while the people elated by the countenance and support of Pitt, who declared " that this Kingdom has no right to lay a tax upon the Colonies," called for the immediate repeal of the Act. Governor Colden felt obliged to support the Ministry, and took measures to guard the hated stamps, at the same time re- pairing the fort and mounting additional guns upon it. The day before the Act was to go into operation, the merchants of New York held a meeting and resolved to import no more goods from England, while the people marched in large numbers to Fort George, to defy the Governor. Fences were torn down near the fort, the Governor's carriage, and an effigy of that dignitary, were placed on the pile, and the whole was reduced to ashes ; while the house of one of the officers of the Royal Artillery
313
Governor Moore
1766]
was assaulted and sacked.1 The following day a notice appeared that the Lieutenant Governor would have nothing more to do with the stamps, but intended to refer the subject to Sir Henry Moore, whose immediate arrival was expected. But the people were still dissatisfied, and it finally became necessary to remove the stamps and place them in charge of the Mayor and Council who gave a re- ceipt for them to Colden. John Cruger, who was at that time Mayor, addressed General Gage on behalf of the Council, congratulating him upon the restoration of tran- quillity. About this time, it is said, the terms " Whig" and " Tory " came into general use in the province.
Sir Henry Moore arrived Nov. 15, 1765, the year following that of the induction of Mr. Auchmuty. An address was voted to him by the Vestry congratulating him on his safe arrival. The news of the repeal of the Stamp Act was received with enthusiasm by the people, who, in their admiration, set up a statue of King George III. in Bowling Green, and one of Pitt in Wall St.2 Governor Moore had the good sense to pursue a wise and politic course, but was unable to act in harmony with the As- sembly. His death, greatly regretted, recalled Lieuten- ant Governor Colden to the head of affairs. The latter, though able, learned, prudent, and well-meaning, was not popular with those over whom it was his misfortune to bear rule.
Meanwhile, in spite of the agitation about them, the clergy steadily pursued their work. On the 21st of May, 1766, the principal rectors and missionaries of New
1 Dunlap's History of New Netherlands, i., 416-420.
9 When the British Army took possession of New York City in 1776, the soldiers decapitated Pitt, and the Americans, in their turn, treated the statue with indignity. It is now preserved in the rooms of the New York Historical Society. This Society also possesses a portion of the statue of the King, which was overturned during the Revolution. The names of the Committee signing the public call for the statue of Pitt were James de Lancey, William White, John Harris Cruger, and Isaac Low.
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York, New Jersey, and Connecticut met at the house of Dr. Auchmuty, and formed themselves into a convention.
"Wednesday last a voluntary Convention of the Clergy of the CHURCH OF ENGLAND, was held here, when the Reverend Doctor AUCHMUTY preached a very excellent Sermon suitable to the Occasion to a consider- able Number of his Reverend Brethren from ST. PAULS 2d. Epistle to TIMOTHY, 4th. Chap. and 5th Verse But watch thou in all Things, endure Afflictions, do the Work of an Evangelist, make full Proof of thy Min- istry, The Doctor after a pathetick Application to his Brethren, in the conclusion of his Sermon addressed himself to his Audience, and con- gratulated them upon the Repeal of the disagreeable Stamp Act, and then concluded the whole with Such Advice as our present Circumstan- ces highly require should be followed." '
Probably this was one of the special conventions for which provision was made.
In his letter of March 20, 1759, Dr. Johnson had urged upon Archbishop Secker the importance of such conven- tions. Fourteen of the clergy were present. An address was presented to the Governor, in which it is stated, that "our first Convention was in November, 1758, and from that time our Annual Conventions, attended by some of our Brethren from the adjacent Provinces, have been regularly held with considerable solemnity, a Sermon having always been preached at the opening of them, and our occasional Conventions have sometimes amounted to several in the Course of the year. The Members meet together on terms of equality." 3
On this occasion new officers were chosen ; Dr. Samuel Johnson, of Stratford, was elected president, and the Rev. Samuel Seabury, of Jamaica, Long Island, was appointed secretary.4 In this capacity Mr. Seabury, afterwards
1 The New- York Mercury, May 26, 1766. See also the Weekly Post Boy, May 22, 1766. 2 N. Y. Col. Docs. vii., 374.
3 This address was written by Chandler, and is given in Clark's History of St. John's Church, Elizabeth Town, New Jersey, 118. It was signed by the Rev. Messrs. Chandler, (President) Cooper, Mckean, Inglis, Cutting, Jarvis, Bennet, Avery, Evans, Peters, Charlton, Sturgeon, Leaming, Neil, Cooke, and Seabury.
4 The original minutes of these proceedings are now in the possession of the Rev. William J. Seabury, D.D., of New York City.
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Convention of the Clergy
1766]
Bishop of Connecticut, appears to have been both useful and influential.
It was arranged to elect a president annually, the same person being ineligible after two years' service. A special convention could be called on the request of any three members, and due care was taken to have the clergy out- side of New York represented on the committee. Messrs. Auchmuty, Cooper, Charlton, Munro, and the secretary formed the first standing committee. Among the things proposed was to take in hand the recommending of can- didates for Holy Orders, and to see that the salary of the clergy should be properly secured.
It was further ordered that the next regular conven- tion should be held on the day following the next com- mencement, and that Mr. Charlton of St. Andrew's, Richmond, Staten Island, should preach the sermon.
The question of clerical supply was gone over at these gatherings, and it appeared that
" no less than one out of five who have gone for Holy Orders from the Northern Colonies have perished in the attempt : ten having miscarried out of fifty-one."
St. Paul's Chapel was now completed. The edifice stood remote from the heart of the town, in a part of the city not yet built up, and on a site commanding a varied prospect. The chancel formed the east end ; at the west- ern extremity was a low square tower, with a project- ing porch from which the ground lay open to the river. The portico at the east formed a part of the origi- nal design ; the main entrance, however, was by a door in the middle of the south side. The church contained a pew for the Royal Governor, and was lighted by means of huge glass chandeliers. The sacristies were at the eastern end, near the chancel ; above were rooms accessible by .
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doors at the east end of the galleries. One of these, known as the "Library Room," contained the valuable books which from time to time had been presented to the parish ; when the troublous days came, it was walled up to keep its treasures safe from popular fury. The church formed one of the finest ornaments of the city at that time. The architect was McBean, a Scotchman, and prob- ably a pupil of Gibbs, who built the church in London, known as "St. Martin's in the Fields." 1
The venerable chapel still stands on its old site, the only surviving ecclesiastical relic of the Colonial era. The interior has been changed; the sacristies are now at the west end; the beautiful chandeliers have vanished ; the canopied pews have disappeared ; but the chancel and altar, the memorial tablets with their blazoned arms, and the old pulpit with the Prince of Wales's feathers atop, still greet the eye, and to some extent alleviate the regret, that this ancient edifice was not allowed to remain pre- cisely as it was, an invaluable memorial of the past.
Accounts of the opening of St. Paul's Chapel are to be found, not in the minutes, which make no reference to it whatever, but in the newspapers of the day. For instance, the Journal contains the following :
"Thursday last the new Episcopal Chapel, in this City, called St. Paul's, and esteemed one of the most elegant Edifices on the Continent, was opened, and dedicated to Almighty God. The Concourse of Peo- ple of all Ranks and Denominations, (who attended on the Occasion) was very great.
"At 10 o'Clock, the Council, Clergy, Church-Wardens, and Vestry of Trinity Church, the Mayor and Corporation of the City, waited on
1 Mr. Isaac Bell, who died in this city, A.D., 1860, at the advanced age of ninety- two, was personally acquainted with McBean many years after the Revolution, the architect being at that time a resident of New Brunswick, N. J. There are good rea- sons for supposing that McBean was a pupil of Gibbs, who was also a Scotchman and a practical architect in London, at the time of his death, A.D. 1754. See an article in the Crayon of June, 1857, by Hon. Gulian C. Verplanck.
٠٠
. Si Paul's Chapel was commenced . May 14th, 1764. completed in 1966 and opened Celeber 30th. 11b.
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317
Opening of St. Paul's Chapel
1766]
his Excellency Sir Henry Moore, our Governor, at Fort George : From thence they went in Procession to the Chapel, in the following Order, viz. :
I. The Mayor, Aldermen, and other Members of the City Cor- poration, preceded by the Charity Children of Trinity Church.
II. The Clergy.
III. The Governor's Council.
IV. Their Excellencies, Sir HENRY MOORE, and General GAGE. V. The Church Wardens and Vestry.
"After Divine Service which was adapted to this particular Occa- sion, an excellent Sermon was preached by the Revd. Doctor Samuel Auchmuty, Rector of Trinity Church. His text was taken from Exod. iii., 5. And he said, draw not nigh hither : Put off thy Shoes from off thy Feet, for the place whereon thou standest is Holy Ground.
"A suitable Band of Music, vocal and instrumental, was introduced. Several Pieces of Church Music and Psalms, were sung and played by them in Concert, at the usual Intervals ; and the judicious Execution contributed much to heighten the Solemnity.1
"The Whole was conducted with the greatest Decorum. The de- cent Behaviour of the Audience, consisting of many Thousands of Peo- ple, their Devotion during Divine Service, and fixed Attention to the Sermon, did Honour to themselves and to the Preacher." ?
The sermon preached by Dr. Auchmuty on that occa- sion is a good specimen of the pulpit oratory of the 18th Century ; the arguments presented are drawn from Holy Scripture, the old Catholic Fathers, and the divines of the Church of England ; the style is clear, elevated, and impressive. The preacher undertakes to show,
" Ist, THAT ALMIGHTY GOD is eminently present in one Place more than in another ; and, therefore, that such Place, with great pro- priety, may be called holy.
1 October 29th. " His Excellency Go. Henry Moore, having expressed desire of Introducing a Band of Musick in St. Paul's Chappell at the Dedication thereof, and this Board being Willing to Gratifie his Excellency in his request, It is ordered that the said Band of Musick be admitted accordingly to join in such part of the Service as is usual and customary in like cases, but that no other pieces of Musick be allowed ,but such only as are adapted to the service of the Church on such solemn occasions."- Records, i., 326.
2 The New- York Journal, November 6, 1766.
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"2dly., THAT CHURCHES dedicated to the ALMIGHTY's Service may be justly looked upon as such Places.
" From whence will appear-
" 3dly., THE Obligations which we are under, while in such a Situ- ation, and in the more immediate Presence of so holy a God, of behav- ing with Respect, Reverence, and Devotion."
This sermon was printed by request of the Vestry as the following record and advertisement show :
" Resolved that the thanks of this Board be given to the Reverend Dr. Auchmuty for his sermon preached last Thursday at the Dedica- tion of St. Paul's Chappell and that he be desired to deliver a copy of the same to this Corporation to be printed," which request the Rec- tor said he would comply with "as soon as he could get time to correct the Sermon and copy it fair." It was also resolved that the Wardens should "have so many copies printed as they shall see meet." '
A copy of this sermon is in possession of the present rector ; it was presented to him by the late beloved and venerated Dr. Samuel Roosevelt Johnson, of the General Theological Seminary. At the Centennial Celebration of St. Paul's Chapel, Oct. 30, 1867, Dr. Auchmuty's sermon was read, as the sermon for the day, by the Rev. Edward Y. Higbee, D.D., then senior assistant minister of the parish, and listened to with profound attention by the congregation who, on that occasion, crowded the vener- able edifice.
About this time his Excellency, Sir Henry Moore, made an offer, through the rector, to grant the Corporation a new charter if they should think it necessary and for the interests of the church. It was thereupon
1 " Just Published, and to be sold by Hugh Gaine. PRICE, ONE SHILLING, A SERMON
Preached at the Opening of ST. PAUL'S CHAPEL, in the City of NEW-YORK, on the 30th Day of October, A. D., 1766. By SAMUEL AUCHMUTY, D.D., Rector of TRINITY CHURCH, and Chaplain to the Right Hon. WILLIAM Earl of STIRLING." -- The New- York Mercury, February 9, 1767.
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