USA > New York > A history of the purchase and settlement of western New York : and of the rise, progress and present state of the Presbyterian Church in that section > Part 65
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in 1845, over two hundred. Mr. Parmele was dismissed from his pastoral charge, Dec. 9th, 1806, but continued to officiate as supply a portion of the time till 1812. Rev. Philander Parmele was or- damned and installed pastor of the church, May 5th, 1812. He was dismissed, Dec. 28th, 1814. Rev. Ebenezer Raymond was ordain- ed and installed pastor of the church, Nov. 9th, 1819. He con- tinued in the pastoral office till 1826, when he was dismissed. In 1828, Rev. Daniel Johnson was employed as stated supply, and continued till 1832. Rev. Richard Kay was installed pastor of the church, Jan. 3d, 1833, and was dismissed in 1835. He was suc- ceeded by Rev. Jairus Wilcox as stated supply for about one year. In March, 1838, Rev. Charles E. Furman succeeded as stated sup- ply, and continued until 1846. He was succeeded by Rev. Charles Merwin, but whether as pastor or stated snpply, is not known to the writer.
The organization of the church and the settlement of Mr. Par- mele was followed by a season of revival which added a number of members to the church. Under the ministry of Mr. Johnson there was a measure of revival, and considerable additions made to the church. In the beginning of 1837 there was an interesting revival, as the fruits of which about forty members were added to the church. In the spring of 1843, between sixty and seventy members were brought into the church, as the result of a season of precious divine influence. There were other seasons of more than ordinary attention, during which souls were converted, and addi- tions made to the church. The church received aid one year in the support of Mr. Johnson from the American Home Missionary Society. They have a house of worship which was dedicated in 1833. In 1844, it was thoroughly repaired and altered. It is fifty- six feet in length and forty in breadth, and will comfortably seat 500 persons. The Methodist denomination have a house of worship in the village, as also the Universalists. The Methodists number about as many hearers as the Congregationalists. The Universal- ist congregation to a considerable extent is composed of inhabitants from adjoining towns. There are some Baptists who attend wor- ship in Mendon. It is estimated that one half of the inhabitants of the town are in the habit of attending public worship.
West Bloomfield .- The settlement of this town commenced in 1786. Col. Peregreen Gardiner's family was the first that fixed their residence here. Others came in soon after. Ebenezer Cur- tis, Esq., Gen. Amos Hall, Philemon Hall, and several of the name of Peck, were among the early settlers. The first inhabitants were generally from Granville (Mass.), and Guilford and Lyme (Conn.). Public worship was first commenced in 1796 by Mr. Elisha Wade, a professor of religion, who moved in that year from Lyme. He lived but a short period, and public worship was sus-
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pended for a season. In 1797, three persons were hopefully con- verted and united with the church in East Bloomfield. One of these was Samuel Handy, afterwards a deacon in the church. Through his instrumentality public worship was revived, and has ever since been maintained. The settlement was occasionally visited by itinerant missionaries, and to some extent enjoyed the labors of Rev. Zadoc Hunn. It shared in the revival of 1799, and a number of persons were hopefully converted to God. On the sixteenth day of August of that year, a Congregational church, con- sisting of nineteen members, was organized by Rev. Messrs. Joseph Avery and Jedidiah Bushnell, missionaries from the Eastern States. Shortly afterwards four members were received, making the church to consist of twenty-three members, of whom seven were males, and sixteen females. Samuel Handy was elected deacon, and led in public worship when there was no preacher. The church was connected with the Ontario Association, and after the dissolution of that body was received under the care of the Presbytery of Geneva on the accommodation plan, Sept. 21st, 1813. It was transferred to the Presbytery of Ontario on the formation of that body. In 1825, it consisted of one hundred and forty-four . members ; and in 1834, of one hundred and seventy-six.
In the month of October, 1801, Rev. James H. Hotchkin, then a licentiate, came into the place, and was engaged to preach to the congregation one half of the time for a period of about ten months, at the close of which he received a call for settlement. He re- turned to his friends in the eastern part of the State, and after an absence of about three months, during which period he received ordination as an evangelist, he returned to West Bloomfield, ac- cepted the call of the church and congregation, and was installed as pastor, May 19th, 1803, by an ecclesiastical council. Mr. Hotch- kin continued in the pastorate till March 23d, 1809, when the pas- toral relation was dissolved. After the dismission of Mr. Hotch- kin, the church was for a season without stated preaching. Rev. David Tullar labored in the capacity of stated supply, two or three years. In the summer of 1815, Rev. Ebenezer Fitch, D.D., Presi- dent of Williams College, in the State of Massachusetts, visited the society, preached a few Sabbaths, and received a call for settle- ment, which he accepted, and was installed into the pastoral office, Nov. 29th, 1815. He continued about twelve years, and was dis- missed, August 28, 1827. He was succeeded by Rev. Silas C. Brown, who was ordained and installed pastor, April 23d, 1828. A considerable number of the members of the church and religious society were opposed to the settlement of Mr. Brown. This op- position, instead of diminishing, increased in strength and numbers. The Society refused Mr. Brown the use of the house of worship, and the pastoral relation between Mr. Brown and the congregation was dissolved, April-29th, 1830. Still, a large majority of the
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church were attached to Mr. Brown, and were determined to have him for their minister, irrespective of the religious society, which held the property of the corporation. They therefore voted him a call for settlement, which he accepted, and, on the twenty-fourth day of June, in less than two months from the time of his dismis- sion, he was re-installed pastor of the church. At the same time, forty members of the church, on their request, were, by an act of the Presbytery, constituted a separate church, under the care of the Presbytery. Mr. Brown continued as pastor of the first church, till July 8th, 1835, when he was dismissed. Since the dis- mission of Mr. Brown, the church has had one regularly installed pastor, Rev. Daniel Gibbs, who was ordained and installed, Sept. 10th, 1839, and dismissed from his charge, Sept. 17th, 1840. As stated supplies, Rev. Eliphalet A. Platt, Rev. Silas C. Brown, Rev. George L. Haskins, and perhaps one or two others, have officiated. The church withdrew from its connexion with the Presbytery, and its name was stricken from the roll of the Presbytery, Jan. 16th, 18.44.
The other church, on its request, was dismissed from its con- nexion with the Presbytery, August 25th, 1830. In connexion with the Religious Society, it employed Rev. William P. Kendrick as stated supply, one year. He was followed by Rev. Julius Steele, who supplied the pulpit about seven years. Rev. George Clark succeeded Mr. Steele one year. After him, Rev. C. R. Clark appears to have been a stated supply two years. The number of members received into this church after the organization down to July 3d, 1842, was one hundred and ninety-seven. The two churches are now united, and have Rev. Mr. Fisher as their stated supply. They now con- stitute an independent Congregational church. Whether they will learn wisdom from their past experience, and in future seek "the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another," time must determine.
The revival of 1799 paved the way for the organization of this church. In the year 1802, while Mr. Hotchkin was preaching as stated supply, there was a pleasing revival, by which the church was considerably enlarged. During the ministry of Dr. Fitch, some seasons of enlargement were enjoyed by the church, and one hundred and forty-five members were admitted to the Communion of the church, on their profession of faith. After the division of the church, for a number of years, very considerable numbers were added to both of the churches, but, for several years, the num- ber of members has diminished. The building of a house of wor- ship was commenced in 1806 or 1807. It was not completed for a number of years. The church over which Mr. Brown was pas- tor, erected a house of worship in 1831. Within two or three years past, the original house, which was much dilapidated, has been demolished ; the other house has been given up, and a new
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and more commodious house erected and completed, which is now used by the united congregation. There is a Methodist chapel, which was built many years past, but is now unoccupied, and fall- ing to decay. The Christians have a house in the village, which is statedly occupied.
Lima .- This town, at the time of its organization, was named Charlestown. It was changed to Lima in 1808. The settlement of this town began at a very early period, and progressed very rapidly. The immigrants were from different parts of the United States. Hence there was less uniformity of character belonging to them, than in some other places. Rev. Daniel Thatcher, a mis- sionary under the appointment of the General Assembly, visited the place in 1795, found a few professors of religion, and on the thirteenth day of September of that year, formed a Presbyterian church consisting of fourteen members. The church commenced stated public worship on the Sabbath, and continued it for about two years, when their meetings were broken up by a certain un- authorized preacher employed by some of the non-professors of religion to preach to them. The church continued in a disorgan- ized state till 1799. In that year Rev. Jacob Catlin, a missionary from Massachusetts, visited the place, collected the scattered mem- bers, and with the addition of some others, reorganized them as a Congregational church, seventeen persons uniting in the organiza- tion. From this period public worship has been maintained with- out interruption. The church was connected with the Ontario Association during the continuance of that body, and after its dis- solution, it was received under the care of the Presbytery of Ontario, June 20th, 1820. Many years since the church returned to its first form, and is now a Presbyterian church in full. In 1804, it numbered thirty-one members ; in 1825, seventy-nine ; and in 1836, one hundred and sixty. Its present number is not known to the writer. For a number of years the church was favored with only occasional preaching. Sometimes a preacher was employed for a short season. The writer of these sheets preached to this congregation one half of the time for more than six months in the year 1802. Rev. Ezekiel J. Chapman was installed pastor of the church, Jan. 12th, 1809. He had labored there for some time pre- vious. Mr. Chapman continued as pastor several years, but the time of his dismission is not recollected by the writer. A circum- stance which occurred during the period of Mr. Chapman's minis- try in Lima, it may not be amiss to relate, as exhibiting to some extent the state of feeling existing between different denominations. The subscription to obtain Mr. Chapman's salary was drawn as was common in such cases, binding the subscribers to pay annually to the trustees of the Society the sums affixed to their names re- spectively, so long as Mr. Chapman continued to preach the gospel,
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as the pastor of the church and society. Some individuals becom- ing disaffected refused to pay their subscriptions. A suit was brought against them in a civil court, and the cause went to a jury. The jury was composed partly of men belonging to the Methodist denomination, and partly of men of no religion. The defendant in the suit pleaded that he was not liable for his subscription, inasmuch as Mr. Chapman preached the doctrine of Election as held by Calvinists, and this was not the Gospel. The fact of his so preach- ing was proved, and the jury gave a verdict in favor of the de- fendant. What ministerial aid was enjoyed in the interval between the dismission of Mr. Chapman and the installation of Rev. John Barnard, is not known to the writer, nor does he know when Mr. Barnard was installed. IIe supposes that it was in 1819, or near that period. He still continues the pastor of the church. Several happy periods of revival have been enjoyed by this church, bring- ing large accessions to their communion. In 1829, twenty-four were reported as having been added on profession the preceding year ; in 1832, sixty-two ; and in 1836, sixteen were reported as so added.
This church has always supported its pastor without foreign aid. They have a good house of worship, built many years since. The Methodist denomination have also a house of worship in the village. The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary is located in this village.
Avon .- The original name of this town was Hartford, which was changed to Avon in 1808. The settlement of the town was commenced in 1790 by five families from Farmington in Connecti- cut, and progressed with rapidity from that time. For near twenty years no public worship was established by Congregationalists or Presbyterians, nor, as far as the writer knows, by any other de- nomination. Many of the leading characters of the town were grossly irreligious. On the ninth day of November, 1810, a Con- gregational church, composed of twenty members, most of them from the New England States, was constituted by Rev. Reuben Parmele, and two deacons, Samuel Blakeslee and Asa Clark, were elected. The church was received under the care of the Presby- tery of Ontario on the accommodating plan, Jan. 15th, 1822, and adopted in full the Presbyterian form of government, and elected ruling elders, March 25th, 1842. In 1825, the number of members in the church was seventy-one ; in 1833, one hundred and two ; in 1839, one hundred and fifty, which is the highest number ever reported. Rev. John F. Bliss was ordained and installed pastor of the church by an ecclesiastical council, Feb. 25th, 1812. Mr. Bliss, finding his salary inadequate to the support of his family, turned his attention to the study of law, and proceeded so far as to prac- tise in a few unimportant cases. This step gave great offence to the Society, and brought upon it a degree of reproach, which
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proved highly unfavorable to its prosperity. Mr. Bliss was dis- missed in 1818. Rev. John B. Whittlesey, who had previously labored for some time with the congregation, was installed pastor, Jan. 16th, 1822. He continued his labors with great efficacy and acceptance till March 19th, 1829, when the pastoral relation was dissolved. Mr. Whittlesey's name is still dear to the congregation as that of a faithful, laborious pastor, under whose preaching they sat for a longer time than under that of any other minister. From May, 1831, to May, 1834, Rev. Jacob Hart officiated as stated supply. He was succeeded by Rev. William C. Wisner, who continued two years. Rev. Alfred White followed him in Novem- ber, 1836, and continued one year. From March, 1838, to July, 1840, Rev. Edwards Marsh officiated as stated supply. Rev. J. Hubbard, Rev. P. C. Hastings, and Rev. E. M. Kellogg, each sup- plied for a short period. In September, 1844, Rev. Samuel 'M. Hopkins received a call to the pastorate, and continued to minister to the church until July, 1847, when he left, having been appointed temporarily to take charge of the department of Ecclesiastical History and Church Polity in the Theological Seminary of Auburn .*
Two interesting seasons of revival were enjoyed under Mr. Whittlesey's labors, which brought an accession to the church of more than fifty members on profession. In 1835, there was an inte- resting revival which brought into the church more than forty members. Under the labors of Mr. Marsh, the church experienced a season of refreshing, and seventeen members were received on profession of faith. In December, 1834, seventeen members were dismissed to form a new church in Littleville. The writer sup- poses that is the church known as Avon Free Church. A church edifice constructed of brick was erected, and the outside completed in 1812. In this condition it was used as a place of worship for several years before it was completed. In 1841, it was somewhat improved and modernized. It is much larger than the wants of the congregation require. This church has never received aid in the support of its ministers from any Missionary Society. There is a Baptist house of worship in the village of East Avon, and churches of all the leading denominations of Christians are found within the town, but all of them feeble. A large proportion of the population do not attend worship with any denomination, and desecration of the Sabbath is not unfrequent.
Avon Free Church .- This church, as the author supposes, has its location in the village sometimes denominated Littleville, in the town of Avon. It was constituted by an act of the Presbytery,
* While this work is in the press, Mr. Hopkins has been inaugurated as a perma- nent Professor in the Seminary.
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December 25th, 1834, and consisted at the time of its organization of twenty members, seventeen of whom were taken from the First Church of Avon. In 1836, it numbered one hundred and fourteen members. This is the latest enumeration which the writer finds on record. Rev. Hezekiah B. Pierpont was installed pastor of the church, Feb. 18th, 1836, and continued in the station till August 25th, 1841. What ministerial aid the church has since enjoyed is not known to the writer. In 1816, a blessed revival and ingather- ing of souls was granted. Seventy-seven were added to the church on profession. The church was aided by the American Home Missionary Society during the pastorate of Mr. Pierpont. An appropriate house of worship was erected in 1835.
York Second Church .- The location of this church is at the place called Fowlersville, in the northern part of the town of York. Its first notice is on the minutes of the Presbytery of Ontario, Au- gust 25th, 1829. Rev. John Eastman was then stated supply. In 1831 it is reported as consisting of twenty-one members, and in 1836, of sixty-three. Mr. Eastman continued to officiate as stated supply till 1832 or '33. Rev. Robert Hubbard was reported as stated supply in 1834, and the next three years Rev. Beaufort Ladd. Rev. John P. Foster was ordained and installed pastor of the church, September 21st, 1842. The pastoral relation was dissolved, January 30th, 1844. Mention of some religious interest in this church is made on the minutes of the Presbytery in 1841. The church has never received aid from the American Home Missionary Society.
York First Church .- This church is first noticed on the records of the Presbytery of Ontario, October 14th, 1828. Rev. Johnson Baldwin was then stated supply. In 1830, it numbered fifty-five members ; in 1836, one hundred and sixty-six; and in 1810, one hundred and sixty. This is the last enumeration known to the writer. Rev. Johnson Baldwin was its stated supply as early as the year 1826, and continued to the close of 1828. He was snc- ceeded by Rev. John B. Whittlesey, who was installed as pastor, November 18th, 1830, and continued till January 15th, 1833, when he was dismissed. In 1836, Rev. John II. Carle was reported as the stated supply, and the next year Rev. Caleb Burge. Rev. Silas C. Brown was installed pastor, January 23d, 1828, and officiated till May 5th, 1841, when he was dismissed from his charge. In 1832, forty-five members were reported as having been added, by profession, to the church during the preceding year, indicating that the church had been visited with a gracious effusion of the Holy Spirit. In the support of Messrs. Johnson and Whittlesey the church was assisted a number of years by the American IIome
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Missionary Society. They have an appropriate house of worship, which was erected in 1830.
Moscow .- This village is situated in the town of Leicester. At what period the church was organized is not known to the writer. It is first noticed on the records of the Presbytery of Ontario, as a church under its care, June 16th, 1818. On its request it was dis- missed to connect with the Presbytery of Wyoming (Old School), Jan. 22d, 1845. In 1829 the church consisted of thirty members ; in 1834, of seventy-three ; and in 1846, of eighty-four. The church seems never to have had a regularly installed pastor during the pe- riod of its connexion with the Presbytery of Ontario. As stated supplies at different periods, Rev. Messrs. Samuel T. Mills, Amos P. Brown, John Walker, Stephen Porter, H. Reddington, and Ebenezer H. Stratton, have been engaged. In 1846, Rev. John W. M'Donald was reported by the Presbytery of Wyoming as the pastor. From the reports from time to time of the number of mem- bers, it does not appear that this church has ever been blessed with an extended revival. They were assisted by the American Home Missionary Society in the support of Messrs. Mills, Brown, Walker, and Stratton. The church has an appropriate house of worship in the village.
Geneseo .- The town of Geneseo, when first organized, included all that part of the State of New York which lies west of the Pre- emption line. It is now reduced to a township of about six miles square. The settlement was commenced in 1790, by William and James Wadsworth, from Connecticut. A church of the Presbyte- rian order was organized in 1795, by Rev. Daniel Thatcher, a mis- sionary of the General Assembly. This church has succession in the church of Lakeville. It originally extended over the whole town of Geneseo, and its principal place of worship was in a build- ing called the Academy, which stood on the high ground a little back of the village of Geneseo. In 1809 a number of the members of the church who were emigrants from Connecticut, being dissatisfied with the order of the church and its pastor, requested letters of dis- mission in order to form a Congregational church. Their case was brought before the Presbytery of Geneva, and on the advice of that body their request was granted, and they were subsequently orga- nized as a Congregational church, by Rev. Daniel Oliver, a mis- sionary from Massachusetts. The writer believes the number of members at the time of organization was about twenty. This is the church which has succession in the present church of Geneseo, known on the reports of the Presbytery as Geneseo Second Church. It was received under the care of the Presbytery of Geneva, on the accommodating plan, April 19th, 1814, and was transferred to the Presbytery of Ontario on the organization of that body. In 1817
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or '18, it adopted the Presbyterian form of government in full. In 1825 it numbered ninety-two members. The next year it had in- creased to one hundred and ninety-one. In 1836 the number was two hundred and thirty-four. This is the last enumeration which the writer has seen. Rev. Abraham Forman was ordained and in- stalled pastor of the church, July 12th, 1817. The relation was dissolved Nov. 17th, 1819. Rev. Norris Bull was ordained and in- stalled pastor, June 19th, 1822. He continued to sustain the re- lation about ten years, and was dismissed July 3d, 1832. Rev. John C. Lord was installed pastor, July 31st, 1834, and was dis- missed Oct. 28th, 1835. Rev. John N. Lewis was installed into the pastorate, Oct. 3d, 1838, and was dismissed from his charge April 5th, 18.11. Rev. Benjamin B. Stockton was installed pastor Nov. 8th, 1843, and still continues in the office. This church has been repeatedly watered with the dews from on high, and abun- dantly enlarged in her members. In 1826 one hundred and thirteen members were reported to have been received to her communion within the preceding year. This must have been the result of a powerful work of the Holy Spirit. In 1831 thirty, and in 1832 thirty-two, were reported as the number of additions by profession in those years respectively. From 1834 to 1836, the church had increased sixty-two in number, indicating that God had visited his people. This church has always supported its pastors without mis- sionary aid. It has an appropriate house of worship, built many years since. The Methodists and Episcopalians also have organi- zations and houses of worship in the village.
Lakeville .- This is a small village situated at the foot of Conesus lake, in the town of Livonia, adjacent to the line which divides it from the town of Geneseo. The neighborhood was first settled by three men and their families, who, in the month of August, 1792, removed from Northumberland county, in the State of Pennsylva- nia. They were of Irish descent, and of very respectable charac- ter. Some of them were connected with the Presbyterian church in Pennsylvania, and all felt some interest in religious institutions. As a consequence, social worship was commenced almost immedi- ately. In the autumn of 1795 Rev. Daniel Thatcher organized a church, consisting of twelve members. The church was organized on strict Presbyterian principles, and ruling elders were elected and ordained. The church seems to have been connected with the Presbytery of Geneva at the first meeting of that body, Sept. 17th, 1805, and was transferred to the Presbytery of Ontario when that body was organized. In 1825 the church reported thirty-two mem- bers ; in 1836, one hundred and fifty-five ; and in 1816, it numbered about one hundred and eighty. The church enjoyed only occa- sional ministerial labor till about the commencement of 1806. On the twenty-ninth day of January, of that year, Rev. John Lindsley
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