USA > New York > Westchester County > Bedford > History of Bedford Church : discourse delivered at the celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of the founding of the Presbyterian Church of Bedford, Westchester Co., New York, March 22d, 1881 > Part 7
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* In 1725, Mr. Wetmore reported " at Bedford about eight or ten families of the Church"-i. e., the Church of England. The Anglican missionaries at Rye officiated occasionally or statedly- once in two or three months-at Bedford, until the period of the Revolution, and sometimes reported a large attendance upon the services. Where these services were held we do not learn. In 1762, " there appears to have been several families, professors of the Church of Englan ." (Bolton, History of the Prot. Episc. Church in Westchester Co., page 623.) The rest of the " four hundred families belonging to the cure " were Presbyterians. There was no resident Minister of the Church of England in Bedford be fore the Revolution ; nor do we find mention of any house of wor- ship prior to the erection of St. Matthew's Church in 1807.
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
unite with his fellow-christians of that persuasion in commemorating the passion of their common Lord." His interest in the welfare of the various evangelical denominations did not cease, when in 1807, through his instrumentality, St. Matthew's Church was erected. To the last " he rejoiced in the increase and prosperity of them all." *
The pastors of this congregation found in him a kind and wise friend. His spirit has rested upon those who have come after him, and has been large- ly diffused throughout this community ; and to-day the pleasure of your celebration is marred by no remembrance of sectarian feuds in the past, no consciousness of sectarian rancours cherished in the present. So may it be unto the latest gene- rations ! +
* The Life of John Jay. By his son, William Jay. New York : 1833, Vol. I., pp. 434, 461.
+ Among the communications read by the Pastor of this Church, upon the occasion of the Bi-centenary Celebration, 22 March, 1881, was a letter from the Honorable John Jay, of which we are permit- ted to quote the following sentences. Alluding to " the good feel- ing between the two parishes " in Bedford, Mr. Jay remarks : "I well remember that as a boy on each third Sunday, when our Epis- copal pastor, the late Reverend Samuel Nichols, D.D., officiated at North Salem, I accompanied my father and his family to the Pres- byterian Church at Bedford, where I am told that to the last our pew continued to be known as ' The Governor's Pew.' I may per- haps add too without impropriety, as entitling me to a personal in- terest in this occasion, that when I first attended Mr. Holmes' Acad- emy, I had the good fortune to live in the family of your predecessor the Reverend Jacob Green, and his excellent wife, of whose kind- ness I retain the most pleasant recollections."
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
As I bring this address to an end, I feel how vain after all is the attempt to live over and to picture the events of the past. In the strongest light that history can cast upon them, they stand forth, clear, it may be, well defined, but colourless and still. As masses of foliage outlined against the sky, when the sun has set, the shapes are there, but how in- animate and how far away ! We live only in the present ; and only the interests of the present can be revealed in living freshness and correct perspec- tive. Yet is it well sometimes to sit as in the twi- light, and watch the scenes over which the shadows of evening are stretched out, and take in the sug- gestions of the thoughtful hour. While reviewing the past, recounting its mercies, and seeking to gather up its lessons ; while recognizing the bless- ings and the obligations of the present, it is our privilege to look forward into the future, as men that watch for the morning-to look toward the great consummation, for which these centuries of Christian work have been preparing; for which the holy men of old have been labouring; for which the generations of godly people who have gone be- fore us have been praying and waiting. " When told one day in his old age that some of his friends had asked how it was possible for him to occupy his mind at Bedford, Jay replied with a smile, ' I have a long life to look back upon, and an eternity to look forward to.'" In that kingdom of God whose dawn we are permitted to behold; in that city which lieth four-square, there await us the faithful
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Ministers, the humble believers, the patient suffer- ers, the witnesses for Christ, who have gone before us. Let it be our care to follow them as they fol- lowed Him. Let it be our joy to remember, that though the workmen die, the work goes on !
MINISTERS OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
Rev. Thomas Denham, 1684-1689. Died
1689.
Joseph Morgan, 1699-1702.
Died after 1740.
John Jones, 1702-1705.
Died
1719.
William Tennent, 1720-1727.
Died
1745.
Henry Baldwin, 1728.
Died bef. 1740.
66 Robert Sturgeon, 1732-1743.
Died after 1750.
Samuel Sacket, 1743-1753.
Died
1784.
66 Eliphalet Ball, 1754-1768.
Died
1797.
6 6 Samuel Mills, 1769-1786.
Died
I813.
John Davenport, 1786-1791.
Died
I82I.
" Isaac Foster,
I792-1794.
Died
1807.
66 Samuel Blatchford, 1795.
Died
1828.
Josiah Henderson, 1798 -1803.
Died after 1822.
Ebenezer Grant,
1804-182I.
Died
I821.
Jacob Green, 1822-1848.
Died
1851.
David Inglis, 1848-1852.
Died
1877.
David C. Lyon, 1852-1857.
Peter B. Heroy,
1857-1878.
Died
1878.
" James H. Hoyt, I880.
·
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RULING ELDERS OF BEDFORD CHURCH,
SINCE THE ORGANIZATION OF THE PRESBYTERY OF DUTCHESS COUNTY, IN 1762.
1763. Ebenezer Miller.
1765. John Lawrence.
1768. Joshua Ambler.
I772. Jacob Smith.
1775. Stephen Clerk.
1784. Alexander Kidd .
I786. Moses St. John, ordained 5 Nov. Died 8 April, 1822,
.
1789. Eli Tyler, ordained 13 Dec. Died 10 Oct., 1828.
1789. Justus Harris, ordained 13 Dec.
I79I. Simeon Rider.
1800. Peter Fleming.
Died 31 Jan., 1823.
ISOO. Joseph Owen.
1800. Stephen Benedict.
1815. Aaron Read, ordained 19 Mar.
Died 9 Sept., 1854.
1815. Seth Lyon, ordained 19 Mar.
Died 31 Jan., 1878.
I820. Elias Hait, ordained - Oct.
1825. Joseph Silliman, ordained II Sept. Died 28 Sept., 1829.
1825. John Clark, ordained II Sept. Died 30 Aug , 1863.
1835. David Miller, ordained 2 Jan. Died 14 May, 1858.
1850. Alvah Howe, ordained - April.
Died 3 Oct., 1874.
1850. Phineas Lounsbery, ordained April. Died 26 Dec., 1878.
I865. Edward Raymond, ordained 5 Nov. Died 7 Mar., 1873.
I865. Solomon R. Lyon, ordained 5 Nov. Died 19 Mar., 1868.
I865. John G. Clark, ordained 5 Nov.
1865. St. John Owen, inducted 5 Nov.
1875. Daniel B. Finch, ordained 28 Feb.
1875. James H. Trowbridge, ordained 28 Feb.
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
1875. David Travis, ordained 28 Feb.
1875. Albert Williamson, ordained 28 Feb.
The early records of the Church having disappeared-de- stroyed, it is supposed, by fire, in 1779-no list of Elders can be given for the period prior to the organization of the Presbytery of Dutchess County. The first six names in the above list are taken from the records of that Presbytery : and the dates prefixed to them indicate the years in which the Elders named first appeared in Presbytery as delegates from Bedford Church.
ACCOUNT OF THE PROCEEDINGS
AT THE
BI-CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY
OF THE
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BEDFORD, N. Y.
THE services were held in the Church, at half-past one o'clock in the afternoon, and at seven o'clock in the even- ing, of Tuesday, the twenty-second day of March, 1881. The building was tastefully decorated, and on either side of the pulpit the names of the successive Ministers of the parish were inscribed. A large congregation, including many persons who had come from distant parts of the county, participated in the celebration. The service of song was conducted by a large and well-trained choir.
The afternoon service was opened with the Anthem, Benedic anima mea.
The Prayer of Invocation was then offered by the Pastor, and the Reverend C. W. Adams, D.D., read a portion of Holy Scripture.
The following Address was made by the Reverend Sam- uel Irenæus Prime, D.D. :
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
It is with peculiar enjoyment, although at some sacri- fice of feeling, that I have come to be with you. A train of most interesting associations is awakened by the occa- sion, and it is only because for a single hour in the course of these two hundred years my history touched yours, that I have been invited to participate in these services. It is now nearly fifty years since I preached my first sermon in the Bedford Presbyterian Church.
In the autumn of the year 1833, I was licensed to preach the Gospel by the Presbytery of Bedford, then in session.
Among the Ministers of the Presbytery at that time was the Rev. Jacob Green, who was your Pastor from 1822 to 1848.
Before we separated he was kind enough to ask me to come to Bedford and preach the same sermon on the next Sabbath day. The same sermon was the only sermon that I had, and therefore it must be that sermon or none.
It was the more encouraging and comforting to me to receive this invitation from Mr. Green, because he was es- timated to be one of the ablest, soundest, and most learned men of the Presbytery. Mr. Green was intensely orthodox. He was the nephew of Dr. Ashbel Green, a very distin- guished champion of orthodoxy in the Presbyterian Church, and formerly the President of Princeton College-one of the master minds in the Church ; and it was pleasantly re- marked of Jacob Green that he inherited from his uncle the legacy of orthodoxy, and felt religiously bound to " defend the trust ; " and he was abundantly able to do it.
He had all the tenacity of the soundest and ablest divines of that day, and of any day, and he was ready to "fight the fight " and to " keep the faith." When you bear in mind that Mr. Green did not ask me to come and preach
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
until he first heard the sermon, you will admire his cour- age as well as his kindness, while you will see that I had the more rcason to be gratified. The sermon was the fruit of more labour, prayer, and care than any discourse I have ever prepared since.
The text was not of my own choosing, but it was as- signed to me by the Presbytery, and yet it was one of a class of passages which of all in the Bible I would have preferred, had the selection been left to me ; but I thought it then, and still think it, one of the most comprehensive texts in the word of God to men, and I count it no small pleasure to be able to say, that when one of your members met me at the station this morning, and asked me to ride up here, he told me that he remembered hearing me preach, and he told me what the text was. Now I would like to know how many of you remember the text of a sermon that you heard forty years ago ?
The text has an extent and depth of meaning that no human mind can grasp, and it contains all that men may need to know and believe in order to inherit eternal life.
I have that sermon in my hand. If you will' bear with me for an hour or two I will read it to you. . But I do not perceive any encouraging response, and therefore I will content myself with simply saying that it is marked in the corner " No. I., Bedford, New York, Oct. 6th, 1833," and it has been lying in my study ever since. And if my health should be spared two years and a half longer it would give me great pleasure if you will give me the use of this church to come here and preach a sermon, the theme of which shall be " The past fifty years of the Presbyterian Church." I shall be glad to make such a review and make it on the spot where I began my ministry of the word of God. I remember that a criticism was made in the Presby-
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tery on the sermon by one of the members, who said, " The young man has tried to get the whole plan of salva- tion into the sermon, and has left nothing for him to say afterwards." The first sentence of the sermon is the whole Gospel plan of salvation.
" And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have eternal life."
And I have tried since never to preach a sermon without getting so much of the Gospel into it as to enable one who heard it to be saved thereby if he would. And that I think ought to be the desire of every man who undertakes to preach the word. And if I had another fifty years of preach- ing to do, beginning again with this text, I would preach "Christ and him crucified." Christ lifted up for men. And I would keep right on with that one great truth, in all its fulness and power, preaching it to the young and old, the learned and the unlearned, the rich and the poor ; the " great salvation " the "same yesterday, to-day and forever." Other men preach philosophy ; I will preach the Gospel. Other men may preach morality ; I will tell of salvation by faith in Christ. Others may tell the world that all men will finally be saved; but I will say that 'whosoever be- lieveth in Christ shall not perish but have eternal life "- and they shall perish if they do not believe.
This is not the same house in which I, a beardless boy, less than twenty-one years old, began my services in the ministry. I congratulate you on this beautiful sanctuary in which you celebrate your two hundredth anniversary. I honour and thank him to whose munificence you owe this beautiful structure, and I pray God that while in circum- stances of so much encouragement and enjoyment you gather in these courts to hold this anniversary, you may be-
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
gin a new era in the service of God. I pray that you may to-day consecrate yourselves, your children, your property anew to the service of Christ, and that generations yet un- born may here gather and celebrate that great sacrifice which God Himself made when He gave His Son for your salvation."
I pray that this pulpit may never give forth any un- certain sound in regard to the truths of the Christian re- ligion ; that here the honour of God may be sought in the promotion of His word, and that it may be said hereafter, as it has been said of the former house and of the various churches which have existed here, that this and that man, yea, that many were born here into the kingdom of God.
Let us pray.
"Almighty and most merciful God, our Father who art in Heaven, we thank Thee for the great privilege we enjoy of coming together in the courts of Thy house this day to record with gratitude all Thy blessings toward us, to rehearse the history of the past, to strengthen our hearts · and minds by reviewing the dealings of God's love toward us and toward our fathers before us from generation to gen- eration. We thank Thee that Thou hast here established a church, that in its infancy and through all the years of its history Thou hast been with it. We bless Thee for this long line of faithful men who have here preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ in sincerity and power. We thank Thee for a godly ancestry. We thank Thee for the institutions of religion, for all the ineans of grace which we enjoy ; and for the power which this church has exerted upon this community. And we pray that Thou wouldst continue to be with this church and people. May Thy servant, the present Pastor, derive strength from Thee, and may he go
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
forward in the great work to which he is called, and may his labors be crowned with abundant success.
" We pray for the Elders, that they may be men fearing God and rejoicing in the truth.
"We pray for the children of this church, that they may all be brought up in the fear of God, and learn the way of righteousness. And we beseech Thee, O God, that for ages to come this nation may be that happy people whose God is the Lord, erecting institutions of religion, preserving the truth in its purity, and rejoicing in the ser- vice of God ; and may Thy blessing come down upon the Church of Christ universal. Revive religion throughout our country ; fill all our churches with the glory of Thy grace, and may this people consecrate itself to Thee, that from our land may go forth into all lands the light of civil and of religious liberty and the glorious light of the Gospel of Thy Son until all the kingdoms of this world shall be- come the kingdoms of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Be with us in all the services that are before us. Clothe with power Thy servants who shall now address us in re- gard to the times that are past, and tell the way in which the Lord hath led this people ; and may all who speak to us to-day and this evening have help from on high, that this may be a great and good occasion, long to be remem- bered by those who are present.
" Hear us in these our prayers. Graciously answer and bless us, and finally save us all in that temple where we shall forever sing Thy praise, through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Redeemer. Amen."
The first hymn, "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Al- mighty," was then sung; and the Historical Discourse was delivered by Rev. Charles W. Baird, D.D. (See pre- ceding pages. )
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
The discourse was followed by the singing of the hymn "Nearer, my God, to Thee."
ADDRESS
BY THE
REV. WILSON PHRANER, D.D.,
Minister of the Presbyterian Church of Sing Sing, N. Y.
I HAVE always been accustomed to hear Bedford spoken of as a very retired and quiet country town. So far as my own personal knowledge and observation go, however, it would seem to be one of the liveliest and most enterpris- ing of places ; for whenever it has been my good fortune to be here there has always been some great event on hand -such as the laying of a corner-stone, or the dedication of a church, or the installation of a pastor. To-day we have the most unique and peculiar occasion of all, and one which seems most appropriately to have stirred the whole town from centre to circumference-namely, the celebra- tion of the bi-centennial of this Christian church-a grand occasion indeed, and one upon which I am glad to be with you, and in the public services of which I count it an honour and a privilege to participate.
As I was listening to the admirable historical address of Dr. Baird, it occurred to me that there was perhaps a special propriety in my being present here to-day. This is not the first bi-centennial celebration which I have attended. Nineteen years ago, in the year 1862, it was my privilege to be present at a service similar to this in the dear old church of Jamaica, L. I., to which your historian has made reference-the church in which I was born and with which I united in my childhood, and which
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
claims the proud distinction of being the oldest Presby- terian church in the United States. I cannot but recall to- day those former bi-centennial services in which I took part as a son of the church, one of the thirteen who had gone forth from that congregation into the Christian ministry. My special mission here to-day is to bear to you, my brethren, the cordial salutations and sincere and heartfelt congratulations of the Presbytery of Westchester, with which this church is connected. But before proceeding to speak as a representative of Presbytery, may I not extend to you the congratulations of the grand old Presbyterian church of Jamaica-that mother of churches and that fountain of supply for the Christian ministry. I am sure I shall be authorized and justified by that church in speak- ing in her behalf, and not only in conveying to you her salutations, but also in welcoming you to a share in the honour and distinction of being among the very earliest organized Presbyterian churches in the land.
If you will indulge me, I will make another personal allusion just here. I was touched by the reference of your historian to the last four Pastors who have occupied this pulpit-Green, Inglis, Lyon, Heroy-I knew them all. When, thirty years ago, I went to Sing Sing to enter upon my work there, I found the excellent Jacob Green and his wife in my congregation at Sing Sing, and received from them a very kind and cordial welcome, and though it was but a short time previous to his death, yet I learned greatly to respect and love him before he was called hence. It was my privilege to be with him in his last sickness, and to hear from his lips those very words which Dr. Baird has just quoted in connection with that wonderful vision, or revelation as he called it, of the future. It was mine to close his eres in death, and to attend his funeral services
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
at the church on the morning of the very day on which I was there installed Pastor, in the afternoon. His body was the first interred in our new cemetery, which was thus consecrated by being made the resting-place of the dust of so devout and excellent a man. Never shall I forget the impressive address of Dr. Spring as we stood around the open grave, and with that voice of unequalled beauty and power, he gave utterance to these words : " One goeth and another cometh." That dear old man finished his ministry just as I was about to enter upon mine, and thus has it ever been, "one goeth and another cometh." The time for individual labour and service is short-but, blessed be God, "though the workmen die, yet the work goes on ; " when one lays down the armour another takes it up.
But I have, as I have said, a special errand here to-day, and that is to bear to you the congratulations of the Pres- bytery with which you are connected. We have little perhaps to be proud of in our churches, but we have at least this distinction, of having a church which has com- pleted two hundred years of its history. In that history we rejoice with you to-day. We hail you as the "very ewel and crown of our Presbytery. We heartly congratu- late you upon the distinction whereunto you have attained, and we come with gratitude and thankfulness to unite with you in the special and interesting services of this occasion.
As I have been sitting here I have been thinking of the dignity and value of a Christian church-God's own ordi- nance. With all its imperfections, it is about the grandest thing in this poor sinful world of ours. A Christian church two hundred years old ! Just think of it ! Why, this church is the only living organization, yea, it is the only living thing, in this whole town of Bedford, which
7
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
has reached such an age. A tree or an edifice two hundred years old would have some interest for us, especially in this new country of ours ; we would turn aside to see it, and would look upon it with reverence. How much more, then, should we come up hither to celebrate the bi-centennial of this church of Jesus Christ ! Two hun- dred years of history, two hundred years of Christian experience and of Christian testimony, two hundred years of faith, two hundred years of prayer, two hundred years of instruction and of witness-bearing for God and His blessed Gospel ! No insignificant matter this. True, we have no means by which we can accurately measure the influence of this church in all these passing years, and yet we feel sure that that influence has been great for good, and for the enriching and blessing of this whole people. May I not assume that this church has been a leading element or factor in shaping and determining the character of this community ? Suppose you could de- stroy to-day the aggregate influence of the Christian church for these two hundred years, and what desolation would be evident ! Take out of your individual life the health- ful and helping influences which come to you by your relations to and association with the church of Christ, the influence of her instruction, of her worship, of her social gatherings, her prayers, her sacred communion and fellow- ship-take out of your life and mine, I say, all these, and what would there be left to make life worth the having ? You will agree with me, I am sure, when I say that the richest and purest joys of our life are those which we find in connection with the sacred and precious hours which we spend in the sanctuary of God, and in our association with His people. And so the influence and power of this church have been no mean factors in the education and
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HISTORY OF BEDFORD CHURCH.
instruction of this people, contributing largely to make them what they are, and to lift them to that position of honour and excellence in which they rejoice to-day ; and thus, also, as to its influence, not only for instruction, but for comfort and for consolation, for blessing in various forms. Ah, what precious associations stand connected with the church of Christ ! How precious and dear is she to our. hearts ! And so has it been throughout the whole his tory of this church and congregation, in the midst of which God's mercy and grace have been so often revealed and enjoyed in their preciousness and power. How many have here heard the word which has made them wise unto sal- vation ! Truly of "this and of that man " it may be said, he was born here, born to a new and better life, and to a nobler and grander destiny and hope than he had ever known before.
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