USA > New York > Oneida County > History of Oneida County, New York : from 1700 to the present time, Volume I > Part 37
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
outside, and note how the little church kept steadily up with the great questions of the day. Under Mr. Allen, strong resolutions were adopted on the subject of intemperance, then growing into notice as a gigantic enemy. With Mr. Blodget as chairman, resolutions were passed disapproving of slavery and condemn- ing as unchristian the 'investment of monies in any steamboat, railroad, stage or canal company which does common business on the Sabbath day.' While Mr. Clark was here-1832-a new church was begun. It was voted that the trustees, Horace Bartlett and Tillinghast Simmons, be directed to purchase of Jesse Thomson, a lot adjoining the land of Shubal Smith, for the sum of $200. This is the present site of our church. The old meeting house was sold to help defray the expenses of the new one, which was to be 'similar to the Madi- son meeting house with a circular gallery and one seat all around.' It was at this meeting that resolutions were passed appropriating $2.00 towards repairs in the burying ground, and directing the trustees to forbid any person from 'pasturing in it horses, cattle or hogs,' instructing them that hereafter it was to be rented only for pasturing sheep! After Mr. Steele's death the number of members steadily decreased. From 193 there were only 80 when Rev. S. W. Brace was called in 1848. His work seemed greatly blessed and the membership increased to 135.
"Our congregation today consists largely of two generations. The eldest of the first generation still remember the close of Mr. Brace's labors-five names being yet on the church roll which were there then. Upon his resignation the trustees, Ralsamon Seymour and Harvey Head, were instructed to secure the services of Rev. S. M. Campbell, then a licentiate of Ithaca Presbytery. He accepted the call in June, 1850, and in December of the same year was ordained and installed pastor of the church-the first settled pastor for thirty years. He was a young man of only 27, but possessed of brilliant talent, and brought to the work the zeal and enthusiasm born of the consecration of youth to the work of the Master. The church was perfectly united and felt the impulse of a pastor really its own, and many still look back to the time of his ministry with thankful hearts for the good accomplished. He remained for seven years, and when he accepted a call to Westminster church, Utica, he left many warm friends. The last year of his stay $457 was given to benevolent objects, besides paying his salary of $700. On one Thanksgiving day he preached a historical sermon, concluding with these words, 'When some future and perhaps unborn chronicler shall tell the story of our times to the new congrega- tion which then shall worship in this temple, may he be able to say of us as I say to-day of our fathers, "Well done, good and faithful servants." The pres- ent 'chronicler' lay a wee baby two miles away when he spoke these words, but to-day, after the lapse of years sufficient to bear witness to the lasting good then done, he does not hesitate to speak the 'Well done' for both Mr. Campbell and the faithful men and women who that day were his co-laborers. For 34 years since he left us, Mr. Campbell has preached constantly and with increas- ing success, and to-day in Minneapolis he still lives to tell the story of the risen Chirst. Thirty-four brief years, and still of all those whose names he speaks so tenderly in the letter you heard read this morning, only eight remain to-day on our church roll. While he was here 40 members were added to the church;
SAMUEL W. FISHIER. D. D.
REV. WILLIAM GIBSON
1
REV. WILLIAM E. KNOX, D. D., ROME
REV. ALOYSIUS MURPHY ROME
DANIEL G. COREY, D. D.
REV. H. H. PEABODY ROME
REV. WILLIAM BEECHAM ROME
PHILOMAN H. FOWLER, D. D.
H. S. N. CLARKE, D. D.
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
the parsonage-now occupied by Mr. Hannon-was bought, and the basement of the church was made into a session room. This basement brought on a sad calamity. A lamp was hung too near the plastering overhead, and October 5, 1856, just after an evening service, the church was burned to the ground, nothing being saved but the large Bible and Hymn book from the pulpit. The Episcopal church was kindly offered in which to hold services Sunday p. m., and the offer was very gratefully accepted. The Sunday school and prayer meetings were held in the schoolhouse. We almost wonder that the courage of the church did not utterly fail. But the old Puritan blood was as true as ever. In the councils we find the names of men we have honored from our childhood-Horace Bartlett, Ezekiel Pierce, Harvey Head, Carlos Simmons, Joshua Tompkins, Val Pierce, John Bailey, Samuel Bishop, Forbes Head, Mil- ton Simmons, George Bartlett, Thomas Bosworth, John Brooks, Russell Kil- bourne-who of us can wonder that in one year and two months after the fire, this new church building in which we to-day gather was finished and formally dedicated December 23, 1857. Old friends absent but still interested, assisted in the furnishing. Chairs were given by Wm. Bartlett of Clinton; chandelier by O. S. Head, Kenosha; lamps by Dr. David Bishop, Lockport; sofa by Oren and Daniel Head; communion service by F. A. Scofield, Wisconsin, and a Sun- day school library by Mrs. S. M. Huntley, Oakland, Cal.
"Rev. Geo. Bronson was called after Mr. Campbell's resignation, and many speak yet of his genial presence and that of his gentle voiced little wife. He remained three years, and was followed by Rev. W. W. Warner, Mr. Fine, Archibald Crawford and Mr. Ward, each of whom remained but a short time. Mr. Warner will be well remembered by many as a man of eminent piety, a most peaceable disposition, and one who might fitly contest with Moses the claim to the title 'the meekest man.' He was with us when the war broke out. Every one's patriotism was at the highest, and suppressed excitement was noticeable in the congregation as it gathered for the usual Sunday service. Great was the surprise of all present, when Mr. Warner in his prayer for the nation, asked that the Lord would 'make our generals as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves !'
"September 15, 1865, Rev. H. F. Dudley accepted a call. Impulsive and warm-hearted, he won the hearts at once of old and young. Frank to a fault, perhaps, he feared nothing he believed it his duty to preach. By his intense interest in the amusements and affairs of the young people, he drew them into such near relations with himself as made it easy to lead them to trust in the Divine Friend who was so strongly exemplified in his own life. Many of us remember the 'Children's Prayer Meeting' he instituted, and his words of counsel and earnest sympathy turned many childish feet into paths of future usefulness. Universal was the sorrow, when a call to a wider field took him from us after two years, and very sincere was our grief when a few years since we received news of his death, in the very prime of life.
"Rev. M. P. Wilder next filled the desk for one year, and was succeeded by Rev. E. S. Brooks, December, 1868. For four years Mr. Brooks remained, growing each year into the affections of his people. Quiet and unobtrusive in his ways, his sermons were always helpful and full of Christian counsel, and Vol. 1-20.
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
under his care the church grew steadily in numbers and in Christian love. The old parsonage needing many repairs, it was sold, and the house owned by Mr. Haswell, on the east side of the green, directly opposite the church, was bought, thoroughly repaired, and Mr. Brooks and his family comfortably estab- lished in it. The benevolent contributions nearly doubled. In the fall of 1872, while spending his vacation in Elgin, Ill., there came suddenly the news of his death. The intelligence fell with crushing effect upon the entire church. In all the 81 years of its history, never before had an acting pastor been re- moved by death. So wholly had the people come to depend on his wise guidance that none seemed ready to assume the dropped responsibility. Those who had formerly carried the burdens had grown old in the service and felt no longer like assuming leadership. The parsonage was sold and the money put out at interest. For a year everything seemed paralyzed. Then Rev. B. F. Willoughby, at the time pastor of the Sauquoit Presbyterian church, was engaged to preach on Sunday afternoons and for eight and one-half years faithfully came up the hills in sunshine or storm. With his time fully occupied in his own parish, there was little time to spare for this one through the week, and the church at last woke to the great need which could only be supplied by a pastor of its own. Rev. F. A. Valentine was called, and after five months the association convened here and ordained him to the Gospel ministry, but at the end of the year he was dismissed.
"The long-tried courage of the church now well nigh failed. Without a minister, greatly reduced in numbers, it seemed a question whether its work was not finished. But God, whose watchful care has been evident through all the dark hours in this history, answered the question in His own way. He had already prepared the man who was to lead His people, and November 1, 1882, Rev. Wallace E. Mather accepted a call, and with his family settled in the new parsonage. This parsonage was bought during that year; the house and lot at the south end of the green, between the Bridgewater and Waterville roads. His work lies too close about us for criticism. The results of his life among you are easily seen in the prosperity, both temporal and spiritual, and these results will stand out more clearly when another century has rolled away, and a new people look back from that far away 1991 to these records of to-day. With little physical strength, his intense spiritual nature prevaded all his work and made itself felt through every one with whom he came in contact. Quietly he went among his people and they were stimulated to new life. His courage and faith in the work the church had yet to do never faltered, and each member gradually woke to find this same faith strong in himself. There could be but one result. Though no great revival followed the congregation steadily increased, and the spiritual life of the church grew with every year. The work done in the last decade which rounds out this one hundred years shows the power which lies always in earnest, continuous, self-denying labor. A literary club was formed, and its meetings proved beneficial in many ways, uniting pastor and people and bringing many bright and helpful spots into the routine of country life.
"Much good was done in Sunday school work. One school was opened in the 'Porter District,' one in the 'Beckwith District,' and another at Bethany ;
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all of which with the home school were cared for by the young people, under Mr. Mather's supervision, Mr. Amos H. Towne remaining superintendent of the home school. This work required much self-sacrifice, but time and money were given cheerfully, and who can estimate the far-reaching influences which begun with the 'word fitly spoken' in those Sunday school classes? Benevolent objects outside the church had their full share of prayerful interest. Systematic contributions were made each alternate month for some one of the existing boards, and 'Freely ye have received, freely give' became the text of many hearts. The envelope system was suggested, and so successfully established that despite 'hard times' the Pastor's salary was never in arrears. When Mr. Mather came the church had only fifty members-the smallest number ever recorded-and though many families moved away and an unusual number of deaths occurred, still the little church not only held its own, but the roll to- day numbers eighty-four, and the good work still goes on. At his suggestion a brief and simple confession of faith was adopted, the covenant and rules of the church were changed and new ones formulated, better adapted to the needs of the 19th century. The Young People's Society, which he organized, is a tower of strength which the church has not had for many years. With faith in your pastor and an unwavering trust in the God of your fathers, you have built in this community a memorial which shall be an inspiration to all coming generations."
CLINTON CHURCH-The third church of any denomination organized within the county was at Clinton. This church was originally organized with the Con- gregational form of government in the month of August, 1791. Religious meet- ings had been maintained on the Sabbath and other times from the first settle- ment of the town in March, 1787. Occasional preaching services were held by Rev. Samuel Kirkland, Rev. John Sergeant, Jr., and Rev. Samuel Occum, missionaries among the neighboring tribes of Indians. These services were sometimes held in the log houses of the inhabitants, and often in their more spacious barns. In the summer of 1791, by the advice of Rev. Dan Bradley, of New Hartford, Rev. Dr. Jonathan Edwards of New Haven, Ct., was invited to visit Clinton for the purpose of organizing a church in this place. A few weeks afterward (September 1, 1791), a religious society was formed, called "The Society of Clinton," of which Moses Foote, Eli Bristol, Ebenezer Butler, Jr., Hannaniah Ellinwood, Ebenezer Selye and Samuel Tuttle were elected the trustees. For some time after the organization of the church and society, Rev. Mr. Tracy was employed as the stated preacher of the congregation. In the summer of 1793, Rev. Asahel S. Norton of Chatham, Ct., was invited to be- come the minister of this people. He was ordained, and installed pastor of the church September 18, 1793. The services were held in the open air on the village green, near the site of the present fountain. His salary was fixed at "one hundred pounds, lawful money," or 333 and 1-3 dollars. This con- tinued to be the amount of his salary for twenty years, when it was increased to $600, and there it remained during the rest of his ministry.
A log building of moderate size having been erected on the village common in 1792, furnished a place for holding religious worship on the Sabbath. Meet-
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
ings for prayer and conference were also maintained here and at other places during the week. During the summer of 1796 this building was removed, and the frame of a larger church edifice put up on the same site and enclosed. It was not finished until the spring of 1801, but was used as a place of worship as soon as the floor was laid and temporary seats were provided. In the year 1833 this building was taken down, and a stone church soon after erected. In November, 1833, Rev. Dr. Norton resigned his pastoral charge. Rev. Moses Chase was installed pastor July 22, 1835. February 26, 1840, Rev. Wayne Gridley was installed pastor. His health failing, he was dismissed Septem- ber 26, 1845. Rev. Robert G. Vermilye, D. D., was installed over this parish June 10, 1846. During his ministry the church edifice was remodeled and the parsonage erected. In October, 1857, Dr. Vermilye was invited to the Pro- fessorship of Theology in the seminary at East Windsor, Ct., which invitation he accepted, and in November following resigned his pastorate in Clinton. In March, 1858, Rev. Edward Y. Swift of South Hadley, Mass., was installed pastor of the church, and continued in that relation until June, 1862. In December, 1863, a call was given to Rev. Albert Erdman to become pastor of the church, and on March 23, 1864, he was duly installed. During Mr. Erdman's ministry the church became Presbyterian in its form of government, and, hav- ing been dismissed from the Oneida Association, was received under the care of the Presbytery of Utica, May 11, 1864. Having accepted a call to Morris- town, N. J., Mr. Erdman resigned his charge, and the pastoral relation was dissolved by the Presbytery February 22, 1869. In July, 1869, a call was extended to Rev. Thomas B. Hudson of North East, Pa. In October follow- ing Mr. Hudson entered upon his labors, and on the 12th of January, 1870, was duly installed pastor of the church.
On July 10, 1876, the church was burned. A new one was immediately erected, which was dedicated February 14, 1878. Rev. W. Cortland Robinson became pastor in 1892 and served until 1896. He was followed by Rev. Robert C. Hallock, D. D., who served from 1896 to 1906. The church then called Rev. Henry White, who is a native of Holland Patent, in this county, was educated at Hamilton College, and who accepted the pastorate in 1906, and still fills the pulpit.
It is extremely difficult to get authentic information in regard to the organi- zation and dissolving of the Congregational churches of the county. There have been in the county of Oneida Congregational churches organized in many places, but they have in nearly all instances changed to Presbyterian or be- come extinct. A Congregational church was organized in Annsville in 1820, but ceased to exist about 1878. Churches were also organized at Bridgewater in 1798; Camden in the same year; West Camden in 1851; Florence Hill, Camroden, (Welsh) ; Kirkland, Lee Center, and elsewhere in the town of Lee; Marcy; Hanover Green, in the town of Marshall; Deansboro; Remsen, (Welsh) ; Sangerfield Center; Waterville, (Welsh) ; Steuben, (Welsh) ; Holland Patent; Trenton, two, both Welsh; Prospect, (Welsh) ; changed to an English Congregational church within the past few years; and is in a very prosperous condition; Vernon Center; two in Verona; Westmoreland; Lowell; New York Mills, (Welsh) ; Bethesda church, Utica, (Welsh) ; The First Religious Society
First Methodist Episcopal Church
6
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First Presbyterian Church, The first church organized in Utica
Christ Reformed Church
Church of the Redeemer (Lutheran)
Church of Recouciliation (Universalist)
GROUP OF UTICA CHURCHES
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
of Rome was organized as a Congregational church, but changed to Presby- terian in 1819; a Welsh Congregational church was organized in Rome about 1863; in 1883 a Congregational church was organized in Utica, known as Ply- mouth Congregational church, and is at the present time in a prosperous con- dition.
PRESBYTERIAN-Although the first organized church was at New Hartford, Protestant religious services were held in Whitesboro prior to any in that portion of the town of Whitestown which afterward became the village of New Hartford. As early as 1786 the Rev. James Carr, a Presbyterian minister, commenced public worship at Whitesboro. In 1794 a church was organized under the name of United Congregation of Whitestown, and August 22, the Rev. Bethuel Dodd was installed its pastor, it being stipulated that he should officiate two-thirds of the time in Whitesboro and one-third in Utica, each place to contribute to the support of the minister in proportion to the amount of services received. Within a short time this arrangement was given up, and Mr. Dodd remained at Whitesboro. The congregation in Utica was incorporated as a different society November 15, 1805, and the communicants of the two organi- zations were separated, one being located at Whitesboro and the other in Utica. The Rev. James Carnahan, D. D. LL. D., was settled over the one church but two societies, and preached alternately in Whitesboro and in Utica. In October, 1812, he resigned, having been elected president of Princeton College, and he remained at the head of that institution until his death. The services in Utica were held in a schoolhouse on Main street until 1803, at which time the frame of Trinity church was erected, and the Presbyterian congregation met alter- nately with the Episcopalians in that building for some time. In 1807 a build- ing was erected at the corner of Liberty and Washington streets; an addition was made in 1815, and in 1827 a very fine brick church was completed on the old site. This building had a spire 215 feet high. On January 13, 1851, it was entirely destroyed by an incendiary fire. A still more commodious build- ing was erected in 1852 on the corner of Columbia and Washington streets. This building still stands, and is the most commodious Protestant church in the county. The Rev. Samuel Aikin was called as pastor of the church, and filled the pulpit very acceptably for several years, when he received a call to Cleve- land, Ohio, which he accepted, and served the Cleveland church up to the time of his death. The pastors of this church who attained the greatest celebrity were Rev. Philemon H. Fowler, D. D., and Rev. Samuel D. Sprecher, D. D. The former occupied the pulpit for more than twenty years with great accep- tability, and in 1872 the Rev. Samuel D. Sprecher was called as co-pastor with Dr. Fowler. Dr. Fowler, during the time of his pastorate, held a very high position in the Presbyterian church; was moderator of the New School Presby- terian general assembly when the two branches of the Presbyterian church were united at Pittsburg, Pa. He was a ripe scholar, excellent pastor, and a preacher of good ability. Dr. Sprecher was called from the Lutheran church in Albany, was at the time about 32 years of age, and occupied the pulpit until 1880. He was one of the great preachers of the Presbyterian church. At the time of his pastorate the Spiritualists had become very strong in the county. They
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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY
had very large religious assemblies, and published the largest newspaper issued in the city of Utica. Dr. Sprecher announced that he would preach a series of sermons against spiritualism, which he did on alternate Sunday evenings, and these services were attended by great numbers of people. After the series of sermons was ended spiritualism was dead in the city of Utica, and it has never raised its head there since. Dr. Sprecher in 1880 accepted a call to the Presbyterian church of Oakland, California, and from there to the Presbyterian church in San Francisco. A few years afterwards he was called to the Euclid Avenue Presbyterian church of Cleveland, Ohio. After accepting that call he was asked to take the pulpit of Henry Ward Beecher's Plymouth church in Brooklyn temporarily, and as a candidate for the position formerly occupied by Mr. Beecher. This request he declined, for, having accepted the call at Cleveland, he did not consider it as honorable to consider any position other than that which he had accepted. He died in Cleveland in 1910. Dr. Sprecher was succeeded by Robert L. Bachman, who filled the pulpit for about seven- teen years, when he resigned to accept a call to Knoxville, Tennessee. He was suc- ceeded by Rev. Ralph W. Brokaw, D. D.
WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH -This church was organized in Utica July 23, 1844, and Rev. Joshua H. MeIlvaine was the first pastor. The church purchased the Universalist church building on Devereux street, and services were held in that church until it was totally destroyed by fire, when services were held in the court house. The second minister was Rev. Hugh S. Dickson, who was installed October 31, 1848. In 1855 the church building now occupied by the society was completed at a cost of about $35,000. In 1858 Rev. Samuel M. Campbell was installed as pastor of the church, but resigned the pastorate and accepted a call to the Central church of Rochester, and Rev. Samuel H. Fisher, D. D., president of Hamilton College, was installed pastor November 15, 1866. Dr. Fisher held one of the foremost places among the ministers of the Presbyterian church in the United States. He had been moderator of the general assembly, and was counted as one of the ablest, if not the most able preacher in the entire Presbyterian church in the country. His capacity for work was prodigous, and in connection with his duties as pastor delivered lectures and addresses to public assemblies throughout the country, which over- taxed his powers, and he was stricken in the pulpit while delivering one of his powerful sermons, never entirely recovering from the stroke, although he lived for several years thereafter. Dr. Fisher was stricken May 11, 1870. Rev. Thomas J. Brown, D. D., was installed as pastor October 11, 1871. He was a most successful pastor, and "died in the harness." He was followed in the pastorate by Rev. Israel N. Terry, D. D., who died suddenly in 1910, and was greatly lamented, not only by the members of his own church, but by the entire city of Utica. He was followed in 1910 by Rev. J. Howard Hobbs, who is the present pastor.
THE MEMORIAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF UTICA (so called since 1883) was organized as the West Utica Presbyterian church February 10, 1868. It was the outgrowth of a Mission Sunday school which had been conducted in the
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western part of the city for twenty years, namely, from February 13, 1848. For this school a building was finally erected on Court street, and this opened the way for church organization. The church mentioned used this chapel as its home until 1884. The thirty charter members were dismissed by action of the First Presbyterian church of Utica from their membership, with hearty approval of the session and of the pastor, Rev. Philemon H. Fowler, D. D., on January 25, 1884. This church, with name changed, entered into possession of a spacious, beautiful house of worship, built of stone on lots adjoining the chapel, corner of Court street and Sunset avenue, erected by Theodore S. Sayre, a member of the church, as a memorial to his parents and as an ex- pression of his interest in the work done by the church and the school. The building is an ornament to the city. The church has continued in growth and in influence for truth and righteousness. Its pastors have been: Rev. John W. Whitfield, 1868-1874; Rev. Albert F. Lyle, 1874-1876; and Rev. Dana W. Bigelow, D. D., 1877 to the present date.
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