USA > Pennsylvania > Delaware County > A history of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and its people; Volume II > Part 2
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Calvary Episcopal Church was organized by Richard S. Smith, in an up- per room of his nail factory at Rockdale, Aston township. There was no other Episcopal church within five miles, so the mission was well attended. 1 Sunday school was all that was attempted at first, Mr. Smith acting as super- intendent, and his wife and daughters fulfilling the duties of teachers. Soon it was resolved to form a church congregation. Bishop Onderdonk authorized Kingston Goddard, a student of Divinity, to fill the offices of lay-reader at Rockdale, and, the field being promising, the Rev. Marmaduke Hurst was de- tailed as missionary, under the auspices of the Advancement Society, the church receiving the name of Calvary, and being admitted to representation in the Episcopal Convention. On August 18. 1836, Bishop Onderdonk laid the corner stone for a building, a movement which Mr. Smith had labored dili- gently to further. The basement was pushed to completion, and here church and Sunday school services were held until sufficient funds could be raised to finish the entire work. In 1868 the church was enlarged and in other ways improved, the whole being "as a thank-offering for the blessings of peace."
Rev. J. Coupland, rector of St. John's Church, Concord, held services at Chadds Ford. according to the Episcopal church ritual, at irregular intervals. as did his successor, Rev. J. J. Sleeper, but it was not until 1884 that St. Luke's Church was organized. J. M. Baker was largely instrumental in the erection of the church, the corner-stone of which was laid June 11, 1883. by Rev. W. H. Graff. of Philadelphia, and which was first used for divine ser- vice on May 1, 1884.
Another church dedicated to St. Luke was organized in Chester. Novem- ber 28, 1868, and was at first in the parish of St. Paul's Church. Rev. Henry Brown had charge of the chapel, for stich it was at first intended to be. The congregation began worship in the uncompleted building, as the construction fande had been exhausted. Thomas R. List, a student at the Philadelphia Di- vinity School, discharged the duties of lay-reader from May 8. 1870, to June
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19. 1873, when he was ordained as rector. In 1880 the entire debt of the church was paid, and work begun afresh on an unencumbered basis.
The ground upon which St. Martin's Episcopal Church of Birmingham township was later erected was given to the adherents of the Church of Eng- land by Walter Martin, a Friend of Upper Chichester, who had become em- bittered against his sect because of being "dealt with" according to the cus- toms of that society. In 1702 the few believers of that faith purchased a rude frame building, formerly a blacksmith shop, from John and Tobias Hendrick- son, for the sum of £5, which they moved to the ground granted them by Wal- ter Martin. The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts established it as a missionary station, in connection with St. Paul's of Chester and the church at Concord. In 1745 the old frame structure becoming insuf- ficient, a fund was raised and a small brick church erected, the old sanctuary coming into use as a school-house. In 1845, one hundred years later, the build- ing had fallen into such dilapidation that it was determined to build a new edi- fice, which was accordingly done, making the third building occupied by the congregation. In 1822, St. Martin's separated itself from St. Paul's parish, and has since continued as an independent organization. John Larkin Jr., in 1879 presented the church with a tract of two acres adjoining the old church- yard of St. Martin's, which had been crowded with the bodies of those who had fallen under the scythe of the Grim Reaper.
The Rev. Evan Evans first mentions what later became St. John's Epis- copal Church of Concord, in a letter dated London, September 18, 1707, in which he writes on "the state of the church in Pennsylvania, most humbly of- fered to the venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." In 1702 John Haunum donated a plot of ground at the northwest corner of his tract, on which to erect a church, and a log structure was built that year. In 1769 part of the proceeds of a lottery held in the province was assigned to St. John's, and with this sum a brick end was added to the church in 1773, and in 1790 a stone end was erected adjoining the brick section on the site of the frame building. Another addition was made in 1837, but on June 15. 1844, a new building was begun, since the scope of the church work had been so enlarged and widened that this step was made necessary. In this building was placed a large chancel window, a memorial to Bishop Onderdonk, whose long service had endeared him to the members of the church of which he was so sturdy a pillar.
On May 5, 1872, Rev. James S. Brooke, rector of St. George's Church, West End. officiated at the first services of St. Stephen's Church in Upper Darby, held in the village school-house, and on October 27 that year com- munion was administered for the first time, fourteen persons uniting. In May of the following year a Sunday school was organized, and led a pros- perous existence. The congregation was composed mainly of the mill-workers and their families, and although their slender incomes were not sufficient to support the mission in a pretentious manner, nevertheless, their earnest efforts were bent toward the realization of a church of their own. Oborn Levis
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donated several lots on the Baltimore turnpike, and enough money was raised to warrant the erection of a church, even with the handicap of a sum of money lost in the failure of the Franklin Savings Fund of Philadelphia. The corner stone was laid October 12, 1878, and on Sunday morning, March 16, of the following year, the house of worship was dedicated by Bishop Stevens, and, owing to the generous subscription, was able to begin its existence free from any hampering debt. The building was of pressed brick, stone trimmed, orna- mented with colored brick design, and finished inside with hard stained wood. On October 9, 1880, the corner stone of a Sunday-school and parish building was laid, with impressive exercises. The structure was the gift of Thomas A. Scott, then president of the Pennsylvania railroad. A brass tablet on its walls bears this inscription: "Erected in memory of Thomas A. Scott, Jr., who died Ascension Day, 1879. Of such is the Kingdom of God." Ground adjoining the church vestry was received by gift of Dr. R. A. Given and Thomas A. Scott, and thereon, in the fall of 1882, the erection of a rectory begun and the building completed the following year. The church grew rap- idly, and in the midst of the rapid increase in the population of Clifton Heights has been expanding its activities and has offered a church home to many who have accepted its offer of Christian fellowship, always carrying out its mission as an active instrument for good.
The first religions services in Media under the Episcopalian ritual, were helJ in the court house during the summer of 1853, the congregation later erecting Christ Church. From that time until the erection of a church edifice, services were held in the courthouse, and the Methodist church. Letters of incorporation were granted by the court of Delaware county, August 28, 1854. and the cornerstone of the church laid July 5, 1858, Right Rev. Alfred Lee, D. D., Bishop of Delaware, officiating. Consecration was made June 21, 1860, by Right Rev. Alonzo Potter, D. D., LL.D., Bishop of Pennsylvania, Right Re. Alfred Lee assisting. During the rectorship of Rev. Edward Lounsberry, Formerly of the diocese of lowa, a tower was built upon the church, and a pipe- organ installed. The young ladies of Brooke Hall made presentation of a chancel-rail and marble font. To meet the needs of the younger members of the parish, a Sunday school was organized, an institution which has grown steadily and prospered exceedingly from its inception.
Prior to the organization of the Church of the Good Shepherd, in Radnor township, the congregation frequently held divine service at Woodfield, while Sunday school was conducted at the house of Mrs. Supplee, in Radnor town- ship. At a meeting held in Wayne Hall, July 7, 1869, the parish was organized and services were begun there in July, 1869, Rev. H. P. Hay, D. D., being elected rector in the fall of that year, all former services having been con- ducted by supply clergymen. The corner-stone of the church was lain July 25, 1871, Bishop Stevens conducting the services. Mission services had been held in the public school-house, near Radnor station since 1869, but on July 25. 1880, Bishop Stevens officiated at the laying of the corner-stone of the Chapel of the Good Shepherd, which was completed the next year. A parish building
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and rectory have also been built on ground adjoining the Church of the Good Shepherd, the former in 1888, the latter, 1884. Various institutions have sprung up about this church, not the least important of which was the Hospi- tal of the Good Shepherd, opened formally by Bishop Stevens, on June 11, 1874, with accommodations for twelve children, to whose use the building is restricted. As proof of the need and usefulness of this hospital, two children were entered as soon as the institution was opened.
Christ Church of Media holds supervision over the Church of the Atone- ment, an Episcopal church erected in 1880. The early meetings were held at the home of Miss Sue Pearce, later in a cottage belonging to J. H. Irwin, who donated the lot upon which the church was built.
Presbyterian Churches .- Presbyterianism is the contribution of those sturdy settlers of Scotch-Irish descent to the religious life of this country. The denomination is widespread in its influence, embraces all sections of the land, and has as permanent, as extensive and as efficient an organization as any religious sect in the United States. The founding of this church in Chester county dates from shortly after 1718, as in that year the Scotch-Irish began their settlement, and it was characteristic of the people that the establishing of the church followed soon after or simultaneous with that of the home. The earliest church records have been destroyed, but it is highly probable that the church was founded in 1728 or early in 1729, as on April 1, 1729, the New Castle Presbytery, responding to the request of the people of Newtown to be permitted to build a church, acceded thereto, with the condition that the mem- bers would continue "a united congregation with Brandywine." In 1729 a log church was built in Middletown, although the land was not conveyed to the trustees until 1751, when the buikling is mentioned in the deed. It has been incontrovertibly established that a full organization of the church was effected and a meeting-house built in 1735, in which year Dr. Isaac Watts presented the "Protestant Dissenters" with a folio copy of one of Baxter's works. There was no regular pastor until 1770, and until that date services were held on an average of once a month. The congregation was widely scattered, many journeying ten or twelve miles to hear the two sermons preached on a Sunday, which, if the specimens which have been preserved to us intact are fair exam- ples, were not of the best. On May 10, 1762, Robert Mcclellan, one of the congregation, conveyed to William Lindsay, Hugh Linn, James Lindsay, John McMinn, James Black, Charles Linn, Joseph Black, James Hemphill, and Thomas Trimble, three-quarters of an acre of land for the use of a Presby- terian church, which was erected soon after. In 1770 Rev. James Anderson, a young man of twenty-one years of age, was called to the pulpit, spending almost all the years of his manhood in that service, until his death in 1793. In 1846 the ancient building was so out of repair that it was entirely rebuilt. and was used until 1879, when it was burned to the ground.
The Lower Brandywine Presbyterian Church was established in Birming- ham township in 1720, the first house of worship being a log structure. After the Revolution the site of the church home was moved to Centreville, Dela-
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ware, where services were held at the "old log meeting," as often as a speaker could be procured. June 3, 1878, a church was dedicated at Dilworthtown, and a short time afterward Sunday school work was begun.
Previous to 1850, the Presbyterian residents of Chester had been com- pelled to attend divine service conducted after the ritual of some other denom- ination than their own, since there was no Presbyterian church in the city. But in the fall of that year, Rev. James W. Dale began to hold services according to the Presbyterian formula in the court house, every Sunday after- noon, continuing for over a year, when, largely through the generosity of I. E. Cochran Sr., and Joseph H. Hinkson, a church was erected on ground donated by Mr. Cochran. The sanctuary has been considerably enlarged and remodeled since its erection.
The founding of the Chester City Presbyterian Church was a direct out- growth from the establishment of a Sunday school in the western end of the city, designed to meet the necessity for religious instruction among the chil- (Iren of that neighborhood. On December 14, 1862, the school was organized in the Academy building, and so rapid was its growth that it was determined to enlarge the works so as to include the adult population. To this end. Thomas Reaney, of the firm of Reaney, Son & Archbold, erected a building and tendered it to the congregation as his contribution, the expense of the fur- nishing being borne jointly by Mr. Reaney and Mr. Perkins. Until the com- pletion of the church proper, worship was held in the lecture room, after organization had been effected under the direction of the Presbytery of Phil- adelphia. The first pastor was the Rev. Martin P. Jones, who was called in 1866.
The Third Presbyterian Church of Chester was organized as a result of division in the First Presbyterian Church, the organization first named holding their early services in a Sunday school mission erected by the latter body. The congregation in 1873 enlarged and rebuilt the structure at a cost of $15,000 and dedicated it October 5 that year.
The Presbyterian Church of Darby Borough was organized by the con- gregation of the mission conducted by the Darby or Knowle's Presbyterian Church of Darby, during the pastorate of Rev. J. Addison Whittaker. Ser- vices were first held in the public school house, and in January, 1854, a fund had been raised for the erection of a church building. In 1858 the edifice was completed and ready for use. In 1862 a parsonage was built on a lot adjoining the church. In the course of all this improvement and advancement. the church had contracted a heavy debt, the dissipation of which in 1873 was marked by a joyous jubilee meeting. There is a large Sunday school con- neeted with the church, which, under excellent management, has been a force of inestimable potency in the preparation of the younger generations for the assumption of the duties and responsibilities of church work. Charles O. Baird, son of Matthew Baird, erected a handsome stone chapel in the spring of 1881 as a monument to the honored memory of his father and mother. The dedicatory sermon was preached by Rev. Dr. Cattell, of Princeton.
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The first services of what later grew into the Presbyterian Church of Media, were held in a room over John C. Beatty's store, the Rev. Dale, pas- tor of the Middletown Presbyterian Church, officiating. Soon after, before a church was built, a Sunday school was organized, with Mr. Beatty's home as a meeting place. The corner-stone of the church was laid July 4, 1854, on a site of one acre donated by Mr. Beatty, who was the moving spirit. On October 11, 1855, the church, of Doric design, was dedicated amid most impres- sive ceremonies. Since then the church has prospered, and its value to the community is inestimable. With its increasing financial prosperity, a parson- age was erected adjoining the church.
One of the church structures erected about the middle of the 19th century, to which more than usual interest was attached, was that built at Todmor- den, by William T. Crook, for the benefit of the employees of his mills. The building was erected to serve not only as a church, but was provided with reading, school, and lecture rooms. It was dedicated September 30, 1850, and marked a new epoch in the relations between employer and men which boded well for peaceful and profitable business, as well as inspiring and helpful social and religious work.
From public services held in Wayne Hall, beginning Sunday, June 5, 1870. and the organization of a Sunday school on June 19, of the same year, grew what came to be known as the Wayne Presbyterian Church of Radnor town - ship. On June 21, 1870, a meeting preliminary to church organization was held in Wayne Hall, and commissioners appointed by the Presbytery met in the same place three days later, organizing the Wayne Presbyterian Church, with a membership of nine. A call was extended to Rev. S. P. Linn to become pastor, which he accepted, and was duly installed on July 5, 1870. Until the completion of the church edifice, for which ground was broken March 21, 1870, meetings were held each Sabbath morning in Wayne Hall. The laying of the corner-stone was performed by Rev. John Chambers, Rev. R. H. Allen, D. D., Rev. John McLeod and Rev. T. J. Aiken, assisting. At the dedication services on December 8, 1870, the sermon was preached by Rev. Charles Wadsworth, D. D. The building and ground was the gift of J. Henry Askin. Esq., whose deep and heartfelt interest in the church life found its outlet in the presentation of this handsome sanctuary. A parsonage was likewise the gift of Mr. Askin, a building which was recently sold and another, more spacious than the first, erected. The various departments of church work, foreign and home missionary, guild, and Christian Endeavor societies, as well as a large Sunday school, are in excellent and efficient working order, producing remarkable results.
Before the erection of the Ridley Park Presbyterian Church in 1876, two attempts had been made to establish there a church of that denomination, but both had failed, the first by Rev. Ewing, in 1873, when he held Sunday afternoon services in the depot; and the second, by Rev. J. E. Alexander, in 1874. In the latter year Mr. Smith, superintendent of Ridley Park, tendered the use of the hotel dining room for Sunday school services during the win -
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ter, an offer which was gratefully accepted. The next year, after securing the services of Dr. Grier for a year, a movement was inaugurated for a church organization. A stone church of Gothic architecture was erected, Rev. Dr. M. Grier and Rev. Mowry, of Chester, conducting the services.
Baptist Churches .- Delaware county boasts of the third Baptist church erected in Pennsylvania a log structure built in 1718, when the church organi- zation, formed in 1715, had outgrown the homes of its various members as meeting places. It is said that religious services were held on the same ground in Birmingham township twenty-five years previous to the crection of the church, but this is merely tradition. In 1770 the primitive building was razed and a stone structure erected on its site, which did duty until 1876, when the third church home of the congregation was dedicated. Several of the pas- tors have been graduates of the county's Baptist educational institution, Cro- zer Theological Seminary, their endeavors and labors casting a worthy reflec- tion upon their alma mater.
A church erected in the interests of Methodism, May 17, 1860, later becoming a Church of England mission, was purchased by Mrs. Sarah K. Crozer, and for ten years was conducted as a mission by the Crozer Theolog- ical Seminary, the students of the seminary filling the pulpit. In 1881 it was released from its dependency and became a separate church, Rev. Miller Jones being the first pastor, and has since flourished exceedingly well.
A mission under the control of the Upland Baptist Church was estab- lished at Bridgewater in 1874, on a lot purchased from Samuel Haigh & Com- pany. The services are held by students from Crozer Theological Seminary, an arrangement satisfactory to both parties, as the cost of maintenance of the church is considerably lessened by this plan, and the students acquire practical speaking experience.
The first services held in Chester by Baptist clergymen were conducted by itinerant ministers at irregular intervals, and it was not until 1854 that ser- vices were had at regularly stated times, when Rev. William Wilder, of the Upland Baptist Church, established worship in the court house, this continuing as a meeting place for four years. In 1858 John P. Crozer donated land which he had kept idle until the time should come when it could be used for a Baptist church. In the summer of that same year Benjamin Gartside built a chapel for temporary use, at his own expense, and herein worship was held every Sunday afternoon. In the spring of 1863 an effort was made to have a build- ing erected, unsuccessful because of the excitement attendant upon the inva- sion of the north by Lee's army, but in the fall of that year, September 24. the chapel was dedicated as the First Baptist Church of Chester, and Rev. Levi G. Beck was called as its first pastor, May 24, 1864. In the same year a sufficient sum of money was pledged for the building of a house of worship. proceedings were begun, and July 2, 1864, the corner stone was laid. By fall the structure was so far advanced that the lecture room was put into imme- diate use, and in the fall following the entire building was ready for occu- pancy, but as the congregation had decided that the main part of the church
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should not be used while it was under a debt of any kind, the large auditorium remained unused for several weeks, when the debt of $16,000 was paid in full. On December 28, 1865, amid great rejoicing, the dedication services were held, Rev. J. Wheaton Smith, D. D., officiating.
John P. Crozer, prominent in Baptist enterprises and institutions, and founder of Crozer Theological Seminary, in 1851 began the erection of a Bap- tist church in Upland borough, a locality which had previously been depend- ent upon the chance of a Baptist clergyman being in the vicinity to conduct worship. In March, 1852, the edifice was dedicated, and November 17, 1852, when it was fully completed, prominent Baptist church dignitaries publicly recognized it as a house of worship, Rev. John Duncan occupying the pulpit as the first pastor. In 1860 and 1873 extensive additions and alterations were made to the original building, and not only did the church grow and prosper at home, but caused its influence to be felt abroad by the establishment of four missions,-at Leiperville, Bridgewater, Village Green and South Chester.
At a meeting held at the home of James Irving, in North Chester bor- ough, a few representative Baptists of the locality decided upon the erection of a church. This was later done, the sanctuary being the gift of James Irv- ing. The dedication services were held in June of 1873.
The Baptist Church of Marcus Hook was organized May 3, 1789, with seventeen members, the funds for the church edifice being raised by popular subscription. The cost of the building was £164 16s. 12d. The church was admitted into the Philadelphia Baptist Association, October 6, 1789. When the original building had outlived its usefulness, a new one was erected, the corner-stone of which was laid September 10, 1853. The evening of the day of the corner-stone laying, the box deposited in the stone was broken open and despoiled of its contents.
In October, 1832, several Baptist residents of Newtown township and the neighboring region met at the residence of Deacon Samuel Davis, in Haver- ford, to discuss the organization of a Baptist church. Meetings had been held in the locality by H. G. Jones, Joseph H. Kennard, William S. Hall, and others. before the existence of the Newtown Baptist Church, but this was the first concerted effort at organization. At a meeting held November 10, 1832, at Dr. Gardiner's residence, the church was organized. Letters of dismissal from various churches were read, a church covenant and articles of faith were agreed to and signed, and, on behalf of the church, Dr. Gardiner was given the right hand of fellowship. Before a church was erected, meetings were held in the upper part of Dr. Gardiner's carriage house, while his daughters organized a Sunday school, using the house as a place of meeting. Immedi- ately after his ordination in 1834. Rev. Samuel J. Creswell was installed as pastor, and August 30 that year a house of worship was dedicated, Rev. H. G. Jones. of Lower Merion, officiating.
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