USA > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia County > Philadelphia > Annals of Philadelphia, and Pennsylvania in the olden time; being a collection of the memoirs, anecdotes, and incidents of the earliest settlements of the inland part of Pennsylvania, Vol. III > Part 11
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The Character of Penn.
science. He defended the liberties of Englishmen. He defended the privileges of jurymen. His first plea for toleration was in behalf of the sect with which he had the least sympathy. In obedience to his convictions of the truth of the creed he professed he endured the anger of his father, the loss of a peerage, separa- tion from home, opprobrium and contumely from men, and fre- quent and prolonged imprisonment. While his spirit was being purified by suffering, his mind was being widened by high con- verse with John Locke and Algernon Sidney; and at last, when all obstacles to the trial of the experiment of his principles of gov- ernment upon a virgin soil were overcome, he could truthfully exclaim, as he received the royal charter for his Province : "God hath given it to me in the face of the world. . . .. He will bless and make it the seed of a nation." It was therefore very pre- cious freight which the good ship "Welcome" brought to these shores the day whose anniversary we celebrate, for it carried the sublime religious and political principles of William Penn and the illimitable influences of his wise and beneficent government, whose corner-stone was civic peace, born of justice, and whose cap-stone was religious liberty, born of toleration. There was doubtless much in his life which was inconsistent with the highest standards of the religion he professed, but this inconsistency he shared with every man who professes the Christian faith, and the contradictions in his career are easily reconciled in the light of his youth and early manhood; but his virtue and his glory are his alone, for in the seventeenth century he discovered and proclaimed the political utility of liberty, of justice, of peace, of a free press, and a liberal system of education-the principles on which rest the blessings of the present and the hopes of the future of the human race. Whenever, therefore, we are pained with the perusal of the sad record of his later years, the ingratitude he experienced, the embarrassments he suffered, the injustice he endured, as we follow his declining steps to the undistinguished grave where he lies buried, we may see as in retrospect the long pathway by which he travelled thither, learn the secret of the divine inspiration by which the young soldier at its beginning was transformed before its close into an immortal benefactor of mankind, friend of liberty, friend of justice, friend of peace, apostle of God.
" Live and take comfort. Thou hast left behind Powers which will work for thee. . Thou hast great allies ; Thy friends are exultations, agonies, and love, And man's unconquerable mind."
P. 128. For a short sketch of Caleb Pusey see Proud, vol. i. p. 337, note, and see Reg. Penna., vol. vii. p. 83. He came over with William Penn 1682. He lived in Chester county,
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and died 12th month, 1725 [February], aged seventy- six. In 1687 he petitions (as keeper of the mill on Chester Creek, so that he may have built this afterward) the Commissioners of Property to prevent Thomas Coburn from setting up a mill on Chester Creek " above his," "which would be to his great dam- age." His petition was granted. (See "No. 17 Minutes of Property, Book C, 1687," p. 6-12, at Harrisburg.) His mill was built before this time, and the date on vane, "1699," cannot be that of its erection; and as it was "the first mill" in the county, it was probably soon after his arrival. The question of the first mill in Pennsylvania was discussed in the Germantown Telegraph and the Evening Journal in October, 1858. (See Vol. II., Watson, p. 27.)
Richard Townsend once dwelt, p. 128 .- It appears that Richard Townsend was only one of ten partners in this mill. (See some particulars in History of Delaware County, by Dr. Smith, p. 147.)
State of Society once possessing Chester, p. 129 .- Chester, about 1840, was famed for its good public-houses, which made it a fashionable drive from Philadelphia for many.
Edward Drinker, p. 133 .- Should be John. (See p. 513.)
PENN'S TREATY AT ELM TREE.
P. 134. Fairman's House and Treaty Tree my father fre- quently had seen. The limbs of the tree were so large that goats ran upon its branches .- W. P. H.
P. 137. See Hazard's Annals, p. 634, also Memoirs Hist. Soc. Penna., vol. iii., pt. 2, p. 143, for report of a committee (P. S. Duponceau and J. Francis Fisher) on the subject of the Treaty.
The testimony produced in this report, which contains nearly all that has been written about the subject, we think tends to prove that such a conference or treaty did take place, probably in November, 1682, at Shackamaxon, under the Elm Tree which was blown down in 1810. The treaty was probably made with the Lenni Lenape or Delaware tribes and some of the Susque- hannas ; it was probably " a treaty of amity and friendship," and perhaps confirmatory of one made previously by Markham.
In 1690, Penn issued proposals for a new town on the Susque- hanna, offering the lots "clear of all Indian Pretensions, for it has been my way from the first to purchase their title from them, and so settle with their consent." In September, 1700, in a treaty made by the Susquehannas, they allude to "the former much greater costs and charges the said William Penn hath been at in treating about and purchasing the same," and confirm to him the lands on both sides of the river. (See Reg. Penna., i. 444.)
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Penn's Treaty with the Indians.
In Clarkson's Life of Penn, vol. i., he enters largely into the subject of the Elm Tree Treaty, and gives the speeches made and a description of Penn's dress. Roberts Vaux in Memoirs Hist. Socy., vol. i. p. 79, and Proud's and Gordon's Histories Penna., should be consulted. In 1857, Granville Penn presented the Historical Society the belt of wampun delivered to Penn at the Elm Treaty Tree, showing the family had some tradition con- nected with it.
This matter of a treaty by Penn has been fully discussed by Westcott in his able and full History of Philadelphia. His con- clusions are: "There is no contemporary evidence of such a treaty ever having been made. Penn never spoke of it in any of his numerous letters which have been preserved, nor do any of his correspondents mention it. There is no evidence of any kind to show that there was a treaty of amity at Shackamaxon between the Indians and Penn-nothing but tradition. The story has its origin in the fact that William Markham had a conference with the Indians before Penn's arrival. The Founder sent over by him a letter declaring that he would deal with them in peace and friendship. We have seen a letter from Markham to Penn in which he says that the conference was held ; and it was probably at Shackamaxon, because when he first came he boarded with Thomas Fairman, who lived there, and in front of whose house was the tree afterward called the 'Treaty Tree.' It would be natural to assemble the Indians there as the most convenient place."
P. 137. "While some workmen were yesterday engaged in preparing to build a wharf near the Penn mansion at Kensing- ton, they dug up a part of the Treaty Tree " (Penna. Inquirer, Dec. 29, 1846.)
This certainly appears to have been the earliest land treaty, p. 143 .- This is a mistake, for Markham purchased land in 1682 below the falls. (See Hazard's Annals, p. 581.)
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Annals of Philadelphia.
SWEDES' CHURCH AND THE SWEDES.
In 1700 the present brick church, p. 147 .- " 1700, July 2. The church was dedicated, being first Sunday after Trinity, by Rev. Mr. Biork ; text, 2 Sam. v. 29. It cost about twenty thousand Swedish dollars." (See Clay's Annals Swedes, pp. 80-82.)
The parsonage-house, now standing, was built in 1737, p. 148. -In 1733 the parsonage was built, which was pulled down in 1832, and a new one erected on or near the same spot, and occu- pied by the pastor, Rev. Dr. Clay of the Episcopal Church, with which Wicaco is now united. He published a small volume en- titled Annals of that church.
Four years after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, in 1620, the famous Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden conceived the idea of planting a colony on the shores of the Delaware. He did not live to witness the fulfilment of his hopes, but in 1638, during the reign of his daughter, Queen Christina, and nearly fifty years before Penn reached New Castle, a band of Swedish colonists found a home on the Delaware, erecting a block-house at Wicaco (the Indian name for the region) for defence against the Indians. They were a God-fearing, industrious race, and as early as 1646 their first church was consecrated on Tinicum Island. The result, however, was far from agreeable, for it is related that Governor Printz's daughter, living on the island, " did much abuse ye honest Swedes, selling the church-bell, and committing other like outrages."
In 1667 the Swedes erected a church at Crane Hook, about one and a half miles from Fort Christina, on the south side of the creek, in which both the Dutch and Swedes assembled for worship. The church early built in the fort had served them for about twelve years. The church now erected was a wooden one ; no vestige of it or the graveyard remains ; an orchard occupies their place. About 1669 a block-house with loopholes was erected.
In 1677 a parish was organized, and this block-house on the main land was used as a church until the present edifice was erected. At the time of William Penn's arrival, who is said to have landed near this spot when he came from Chester, the site of the block-house was a beautiful shaded knoll, sloping gradu- ally down to the river. North of it, where Christian street is, was a little inlet, and on the north side of the inlet was another knoll on which was situated the log cabin of three Swedish brothers, Swenson or Swanson, who sold to William Penn the site of Philadelphia, and who were, besides, at one time the owners of Southwark, Moyamensing, and Passyunk.
Old Swedes' Church (Gloria Dei), erected on the site of this block-house, is now one of the oldest landmarks of Philadelphia, and on Sunday, May 27, 1877, within its historic walls was cele- brated the two hundredth anniversary of the formation of the
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Old Swedes' Church.
parish. The previous year the one hundred and seventy-sixth anniversary of the dedication of the present building was cele- brated. At that time the rector, Rev. Snyder B. Simes, said in reference to this anniversary :
" But I cannot stop here, nor can I at this time enlarge on that exceedingly interesting portion of our history embraced between the first arrival of the colonists, in 1636 or 1637, and the dedi- cation of this church in 1700. For, as many of you are aware, venerable as this church is, still it is not the original building which stood on this spot, for as early as Trinity Sunday, 1677, the first sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr. Fabritius in the ' Old Block Church,' as it was called, though as far back as 1646 the Swedes consecrated their first church on Tinicum Island. Its distance from Wicaco rendered it so inconvenient that the block- house was converted into a place of worship, as I have already said, in 1677, and this was afterward used for divine service till this present church was erected. As, therefore, Trinity Sunday, 1877, will mark the two hundredth anniversary of the dedica- tion of this site to the worship of the Almighty and the organ- ization of this parish, I, for my part, do not think it should pass by unnoticed ; and, believe me, whoever may be appointed to preach the sermon on that day will find a rich fund of material from which to draw, so interesting and fascinating that it is hard now to pass it all by in a single sentence."
The church records commence abruptly in the year 1750; not a scrap of paper in the shape of parish records is to be found here which was written prior to that year. It is supposed that these early records were taken back to Sweden, and correspond- ence is now in progress to secure their return if they can be found .* Five years after his first sermon Rev. Mr. Fabritius was stricken with blindness, but continued in the discharge of his duty for a number of years to 1691, when his infirmity com- pelled him to resign.
From that time up to 1697 the parish was without a pastor. In the year named three missionaries were sent from Sweden by King Charles XI., who appropriated three thousand dollars and a great number of Bibles, primers, catechisms, and other books, which were eagerly received, and the Rev. Andrew Rudman was placed in charge. It is related that the members of the society regarded him "as an angel sent from heaven." It was during the pastorate of Mr. Rudman that the congregation decided to
* These records are stated to have been in the possession of the clergy con- nected with this ancient church as late as 1830, at which time they mysteriously disappeared. Parties have been actively engaged in searching for them, and have worked out every clew or theory which has been advanced as to their dis- posal, and they now think that they were surreptitiously carried away by parties who may have been interested in their disappearance. The late Joseph J. Mickley said that copies might be in Sweden, as he had been informed that there were a number of reports of the churches in America, but that he did no: see them.
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build the present church. A dispute arose as to its location, a number of members being in favor of a site on the Schuylkill. To end the difficulty, the whole matter was given into the hands of the clergy, with the stipulation that there should be a " fine of ten pounds imposed on any who should find fault with what was done therein." This was decisive, and in 1700 the church was completed. The communion service still used in the Old Swedes Church was presented by Magdalene Robeson, eldest daughter of Rev. Andreas Rudman, the first pastor, and Elizabeth Vander- spiegle, his granddaughter, in 1773. The old bell in use for so many years was cast in 1643, and contained the inscription-
" I to the church the living call, And to the grave do summons all."
It was recast and enlarged in 1806 by G. Hedderly.
Beneath the chancel lie the remains of the first pastor of the church. A tablet to his memory contains the inscription :
"This monument covers the remains of the Rev. Andreas Rud- man ; being sent hither from Sweden, he first founded and built this church, was a constant and faithful preacher in the English, Swedish, and Dutch churches ; eleven years in this country, where he advanced true piety by sound doctrine and good example. He died September 17, A. D. 1708, aged 40 years."
The building is thirty feet in width by sixty feet in depth, and stands on the west side of Swanson street, near the Delaware. Since 1700 some changes have been made, a vestry added and some supports for strengthening the walls. In 1846 side-gal- leries were erected inside to accommodate the increasing member- ship, a new organ purchased, and the old pulpit and pews re- placed by those of a more modern style. But the same carved cherubs that gazed down on the Swedes one hundred and seventy- seven years ago still decorate the organ-loft, and the baptismal font at the left of the altar is the original one brought from Sweden. On the walls are two tablets-one to the memory of Rev. John Curtis Clay, and one to the Rev. Nicholas Collin, who was the last missionary sent to this country by the Swedish gov- ernment. In the chancel, and also in the quaint cld graveyard outside, repose the remains of many of the first pastors and their wives and other great-hearted men and women.
The oldest tombstones in the churchyard, being a serpentine stone, have withstood the ravages of time and are in excellent condition, while those of a more recent date, being of soft marble, have so crumbled away that the inscriptions on them have become scarcely legible. One of the oldest-the oldest to be found with a legible epitaph-has this inscription :
"MRS. MARGARET BOONE-1708.
"She lived a widow two and twenty years. Five children
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Old Swedes' Church.
had, and by one husband dear. Two of ye same in ye ground lies interred here."
About the same date is a tablet to the memory of Pastor San- del's children. It bears date " April ye 21st, 1708," and "August ye 13th, 1711." Mr. Sandel returned to Sweden in 1719. Hang- ing in the vestry is the naturalization paper of Rev. Andrew Rudman, signed by William Penn and dated 1701, 6th month and 12th day. The first parsonage was erected 1733, mainly through the efforts of one Peter Johnson, who was afterward arrested and thrown in prison for debts contracted during the building.
As far back as the year 1700 and earlier, numerous land-grants were made it, and at one time the society owned nearly all the land in the neighborhood. Portions of the land were occupied by settlers without leave or license, and in one way or another the possessions of the society were frittered away, with the excep- tion of a few lands of but little value. Point Breeze Park, where the parsonage of the first pastor was located, before its sale by the church brought the magnificent rental of three dollars and thirty- three cents yearly! From the organization of the parish to the present time the whole number of pastors has been sixteen, of whom Rudman, Lidman, Dylander, Von Wrangel, Collin, and Clay are the most noted. The tenets of the original worshippers of this church were Lutheran.
Rev. Jonas Lidman was recalled in 1730, and took home some presents of peltry from the congregation to the king and Bishop Swedburg. Rev. J. Ensberg (or Eneberg), pastor of the church at Christina, officiated until the arrival of Rev. Gabriel Falck in 1733, who only remained one year, going to St. Gabriel's at Morlatton. Rev. John Dylander arrived No- vember 2d, 1737, and officiated as pastor for four years with great zeal. He died November 2, 1741; his monument in the church says in 1742. He was succeeded by Rev. Gabriel Nes- man, who arrived in 1743, October 20th. He served faithfully until his recall in 1750, when he was succeeded by Rev. Olof Parvin, who arrived on the Speedwell July 5th. Other Swedish ministers about this time were Rev. Petrus Tranberg and Rev. Eric Unander, pastors at Racoon and Pennsneck, N. J., ; Rev. John Ensberg of Christina and Provost Rev. Israel Acrelius of Christina, and who must have occasionally filled the pulpit of Wicaco during vacancies.
In 1733 the parsonage was built. The glebe in Passyunk was rented, and the two lots also at Wicaco.
Previous to 1845 the society was known as the Swedish Episco- pal, but in that year it joined itself to a convention of the present diocese and became Protestant Episcopal. Under the manage- ment of the present rector, the Rev. Snyder B. Simes, the church
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Annals of Philadelphia.
has had unwonted prosperity. There is not a single unrentea pew, while the Sabbath-school numbers nearly seven hundred scholars.
On Sunday, May 27, 1877, Mr. Simes delivered a sermon on the history of the society anterior to 1700, from which many of the foregoing facts have been extracted. His text was from 1 Kings viii. 57: "The Lord our God be with us, as He was with our fathers ; may He never leave us or forsake us." The seating capacity of the cozy little building is only four hundred and eighty, and long before the time service was to commence every available seat and all the standing-room was taken by a cultivated and refined audience. In the afternoon another large audience assembled to listen to a discourse by the Rev. Jesse Y. Burk of Trinity Church, Catharine street. Mr. Burk treated in an ex- tended manner of the times in Sweden previous to the founding of the first colony on the Delaware.
The parish of St. Gabriel at Morlatton in Montgomery co., now Douglassville, was vacated by Rev. Samuel Hesselius in 1731, and occupied by Rev. Gabriel Falck in 1735, and from then until 1745, and after that occasionally by the Lutheran minister at the Trappe, Rev. Henry M. Muhlenberg. The church was erected in 1735, and was replaced by the present one in 1801.
A VENERABLE CHURCH.
ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTEENTH ANNIVERSARY OF OLD SWEDES' (CHRIST'S) CHURCH, UPPER MERION-HISTORICAL SKETCH.
The one hundred and seventeenth anniversary of Old Swedes' (Christ's) Church, Upper Merion, was celebrated June 24, 1877, in the presence of a large congregation. The venerable edifice was decorated with flags sent from Sweden, and the altar and bap- tismal font were beautifully adorned with flowers. In the year 1700, Gloria Dei Church, Swanson street near Christian, Phila- delphia, was organized by the Swedes who settled along the river. Out of this, the mother-church, grew Christ's Church, Upper Merion, and St. James's Church, Kingsessing. These three churches were for some time associated together under one rector, who was stationed at Gloria Dei Church. His assistants, however, were principally from the Protestant Episcopal Church.
Christ's Church, Upper Merion, was erected in 1760, and dedi- cated June 25th of that year by the Rev. Charles Magnus Wran- gel, D. D., a Swedish nobleman sent over by the king of Sweden. Dr. Wrangel remained there eight years, and was much beloved by the people. A number of Swedish missionaries were then sent over; among whom were the Rev. Mr. Goerinsen, Rev. Matthias Hultgren, and Rev. Nicholas Collin. The latter was in
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Swedes' Church, Upper Merion.
charge over forty years, and was held in the highest esteem by his congregation. His remains are interred in Gloria Dei churchyard.
At his death Rev. Jehu C. Clay, D. D., was chosen rector in 1831 of the united parishes ; he continued until 1843, and in that year, on application to the Legislature, an act of Assembly was passed dissolving the association, when the three churches became independent. Gloria Dei and St. James's Church, Kingsessing, united with the Protestant Episcopal Convention of the diocese, but Christ Church, Upper Merion, still retains its primitive cha- racter.
At the time of the separation Rev. Dr. Clay became rector of Gloria Dei Church, and Rev. Edward N. Lightner of Lancaster took charge of Christ's Church, Upper Merion, where he remained from 1844 to 1855, when failing health compelled him to resign.
He was succeeded by Rev. William Henry Rees, D. D., of Staten Island, who continued there about six years, and was suc- ceeded by Rev. Thomas S. Yocum, of Swedish descent, who re- mained until 1870. He was followed in July, 1870, by Rev. Octavius Perinchief. He remained until the autumn of 1873, when he resigned, and on his recommendation Rev. E. A. War- riner of Montrose was chosen rector, and continued until the spring of 1875, when he tendered his resignation. The congre- gation desired to have Mr. Perinchief back, and a call was ex- tended to him, which he accepted. He took charge April 20, 1876, and remained until his death, April 29, 1877. Mr. Perin- chief was held in the highest esteem, and the congregation deeply feel his loss, and have erected a granite monument to his memory.
In 1837 an addition was built to Christ Church, Upper Merion, making it cruciform. It is eighty-five feet in length to the chan- cel-window, and the width of the front is twenty-five feet, of the rear part forty-five feet. The church has a seating capacity for four hundred and fifty persons, and the number of communicants is one hundred. The oldest tombstone in the graveyard bears date 1744, and is that of "Diana Rambo, aged thirty-six years."
On Sunday, June 24, 1877, the morning service was read by Rev. Henry C. Mayer, after which the sermon was preached by him from the text: "And when He was entered into a ship His disciples followed Him. And behold there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves ; but He was asleep, and His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, 'Lord, we perish ;' and He saith unto them, 'Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith ?' Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm."-Matt. viii. 23-27.
Here is represented one of the most interesting and impressive miracles. It is one of those which test whether we believe in the miraculous or not. We notice it was the presence of Jesus Christ in that boat which constituted the sole pledge of their safety. As
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Annals of Philadelphia.
under the old dispensation His flood bore safely the ark, so in the new dispensation, though the waves of persecution rage around that sacred vessel the Church, she can never be destroyed. Con- stantine, the great emperor, was converted by that remarkable cross bearing on it " In hoc signo vinces." During the lifetime of Luther and his colaborers the clash of arms was heard through- out Christendom. In the Thirty Years' War was Gustavus Adol- phus the captain-general of the Protestant League. It was he himself who first conceived the idea of planting in this land the Swedish colony to whom this church owes its origin. Slaves, said this great king, cost a great sum and labor with reluctance. Before this colony could be established, Gustavus Adolphus returned to the battle-field which proved fatal to him. His plan was, however, carried out in 1628 by his chancellor, Oxen- stiern.
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