USA > Pennsylvania > Lycoming County > Williamsport > Chronicles of Christ Church Parish, Williamsport, Pa., 1840-1896 > Part 3
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2 Mr. Wright was guaranteed $400-plus "any sum arising from rent of house on parsonage lot till 1st of April next ensuing." [Ed.]
3 Mr. Wright's resignation was accepted, then declined and a new financial proposition made to him, but under date of April 11, 1854, Mr. Wright advised the Vestry that "under all the circum- stances of the case," and in the true interests of the parish, he deemed it his duty to sever his connection with Christ Church. [Ed.]
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
Some $1,000 had been raised within the borough for this ob- ject, and only about $200 had come in from outside.
After Mr. Wright came the Rev. W. H. Cooper,1 who assumed the rectorship on September 17,2 1854. Mr. Cooper was an Englishman, whose orders appear to have been con- ferred either in England or the Colonies. The salary guaran- teed Mr. Cooper by the Vestry was $500 a year, besides $100 for expenses of removal, and the use of a parsonage house, with the free use of a dwelling until the same should be completed. Although this salary was paid punctually, Mr. Cooper ten- dered his resignation on the 20th of July, 1855, ten months after he came, because the Vestry felt that they were unable to raise the amount of the salary for another year. Doubtless the burden of building the rectory had exhausted the financial ability of the congregation.3 The parish had suffered much from vacancies occasioned by frequent clerical changes. The church had been closed for three months prior to Mr. Cooper's
1 In the Journal of the Proceedings of the Seventieth Conven- tion of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Pennsyl- vania, May, 1854, Mr. Cooper reported that in the June previous he had taken charge of the parish of Tamaqua, with Tuscarora an- nexed, but on invitation of the Foreign Committee of the Board of Missions to undertake a mission to Rio Janeiro, had resigned in the succeeding October. The steamship in which he sailed, the "San Francisco," was wrecked, many lives being lost. Mr. Cooper and his family, after suffering extreme hardships, were ultimately car- ried to New York, and he, on account of his shattered health, re- leased from his engagements by the Foreign Committee. He vis- ited churches in the South and West in the interest of South Amer- ican Missions and resumed parish work. The records show he served at the following places: Williamsport, Pa., 1854; Tusca- rora, Pa., 1854; Tiffin, Ohio, 1857; Waukegan, Ill., 1861; Chicago, Ill., 1862; Belvidere, Ill., 1866; Lockport, Ill., 1869; and Mount Pleasant, Iowa, 1871. While at Mt. Pleasant Mr. Cooper experi- enced doubt as to the truth of certain theological dogmas and seceded to the Reformed Episcopal Church. He signed his report in the "Journal" of 1854, William H. Cooper. [Ed.]
2 The Parish Guide (February, 1870,) says September 14th.
3 On July 14th the Vestry reluctantly notified Mr. Cooper they could, if certain persons continued subscriptions, pay $400-if not, then but $350. Such a reduction could have but one result. [Ed.]
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THREE MORE SHORT RECTORSHIPS
coming, and for the preceding four summers. It was ac- knowledged that the field was a hard one, but the completion of the Sunbury and Erie Railroad and of the Williamsport and Elmira Railroad, each having a terminus in the borough, led to the hope that the church would soon profit by the increase of population and extraordinary impetus to trade in this region which were already being manifested. These hopes seem to have been largely realized, for with the rectorship of the Rev. Richard Channing Moore we enter upon an era of increasing strength and prosperity that has continued unabated to the present time.
As we are now about to enter upon another epoch in the history of the parish, it will be interesting to note some of the statistics that mark the close of Mr. Cooper's rectorship. The parish in 1855 embraced 24 families, including 95 persons, "belonging to the Church, besides numerous occasional wor- shippers." The communicants numbered 38. The whole number of persons baptized during the preceding fifteen years was 68; confirmed during the same period, 30. There were about 45 scholars in the Sunday School, besides a Bible class taught by the Rector, comprising 17 members, "besides strag- glers." An offering of $15 for foreign missions made some time between September and May deserves a special note of admiration.
THE REV. RICHARD CHANNING MOORE RECTOR 1855-1865
MR. MOORE'S RECTORSHIP. 1855-1865.
THE PARISH SCHOOL-FIRST STEPS TOWARDS A NEW CHURCH.
Mr. Moore, the namesake of his father, the second Bishop of Virginia,1 entered upon his duties on the 20th of October, 1855, and ministered here until about October, 1865.2 The Vestry asked the Diocesan Missionary Society to continue its
1 Whose portrait can be seen in the Guild Room of the Parish House.
2 The Rev. Richard Channing Moore, born in New York, Oct. 16, 1810, was the son of the Rt. Rev. Richard Channing Moore, the second Bishop of Virginia and the fourteenth in the succession of the American Episcopate.
He graduated, from Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., A. B., 1829, M. A., 1834; and from the Theological Seminary of Virginia, 1832. He was ordained deacon 1832 and priest 1833, his first work being as assistant minister at St. Andrew's Church, Philadelphia, under his cousin, the Rev. Dr. Bedell. He was rector of St. John's Church, Elizabeth, N. J., from 1837 to 1855, in which year he ac- cepted the call to Christ Church, Williamsport. While at St. John's ยท his ministry was so effective that a considerable enlargement of the church edifice was necessary: "An addition of eight feet was made to each side of the house, and the interior was wholly renewed." After his resignation from Christ Church, in 1865, he seems, owing to his impaired health, not to have again undertaken active work. His death occurred in Williamsport, May 21, 1865.
Mr. Moore married Miss Julia Richardson, of Philadelphia, by whom he had issue: 1, Julia Grant; 2, Richard Channing; 3, Gregory Townsend Bedell; 4, Gertrude; 5, Samuel Grant; 6, Sarah Virginia; 7, Mary; 8, Emily Salter; 9, Fannie.
In 1901 his son, Mr. G. T. Bedell Moore, placed a window of the "Good Shepherd" to his memory in Christ Church. The memorial chapel of St. John's, also given by Mr. G. T. Bedell Moore, the ground for it and the parish house, and the various memorials in the chapel itself, gifts of his widow, daughters and sons, and Mr. Lutcher, are described in the chapters, "Mr. Jones' Rectorship," and "Summary Notes: 'St. John's Chapel.'" [Ed.]
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
aid toward the support of the rector, as it had been doing heretofore, themselves pledging him $400 salary and the use of the rectory, and agreeing to his giving one-fourth of his time to services at Lock Haven.1 There was a recently formed congregation there, to which Mr. Moore gave a few services, after which the infant parish secured a rector for itself. Mr. Moore also for a time held services regularly at Northum- berland. His first report about Christ Church, Williamsport, breathes a hopeful tone throughout. Although the winter had been severe, the services had been regularly held, with an en- couraging attendance. Measures had been adopted to repair the church building and to pay off the debt of $1,000 on the rectory. The expense of the former was undertaken by a single member of the Vestry, Judge Maynard, and amounted to about $350. Gas was introduced into the rectory in 1856-7, and the debt completely wiped out. Mr. Moore aroused the Sunday School to considerable interest in missions, and for a time received an average contribution of a dollar a Sunday for this great work of the church, and in 1858 he reports "contri- butions for missions and other objects about $100." The Sunday School offering the next Christmas was for foreign missions and amounted to $39.66. Through the assistance of friends in Philadelphia and elsewhere, the church was fur- nished with a fine bell and a handsome marble font. In 1858-9 gas was introduced into the church and water into the rectory, at an expense of about $250, which was met by the receipts of a fair. During the same year Mr. Moore had started a Fe- male Boarding and Day School, which had a flourishing ex- istence for several years. A number of well known ladies still living in Williamsport received a portion of their education in this institution.
Several of the items in Mr. Moore's report of 1861 are noteworthy. Twenty-five persons had been baptized during the year, 13 presented for confirmation, and the number of communicants had risen to 57. The Sunday School work
1 The Vestry hoped that the Lock Haven congregation would assist Mr. Moore financially. [Ed.]
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MR. MOORE'S RECTORSHIP
showed a great advance. There were 25 teachers and 150 scholars. These were divided between two schools, for a sec- ond Sunday School had been started during the year in the neighborhood of Elmira and West Edwin Streets. Beginning about the first of the following year, Mr. Moore held monthly service there, besides the weekly Sunday School, and this ar- rangement continued until December, 1864, when both school and services had to be discontinued because the building was no longer available. The parish in 1861, moreover, was again entirely out of debt and had just become self-supporting. The Sunday School that year gave nearly $40 to foreign missions. Services were now held twice on Sundays, every Wednesday, and daily during Lent. The rector's salary was $650, and there had been contributed to other objects about $300. That was a bright and hopeful year. It will be interesting to note here the names of the Vestrymen through whose co-operation so much had been accomplished. They were Messrs. F. C. Campbell, Rector's Warden; Lester Griswold, Vestry's War- den ; James H. Perkins, P. Noland, Oliver Watson, John W. Maynard, James Damant, John White, and E. C. Johnson.1 The last named was the brother of the Rev. Alfred Evan John- son, who at a later period became locum tenens of the parish.
On Whitsun Monday, May 25th, 1863, the Rev. Mr. Moore started a parish school with divine service in the church. Twenty-nine scholars were enrolled, most of them being boys between five and twelve years of age. Besides their secular studies, the children were taught the doctrines of religion as held by the Church, and were catechized weekly by the Rector. The successive teachers of this school were, (I) Miss Susan M. Sayre, from May to December, 1863; (2) Miss Sallie R. Lloyd, from December, 1863, to December, 1864; (3) Miss Fanny Bailey, from December, 1863, (?) to --; (4) Miss Williams, from , to April or May, 1866; (5) Miss Mary Elizabeth Chubbuck, from Sep- tember, 1866, to the spring of 1868, and (6) Miss Sayre again from the fall of 1868 until the school closed. A short service
1 This is the Vestry elected Easter, 1861. [Ed.]
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
with the children of the school was held every morning during the mild weather, and the ordinary sessions appear to have been held at first in the basement. Afterwards, November, 1864, a small brick house at the rear of the church lot was purchased by the Vestry at a cost of $800, and used for both the weekday and Sunday Schools. In 1864 the average at- tendance at the parish school was 40 scholars. This school continued to flourish during the rectorships of Mr. Wadleigh and Dr. Paret, the former of whom reported 50 scholars in at- tendance.
Mr. Moore was very anxious to secure better accommo- dations for his growing work, and labored strenuously to this end for several years, but without attaining his great desire. It was not until his successor entered upon the incumbency of the parish that the Vestry bestirred itself effectually in this direction. Mr. Moore's first move for a new church was on Thanksgiving Day in 1862, when he called a parish meeting to "take steps towards church improvement," by either re- modeling the present structure or erecting a new one. No de- cisive action was taken at this time, however, although Judge Maynard offered to subscribe $1,000 towards a new church, and Mr. Peter Herdic was willing to be one of six persons to bear the expense of building it. The indecision of the con- gregation was due to a sharp diversity of opinion as to the location of the church, some desiring to have it on a more cen- tral-that is, a more westerly-site, and others preferring to have it remain where it was. This disagreement was so pro- nounced and prolonged that it greatly jeopardized the pros- perity of the parish, and even for a time hindered its growth. Nearly four years passed by before the Vestry decided to build, and in the meantime Mr. Moore had been succeeded by Mr. Wadleigh. In the spring and summer of 1864, (the Rev. Mr. Moore still being rector), by means of two concerts and a fair, the sum of $1,400 was realized towards the building.
THE REV. ALBRA WADLEIGH RECTOR 1866-1869
MR. WADLEIGH'S RECTORSHIP. 1866-1869.
THE NEW CHURCH BEGUN-THE BEGINNINGS OF ST. MARY'S.
In the spring of 1865 Mr. Moore notified the Vestry of his desire to sever his relation with the parish. His salary, which the year before had been raised to $800 in accordance with the recommendation of the Bishop's convention address, was now $400 in arrears, but this was all paid before he left Williamsport in the fall.1 For several months after his de- parture the church was again closed, except for occasional ser- vices, but in February, 1866, the Rev. Albra Wadleigh,2 Rector of St. James's Church, Muncy, was chosen to the vacant rec- torship, at a salary of $1,000 and rectory, and entered upon his duties the following April (Easter Day). The Sunday School, however, in the meantime, had continued its sessions
1 The Vestry made a special assessment on the pewholders of an amount equal to the sum due Mr. Moore. [Ed.]
2 The Rev. Albra Wadleigh was born July 3, 1833, in Biddeford, Me. He was the son of Albra Wadleigh, a native of South Berwick, Me., and his wife, Eliza (Brewster) Wadleigh, a descendant of Elder William Brewster of the Pilgrim Fathers.
Originally Congregationalist, the family was brought into the Church by the Reverend, later Bishop, Horatio Potter, by whom Albra Wadleigh, as well as the other children, was baptized. The Wadleighs moved to Boston when Albra was but one year old, and he was educated at the Boston Latin School and Harvard Univer- sity, class of 1854. While at Harvard he was class poet, and a member of the Hasty Pudding as well as of the other clubs of that time.
In 1854 he entered the General Theological Seminary, and was ordained deacon by Bishop Horatio Potter in 1857. In September of the same year he assumed charge of St. James's, Muncy, and was advanced to the priesthood by Bishop Bowman, Assistant Bishop of Pennsylvania, in St. Philip's Church, Philadelphia, in 1859. On June 27, 1861, he married Emily, only daughter of Francis William
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
and maintained its membership, under the superintendency, first of Mr. G. T. Bedell Moore, and afterwards of Mr. J. J. Crocker, who retained charge till Mr. Wadleigh assumed the duties of the rectorship.
An event of local importance and diocesan interest had taken place just prior to the beginning of Mr. Wadleigh's in- cumbency. This was the erection on Vine Street, above May- nard, in the fall of 1865, of a new church building known as "Trinity Chapel." Several families withdrew from Christ Church to form this congregation, among whom were those of Peter Herdic1 and H. F. Snyder, who had been among the most active members of this parish. The Rev. H. S. Spack-
Rawle, the ceremony being performed in St. Mark's Church, Phila- delphia.
Mr. Wadleigh's rectorship of St. James's, Muncy, lasted nine years, during which time the beautiful gothic church was built. He also held services at Derry, now Exchange, and started missions in a school-house at Halls, just across from the present railroad sta- tion; in a log school-house six miles back in the hills, known as DeWalt's school-house, and at Montoursville.
Upon accepting the rectorship of Christ Church, Williamsport, Easter, 1866, he was obliged to give up the missions at Halls and DeWalt's, but continued that at Montoursville, where he after- wards built a pretty church.
Before coming to Williamsport Mr. Wadleigh, in 1864, obtained a six months leave of absence to go to the front with the Sanitary Commission. He was sent to City Point, near Richmond, and was himself attacked by the fever so prevalent in the army. After some months' illness he recovered, and traveled in the interests of the Commission.
It was but a little over a year after the commencement of Mr. Wadleigh's rectorship, when the cornerstone of the new Christ Church was laid, June 27, 1867, and on the same day he had the gratification of also seeing laid the cornerstone of the Church of Our Saviour, Montoursville, where he had labored so faithfully.
The history of the Wadleigh Memorial Chapel, (St. Mary's), is told in the text of these chronicles.
Mr. Wadleigh resigned, April 1, 1869, to become rector of St. Luke's, Germantown, Philadelphia, where he continued until his death, May 25, 1873.
1 Later, 1871-6, the mission was replaced by the present stone church at the sole cost of Mr. Herdic. [Ed.]
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MR. WADLEIGH'S RECTORSHIP
man became the rector of the new congregation, which thus began an independent career, and has since become our strong sister parish up town.
When Mr. Wadleigh became rector of Christ Church it was decided, in deference to his wishes, to make it a "free church." On no other condition would he accept the rector- ship. From that time for a period of some forty years, not- withstanding the industrial and commercial vicissitudes of the community, including three periods of general financial panic, and two disastrous visitations affecting the prosperity of the whole city, the parish was supported by the weekly offerings of the congregation. "Rich and poor meet together: the Lord is the Maker of them all." Soon after his coming, as yet more effectually to break up the exclusiveness of the 'pewed-church system," Mr. Wadleigh had all the doors of the pews removed.1
Almost immediately after Mr. Wadleigh came active steps were taken to build a new church. On June II, 1866, the Vestry resolved to enter upon the undertaking, and on the 3Ist of August a Ladies' Aid Society was organized to meet weekly and to work "for the benefit of the Church." The guild known by the same name to-day was not formed till nine years later. The first officers chosen were: Mrs. J. Smeeton, President ; Mrs. V. S. Doebler, Vice-president, and Mrs. Dr. W. F. Logan, Treasurer.
Mr. Lester Griswold, who had been Vestry's Warden since
1 The Rev. Robert W. Grange, D. D., now Rector of the Church of the Ascension, Pittsburg, tells how at Mr. Wadleigh's request he accompanied the latter to the church from the adjoining rectory one summer day and assisted the rector to take off the doors and store them in the cellar. Dr. Grange was at that time a student at Racine College, and when the students returned in the fall, the professor of Latin, on the first morning of the new term, invited them to tell what they had been doing during the summer. Mr. Grange told how he had helped the Rector of Christ Church re- move the pew-doors and how astonished and indignant the congre- gation were on the following Sunday. Whereupon the old profes- sor tittered in his peculiar way and remarked, "I suppose they all exclaimed, Proh pudor" (pew-door)! (Oh, for shame!)
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
1854, died January 9, 1867; and Mr. Francis Campbell, who had been Rector's Warden since 1855, died April 21, 1867. Major James H. Perkins1 was elected to succeed the former and Mr. Oliver Watson2 was appointed by Mr. Wadleigh to succeed the latter.
1 Major James H. Perkins was born in South New Market, Rockingham County, N. H., March 13, 1803. In 1830 he moved to Philadelphia, where, rising from a journeyman in a factory, he became a member of the firm operating it, and retired with a fair- sized competency in 1844. He moved to Williamsport in 1845 and immediately became affiliated with the lumber interests. In 1849 he built the first boom in the Susquehanna, which, proving a suc- cess, enabled him to organize a stock company which built the celebrated boom in 1850-51. He retired in 1870. He was one of the founders of the Williamsport Hospital and president of the Board; a member of Select Council for several terms and also president of that body; a director of the West Branch Bank, and interested in the Wildwood Cemetery Company. His title of Major was derived from his connection with the 24th Pennsylvania Mili- tia, of which, in 1842, he was elected major.
On July 30, 1844, he married Mary Jane, daughter of Joshua Smythe, of New Hampshire. He died without issue July 15, 1893. He was a member of the Vestry from 1852 (?) to 1893, and Vestry's Warden 1867-1893. In 1885 Major Perkins placed a window in the church to the memory of his wife, who died May 1, 1884. Subse- quent to his own death a tablet to his memory was placed beneath the window. [Ed.]
2 Oliver Watson was born November 10, 1811, in Loyalsock Township, Lycoming County, Pa. His boyhood was spent with Colonel John McMeen, his maternal uncle, who had settled on the "Long Reach" a few miles west of Williamsport. In 1826 Colonel McMeen moved to Waterville, where Mr. Watson, in 1830, served an apprenticeship of two years at a trade; and, after attending school for some time, in 1834 taught school for six months. He next took charge of a school near the residence of the Hon. George Crawford, and being advised to study law, came to Williamsport, entered the office of the Hon. James Armstrong, and was admitted to the bar of Lycoming County in 1837. While reading law he served as clerk in the office of the County Commissioners, but resigned that position in 1838 to accept the appointment of County Treasurer, which office he held for three years. In 1841 Mr. Wat- son entered into law partnership with the Hon. John W. Maynard, under the firm name of Maynard & Watson. He retired from the
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1199573 MR. WADLEIGH'S RECTORSHIP
Two lots at the corner of East Fourth and Mulberry Streets, 104 by 208 feet, were purchased in 1866 of Lewis Mc- Dowell for $4,000. The plan of the church, designed to seat 500 people, was drawn by J. F. Miller, of New York City. The estimated cost of the building was $30,000, but because of the unsuspected costliness of the stone and labor, the amount actually expended before the church was ready for use was about $40,000, and this without the upper portion of the tower. The building committee consisted of the Rector (the Rev. Mr. Wadleigh) and Messrs. John White, James H. Perkins, Oliver Watson, James V. Brown, James Damant, and James Rawle (the brother-in-law of Mr. Wadleigh).
The corner-stone of the new structure was laid on the morning of Thursday, June 27th, 1867. The Sunday School children formed a procession and marched to the place, carry- ing appropriate banners and devices. They are said to have made a fine appearance. The stone was laid by Bishop Stev- ens, who also made an address. Other addresses were deliv- ered by the Rev. Edwin N. Lightner, the founder of the parish, and the Rev. Mr. Wadleigh, the then rector. Seven others of the clergy were present, namely, the Rev. H. S. Spackman (Trinity, Williamsport), the Rev. G. W. Shinn (Lock Haven), the Rev. G. P. Hopkins (Troy), the Rev. J. N. Spear (Sha- mokin), the Rev. A. R. Brush (Muncy), the Rev. Mr. John- son, and the Rev. T. H. Cullen (Bloomsburg). Under the
firm in 1848 and associated with himself A. J. Little. Mr. Little retired from the firm two years later and Mr. Watson practiced alone till 1856. He was then elected president of the West Branch National Bank; was president of the Market Street Bridge Com- pany, and had numerous financial interests. For some years prior to his death he was almost totally blind.
On November 16, 1843, Mr. Watson married Marietta, daugh- ter of the Hon. David Scott, by whom he had eight children. He died September 1, 1882.
Mr. Watson was a member of the first Vestry of Christ Church and served continuously till his death. In 1855 and again in 1860 he was Secretary and Treasurer, and from 1867 to 1869 Rector's Warden. His son, William S. Watson, was also a member of the Vestry, 1878-1882.
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CHRONICLES OF CHRIST CHURCH PARISH
corner-stone was placed a box containing a Bible, Book of Common Prayer, some copies of Church papers, and other articles.
Mr. Wadleigh in 1865, before coming to Williamsport, had started to hold services in Montoursville, where he subse- quently purchased a lot and built the present frame church seating 250 persons. He continued to hold services there after he became rector of Christ Church, and was followed in this by Dr. Paret.
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