USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Honesdale > History of the First Presbyterian society of Honesdale > Part 3
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The first road into the town was built by the Delaware and Hudson in 1827 and passed up by the old Methodist church and connected with the Milford and Owego Turnpike near the
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION
old Phillips place. They constructed this road for the purpose of hauling coal with wagons, in order to have some ready for shipment on the canal. The Honesdale and Clarksville Turn- pike was incorporated in 1830 and the Honesdale and Bethany Turnpike in 1831. These roads together with the bridge across the Lackawaxen placed Dyberry Forks, or Honesdale as it was now called, in communication with the system of roads that had been opened in the county up to that time. The Hones- dale post office was established with T. T. Hayes postmaster in 1828 and a school had been established on the corner of High and East streets with Lewis Pestana and Charles P. Clark as teachers in 1828, while M. W. Whitney had a school in the lower town. Stores, hotels, harness shops, blacksmith shops and everything that goes to make up a village, were being estab- lished in the town which was springing up from the wilderness, very similar to the manner in which western towns now grow up. A Sabbath school, which will be noted hereafter, was established in 1828, and Rev. Gideon N. Judd, a friend of Isaac P. Foster, preached the first sermon that was ever preached in Honesdale, in the boarding house or Tabernacle, probably in 1827 or 1828.
Many of the people who had found their way to the new town were church members, and an effort was made to secure religious instruction by circulating a subscription paper, which was drawn up and circulated by Edward Mills, who at that time was hotel clerk in the Wayne County House. Mr. Mills did not hesitate to present his subscription paper to transient guests, as well as residents, consequently there are names on that paper of non-residents. The paper reads: "The subscribers, inhabit- ants of Honesdale and vicinity, being desirous of obtaining and enjoying a preached gospel in the neighborhood, and believing it to be a means well calculated to promote social and indi- vidual happiness, and at the same time adding greatly to the respectability of the place, do agree to pay the amounts respect- ively affixed to our names to Joseph L. Kellogg, Edward Mills, Isaac P. Foster, Committee of the Presbyterian Society in this
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place, for the purpose of employing Rev. Joel Campbell to labor one-half of the time, for the term of one year, commenc- ing the 1st day of January, 1829, and ending the 1st day of January, 1830, or for such portion of the time during the year as there may be funds subscribed, provided an arrangement can be made with Mr. Campbell to perform the above named labor; if not, then to be applied as compensation to such other evan- gelical gospel minister as the committee shall employ.
"Dated Honesdale, Dec. 23d, 1828."
This paper is signed by the following individuals subscrib- ing various sums: Alanson Blood, Edward Mills, Elam Wood- ward, Albert Jones, David St. John, Charles P. Clark, Preserved Hind, David R. Stark, Levi Schoonover, Joseph Skinner, Ben- jamin Staysa, Timothy C. Staysa, Orrin Hind, Christopher Beardslee, Thomas Young, George W. Dickenson, Joseph L. Kellogg, Samuel H. Benedict, Isaac P. Foster, Leonard Graves, J. B. Jervis, Charles Forbes, William C. Rose, Revillo C. Hatch, Timothy B. Jervis, Charles Bartlett, John McMillan, Ira Tripp, Russel Spencer, Timothy N. Vail, Alvah Adams, Stephen Torrey, Thomas T. Hayes, William Schoonover, Z. H. Russell, Joseph Spangenburg, John Maloney, Jeremiah Howell, Charles W. Smith, Charles McStraw, Hamilton Bonner, Rich- ard L. Seely, Amos Y. Thomas, John Capron, Russel F. Lord, Asa Torrey, Alonzo Bentley, John Young, Stephen Kimble, Joab W. Griswold, Horace Baldwin, Josiah Lamphier, Stephen Brush, Nelson Blood, Allen G. Plum, Alvah Wheeler, Samuel Smith, Benjamin Garrett, Charles Comstock, Maurice Wurts, J. B. Mills, Sidney T. Robinson.
The following statement in relation to these men was made for the author by John Torrey or James H. Sutton: David St. John was a baker and with Uriah Whittenhall established the first bakery in the town, north of the B. B. Smith place; Pre- served Hind, David R. Stark and Levi Schoonover worked for Stephen Torrey; Joseph Skinner, Benjamin Staysa, Timothy C. Staysa and Orrin Hind were laborers; Thomas Young was a brother-in-law of the Wurtses, the first collector on the canal
REV. JOEL CAMPBELL REV. H. C. WESTWOOD
REV. GIDEON N. JUDD REV. DR. SKINNER
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
and an active Christian man; Joseph L. Kellogg built the store north of John F. Roe's and went back to New York; Dicken- son and Benedict were laborers; Leonard Graves was the first tailor in the place and became one of the editors of the Herald; J. B. Jervis, chief engineer on the canal, for whom Port Jervis was named; Charles Forbes was the first hotel keeper and came here from Smiley Hollow, Susquehanna county; William C. Rose, father of L. O. Rose, was one of the superintendents on the canal; Timothy B. Jervis was with the engineers and a member of the church; Bartlett, McMillan and Ira Tripp were Scranton men; Russel Spencer, one of the first blacksmiths; Timothy N. Vail had his shoemaker shop where A. A. Grambs' store is; Alvah Adams was a carpenter who lost his arm when they discharged the cannon in honor of the running of the Stourbridge Lion; Thomas T. Hayes was a merchant whose store was on Park street on the lot that is now vacant and here was the first post office; Schoonover, Spangenberg and Maloney were laborers; John Capron was a mason who located his lot by pacing it and had it nearly correct; Alonzo Bentley was a boat builder who afterwards owned Bentley Hill; Stephen Kim- ble had the grist mill at East Honesdale; Joab Griswold was a brother of Mrs. Gunn, he removed to California in 1849. Allen G. Plum, son of Hiram Plum, was a carpenter; Alvah Wheeler built the house near W. W. Weston's; Samuel Smith, the father of the Smith Hill Smiths; Charles Comstock came from Abington and ran the saw mill near the Tibbetts place on the Lackawaxen, for Stephen Torrey; Maurice Wurts was the projector of the Delaware and Hudson Canal and J. B. Mills was the engineer on the railroad from here to Carbondale.
With the funds obtained by this subscription the services of Rev. Joel Campbell were secured for half the time. He came down from Bethany during the year 1829 and preached every Sabbath afternoon for the inhabitants of Honesdale and vicinity. During the forenoon of the Sabbath a meeting was held and printed sermons were read.
On the 11th of February, 1829 the "First Presbyterian
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HONESDALE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
church of Honesdale" was organized in the boarding house then occupied by Hiram Plum, which was afterwards enlarged and known as the Tabernacle. The following clergymen were present at the organization: Rev. Thomas Grear, of Milford; Rev. Burr Baldwin, of Montrose; Rev. James Adams, of Dun- daff; Rev. Adam Miller, of Harford. Rev. Mr. Grear opened the meeting with prayer and delivered a discourse from II. Co- rinthians, 5th chapter and 20th verse: "Now then we are am- bassadors for Christ; as though God did beseech you by us; we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." After the sermon Rev. Joel Campbell proceeded to organize the church, and the following persons produced certificates from their re- spective churches: Isaac P. Foster and Mary Foster from the church of Montrose; Horace Baldwin and Olive P. Baldwin from the church of Dundaff; Stephen Torrey and Rebecca Schoonover from the church of Bethany; Lucy Forbes from the church of New Bedford, Mass .; Charles P. Clark from the church of Canterbury, Conn .; Joseph L. Kellogg from Central Presbyterian church, New York City. At this meeting Isaac P. Foster, Horace Baldwin, Joseph L. Kellogg and Stephen Torrey were nominated and appointed Ruling Elders. The meeting was closed with singing, and prayer by Rev. Adam Miller. February 14, 1829, the session met at the house of Isaac P. Foster and elected Joseph L. Kellogg clerk of the session. The house of Mr. Foster, which is still stand- ing on the corner of Park and Main streets, was a meeting place for the session for many years and a home for ministers always. At the next meeting at Mr. Foster's all of the nine members of the little church were present, and they decided to meet on the evening of the first Saturday of each month for the purpose of prayer and mutual conversation. At this meeting they also adopted a Confession of Faith and Covenant.
On June 1, 1829, Maurice Wurts, John Littlejohn and John B. Mills were received into the little church on profession of faith. The perseverance of Maurice Wurts in promoting the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company, is one of the heroic
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
romances of business in this country; and his conversion while here in this wilderness is rather remarkable. He was under conviction while prospecting and directing his work in the wilderness about Carbondale. He came back to Honesdale to remain over Sunday, and some of his friends, who were with him, proposed that they should go hunting as deer and other wild game were plentiful here then; but he refused to go hunt- ing Sunday and remained home to meditate and pray while his friends were hunting. Mr. Wurts was a Philadelphia mer- chant and was used to more refinement than he found in this wilderness, but still he chose to join this weak church of be- lievers that were worshiping in a little boarding house, and he took two of his friends with him, Mr. Littlejohn and Mr. Mills, both of whom were connected with the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company. Perhaps the sincerity of this little band of Christians, worshiping in this humble way, had impressed this man as he had not been impressed in the city. Subsequently, in 1830, Maurice Wurts and John B. Mills took their letters recommending them to the communion of the church where they may attend in the city of New York.
August 25, 1829, the session made application to become con- nected with the Hudson Presbytery and sent Stephen Torrey as the first delegate of the church to Presbytery. The book is marked as approved by A. Thompson, Moderator of Presbytery, September, 1829, at Bethlehem. In 1830 Stephen Torrey was made clerk of the session in place of Joseph L. Kellogg, re- signed. Mr. Kellogg, after staying in Honesdale about two years, took his letter and went back to New York City. During the time he was here he was given some prominence, being one of the first elders and the first Sunday school superintendent in the place.
After giving one-half of his time to the church for one year, on September 16, 1830, Rev. Joel Campbell was installed as the first pastor of the church, and he remained as such until September 27, 1836. Stephen Brush and Solomon Z. Lord were added to the eldership in 1830. During his pastorate the
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HONESDALE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
struggling church had increased from the nine original mem- bers to 125 members. A parsonage and barn had been erected and the Tabernacle had been enlarged by doubling its size. Daniel Blandin occupied the first floor, and Rev. Joel Camp- bell and his wife the second floor, of the house on the corner of Fifteenth and Main streets, now owned by Judge Grambs. This house was the parsonage for many years. Mr. Campbell was an old time preacher and he denounced amusements so severely about 1831-2 that a number of his congregation were dissatisfied, and they united to form Grace Episcopal church. He was a tall spare man, dignified and courteous, but his health failed and he had to relinquish his pastorate and take a vaca- tion. He appears to have given up preaching about 1835 but his pastoral relations were not dissolved until later. At a meet- ing of the congregation held Sept. 26, 1836, Stephen Brush in the chair and Daniel P. Kirtland secretary, a communication from Rev. Joel Campbell was read to the meeting setting forth that "his health was such as to render it impracticable for him to return and resume his pastoral labors with this church and congregation at present;" wherefore it was resolved that said communication be sent up to the meeting of Presbytery to con- vene at Gibson, on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 1836, with a request from the church and congregation that the pastoral relations be dissolved, and Stephen Brush, Stephen North and Stephen Torrey were appointed a committee of correspondence to sup- ply the vacancy. They tried to make arrangements with Rev. Mr. Shotwell and that failing they were authorized by the church to try and secure the services of Rev. Gideon N. Judd. This failed and they finally secured the services of Rev. Joshua Bas- combe Graves, in 1837, meanwhile Rev. Watters Warren preached as stated supply. During the years of Rev. Mr. Campbell's pastorate and Watters Warren's supply, the old church, occupying the same site as the present brick church, was erected and the struggling church was securely planted.
Among the members received during this period were such strong men as Isaac P. Foster, Stephen Torrey, Stephen Brush,
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
Richard L. Seely, Solomon Z. Lord, Russel F. Lord, John Tor- rey, Daniel Blandin, Daniel P. Kirtland, Stephen North, Jr., Stephen Cory, David Robertson, David Torrey. The town had grown to be a thriving village, and among the notable events were the trial trip of the Stourbridge Lion on the railroad track that ran from Honesdale to Seelyville, Aug. 8, 1829, it being the first locomotive that ever turned a wheel on a track, in America; the establishment of the Wayne County Herald in the southern part of the John F. Roe store in 1832; the establishing of the Honesdale Bank in 1836, and the starting of the Episcopal, Methodist and other churches. The Pres- byterian church had in its membership some of the ablest and strongest men in town, when three men bearing the saintly name of Stephen, secured the services of Rev. Joshua Bas- combe Graves, Nov. 28, 1837. He was installed Jan. 30, 1838, and continued until Sept. 29, 1842.
Nov. 28, 1837, Rev. A. Ketcham presiding, the session and trustees selected Mr. Graves and appointed Isaac P. Foster and Stephen Torrey to prosecute the call. Dec. 9, 1837, session appointed Elders Brush and Torrey to make division of the members of the church with reference to a systematic course of family visitation. At this time the session consisted of the pastor and five elders, I. P. Foster, S. Brush, H. Baldwin, S. Z. Lord, S. Torrey, and during this time such men as Isaac P. Foster, Charles Forbes, R. L. Seely, Abraham I. Stryker, John Torrey, Russel F. Lord, S. Z. Lord, Stephen North, Jr., Daniel Blandin, Thomas H. R. Tracy and Ebenezer Kingsbury, Jr. had been on the board of trustees, but the clouds were gather- ing for a storm to burst upon the church.
ANTI-SLAVERY AGITATION.
The Anti-Slavery agitation, which was rending church and state and which finally culminated in the mighty throes of a terrific civil contest, came into the discussions of the Honesdale Presbyterian church. The Abolitionists, led by Lloyd Garri- son, Wendell Phillips and Gerritt Smith, were arousing the
ยท Es
REV. DR. H. A. ROWLAND
R L. SEELY HORACE TRACY
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
clerk, Elder Horace Tracy stated that the meeting was called to elect a pastor for the church, and on motion of John Torrey they proceeded to ballot and elected Rev. Henry A. Rowland, of New York City, agreeing to give him $750 a year without a parsonage. At this time they intended to sell the parsonage, which they had purchased of Daniel Blandin, for $1,000, prob- ably with the intention of purchasing nearer the church; but Mr. Rowland preferred to be up out of town as it was then, and he furnished $500, for which the trustees gave him their note, in order to repair the building.
Rev. Henry A. Rowland, D. D., was installed June 15, 1843. The installation services were as follows: Rev. Adam Miller, of Hartford, offered the introductory prayer; Rev. Jere- miah Miller, of Bethany, delivered the discourse; Rev. James B. McCreary gave the charge to the pastor; Rev. Henry A. Riley, of Montrose, gave the charge to the church.
Prior to the time when Dr. Rowland was installed all of the elders, that had stood by the church up to this, time had resigned. The records are imperfect at this point but accord- ing to Dr. Dunning's account, Stephen Torrey resigned Nov. 1, 1839, Solomon Z. Lord and Ebenezer Kingsbury Sept. 17, 1842, and on Oct. 15, 1842, the following letter is recorded:
HONESDALE, Oct. 15, 1842. To the members of the Presbyterian church in Honesdale.
Dear Brethren and Sisters :- It has become the duty of the undersigned to resign to you and through you to the Great Head of the church, their official and active duties as ruling elders in this church, and we do hereby respectfully resign the same and request your acceptance.
ISAAC P. FOSTER, STEPHEN BRUSH, JAMES S. BASSETT.
This meeting had for its moderator James B. McCreary and for clerk John I. Allen. The resignations of Messrs. Foster, Brush and Bassett were accepted and Richard L. Seely and Horace Tracy were elected elders, and on the following day these elders elect were installed by request of the congregation, by the moderator, Rev. J. B. McCreary. Horace Tracy was made clerk and he kept a neat record.
This was the condition of the church when Dr. Rowland
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HONESDALE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
came to Honesdale from New York City to enter upon his pas- torate, and he proved to be the right man in the right place. During the twelve years and five months of his pastorate the church was greatly prospered. R. L. Seely and Horace Tracy, with their pastor, constituted the session until 1846. Dec. 11, 1845, S. D. Ward, son-in-law of I. P. Foster, John P. Darling, Stephen Torrey and William Reed were elected additional elders and they all refused to serve. The church evidently intended to heal all wounds by this action but the time did not seem opportune to Mr. Ward and Mr. Torrey to accept; and Mr. Reed, a conservative merchant, and Mr. Darling, a farmer who resided three miles out of town in Cherry Ridge, were induced to reconsider their action, and Jan. 31, 1846, they were installed as elders.
Dr. Rowland was an all round man. He could meet almost any one on his own ground, hence he was found among the people. Whenever any great event happened Dr. Rowland was expected to be there. When the fire company was started he was present. When the plank road was opened to travel in 1851, he was one of the speakers. He took delight in hunting and fishing and could cast a fly with the best of them. His wife was an agreeable woman and his daughters likewise, and altogether the family were very popular in Honesdale. Dur- ing his time, in 1844, Penniman & Woodhouse established the Honesdale Democrat, now the Citizen, and that coterie of liter- ary men known as the "Saints" was formed in Honesdale. The leading spirits in this movement were F. B. Penniman, C. S. Minor, B. B. Smith, H. A. Woodhouse, Henry Peet, Coe F. Young and a few others. The first three were members of the church and the others were pew holders or more or less affili- ated with it. They were bright, independent thinkers and when they met at B. B. Smith's book store they did not hesitate to criticise sermons or doctrines. Dr. Rowland was a match for them and could parry their thrusts with good natured wit and they never got the advantage of him. The following is taken from a memorial volume of the life and services of Dr. Row-
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
land. Dr. Fairchild says: "On his settlement in Honesdale, June 14, 1843, he found the church and congregation very much affected by unhappy differences, which were connected with the history of his immediate predecessor in the pastoral office, who eventually was deposed from the gospel ministry. By the blessing of God upon his instrumentality, these differences soon were harmonized, confidence and affection were restored, and the congregation increased in numbers and strength, and was marked by general prosperity. Besides its growth in numbers and material resources, many of its members were hopefully converted to God, and added to the communion, and it soon became one of the most interesting, important and useful churches in the Presbyterian connection."
There were several revivals while Dr. Rowland was pastor at Honesdale. In 1844, thirty-seven members were added at one time, thirty-four of them being on profession of faith. In 1847 about twenty were received. In 1848 the church having become too small for his congregation, a subscription of nearly $3,000 was made to repair and enlarge it and pay off the debt. In July following the enlarged church was opened with all the pews taken. In 1850, after a revival, twenty-three were admitted to the church. At the close of the year he sums up his work as follows: Forty-nine received into the church, thirty-nine on profession of their faith. Theodore Parker came to Honesdale to preach Parkerism and "Dr. Rowland deemed this an occasion in which he was specially called upon to stand up for Jesus; and for His gospel, and he accordingly preached with marked ability and success, a series of sermons, in which he showed the real nature and influence of the principles which Mr. Par- ker so boldly avowed." He did not confine his efforts to the pulpit but vindicated his opinions through the press. He wrote most of his books while in Honesdale. In 1850 he published an octavo volume of 300 pages "On the Common Maxims of Infidelity;" "The Path of Life" in 1851, and "Light in a Dark Alley" the same year; the "Way of Peace" in 1854. He wrote frequently for the newspapers and articles bearing
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HONESDALE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
his signature were published in the Honesdale papers.
A gentleman visited him at his residence in Honesdale and said: "I could not but admire the many marks of his activity and usefulness, both in his congregation and among the people generally. He seemed to be acquainted with everybody, rich and poor, old and young, on terms of cordial friendship with all, and ready to promote their best interests in every way."
While at Honesdale his horse, Kate, was stolen and he wrote a letter giving an amusing and humorous description of her qualities and habits. The letter was republished and cir- culated extensively in the public prints, giving such a good description that the purchaser of the animal recognized it. He wrote to Mr. Rowland and Kate was soon going her rounds as usual.
Jan. 27, 1851, Stephen Torrey was reelected to the elder- ship which he accepted after some hesitation, and at the same time Stephen D. Ward and Dr. Adonijah Strong were added to the session. With these additions the church had a strong session. Nov. 9, 1855, Dr. Rowland announced to the session that he had received a call from the Park Street church of Newark, N. J., which he felt inclined to accept. The session adopted resolutions expressing confidence in their pastor and promising him their support should he remain with them. He concluded to go, however, and the pastoral relations were dis- solved Dec. 23, 1855, when Rev. E. O. Ward, of Bethany, preached to the congregation and declared the pulpit vacant.
The first lecture room was built in 1848 through the instru- mentality of the women of the church, and 340 persons were added to the church membership during the twelve years and five months of this pastorate. Dr. Rowland found confusion and discord in the church ; he left union and peace, and unlike his predecessor, he left with the sincere regrets of his congre- gation. His family also had made friends and their removal was considered as a loss to the community, not only by the church and congregation, but by the community generally.
At a meeting of the First Presbyterian Society, March 18,
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THE CHURCH AND SESSION.
1856, at which Rev. E. R. Fairchild was chosen moderator, and George G. Waller secretary, Rev. Thomas H. Skinner, Jr., of New York City, was unanimously called to the pastorate at a salary of $1,100 a year, payable semi-annually, together with the use of the parsonage. The session and the trustees were directed to sign the call, and R. L. Seely, C. P. Waller and Ezra Hand were chosen to prosecute the call. Mr. Skinner accepted the call and was installed as pastor the following June. He remained until June 29, 1859, when he resigned to accept a call to a Dutch Reformed church on Staten Island.
Rev. Mr. Skinner came to the church with considerable prestige as the son of Dr. Skinner, Professor of Homiletics in Union Seminary. He was a city bred man and his life had been spent in the city and the schools, hence he had but little knowledge of practical affairs in a rural community. It is said that he ordered pea brush by express from New York and that he said there was not a scholarly man in Honesdale. He ap- pears to have preached ultra Calvinism to his congregation and otherwise was too academic and theoretical for the common sense men of affairs who were building np this new town. A number of the members of his congregation induced him to undertake to teach a Bible class, which was held in the Demo- crat office, now used as a store by J. A. Reitenauer. His un- compromising attitude was a challenge to that literary coterie composed of F. B. Penniman, C. S. Minor, B. B. Smith, W. H. Foster, H. A. Woodhouse and others and they attended the Bible class; not particularly for the benefit which they hoped to receive, but rather to question the young minister. Of course it is an easy matter to ask questions that no man can answer, and these practical hard sense men of every day life ran against the more stilted pretensions of the young student. That Mr. Skinner tried to preach the gospel as he understood it, is evident, but it appears that his preaching was criticised and among other things F. B. Penniman accused him of preaching Antinomianism, which is a teaching that under the gospel dis- pensation the moral law is of no use or obligation, but that
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