USA > Pennsylvania > Delaware County > Radnor > The history of old St. David's church, Radnor, in Delaware county, Pennsylvania, with a complete alphabetical list of wardens and vestrymen, and of the interments in the graveyard, 1700-1906 > Part 8
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12
"But will these not be risked, for human nature must be taken as it is, if any premature and untimely measure be adopted in their day to desecrate this monument of antiquity and object of their affection? Should, however, a new and detached building be erected, it would then be desirable that the ancient edifice be razed to the ground. In this case the owl and the bat could not become its inhabitants, nor could any worldly foot enter within its once consecrated halls.
"ISAAC WAYNE."
The final result of this effort to alter the building furnishes strong evidence that, even at that date, the sentiment of reverence for the old building-which has so distinctly characterized the Radnor parishioners- was a material influence in securing its preservation ; although Colonel Wayne's assurance so adroitly given in his protest-and afterwards faithfully fulfilled-was evidently the main cause for the failure to carry out the wishes of a majority of the congregation.
Mr. Rees resigned from the rectorship of Radnor Church in September, 1838, to assume charge of the Mt. Vernon Institute, an Episcopal Church School at West Chester, Pa. He was succeeded on October 28th of the same year by the Rev. Willie Peck, from the Diocese of Maryland, who, in 1835, had been in charge of a church at Montrose, Pa. Mr. Peck was a man of striking figure, six feet four inches in height, and
II3
The Parsonage of 1844.
of strong personality. He had served with General Jackson in the battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815, as a soldier from Tennessee, and also at Toronto under General Pike. During the first part of his term he boarded at a farm house in the immediate vicinity of the church ; but later is said to have removed with his family to the old school house (then standing on the knoll in front of the church), and the old vestry room, and resided in these two places until the building, in 1844, of the original parsonage, situated across the public road from the old church. In the erection of this important addition to Radnor Church Mr. Peck gave his personal and corporal assistance. It is with evident pride that he reports to the Convention of 1842, in relation to similar work at St. Peter's Church, that "The rector can at least in one respect say with St. Paul, 'These hands have ministered unto my neces- sities.' "
It is worthy of record, amongst the interesting inci- dents of church history about this time, that some æsthetic spirit high in church authority conceived the plan of blue washing the church ceiling as a means of tasteful decoration, and the plan was at once adopted and put to practical test.
The fact that such execrable taste could have been displayed at Radnor in the middle of the Nineteenth Century, illustrates how rude and provincial must have been the conditions then existing there. It re- quires such reminders and illustrations fully to im- press this fact. 8
II4
Old St. David's Church.
Fortunately the decoration was not of a permanent nature, and time and whitewash gradually removed all traces of the monstrosity, saving those that memory yet holds.
In 1840 the church was again united for a short time with St. James' Church, at Perkiomen, but in October, 1841, Mr. Peck's desire "to be more con- venient to Radnor Church" prompted him to accept a call to St. Peter's Church, Great Valley, the connec- tion with St. James' Church was discontinued, and St. David's and St. Peter's were again reunited until 1844; although in 1842 Mr. Peck reports of St. Peter's Church, that it "has declined to almost the last stage of nominal existence."
During Mr. Peck's incumbency some efforts seen to have been made to extend the influence of St. David's by holding services at the Old Eagle School house in Tredyffrin, and probably the first Episcopal services held there were by this rector.
He also, in 1841, reports holding "regular services in a school house at Lower Merion, where a church is greatly needed." Probably this notice indicates the beginning of the present Church of the Redeemer at Bryn Mawr.
Mr. Peck resigned his charge at Radnor in October, 1845, and, removing to the Diocese of Mississippi, he shortly after died of yellow fever at New Orleans. One of the last important acts of his ministry was in reference to the charges resulting in the resignation of
II5
Consecration of a Priest.
Bishop Henry W. Underdonk in September, 1844, when he and Isaac Norton, representing Radnor Church, voted to accept the resignation of the Bishop and against the investigation of the charges preferred against him.
On January 6, 1846, the Rev. William W. Spear was chosen as the rector of St. David's Church, the con- nection with St. Peter's being finally discontinued. There is no record, however, that he ever officiated here or was recognized as rector by the Bishop. He resigned his charge in March, 1846, and was immedi- ately succeeded by Mr. Breed Batcheller, a candidate for Holy Orders, who had come to Radnor in Decem- ber, 1845, and had temporarily supplied Mr. Spear's place. Mr. Batcheller was admitted to the Diaconate on November 28, 1846, and on November 15, 1847, he was, by Bishop Alonzo Potter, formally admitted to the priesthood, the rite of consecration being per- formed, according to Bishop Potter's report to Con- vention, within the old church. This seems to have been the only occasion when such a service was held at Radnor, yet, strange to say, no mention of it occurs in the church records, nor has any tradition of the in- teresting ceremony been preserved.
Mr. Batcheller remained at Radnor for about two years, resigning the charge in December, 1847, and being dismissed to the diocese of Western New York. Although to the Convention of 1846, he reported Rad- nor as "an interesting and attentive congregation,"
II6
Old St. David's Church.
there is little evidence of interested work done during his ministry.
During the interim between Mt. Batcheller's resig- nation and the advent of his successor, St. David's Church was in the temporary charge of the Rev. Thomas G. Allen, one of the home missionaries of the Protestant Episcopal Church whose connection with Radnor was a very close one. He left an agreeable tra- ditionary memory for fearlessness and for knowledge of Scripture. He presided at the meeting which chose his son-in-law, Rev. John A. Childs, of Lewes, Del., rector of the parish on January 2, 1848, at a salary of "Three hundred and fifty dollars and more if it can be obtained."
In 1849-50 the graveyard was again enlarged by running the south and northwest walls westwardly to the present sheds, the eastern part of which was erected at the same time. This new burial ground was divided into lots which sold for ten dollars each. These were the first lots ever sold in the graveyard. This action was followed by a resolution of the Vestry "to prevent burying in the old ground except such families as are now placed there in rows."
In August, 1849, St. David's corporation began in the Common Pleas of Delaware County an ejectment suit (No. I, November Term, 1849) against their sex- ton, Emmor Beaumont, who for several years, it was alleged, had been gradually encroaching on the south- ern line of their property, and finally placed his fence
II7
The Beaumont Boundary.
so as to deprive the church of the use of the spring house. In this suit the Jury of View, called May 30, 1850, rendered the following verdict :
We establish the boundary line between the lands belonging to the Radnor Church of the one part and Emmor Beaumont of the other part as follows-Commencing in the middle of the church road at the line between the townships of Radnor and Newtown running a S. W. direction to the middle of a road passing by E. Beaumont's house and the Radnor Church in such manner that the said line shall pass one perch South of a spring on the church lot thence up the middle of the said road to a point ranging with the division fence on the West side of said road thence following the division fences as they now stand between their lands to church lane with six cents damages and six cents costs.
Although this verdict was distinctly in favor of the plaintiff, yet as the church had no deeds for its land, and the primitive conveyance from the generous donors already noted was the only foundation of its title, it did not, it is said, recover all the land over which it had at one time exercised ownership. In this litiga- tion Radnor Church was represented by Benjamin Tilghman, I. G. Brincklé and William Darlington, Esqs.
In 1849 the rector reported extra services at Mor- gan's Corner (now Radnor), Reeseville (now Ber- wyn), and other places.
In August, 1850, Mr. Childs resigned his charge of this parish and was dismissed by the Bishop to the Diocese of Indiana. He was succeeded by the Rev.
II8
Old St. David's Church.
Henry G. Brown, who commenced his duties in the summer of 1851 at a salary of four hundred and fifty dollars per annum. Lay services are said to have been held during the interim, but the names of these readers are unknown.
Mr. Brown reports to the Convention of 1852 that "during the past year" he officiated each Sunday after- noon at "Temperance Hall, near the Old Buck Tavern, on the Lancaster turnpike, to a congregation organized as the Church of the Redeemer." This new congre- gation was admitted to the Convention of Pennsylvania, and the original church opened for service in the same year, with Mr. Brown as the first rector, who re- mained in charge of this church and St. David's until 1855.
During this term the old pulpit, which was so large as to accommodate three persons, was removed and a smaller one substituted, and the interior of the church thoroughly repainted and repaired. In 1852-3 the parsonage was also enlarged by building a frame addition to the north side. Of this improvement the rector reports to the Convention of 1853: "The Ladies have kindly furnished means for various improvements connected with the Parsonage to the amount of nearly $500." This seems to be the first distinct acknowledg- ment of the work of the women of the parish.
During this same year St. David's received from the estates of Isaac and Elizabeth Wayne legacies ag- gregating considerably over three thousand dollars.
I19
Legacies left to Radnor.
A fulfilment, it is said, of the unwritten agreement (previously referred to in this history) by which the plans for alteration of the church, developed during Mr. Rees' term, were abandoned.
As these were the first considerable legacies left to St. David's Church and constitute the nucleus of the present endowment fund, it will be of interest here to consider this subject in some detail.
The first legacies left to the church of which any record is preserved were those under will of William Evans, of Easttown, who in 1734 bequeathed one pound for repairs and an annuity of thirty shillings forever. This annuity was paid for a period of nearly 150 years, but in 1881, after the sale of the Evans Estate at Paoli, the principal sum of one hundred dol- lars was accepted by the Church in extinguishment of the charge.
In 1759 Mr. Currie, in a letter to the Propagation Society, already quoted, refers to a legacy of fifty pounds left "by a religious young man who died some years ago." No further identification of this bequest has been made; but the receipts appearing at inter- vals in the Vestry minutes from 1759 to 1763 of amounts aggregating £48. 2s. 6d. "on account of Evan Harry's legacy" suggest the identity of these two benefactions. No will of Evan Harry can be found ; but the graves of two persons bearing that name appear in front of the church. Of these, one died 1744, aged 25 years, and the other 1748, aged 80 years. Perhaps
I20
Old St. David's Church.
the expressed wish of the former may have been the foundation of Mr. Currie's statement, and the desire may have been carried out by the elder Evan Harry.
In 1772 William White, of Upper Merion, weaver, by will registered in Philadelphia, bequeathed to the church a legacy of fioo. He also left to Mr. Currie an additional legacy of £20.
In 1773 by will registered in Chester County, Thomas Philips of Willistown bequeathed Five pounds currency "toward the Relief of the distressed that belongs to Radnor Church to be paid to the Church Wardens of said church to be divided by them according to the Descretion of the Minister and themselves." He also left to Mr. Currie a legacy of two pounds currency.
In 1789 the Vestry minutes indicate the receipt of a legacy of fio from David Jones ; but no further par- ticulars have been obtainable.
In 1805 the same source indicates a legacy of £20 from Jane Wills of Plymouth, Montgomery County, through her son Michael, but no further particulars can be obtained.
By will dated 1794 and registered at West Chester, Rev. William Currie "clerc." left to Radnor Church a legacy of ten pounds to assist in maintaining the grave- yard wall, and also the remainder of his library not then taken by his sons.
In 1852 were received the legacies of Isaac and Elizabeth Wayne, already particularly mentioned.
I2I
Legacies left to Radnor.
In 1855 John Thomas, of Easttown, left to John Hunter, the old church warden, "in special trust one hundred and fifty dollars he paying the same for the necessary expenditures of the Radnor Church religious association."
In 1858 the Vestry minutes show receipt of $25 from "Mrs. Major's legacy," and of $100 from "Mary Brooke's legacy," but no further information can be obtained of these bequests.
In 1870 J. Johnson Brown, of Radnor, left to St. David's Church a legacy of $500 for improvement of the grounds by planting indigenous trees, and also $5,000, the income of which was to constitute an addi- tion to the regular salary of the rector for ever.
In 1887, under will of Peter C. Erben, of Radnor, a legacy of $5,000 was left to the church, payable at the expiration of a life which is still existing.
In 1898, by will of Anna S. Pleasants, wife of Dr. Henry Pleasants, of Radnor, a legacy of $1,000 was left to St. David's Church in trust "towards keep- ing up the burial grounds of the church," including the Parke lot.
In 1899 Francis M. Brooke, by will proven in Phila- delphia, left a legacy of $1,500 to Radnor Church to maintain certain specific family tombstones and those in a specified area of the graveyard.
In 1902 Benjamin Brooke, by will registered in Philadelphia, left a legacy of $1,000 to Radnor Church to maintain the monuments in the Brooke lot and old part of the graveyard.
I22
Old St. David's Church.
In 1904 Margaret W. Hayman, of Chester County, left a legacy of $200 to St. David's Church for the "care and preservation" of testatrix' family lot.
These larger legacies constitute the present Church endowment fund, now aggregating $13,000. But no effort seems ever to have been made to capitalize the smaller legacies, and they have long since disap- peared in the church expenses. Contemporaneously, however, with the plan for preparing this history, has developed a plan to publish it by subscription, and to utilize the net proceeds of all sales to restore the principal of these legacies as a fund, the income of which shall forever be devoted to the care of the church grounds.
Mr. Brown resigned the rectorship at Radnor in the fall of 1855, having in his short term greatly endeared himself to the parishioners, and his withdrawal causing general regret. His work at Radnor was singularly blest, and the interest of the congregation in spiritual matters was manifested by the holding of frequent prayer meetings in the church and in private houses, at which many of the members took individual part, and even after the lapse of over half a century, the memory of this good man is cherished with profound reverence and respect.
The obligations of churchmanship, as now asserted and manifested, rested more lightly on members of the Protestant Episcopal Church at that time, and were practically without existence at Radnor. Not infre-
123
A Congregational Protest.
quently was the formal ritual of the church omitted or modified at public services, and often, indeed, neither the wardens nor the delegates to Conventions, nor a majority of the vestry were Episcopalians.
After Mr. Brown's resignation, the Rev. Richard- son Graham was called to Radnor, in January, 1856, and retained the charge about five years.
During Mr. Graham's rectorship, in 1858, a large and substantial receiving vault was built in the knoll in front of the church; and at a vestry meeting, held July 26, 1860, preparations were made for roofing the church anew, and tearing out the east wall in order to place a vestry room at that end. This work had been partially contracted for, when, on August 28 of that year, an indignation meeting of Radnor parishioners, including amongst its members nearly every creed, assembled in the old building to protest against such alterations. These gentlemen resolutely informed the vestry that they would permit no such decided changes as were contemplated in the old church.
After a stormy discussion over the condition of affairs, the vestry formally reconsidered and defeated the resolution for altering the old church and acceded to the demands of the congregation.
No incident could attest more forcibly than this one the fact that to the reverential sentiment for the old pile and to the ties so closely binding in their associa- tions the present building to the hearts of the residents of the neighborhood, rather than to either the indi-
I24
Old St. David's Church.
vidual conservatism of the Vestry or to their foresight, must be ascribed the honor of preserving to the pres- ent generation this sacred relic. It is worthy of note that on this occasion when Mark Brooke, one of the wardens who opposed the alterations (and whose final vote decided the question), was tauntingly asked if he were not an Episcopalian and as such had not the advancement of the Episcopal Church at his heart, he promptly replied in a trite summary of his own and his associates' motives, "I am a St. David's man, not an Episcopalian."
In January, 1861, Mr. Graham withdrew from his connection at Radnor, and was succeeded in June of the same year by the Rev. Thomas G. Clemson, Jr., who came to Radnor as his first important charge after leaving the Divinity School, having been only temporarily in charge of St. John's Church, Wilming- ton, and previously at Holmesburg, Philadelphia.
Such constant changes in the rectorship at Radnor during this period in its history were not without de- pressing influences on the condition of the church. They were in opposition to the spirit of Episcopal government, which seeks to establish permanence in the tenure of that high office. Yet the fault was no doubt not wholly with the clergymen. Bishop Under- donk's report to the Convention of May, 1844, had called special attention to the "meagre support given by the parishes to their minister or too frequently given in part and that after long delays: a miserable
I25
Inadequate Salaries.
parsimony and breach of good faith! an infatuated disregard of the cause of Christ, and the Church, and of the value of immortal souls !" And in 1848 Bishop Potter had also remarked on the "Melancholy fact that some of the most useful clergymen who have left us during the past year have been constrained to do so by the entire inadequacy of their means of sub- sistence."
This condition to which the Bishops referred was probably not wholly wanting in Radnor Church. There is little data obtainable from which the salaries to the American rectors during the first half of the Nine- teenth Century can be ascertained. Mr. Clay cer- tainly received but a precarious pittance. The cir- cumstances under which Mr. Brincklé began his labors at Radnor in 1819 indicate no assurance of a materially different promise of support. According to a reliable tradition, however, soon after the begin- ning of this pastorate, William Crosley (who later owned and operated some valuable mills and a store in the neighborhood of Mr. John A. Brown's present residence) agreed to subscribe $20 per annum to the support of a minister "who would preach every Sun- day." Other contributors united in the effort and apparently for the first time, a substantial and reason- ably reliable salary of some $200 per annum was se- cured, although until after 1850 the salary of any clergyman at Radnor, independent of special dona- tions, never seems to have exceeded $350 per annum ;
I26
Old St. David's Church.
and the vestry minutes indicate that this was not promptly paid by the congregation in the case of several of the rectors.
Mr. Batcheller makes special record of a "donation party" held at the parsonage August 26th, 1847, whereat donations of cash and useful articles (in- cluding "Some hay," "three cords of wood," "six bushels of oats," and an "alapacca dress for Mrs. B."), aggregating over $200, were presented to him. In making this record Mr. Batcheller takes the op- portunity to suggest the importance of establishing the custom of having such occasions annually, "not only for the help of the Rector, but also for the culti- vation of that spirit of good will and paternal kind- ness which should ever exist between a Pastor and his people."
This method of contributing to the support of the minister was not an infrequent one at Radnor, and it not only secured to the incumbent a valuable sup- port in addition to his regular salary, but clearly tended to fostering the interest of humble contribu- tors, in the church work. Many, if not most, of these contributions were from the produce of the farms, or of a day's labor in the garden, or in assisting the minister's wife in housework, where the presence of a regular servant was an unusual luxury. Such special contributions, however, were not unnaturally pro- portionate with the personal interest and confidence the rector inspired in the congregation; and it is
I27
Provincial Conditions.
worthy of special notice in this connection that in his reports to the Diocesan Convention, Mr. Brown makes frequent mention of the liberal donations from the congregation to the rector in addition to his regular salary, of which he reports that there are "no arrearages."
It must be remembered that until the influx of suburban residents into the neighborhood, beginning about 1860, Radnor Church was essentially a country church whose congregation was yet under distinct- ively primitive and unconventional influences. In- stead of the handsome equipages and stylish dress- ing, now so generally in evidence at all religious meet- ings, were frequently seen market dearborns, drawn by draught horses, attached by chain traces, and per- haps guided with rope lines. Rude, awkward, ill- fitting, and uncultivated was the behavior, and dress, and language of the farmers, artisans, and laborers and their families, who frequented the church and constituted by far the larger part of the congrega- tion ; yet notwithstanding these unattractive features of congregational gatherings, there was present a compensating feature, for strong fellowship-sug- gestive at least of the mystical influence invoked in nearly every benediction-then existed between the laborer and the owner of the largest farm or the most wealthy merchant or manufacturer; and every one, high and low, rich and poor, was privileged to sus- tain the most intimate associations with the Rector,
I28
Old St. David's Church.
who was expected to share their sorrows and their joys, and to be a constant and welcome visitor in every home; and there, too, he was expected to exert a distinct and holy influence by personal conference and prayer. And over the young children, especially, was the relation to the church distinctly sought to be sustained and fostered by a system of catechetical teaching under his special care.
While it is not pretended that the ideal relations of pastor and flock which this description suggests were fully realized in the case of each of the rectors in charge of St. David's Church during the first sixty years of the Nineteenth Century, yet during that time the conditions at Radnor were such, the congre- gation were so far united in a loyal devotion to the church, and in fellowship with each other, that any subsidence of congregational interest in church af- fairs is rather to be attributable to the rectors than to the people. Had such pastorates as those of Mr. Brincklé or Mr. Brown continued over the congre- gation without interruption, their beneficent results would have been assured beyond reasonable doubt. They would have tended to cultivate and develop at Radnor during a formative period in its history a broader and higher devotion to the Episcopal Church as a Christian institution, rather than to St. David's Church as a profoundly interesting historical relic ; nor would that influence have necessarily militated against the preservation of the building, but have
The Present Situation. I29
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.