USA > Virginia > Colonial churches; a series of sketches of churches in the original colony of Virginia, with pictures of each church > Part 10
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"It is my will and I do ordain that whenever the vestry of Christ church parish shall undertake to build a brick church in the place where the present church stands, that there be paid out of my estate by my three elder sons & ex'ors the sum of £200 sterling money; one half part of this money to be paid out of my son John's estate, the other half is to be equally paid by my son Robert and my son Charles out of their part of my estate, this money to remain in my ex'or's hands until one-half the work is completed, provided alwaies the Chancel be preserved as a burial place for my family as the present chancel is, and that there be preserved to my family a commodious pew in the new chancel; & and it is my further will that the bricks that are now made & burnt shall be appropriated to the building of the said Brick church, or as many thereof as will perfect the building, and likewise
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the bricks that shall be made & be there at my decease, and if my son John shall have occasion to make use of any of the said bricks, then he be obliged to make & burn as many more for the use aforesaid. I give twenty pounds sterling to be laid out in a piece of plate for the use of our church to be sent for and engraved according to the direc- tion of my son John."
Colonel Carter not only made this bequest in his will, but when the work was undertaken in his lifetime gave largely in addition. The vestry book quoted by Bishop Meade (an extract, from which is pre- served by one of the Carter descendants) shows that he bore the en- tire cost of building, reserving one-fourth of the church for his ser- vants and tenants, besides a very large pew near the chancel for his immediate family. Tradition says that the congregation did not enter on Sunday until the arrival of his coach, when they followed the "King" into church. A map of the great Corotoman estate remains in the clerk's office at Lancaster Courthouse. It contained 8,000 acres and stretched along the bank of the Corotoman river and far out into the country, extending beyond the present Kilmarnock, and including the present Irvington. A close set hedge of cedar trees, many of which still remain, ran on both sides of a straight road, three miles from Corotoman house, on the Rappahannock, to the church. Bishop Meade's description of the church, as he saw it in 1838, is worth re- peating:
"My next appointment was at Christ church, Lancaster, on the 23d of June. This was the day appointed by the Convention to be observed as a day of humiliation, fasting and prayer on account of the languor in the Church, and the sins and troubles in the nation. No temple of religion, and no spot in the Diocese could have been selected more in accordance with the solemn duty of that day than the old and vener- able church in which three of God's ministers were assembled. I preached a sermon adapted to the occasion, and then proposed that those who were minded to spend the day as the Church recommended should remain for some hours at that place in suitable religious exer- cises. A goodly number complied with the invitation, and after an interval of perhaps an hour, which was spent in surveying the building and the tombs around this ancient house of God, another service was performed, and a second appropriate discourse was preached by the Rev. Mr. Nelson, the service having been performed by Mr. Francis McGuire, the present minister of the parish. The past history and
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present condition of this hallowed spot and temple deserve a more particular notice. This notice is derived from the memorials furnish- ed by the house itself, the tombstones around and within, and the ves- try book of the parish, kept from the year 1654 to 1770, to which I had access."
The Bishop then describes the building of the earlier church, and Robert Carter's offer to build a new one, and continues: "The offer was cheerfully accepted, and the present house was completed about the time of Mr. Carter's death-that is, about the year 1732-and exhibits to this day one of the most striking monuments of the fidelity of an- cient architecture to be seen in the land. Very few, if any, repairs have been put upon it; the original roof and shingles now cover the house and have preserved in a state of perfection the beautiful arched ceilings, except in two places, which have within a few years been a little discolored by the rain, which found its way through the gutters where the shingles have decayed. The walls of the house are three feet thick, perfect and sound. The windows are large and strong, having probably two-thirds of the original glass in them. The pews are of the old fashion, high-backed and very firm. A very large one near the altar, and opposite the pulpit, together with the whole north cross of the building, was especially reserved by Mr. Carter for the use of his family and dependents in all time to come.
"It deserves to be mentioned that, in addition to the high backs, which always concealed the family and prevented any of them from gazing around when sitting or kneeling, a railing of brass rods, with damask curtains, was put around the top of the pew, except the part opposite to the pulpit, in order, it is supposed, to prevent the indul- gence of curiosity when standing. These remained until a few years since, and parts of them may probably yet be found in the possession of neighbors or relatives. In further evidence of the fidelity with which the house was built, I would mention that the pavement of the aisles, which is of large freestone, is yet solid and smooth, as though it was the work of yesterday. The old walnut Communion table also stands firm and unimpaired, and not a round from the railing of the chancel is gone or even loosened. The old marble font, the largest and most beautiful I ever saw, is still there; and, what will scarce be cred- ited, the old cedar dial-post, with the name of John Carter, 1702, and which was only removed a few years since from its station without the door, where it was planted in the ground, is still to be seen in its place
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of security under the pulpit. In such a house, surrounded by such me- morials, it was delightful to read the Word of God and the prayers of the Church from the old desk, to pronounce the commandments from the altar near which the two tables of the law, the creed and the Lord's Prayer are still to be seen, in large and legible characters, and then to preach the words of eternal life from the high and lofty pulpit, which seemed, as it were, to be hung in the air. Peculiarly delightful it was to raise the voice in such utterances in a house whose sacred form and beautiful arches seemed to give force and music to the feeblest tongue beyond any other building in which I ever performed or heard the hallowed services of the sanctuary. The situation of the church, though low and surrounded on two of its sides by woodlands. with thick undergrowths, is not without its peculiar interest. A few acres of open land, with some very large trees, chiefly spreading walnuts, furnish ample room for the horses and vehicles of those who attend it. An old decayed wall with a number of graves and tombstones around the house, add no little to the solemnity of the scene. Among these, at the east end of the house, within a decent enclosure, recently put up, are to be seen the tombs of Robert Carter, the builder of the house, and his two wives. These are probably the largest and richest and heaviest tombstones in our land. A long Latin inscription is seen on that of Mr. Carter. While the tomb of the husband is entire, those of the wives appear to have been riven by lightning and are separating and falling to pieces." Writing of the church as it was in 1853, the Bishop said: "When a few years since it was repaired, the only re- pairs required were a new roof (and but for the failure in the gutters that would have been unnecessary), the renewal of the cornices, sup- plying the broken glass, and painting the pews, pulpit, &c. All the rest were in the most perfect state of soundness. The shingles, except in the old decayed gutters, were so good that they were sold to the neigh- bors around, and will probably now last longer than many new ones just gotten from the woods. In taking off the roof of old Christ church for the purpose of renewing it, the secret of the durability of the plastering was discovered. Besides having mortar of the most te- nacious kind and of the purest white, and laths much thicker and stronger than those now in use, and old English wrought nails, the mortar was not only pressed with a strong hand through the openings of the laths, but clinched on the other side by a trowel in the hand of one above, so as to be fast keyed and kept from falling.
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"In all respects the house appears to have been built in the most du- rable manner, but without any of the mere trinkets of architecture. The form and proportion of the house are also most excellent, and make a profound impression on the mind and eye of the beholder. Though the walls are three feet thick, yet such is their height and such the short distance between the windows and doors, and such the efect of the figure of the cross, that there is no appearance of heaviness about them. The roof or roofs are also steep and high and take the place of tower or steeple."
Since Bishop Meade wrote, the Civil War and the poverty and dis- tress which followed it have come. The venerable old church has suf- fered further from vandalism, and on account of the weakened condi- tion of the supports of the pulpit, services have been rarely held. This noble example, as well of the skill and thoroughness of the mechanics of the past, as to its pious liberality, has defied alike time and human destructiveness, and stands to-day, needing only a few hundred dollars to make it again a perfect example of the Eighteenth Century Colonial church.
Though the roof had become leaky, portions of the gallery and pulpit stair-railing carried off by relic-hunters, most of the windows broken by passing vandals, the Creed and Commandments torn from their frames, the tombs in the yard broken into fragments (it is stated in the neighborhood that a large piece of the tomb of Robert Carter, con- taining the coat-of-arms, was stolen and carried away not many years ago by a party who were on the Rappahannock in a yacht belonging to a well-known New York man), and even the baptismal font broken, the main fabric of the church within and without remains as when built. The high pulpit, with the sounding-board above it, and the clerk's desk below; the great pews of black walnut, some of them ca- pable of holding twenty people, and the rock-like plaster on the walls, remain as they were, only needing comparatively slight repairs and refreshing.
Mr. R. S. Mitchell, of Irvington, who has long been a vestryman of the parish, and has been indefatigable in his efforts towards the resto- ration of the old church, has furnished measurements of the building. It is in the form of a Greek cross, the main body of the church and the transepts measuring externally sixty-eight feet. As the walls are three feet thick, the interior dimensions are sixty-two feet. The ceil- ing, which forms a groined arch over the intersection of the aisles, is
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thirty-three feet from the floor, and the top of the roof is ten feet higher. The flooring of the aisles, of slabs of freestone, is still solid and smooth, while the raised plank flooring of the pews is, in most in- stances, in fair condition.
There are three round windows in the gables, and twelve others, which are six by fourteen feet. The high pews, of solid black walnut, with seats running around them, are still solid and strong, but the woodwork is dull from age. There are twenty-five pews, twenty-two with a seating capacity of twelve each, and three which will contain twenty persons each. These latter were for the Carter family and at- tendants, and for the magistrates.
A few years ago the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities gave $500 toward the repair of this venerable church, and with this and several hundred dollars raised in the parish and by other friends, among whom should be especially noted Mrs. Rosa Wright Smith, of Fort Hancock, N. Y., the roof was thoroughly restored, and all the lights replaced in the windows, which are now guarded by wire screens; a barbed wire fence was put around the churchyard, and a person living nearby employed to watch the church. Therefore, there is no further danger of the desecration from which the church has so often suffered.
Only a few hundred dollars is now required to restore this most in- teresting relic of our past to its original condition. The pews and the great double doors, each separate door measuring five by twelve feet, only need oiling and cleaning to be restored to their original color and polish. One gate is missing from the chancel rail; most of the railing to pulpit and gallery stairs is gone, as is also one foot of the old Com- munion table, and, as has been stated, the Creed and Commandments have been torn from the frames, which still, however, remain. The rays on the sounding-board need regilding, and the font, which Bishop Meade said was the largest and most beautiful he ever saw, requires a skilled hand to place together the four pieces into which some sav- ages (said to have been a party of drunken sailors) have broken it. With these things done, we will have an unchanged example of a Co- lonial church of the first class.
It is hoped that all who may feel an interest in this restoration, whether from an antiquarian, religious or family point of view, will aid the good work.
Such is Christ church, and such, imperfectly told, is the history. It
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is the only Colonial church in Virginia erected by one man, and it is the only one of that period which has come down to us unaltered. It is a monument to the pious generosity as well as to the great estate of Robert Carter, and the spot was intimately associated with the Carter family for four or five generations. The descendants of the founder of the church, in his own and hundreds of other names, have spread throughout the country, and many of them have prospered greatly in worldly affairs. The majority of them still adhere to the faith of their ancestor. What a fine work it would be if the descendants of this founder would make the old church their own especial charge, make the small repairs necessary and endow it so that there might always be an assistant to the rector of the parish (now containing three other churches), who would regularly officiate at Christ church. The country surrounding it is now becoming one of the most prosperous sections of rural Virginia, the opportunity for effective work is very great, and the fine old church, no longer a mere antiquarian relic, would become a potent factor for good in the Diocese and State. Could any man have a nobler monument?
WASHINGTON AS A VESTRYMAN.
WASHINGTON AS A VESTRYMAN.
BY THE REV. EDWARD L. GOODWIN, HISTORIOGRAPHER OF THE DIOCESE OF VIRGINIA.
W HEN in the year 1759 Colonel George Washington had re- turned from the wars on the frontier, and had married and adopted the life of a Virginia planter, he wrote to a friend from Mount Vernon: "I am now, I believe, fixed in this seat, with an agreeable partner for life, and I hope to find more happiness in retirement than I have experienced in the wide and bust- ling world." He was at that time twenty-seven years of age, and was already one of the most conspicuous figures in his native Virginia; an extensive land-holder of ample means, an experienced man of af- fairs, and possessed of the confidence and esteem of his community. He would not expect, therefore, nor would his neighbors willingly consent, that his retirement would be so complete as to preclude his serving his people in the House of Burgesses of the Colony, the Jus- tices Court of his county and the vestry of his parish, as his father and brother had done before him.
That Washington, with a fine public spirit, filled all of these posi- tions, and that of Road Overseer as well, before he was called upon to assume those higher responsibilities under which his name became immortal, is well known. That he was a vestryman is mentioned by nearly all of his biographers. With an undue zeal, indeed, most of them write him down a vestryman in two parishes. But this, with a single anecdote and some notice of the churches he attended, ex- hausts the information they have possessed. Bishop Meade records the few details he was able to gather; and Dr. Slaughter, in three pages of a pamphlet, completes what has been published on the sub- ject. Some further account, therefore, of Washington's service on his parish vestry, drawn from original sources, may be of interest and value, and may also serve to illustrate the history of the Virginia Church in pre-Revolutionary days.
Parishes in Virginia which are less than two hundred years old can always trace their descent from an ancient and honorable ances- try. Except a few of the very oldest on the lower Tidewater, the
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early parishes, while bounded on the north, south and east, had no fixed boundaries on the west, but extended in that direction to the unknown heads of the rivers on which they were situated, or to the Blue Ridge, or to "the utmost limits of Virginia." So every foot of land in the Colony was in some parish. As the population pushed westward these parishes were divided and subdivided, the process con- tinuing to this day, and always preserving a distinct family line. Truro parish, in which Mount Vernon is situated, is in the line, and is almost certainly the great-great-granddaughter of Washington par- ish, Westmoreland county, in which George Washington was born, and which was named for, as it was founded by, the first of the Wash- ingtons in Virginia. The grandmother of Truro was Overwharton parish, in Stafford county. From this was formed, in 1730, Hamilton parish, embracing all the territory of the Northern Neck west of Stafford. Prince William county, covering the same territory, was formed the next year. Truro parish was formed from Hamilton, No- vember 1, 1732, and contained originally all that part thereof lying above "The river Ockoquon and the Bull Run, and a course from thence to the Indian Thoroughfare (Ashby's Gap), in the Blue Ridge of Mountains." Just ten years later Fairfax county was formed, "con- sisting of the Parish of Truro." These instances illustrate the in- teresting fact that, as a rule, as the settlement of the country advanc- ed westward, the parish organization preceded that of the county, and the churches were far in advance of the court-houses.
When Truro was formed it already contained two churches and a "chapell," the latter being above Goose creek, in what is now upper Loudoun. The exact location of these churches, which were probably of primitive construction, is unknown, but the distance between two of them could not have been less than fifty miles as the crow flies. Besides the original Pohick and Falls churches, a frame church was afterwards built near Dranesville, the foundations of which were to be seen until recently; another in Alexandria, and possibly another at some unknown point, before the present brick churches were erected in Washington's day. In 1749 Truro was reduced to about one-fourth of its original size by the formation of Cameron parish, and nine years after Loudoun county was formed, the county again following the parish and the lines being afterward made to coincide. So Truro became again coterminous with Fairfax county, which included Alex- andria, but extended on the west only to Difficult Run, and a line
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from the head thereof to the mouth of Rocky Run, or about eight miles short of its present upper line as established in 1798. The parish (and county) was about twenty-two miles square, which was still above the average size of parishes in the more thickly settled parts of the Colony. It contained three framed churches, the old Pohick, the old Falls, and an old church in Alexandria. This was the parish when Washington first became a vestryman. Within a decade there- after the above churches were all replaced by massive brick buildings, which remain to this day; while a fourth, equally substantial but less fortunate, was built in a hitherto destitute quarter-of which more hereafter.
The minister of Truro from 1737 to 1765 was Charles Green, M. D., a gentleman of large landed estate in the county, who was recommend- ed to the vestry by Augustine Washington, and by them recommended to Lord Fairfax for his letters of recommendation to the Lord Bishop of London for orders. This was, perhaps, a recognition of the right of Church patronage or presentation granted to the proprietors of the Northern Neck by their Letters Patent. Dr. Green was absent for about ten months in securing his ordination. He was the friend and pastor of Washington and Mason, and for many years they and other good men, including his successors, Lee Massey and Bryan Fairfax, sat under his preaching, and no word of complaint is on record against him. On one occasion Washington mentions in his Journal having Mr. Green called in to visit Mrs. Washington, and he prescribed the remedies needful for her relief. Upon his death the leading vestry- men persuaded Mr. Lee Massey, a young lawyer of high ability and character, and a justice of the county court, to become his successor in Truro. The vestry requested not Lord Fairfax this time, but Governor Fauquier, to recommend him to the Bishop of London for ordination. He became minister in 1767, and served for about ten years.
A vestry of that day, after its election by the freeholders of the par- ish under order of the General Assembly, was a self-perpetuating body. All vacancies occasioned by death, resignation, removal from the par- ish, or "dissenting from the communion of the Church of England," were filled by the vestry itself; and a vestry could only be dissolved and a new election ordered by a special act of the General Assembly. Truro only had two vestries from 1732 to 1765. The first was dis- solved by the Assembly in 1744. The reasons given in the preamble
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of the act are that many of the vestrymen were illegally elected, and that others were not able to read or write. Several caustic side-notes in the old vestry book, written by the Rev. Dr. Green, would seem to point to the jealousies of local politics for the true explanation. Only one vestryman, and he a Church warden, used to sign his name with a cross mark, and he was promptly re-elected when the new vestry was chosen.
"At a Vestry held for Truro Parish October 25, 1762," so the old vestry book states, it was "Ordered, that George Washington Esqr. be chosen and appointed one of the Vestrymen of this Parish, in the room of William Peake, Gent. deceased." And the court records show that "At a Court held for the County of Fairfax, 15th February, 1763 George Washington Esqr. took the oaths according to Law repeated and subscribed the Test and subscribed to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England in order to qualify him to act as a Vestryman of Truro Parish."
These numerous oaths and subscriptions, which the law was ex- plicit in requiring of every vestryman, are not without interest in this connection. The well-known test oath was in these words: "I do declare that I do believe there is not any Transubstantiation in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, or in the elements of Bread and Wine at or after the Consecration thereof by any person whatsoever." For the subscription to the doctrine and discipline of the Church of England there was no formula prescribed by law. The other oaths, too long to be reproduced here, are to be found in the Statutes at Large of England, First of George I., stat. 2, c. 13, and may also be seen, with slight errors in transcription, in Bishop Meade's Old Churches, &c., Vol. II., p. 4. The first is a simple oath of allegiance. The second abjures "that damnable doctrine and position that Princes excommunicated or deprived by the Pope- may be deposed or murthered by their subjects or any other whatsoever," and denies the authority of any foreign Prince, Person, Prelate, State or Potentate within this realm. The third is much longer, and a more inclusive or stringent protestation and promise of loyalty could hardly be devised or formulated in English words. It acknowledges and professes, testifies and declares, before God and the world, that King George is rightful King of this realm and all other his Majesties dominions and countries hereunto belonging; abjures the Pretender, pledges support to the succession of the crown in the
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Princess Sophia and the heirs of her body, being Protestants, and avows-"that I will bear faithful and true allegiance to his Majesty King George, and him will defend to the utmost of my power against all traitorous conspiracies and attempts whatsoever which shall be made against his person, crown or dignity; and I will do my utmost to endeavour to disclose and make known to his Majesty and his suc- cessors all treasonable and traitorous conspiracies which I shall know to be against him, or any of them-and all other these things do I. plainly and sincerely acknowledge and swear, according to these ex- press words by me spoken, and according to the plain and common- sense understanding of the same words, without any equivocation, mental evasion, or secret reservation whatsoever; and I do make this recognition, acknowledgment, abjuration, renunciation, and promise heartily, willingly and truly, upon the true faith of a Christian. So help me God."
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