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:st COPY,

1898.

Tkinity Chukcii, S?]Xih Eiuiick, lS9tS.

NNALS OF AN OLD PARISH HISTORICAL SKETCHES OF

TRINITY CHURCH SOUTHPORT CON

NECTICUT 1725 TO J 898 BY REV.

EDMUND GUILBERT D. D.

c^* ^* e^* fi,^ e^* c^*

Published by Thomas Whittafcer, 2 and 3 Bible House, New York MDCCCXCVIII ^ ^ Jt jt

Copyright 1898 BY Edmund Guilbert.

TWO COPIES REC. IVED.

Co

my Beloved Parisbioners

of

trinity CburcD,

lUbose Coya! Dei^otion and Unwavering Kindness

mm united in nidRing

my sojourn among them

Cbe Rappiest Period of my Cife,

Cbl$ Uolume,

Cbe Record of the noble morKs done in tbeir Days

Jind in tbe Old Cinte before Cbem,

i$ Jlffectionately Dedicated

Edition de Luxe in Octavo, limited to one hundred copies, printed on special paper, extra wide mar- gins, numbered 1 to 100, - - - Net, $5.00

Kegular Edition, Crown Octavo, - - - Net, $2.25

PREFACE.

The annals of a religious Society, whose inception long ante- dates this waning century, are necessarily the record of the varying vicissitudes through which it has passed ; the successes it has achieved ; as well as the unerring witness to the quality of the men and women, who, from the beginning, have been identified with its career. It follows then, that our venerable Parish, having been the representative of principles which, though unpopular with the many, were as dear to their uphold- ers as their existence; having begun and maintained, for a century and three-quarters, a continuously vigorous life, in the face, a part of the time, of determined opposition; and having had in its membership specimens of the best brawn and intel- ligence of New England, must have in its past much that is in- teresting, and worth rescuing from oblivion. Possessed with this feeling, and also conscious that there are those of advan- cing years, whose memory of events and persons is still vivid ; who, in the course of nature, will not be with us a great while longer, the writer has felt impelled to prepare this volume. Nor is this all: Fairfield and Stratford — for the two places are indissolubly linked together in the early history of Episco- pacy in Connecticut — formed the "cradle" in which the Church in these parts was nurtured ; and while it ought never to be for- gotten by Churchmen, what a vast debt is due to such men as Johnson, and Caner, and Shelton, and to their successors, for the important part they took in its upbringing, there is another aspect of the matter. The writer is no bigot; he ever strives to own and cultivate a "judicial mind;" he dis- claims any intention of being, under the guise of an impartial observer, a partisan; he is, however, constrained to state, as

VI. PKEFACE.

the result of his observations, his conviction, that the Denom- inations around him are also under great obligations to the Communion with which he is connected. The Protestant Epis- copal Church, although they may not know, or be willing to acknowledge it, he believes, has helped materially to advance their condition. One has only to note the character of the prevailing religious services of to-day, to discern that it is the features the Church has always made part of its system, which are set forth in its Book of Common Prayer, that freely adopted, largely enables them to retain their hold upon their people. Nor is this a new departure. In the early part of the eigh- teenth century, the leanest kind of provision was made for those who attended Divine worship in the different meeting- houses ; and from that time onward there has been a gradual enrichment, until we reach the stage that is visible at the present time.

It must be difficult for modern non-Episcopalians, for exam- ple, who are accustomed to fine organs, and elaborate music, rendered by selected choirs; who hear the Te Deum, and Gloria in Excelsis, and Gloria Patri, sung every Sunday, aud the Apostles Creed recited ; the Psalms said antiphonally; who observe Christmas and are familiar with Easter floral decora- tions; who are fully aware that the trend of their worship is more and more in a liturgical direction, to realize that these things are all borrowed from the Episcopal Church ; that in the old days the keeping of Christmas and Easter, was considered sure evidence of affiliation with the Papacy; that the Lord's Supper and Holy Baptism were little esteemed and infrequent- ly administered; that laymen, without a scintilla of authority, ordained other men to the sacred Ministry ; that laymen in- variably performed the marriage ceremony; that the dead were buried, without any service being said over them at all. Yet such is the fact, and there is no question but that the Episco- pal Church, by means of its Liturgy, its painstaking and rev- erent attention to the details of Divine Worship, its Sacra-

PREFACE. VII.

ments, its Ministry, the same ever as it is to-day, has percep- tibly influenced the various religious bodies with which it has come in contact. They owe it then their good-will, and should surely be among those who regard its history in the past with kindly interest, and are resolved to pray for its prosperity in the years to come. These reflections are especially com- mended, with the writer's fraternal regards, to his neighbors, the religious Organizations of the Town of Fairfield.

Once in a great while allusion is made to the so-called dis- loyalty of the Episcopal Church in the time of the American Revolution. Its Clergy at that crucial epoch were mostly Englishmen; ordained in England; and supported altogether, or in part, by the Venerable Society of London. As was to be expected, they looked at events, as they came to pass, from the English point of view. Not a few of the Clergy, nevertheless, were devoted to the cause of the Colonies ; while the laity as a body were overwhelmingly on its side. What if a portion of the former remained steadfast to the old order of things? At least, they were sincere in their convictions, and honest in the maintenance of them. We have had an experience in the late Civil War that must teach us to view tenderly, and have great respect for, men who had the courage of their convictions, who refused under the greatest pressure to violate their oath of allegiance, and own submission to what they considered an usurping government.

The attention of the reader is particularly invited by the writer to the great value of the appendices. The quaint and interesting " Sketch of Trinity Parish," by the Rev. Philo Shelton, is printed in full for the first time. The almost priceless "Private Record of Baptisms, Marriages, Burials, etc., performed by Rev. Philo Shelton, during the Forty Years of his Ministry, 1785-1825 A. D.," has never been given to the public before, so far as is known. It contains over four thou- sand names, and deserves not only to be put in a shape which shall transmit it uumutilated to succeeding generations; but

also to be made accessible to those, who at any future time, shall be interested iu genealogical researches among the early settlers of the Town of Fairfield. The copy of the " Record,'" now in the possession of Trinity Parish, was transcribed from the original, which is held as an heirloom in the Sheldon fam- ily, by Mr. Lewis B. Curtis, of Southport; to whose faithful and arduous labors the thanks of the writer are due.

Whatever may be the merit of the following pages, the writer makes no claim to originality. Others before him have treated portions of his subject exhaustively. It has been his pur- pose rather to collect than to construct that which is entirely new; to procure from all available sources such items of his- tory as relate to Trinity Parish; and arrange them in the most conveuient order. The archives of the Venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, of London, England, under whose welcome auspices, what is now the Protestant Episco- pal Church, was introduced into Connecticut, have been con- sulted. The Town Records have been carefully searched. The Colonial Records, as far as published, have also been examined. The Rev. Dr. Beardsley's " History of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut;" as well as the admirable "Historical Discourse for the Jubilee of the Veuei'able Society," above mentioned, de- livered in Trinity Church, Southport, August 10th, 1851, by the Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall, Rector, have afforded much neces- sary information, which has been freely utilized. The Parish Records preserved intact from the year of the destruction of the second Church and Parsonage, by the British, 1779, A. D. to the present day, have proved a source of enlightenment to so great an extent, that were they wanting, even this brief tran- script of the past life of the Parish could never have been written. Various parishioners, and others who do not stand in that relation, have furnished a great deal of valuable material, both written and oral. As it would be invidious to specif^'^ one and not the rest, their names are not published. To all of them the writer's indebtedness is gratefully acknowledged.

PREFACE. IX

This does not pretend to be a perfect book. No history that was ever wi'itten, can claim to be faultless. The most careful, as well as diligent, student is always liable to make mistakes. The writer believes, though, there are but few in the work he now offers to his readers. Whatever genuine errors or notable omissions there may be, whoever discovers them, will do him a favor by pointing them out, and he prom- ises that in due time they shall be corrected or supplied.

Southport, November 1st, 1898. E. G.

"Superficial it must be, but I do uot disown the charge. Better a superficial book which brings well and strikingly together the known and acknowledged facts, than a dull, boring narrative, pausing at every moment to see further into a millstone than the nature of the millstone will admit."

Sir Walter Scott, Journal, December 22?ic?, 1825.

CONTENTS,

I. First Settlement and Early History of Unquowa,

Afterwards, the Town of Fairfield, 1638 A.D. 1

II. Sketch of the Ecclesiastical Situation in Con- necticut, 1638 A. D to 1818 A. D. - - - 6 III. Organization of the Venerable Society : Visit OF Keith and Talbot to the New England Colonies, 1702 A. D. ----- 10

IV. The Rev. George Muirson, the Rev. Messrs. Tal- bot, Sharpe, and Bridge, Officiate at Fairfield 1706-1723 A. D. - - - - - - 24

V. The Ministry of the Rev. Samuel Johnson, and the Building of the First Church at Mill Plain, 1723-1727 A. D. - - - - - 30

VI. The Rev. Henry Caner, the First Rector of Trinity Church, and the Building of the Sec- ond Church Edifice, 1727-1747 A. D. - - 38 VII. The Rev. Joseph Lamson's Rectorship, 1747-1773

A. D. - - - ----- 45

VIII. The Rev. John Sayre's Rectorship : The Burning

OF Fairfield, 1773 1779 A. D. - - - - 50

IX. Mr. Philo Shelton, Lay Reader: Election of

Bishop Seabury, 1779-1785 A. D. - - - 56 X. The Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship : Building of the Third Church on Mill Plain, 1785-1817 A. D. --.-._-. 68 XL The Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship Continued : The Lottery: Founding of the Bible and Pray- er Book Society of Trinity Parish, 1817-1820 A. D. - . 75

CONTENTS.

PAGE.

XII. Latter Years of Rev. Philo Shelton's Rector- ship : His Death, 1820-1825 A. D. - - - 82 XIII. The Rectorship of the Rev. William Shelton,

1825-1829 A. D. ------ 89

XIV. The Rectorship of the Rev. Charles Smith: Erection of the Chapel at Southport, 1828- 1834, A. D. • - - - - - - - 94

XY. The Rectorship of the Rev. Nathaniel E. Corn- wall : Transfer of Services from Mill Plain to Southport: Demolition of the Mill Plain Church, 1834-1841 A. D. - - - - - 99

XVI. Continuation of Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall's Rectorship : State of the Parish : Resignation. 1841-1853 A. D. - - - - - - 109

XVII. The Rectorship of the Rev. James Souveraine

Purdy: Destruction of the Fourth Church by Fire: Change of Site,and Building of the Fifth Church, 1853-1858 A. D. - - - - - 117

XVIII. The Rectorship of the Rev. Rufus Emery : De- struction of the Fifth Church by a Tornado : Building of the Sixth Church, 1858-1871, A. D. 127

XIX. The Rectorship of the Rev. Edward Livingston- Wells: Building of the Chapel, 1870-1877 A.D. 138 XX. The Rectorship of the Rev. Taliaferro P. Caskey,

1877-1879 A. D. - - - - - - 144

XXI. The Rectorship of the Rev. Charles G. Adams,

1879-1890 A. D. - - - - - - 146

XXII. The Rectorship of the Rev. Edmund Guilbert,

1890— 152

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGB.

Trinity Church, Sixth Edifice, 1898 A. D. - Frontispiece

Trinity Church, Easter, 1898 A. D. . . . . 1

Rev. George Keith ------- 16

Seal of the Venerable Society for the Propagation

of the Gospel in Foreign Parts - - - - 18

Rev. Samuel Johnson ------- 30

Map of the Sites of the Churches, Erected by Trinity

Parish since its organization - - - - 33

The First Church Edifice, Mill Plain - . . - "iS

Tombstone of Abraham Adams ----- 36

Rev. Henry Caner ------ 38

The Second Church Edifice, Fairfield Village - - 41

Rev. John Sayre -------- 51

Rev. Philo Shelton -------- 58

House of John Sherwood, Greenfield Hill - - - 59

Site of Old St. Andi'ews, Aberdeen - - - - 63

Bishop Seabury -------- 64

First page of Parish Record, 1779 A. D. - - - 66

The Third Church Edifice, Mill Plain - - - - 69

Bishop Jarvis, - - - - - - - - 71

Foot Stove used in the Olden Time - - - - 73

Fac-Simile of Lottery Ticket, 1820 A. D. - - - 78

Bishop Hobart -------- 80

The Shelton Homestead, Bridgeport - - - - 85

Bishop Brownell -------- 87

Rev. William Shelton ------- S9

The Old Academy -------- 92

Rev. Charles Smith ------ - 94

Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall - - - - - - 99

XIV. ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE.

The First Southport Parsonage . - . - - 104

The Fourth Church Edifice, Southport - - - 109

Pitch Pipe used in the Old Church - - - - 111

Jeremiah , Sturges - - - - - - - -113

Eev. James S. Purdy ..----- 117

The Fifth Church Edifice, Southport - - - - 119

Bishop Williams - - - - - - - - 121

St. Paul's Church, Fairfield Village - - . - 122

Justus Sherwood, M. D. ------ 124

Rev. Rufus Emery ------- 127

Hull Sherwood -------- 129

Andrew Bulkley - - - - - - - 131

William Bulkley -------- 133

Moses Bulkley -------- 136

Rev. Edward L. Wells - ------ 138

The Chapel and the Parish School, 1874 A. D. - - 139

Francis D. Perry - - ----- - 140

Charles Bulkley -------- 142

Bishop Brewster -------- 143

Rev. Taliaferro P. Caskey --.--- 144

Francis Jelliff -------- 145

Rev. Charles G. Adams - ----- - 146

Jonathan Godfrey -------- 148

David Banks _.------ 150

Rev. Edmund Guilbert ------ 152

Chancel of Trinity Church ------ 154

Trinity Church, Interior, 1890 A. D. - - - - 155

The Second Southport Parsonage ----- 156

The Rockwell Memorial Font ----- 157

The Francis D. Perry Rectory ----- 158

APPENDICES.

A. Bishops of the Diocese of Connecticut.

B. Clergymen who Officiated in Fairfield Before 1827.

C. Rectors of Trinity Parish.

D. Church- Wardens and Vestrymen of Trinity Parish.

E. Baptisms Recorded Previous to 1779.

F. Some Curious Facts in the Life of Dr. James Laborie.

G. Statement Concerning Trinity Parish, Written in the Parish Record, by the Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall, September 5tb, 1851.

H. Sketch of the Church at Fairfield, by the Rev. Philo Shelton, Written in the Year 1804.

I. Private Parochial Register of the Rev. Philo Shelton. ( Containing over 4,000 names ot persons Baptized, Conflrmed, Admit- ted to the Communion, Married, and Burled, during the Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship.)

J. Obituary Notices of the Rev. Philo Shelton, and Lucy Shelton, His Wife, by the Rev. Dr. Jarvis, 1827. K. The Bible and Prayer Book Society of Trinity Parish.

'* CoU of our fatbcrci ! S'till bt ouvs ;

Cbp ffatrs mitir open set, .3[n5 forttfp tl)e ancient toiocrs

SLSEberc Cbou iutti) tbcm bast met. CI)p ffuarliian fire, Cl)i> suttiing; clouU,

^till let tbcm jilD our tuall, Jltlor be our foes, nor Cbine alloiuetJ

Co see U6 faint or fall. Cbe tuorcbip of tbe tflorious past

^tuell on from a^e to age, anil be, labile time itself sball last,

©ur cbiltiren'6 berttaje."

A'er. William Croswell, D. D.

Trinity Chukcb,

■■%-n

i

CHAPTER I.

Jhe FiasT Settlement ani> ExKLi History. of Unquowa,

-r: c\s' A !r r li TV! '

T.>tx-v Ai. F. ,-.,i

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.inoe the region iu which the beautiful village of Southporf

uow liea, was a fiuvage wilderness. No foot of white man, un-

' ;- it may have been that of some adventurous explorer, had

trrj.ldoT* its solitarv wastes.- Bears in plentiful numbers

of refinement and culture abound.

•d retreat amid thickets which no

invaded.* Everything was in its

: hiiltiuie and glen ; forest tree and mossy rock -.

,. ., , .,., ^...od coast, and arbored running «"'•*''•■ »,V ■<x,-rf

.'lis nature made and meant them. Such was T

a decisive b;;

.achmeut of ( . .-. ,-.- .

Pequots. The hr. ^Uter wtis the extreme eastern

1

i i

icka upon the dwellii umlets of the settlers. Driven

■ '■ ii, the t . - ' their foes, C\: ■

lit ;. >rotou, u: .<, purBhed, <-

iod defeated tLeiu again, near where not Library •uildinff now stands.!

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>\su. fli'- '\K-: IS. 1';i' wolvi'S and iLc AViiil C;U.-

vn, p. 28.

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I slgDlllcatlon ?

-y*

CHAPTER I.

The First Settlement and Early History of Unquowa, Af- terwards THE Town of Fairfield, 1638, A. D.

Scarcely two and three-quarter centuries have passed, since the region in which the beautiful village of Southport now lies, was a savage wilderness. No foot of white man, un- less it may have been that of some adventurous explorer, had ever trodden its solitary wastes. Bears in plentiful numbers roamed, where now abodes of refinement and culture abound. Wolves found an unmolested retreat amid thickets which no woodman's axe had ever invaded.* Everything was in its pristine dress ; hillside and glen ; forest tree and mossy rock ; wavy margined coast, and arbored running stream ; all were as nature made and meant them. Such was Unquowa in 1637, when a decisive battle was fought, within its borders, between a detachment of colonists and the remnant of the tribe of the Pequots. The habitat of the latter was the extreme eastern section of the Colony, reaching from the Niantic river to Ehode Island, where it had been guilty of numerous unprovoked at- tacks upon the dwellings and hamlets of the settlers. Driven to desperation, the colonists attacked their foes, destroyed their fort at Groton, and when they fled, pursued, overtook, and defeated them again, near where the Pequot Library building now stands. f

*Long after the settlement of Unquowa, tlie bears, the wolves and the wild-cats made frequent and ferocious attacks upon the Inhabitants. On August saod, 1666, " The Townsmen order that whoever kills a bear in the bounds of the town shall be paid fifty shillings for each old, and for cubs twenty shillings each." Child : An Old New England Town, p. 2S.

tThe symbol of brutism is war ; of civilization, a library. The Pequot Library picturesque architecturally, containing on Its shelves 15.000 well selected volumes, now marks the spot where the Pequots were exterminated. Over Its portal, cut in Imperishable granite, are these figures, 1637-1887. How many, as they go In and out, note their deep signification?

4 EARLY HISTORY OF UNQUOWA.

government which at that period was in the air ; which to-day is just as strongly a characteristic of the Anglo-Saxon race. They were seekers after pure doctrine, pure politics, pure wor- ship, pure life. They desired to solve for all time the most difficult problem that touches the secular life of man — how to- produce a perfect civic condition ; to get as near Sir ThomaS' More's Utopian ideal as is possible on this mundane sphere.

The environment of these worthies, we must remember, was not as helpful for the achievement of such a great aim, as is ours. Three hundred years s^go the world was literally in its swaddling-clothes. It is really surprising, when we look into- it, how modern all that makes up the comfort of present liv- ing is. We feel ourselves aggrieved to-day, if we have not on our breakfast-tables, all that mankind said and did yesterday. The Puritans had no newspapers, no steam transit, no tele- graph system, nor telephone. It was the middle of the seven- teenth century before stage-coaches were introduced in Eng- land, and then it took four days to convey a passenger at the cost of four pounds, from London to York. Many lines did not even try to run in winter. The roads were so narrow that the Dover coach was drawn by six horses tandem, while the coachman walked by their side. The first carriage ever used in England, was invented by a Hollander for Queen Elizabeth. Erasmus tells us that salt beef and strong ale constituted the chief part of this great sovereign's breakfast ; that similar refreshments were served her in bed for supper ; and that, as forks were not invented, she ate with her fingers. There is hardly a thriving shopkeeper who does not occupy at the close of this nineteenth century, a house which English nobles in 1650, would have envied. Here in New England, life was even more primitive. There were no post-offices in Connecticut until 1790. Communication with the great centres was kept up by means of post-horses. "It was an exciting time when John Perry, the carrier of the mail, the man of news, the individual who kept Fairfield in touch with Boston, Stamford and interven-

EARLY HISTORY OF UNQUOWA. 5

iag towns, arrived and handed over mail and news together. He was appointed to office in 1687. The whole trip was made once a month during the winter, and once in three weeks dur- ing the summer."* Floors were carpetless; walls bare of plas- ter, the rafters showing; no pictures adorned the walls ; illum- ination was obtained from candles made of tallow, and mould- ed in the house. The cold in those days was intense. One writer mentions, " the bread freezing at the Lord's Table." Slavery flourished until a late date. There are few wills that, up to the beginning of this century,do not contain bequests of slaves. In 1790 there were 2,759, and in 1840, quite a recent date, 17 were still living. Such were the primitive conditions out of which the highly civilized Fairfield that we know so well, has emerged.

The Town of Fairfield extends from the Bridgeport line on the east, to the Sasco river on the west — a distance of about six miles ; and from Long Island Sound to the boundary of the town of Easton on the north. The ground is delightfully varied, consisting of plains and lofty hills, from which en- trancing views of the blue water ax'e obtained. The popula- tion in 1890 was 3,868. •Child : An Old New England Town, p. .37.

CHAPTER II.

Sketch of the Ecclesiastical Situation in Connecticut FEOM 1638, A. D., to 1818, A. D.

To understand clearly and fully the difficulties with which those in the Town of Fairfield who favored the Church of England had to contend, it is necessary that the ecclesiasti- cal situation in Connecticut from its colonization in the first half of the seventeenth century, to the adoption of the new Constitution in the early part of the nineteenth, be set forth.

When Roger Ludlow and his companions settled in Fairfield, the only religious organization that was per- mitted to exist, was of the Congregational Faith and Order. As far as possible it was intended to be a stern, unyielding protest, against everything churchly with which the colonists had been familiar in their life beyond the sea.* One of its marked features was the close alliance it created between civil and ecclesiastical affairs. f The township and the church were one.J At the public meetings, matters

»It Is not unfair to assume tliat Roger Ludlow himself at last tired of the situa- tion lie had helped to create. In 1654, incensed ostensibly at the interference of New Haven to prevent his town, Fairfield, from waging an Independent warfare against the Dutch, he went to Virginia, ( a Colony wholly settled by members of the Church of England,) taking the records of the town with him. It is not known when or where he died. Johnston : History of Connecticut, p. 20.

tManifestly the aim of the pilgrims was the construction of a theocratic state which should be to them, all that the theocracy of Moses, and Joshua, and Samuel had been to the Jews in Old Testament days. In such a scheme there was no room for religious liberty as we understand it. The state they were to found was to consist of a united body of believers, and in it there was apparently no more room for heretics than there was in Rome or Madrid." Fiske: The Beginnings of New England, p. 146.

+For nearly a century, the same persons In each town considered and decided ecclesiastical affairs indifferently, acting as a town or a church meeting. The same body laid the taxes, called the minister, and provided for his salary. Johnston : History of Connecticut, p. 60.

SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION. 7

pertaining to both, wei'e discussed and passed upon. Thus the different town charges, the church, and the school went hand in hand, and every inhabitant was compelled by the law to contribute towards the maintenance of each. The result, in a brief space of time, was open revolt on the part of those whoj where their religious preferences were concerned, re- solved to act independently. As far back as 1664, William Pitkin, and others, signing themselves, "Professors of the Protestant Christian Religion, members of the Church of England, and subjects to our Sovereign Lord, Charles the Second, by God's grace, King of England," addressed the General Assembly at the October session "declaring their aggrievances," and "petitioning for a redress of the same." Their grievances were that they were not under the care of those who " administered in a due manner " the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper ; that they "were as sheep scattered, having no shepherd ; '" and they asked for the establishment of " some wholesome law " by virtue of which they might both claim and receive their privileges ; and furthermore, they humbly requested, " that for the future no law might be of any force to make them pay or contribute to the maintenance of any minister, or officer, in the church that will neglect or refuse to baptize their children and take care of them"' as church members. In 1690, a considerable num- ber of the freeholders of Stratford, " professors of the Faith of the Church of England, asked permission to worship God in the way of their forefathers.'"* The ranks of such dissi- dents, no doubt by this time had largely increased, for com- munication between this and the mother-country had become so frequent, that additions to the population were constantly being made, and of these the Church of England must have

•As the number of colonists Increased, dissatisfaction Increased -wltli them. It often took the shape of complaints that the children of such persons were refused baptism ; but It may be suspected fairly that the natural wish to share In the con- trol of the church whose expenses they helped to pay, had a great deal to do with It. Johnston: History of Connecticut, p. 236.

8 SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION.

had a fair share. Petitions and strivings for liberty to worship God " according to the dictates of one's conscience," were though, of no avail. Church and State were, at this period, as closely connected as they ever were in England. The ecclesiastical and civil powers were blended together, and liberty of conscience, and the theory of human rights existed more in name than in reality. The people were required to support the Congregational Order, which was the Order of Faith established by the civil government. Nor was this all. None had liberty to worship publicly in any other way, nor could men vote or hold any civil office, unless they were members of some Congregational church.* This unwise as well as unnatural policy, was persisted in until 1708. In that year the General Assembly of Connecticut passed what was termed the "Act of Toleration,'' by which all persons who " soberly dissented " from the worship and ministry by law established, that is, the Congregational Faith and Order, were permitted to enjoy the same liberty of conscience with the dissenters in England, under the act of William and Mary.

That act exempted dissenters from punishment for non- conformity to the Established Church, but did not exempt them from taxation for its maintenance. And so, by appear- ing before the County Court, and there in legal forms declar- ing their "sober dissent," any persons in the Colony of Con- necticut could obtain permission to have public worship their own way ; but they were still obliged to pay for the support of the Congregational churches in the place of their respective residences. It was this latter provision that practically negatived the Act of Toleration. How could Churchmen of limited means, no matter how ardent their love for their own Church, contribute at the same time for the upholding of a form of religion, for which, under the circum-

•Beardsley : History of the Episcopal Cliurcli in Connecticut, vol. 1, p. 8.

SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION. \)

stances, they felt no sympathy 1 Add to this, the innate feel- ing that ever impels us to resist being driven against our wills, especially in the sphere of religion, and we have at once an explanation of the stalwartness of those who because of their resistance to the law, were haled to prison. In the Town of Fairfield there were many who were subjected to this penalty. Rev. Samuel Johnson, Rector of Stratford, in February, 1727, writes to the Venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, at London : "I have just come from Fairfield, where I have been to visit a considerable number of our people in prison for their taxes to the dissenting ministers, to comfort and encourage them under their sufferings. But, verily, unless we can have relief and be delivered from this unreason- able treatment, I fear I must give up the cause, and our Church must sink and come to nothing. There are thirty-five heads of families in Fairfield, who, all of them, expect what these have suffered : and though I have endeavored to gain the compassion and favor of the government, yet can I avail nothing ; and both I and my people grow weary of our lives under our poverty and oppression." Nor was this an isolated case. Letters sent to the Venerable Society by the mission- aries, frequently contained complaints of persecutions because of their Religion. We adduce only one instance of what took place at Stratford: "On the 12th day of December, 1709, some of their officers, about midnight, did apprehend and seize the bodies of Timothy Titharton, one of our Church Wardens, and John Marcy, one of the Vestrymen, and forced them to travel, under very bad circumstances, in the winter season, and at that unseasonable hour of night, to the com- mon gaol, where felons are confined, being eight miles dis- tant, not allowing them so much as fire or candle-light for their comfort, and there continued them until they paid such sums as by the gaoler was demanded, which was on the 15th day of the same month."

10 SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION.

On May 15, 1727, a petition was presented to the Assembly, signed by Moses Ward and Samuel Lyon, Church Wardens, and Dougal Mackenzie, John Lockwood, Nathan Adams, Ben- jamin Sturges, and others, in the name and behalf of all the rest of their brethren," stating that ten of them had been lately imprisoned for taxes, at Fairfield, praying that the sums of money so taken from them might be restored ; and declar- ing that if their grievances might be redressed, they should " aim at nothing but to live peaceably and as becometh Christians among their dissenting brethren." And in re- sponse to this petition, an act was passed, providing that the taxes collected fx*om Episcopalians for the support of religion, might, under certain circumstances, be paid to the Episcopal missionaries instead of the Congregational ministers. This movement of the early Churchmen of Fairfield, was the first effective step ever taken towards the establishment of religious liberty in Connecticut ; a result which it required nearly another century to bring to pass. Nor did their efforts to gain their end stop at this point. The above petition was followed up by another acknowledging the " great wisdom and Christian compassion " of the Assembly, and requesting liberty to manage their own affairs as a Society, according to the canons and rubrics of the Church of England, and ex- pressiug their adherence to that Church, " let the difficulties be never so great." But this petition was rejected.

Afterwards, in 1738, when the Legislature was about to sell the land of several townships, which had been set apart for the maintenance of the Gospel, six hundred and thirty- six Episcopalians, heads of families, in nine parishes or mis- sions, supplied by seven ministers, requested, by a petition* duly presented, that a small share of the avails of the laud

•A most manly memorial "to the Honorable the Governor, Council and Representa- tives In his Majesty's English Colony of Connecticut," very modestly and courte- ously entltlel by Its authors, " the humble address of the members and professor of that part of Christ's Church called the Church of England, living In and under the government of the said Coiony." Eccl. Affairs, vol. x, 324,

SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION. 11

to be sold, and of the funds from other sources for the same purpose, might be appropriated to them. But this, like every other attempt of Churchmen to secure to themselves equal rights in ecclesiastical affairs, met with an unfavorable recep- tion at the hands of the Assembly.

Finally, in the year 1746, the Episcopalians, who had been allowed under former laws of the Colony, to vote with their Congregational neighbors in the meetings of the towns and societies by which the taxes for the maintenance of religion were laid, lost that privilege by an act of the Legislature, which required that none but Congregationalists should vote in such meetings. Against such partial legislation, those in sympathy with the Church of England, again entered their protest.*

All of these acts of the Colonial Legislature are interesting and important, as indications of the state and progress of Episcopal Parishes in Connecticut, from the year 1725 to the year 1750. The last instance, that of 1747, which is very singular, may probably be best accounted for by the fact, that the Episcopalians had become so numerous in some j)laces as to be quite formidable in the position of a third party, holding the balance of power, whenever divisions arose, as they often did in those days, among the Congregation- alists themselves t

Harsh treatment of Churchmen, though, did not cease even in the latter half of the century. In the proceedings of the Venerable Society some years before the American Revolution, in connection with the statement : " There is at this present time, a number of ministers of the Church of England in prison on account of their persecution from the dissenters,"

*Tlius did the Churchmen of Connecticut occupy, thirty years before the Revo- lution, a position strikingly illustrative of the grand fundamental principle of that great movement ; namely, resistance to " taxation without representation."

t Rev. N. E. Cornwall : Historical Discourse . p. 26.

12 SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION.

this remark is added, " these sort of complaints come now by almost every ship."*

While the successful issue of the war of the Revolution bettered somewhat the status of Churchmen, pains were taken to keep the control of the government in the hands of the ruling Order, and to shape things with reference to the per- petuity of its influence. The Congi'egational body was as yet the State Church. Every individual was still subject to personal liability for its maintenance. This continued until 1818, when the spirit of toleration that was abroad, led to the

*In proof of the Intolerance and persecution to wlilcli the early Churchmen of Connecticut were subjected, we cite as follows. The history of the Church In Con- necticut, cannot be understood without such retrospect. We give our authorities:

In the early settlement of the New Haven Colony, after enacting that "none shall be admitted to the free Burgesses In any of the Plantations wlthla this juris- diction, for the future, but such planters as are members of some orotherof the ap- proved Churches In New England," and that "the Court shall, with all care and dllllgence, provide lor the maintenance of the purity of Keliglon ana suppress Vie contrary" ; It was enacted in April, 1644, " that the Judicial Laws of God, as they were delivered by Moses, * * * shall be a rule to all the Courts In this juris- diction."

The following are specimens of their laws :

" It is ordered and decreed by this Court * * • If any person within this juris- tlon shall, without just and necessary cause, withdraw iiimsell from hearing the public ministry of the Word,afier due means of conviction used, he shall forfeit for his absence from every such public meeting, nve shillings." ''And If any man refuse to pay meet proportion, that then he be rated by authority in some just and equal way: and if, after this, any man withhold or delay due payment, the Civil Poirer to be exercised as in other just debts."

For behaving contemptuously toward the Word preached, or the Messengers thereof, it was ordered, "'And if a second time they break forth into the like con- temptuous carriages, they shall either pay five pounds to the public treasury, or stand two hours openly upon a block or stool, four feet high, upon a lecture day, with a paper fixed on his breast, written with capital letters, An Open and Ob- stinate Contemner OF God's Holy Ordinances." "Trumbull's Colonial Records of Connecticut," pp. 524,545, 524.

These laws were not a dead letter. The Rev. Samuel Seabury, afterwards Bishop of Connecticut, was seized In another Colony, at Westchester, N. Y., " dragged like a felon seventy miles irom home " to New Haven by an armed band ; and there " after firing two cannon and hurraing," he was placed in close confinement, and treated with extreme severity. MSS. State Papers of Conn. vol. 1, doc. 430.

The laws of the Massiichussetts Colony were still more Intolerant. The penalty affixed to those laws was " banishment on pain of death ; " and the laws them- selves were executed with the most studied and horrible cruelty. See Mass. Bay Col. Laws, Ch. 1, Sec. 11 ; Ch. 11, Sec. ix and x.

SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION. 13

inception of a movement, which abolished forever in the Commonwealth, those laws which gave to the majority un- equal civil and religious privileges. The Old Charter, granted by Charles the Second, under which Connecticut had been governed for one hundred and fifty years, but which time had shown to be honeycombed with defects, was supplanted by vote of the people, on the 4th day of July, with a broad and liberal Constitution, which abolished utterly the connection of the existing ecclesiastical system with the State. Religious pro- fession and worship henceforth, were to be free to all, and no sect was to be preferred by law. No person was to be com- pelled to join, associate with, support, or remain a member of, any religious body; and all religious bodies were to be en- tirely equal before the law. The last restriction upon the consciences of the people of Connecticut was now removed, and religion in whatever form it presented itself was left, for all time, to their free acceptance or deliberate rejection.

The hardships which Churchmen were subjected to, which we have thus considered, form a startling pic- ture for us to contemplate, who live at the close of the nineteenth century ; yet it has an explanation that readily occurs to every impartial student of history. Such persecution for religious feeling was the outcome of a state of things, that had slowly, but surely, grown upon the Christian world. In the early ages the Church had to endure persecution ; then was the age of the martyrs. In the later centuries the Church had to struggle against heresies ; then was the age of the controversialists. Now, the danger of controversy, necessary as it often is for the defense of the Truth, is that it is apt to arouse a persecuting, vindictive temper. The man invested with power, the over-man, flushed with zeal, naturally endeavors to make the under-man think as he thinks ; and if he rebels, is tempted to use force to accomplish his end. This is where Churchmen erred in the past.

14 SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION.

Heresy and Schism came to be treated as crimes for which the prison aud the stake were adjudged to be the rightful penalties.

But " curses come home to roost." Those who were perse- cuted learned the same lesson ; and, in turn, became perse- cutors. When their time came, the Calvinists at Geneva, and the Independents in the Colonies, proved they could be even more ruthless than their opponents.

Neal, in his " History of New England,'' says: "It must be allowed that, when the Puritans were in power, they carried their resentments too far." Bishop Burnet testifies : " It were as easy, as it would be invidious, to show that both Presby- terians and Independents have carried the principle of rigor in the point of conscience much higher, and have acted more implacably upon it, than ever the Church of England has done, even in her angriest fits."

Let us, with one accord, thank God that those old days of ecclesiastical tyranny have passed away, we trust never to re- turn in any part of our land ! In this age the spirit and language of conciliation are known and appreciated. Uphold ing the Faith and Order of any particular religious body, by the secular arm, is not accounted to-day, a wise or seemly method by which to bring about unity of belief or action. We have learned that there can be no way to accomplish that desired end, except God's way, and that includes always sympa- thy and comprehension. The Truth of God must be carried to hearts and consciences by the teachings of those who are filled with it, ; and the love and faith which it begets and fosters. As Churchmen, looking out upon the broad page of human experience, let us be just, and utter no harsh or bitter word about the narrowness peculiar to the days of old.* We our- selves, as well as those who differed from us, in the seven- teenth and eighteenth centuries, when opportunity served,

•When In 1691, King William sent out Sir Lionel Copley to be royal governor of Maryland, taxes were straightway laid for the support of the Church of EDgland.

SKETCH OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL SITUATION. 15

were alike intolerant. When we bad the upper hand, we sought by every available means to enforce conformity ; when it came to be the turn of those who had opposed us, they sought by equally violent processes, to maintain the position they had adopted. As has been foi'cibly said, " We cannot complain of Dissenters, as if mere Schisms accounted for their existence, when, in fact, it was to an extent it is difficult to exaggerate, the sin of our Church which caused separation to seem right to purer consciences in the past ; when, in fact, it is to non-con- formists that we owe, in times when darkness had almost settled down upon us, the revival and maintenance of the very ideas of Religion ; when, once more, God has so manifestly blessed their spiritual life. Let us never forget that a belief in a valid Church and Ministry is not in any logical connection with the quite unjustifiable denial that God can act, and has acted in irregular channels. God is not tied to his Sacra- ments, even though as men, if we know the Truth, we are bound to seek this fellowship in accordance with His cove- nant, and only so."*

and tlie further immigration of Romanists was prolilblted under Iieavy penalties. Tills measure involving legislation lor tlie support of a Churcn of wlilcli only a small part of the population were memt)ers, was as unpopular with Puritans as with Papists. Those of the former who had worked zealously to undermine the Roman Church, had not bargained for such a result as this. John Flske : Old.. Virginia, vol. 11, p. 162. ♦Canon Gore : The Church and Dissent.

CHAPTER III.

OEGANIZATION OF THE VENERABLE SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL, 1701, A. D. : VISIT OF ITS FIRST MIS- SIONARIES, KEITH AND TALBOT, TO THE COLONIES, 1702, A. D.

Ret. George Keith, M. A.

In England, as far back as the reign of William and Mary, deep^interest was felt in the spiritual needs of the American

VISIT OF MESSRS. KEITH AND TALBOT. 17

Colonies, which were then beginning to loom into prominence. New England, especially, was thought to be in great danger from various sectaries, who branching off from the new form of religion by law established, felt themselves free to teach and hold grievous forms of error. A writer of the time, declares that that region already " swarmed " with Antinomians, Familists, Conformatists, Seekers, Gortonists, and others of equally startling nomenclature. The aborigines, as well as the negroes who had been introduced in large numbers, also came in for a share of the general attention and sympathy. In 1701, this widesjjread interest culminated in the formation of the Venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts ; an institution, which still flourishes with even more vigor than that which characterized its in- fancy. Its charter ran :

"William the Third, King of Great Britain and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, greeting :

"Whereas we are informed that in many of our Plantations and Colonies beyond the sea, belonging to our Kingdom of England, the provision for ministers is very mean, whereby there is a great lack of the administration of the Word and Sacraments, causing atheism to abound for the want of learned and orthodox ministers, and Romish priests and Jesuits are encouraged to proselyte . . . We therefore em- power these, our right trusty subjects ; " then follow a

hundred of the noblest names in England, with the Arch- bishop of Canterbury at the head, constituting the Society. Its popularity was great from the outset. One member gave a thousand pounds for the work ; another nine hundred for teaching the negroes. One gave to it his estate in the Bar- badoes to found a college ; and another a present of books and maps. Archbishop Tennison left it one thousand pounds towards founding two American Bishoprics. The proprietors of Vermont set apart townships for its use. Evelyn enters

18

VISIT OF MESSRS. KEITH AND TALBOT.

upon the images of his diary that he had promised twenty pounds a year towards it.*

The object of the Society, set forth in the beginning, and

TUK M \1 "I lll^ \ tNtKABI F '^OtlHY.

from which, so far, it has never yet deviated, was declared to be the spread of the Worship of God according to the man-

♦McConnell : History American Episcopal Cliurcli, p. 99.

VISIT OF MESSRS. KEITH AND TALBOT. 19

ner of the Church of Eagland. On entering upon this work, it shortly divided it into three branches ; the spiritual oversight of those English emigrants who had settled in the Colonies ; the conversion of the Indians ; and also of the African slaves. Of these three, the first asserted itself as the most important, not only because the settlers being brethren and country- men, had the first claim upon its consideration, but because as soon as the formation of the Society became known, this element began to be clamorous for assistance. From South and North Carolina, from Virginia, from Maryland, from Pennsj'lvauia, from New Jersey, from New York, from New England, the Macedonian cry was heard, " Come over and help us." It thus became so evident that a wide-spread dissatisfaction with the existing religious situation prevailed, that the Society determined to send an experienced mission- ary' to travel over and preach to the people in the several Colonies, who should desire to listen to him ; and if j^ossible aid them in establishing permanent organizations. A large number of those in the Colonies, at this period, had been bap- tized and confirmed in the Church, before they left England. Tempted by the prospect of great material advantages they had left their homes, without calculating the loss they were to sustain in being separated from the Ministry, Worship and Sacraments with which they were familiar. Had they been of the opinion that religions differences were of little importance, the situation in which they found themselves would not have troubled them greatly. But they regarded the matter from another standpoint. Nothing less than the ministra- tions of a clergyman of the Church of England would satisfy their desires. Assenting to what seemed an imperative de- mand the Venerable Society proceeded to act ; the Rev. George Keith was the missionary selected to visit the Col- onies on a " mission of observation,'" to discover and study the state of religion therein, and to report where mission- aries could be sent and congregations established.

20 VISIT OF MESSES. KEITH AND TALBOT.

His commission was, " to seek the scattered families of the Church, and awaken the people to a sense of their religious duties." The selection was an admirable one. Those who knew him well, declared Mr. Keith to be "a pioneer and propa- gandist by nature." Earlier in life, while a member of the Society of Friends, he had been sent to the Colony of Penn- sylvania, to aid its founder, but discerning dangerous tendencies in the tenets of the Quakers, and foreseeing their results, he severed his connection with his associates, and returned to England, not long after to take Holy Orders in the Church.

In April, 1702, he started on his mission to the Colonies. He came in an English warship, which brought the Govern- ors of New England and New Jersey to their provinces. The Rev. John Talbot came with them as chaplain. With them also was the Rev. Patrick Gordon, who was sent out as mis- sionary to Jamaica, Long Island.

The passengers seem to have been congenial to each other. Mr. Keith, writing to the Venerable Society, says: "Gov- ernor Dudley was so civil to Mr. Gordon and me, that he caused us to eat at his table all the voyage, and his conversa- tion was both pleasant and instructive, insomuch that the great cabin of the ship was like a college for good discourse, both in matters theological and philosophical." There was daily service, in which both the passengers and crew joined heartily and devoutly. Mr. Keith mentions the strictness of the discipline which prevailed upon the ship, and describes the punishment of the crew for " profane swearing," which was " causing them to carry a heavy wooden collar about their necks for an hour, that was both painful and shameful."*

Mr. Talbot, the chaplain, became so enthusiastic about Mr. Keith and his mission, that he begged to become a fellow laborer and a companion in his travels. His proposal was accepted and in due time, at the solicitation of the Rev. Mr.

"Ms. Letters, S. P. G., vol. i, p. 9.

VISIT OF MESSRS. KEITH AND TALBOT. 21

Oordon, the Venerable Society appointed him Mr. Keith's assistant. Their ship reached Boston in June, 1702, and after a few days the two men began their journey. They went from hamlet to hamlet, and house to house, preaching wherever they could gain a hearing, baptizing hundreds, gathering the wandering sheep into oi'ganized folds, and making provision to build churches wherever that work could be done.

Everywhere there were numbers who cordially welcomed them. In a letter addressed by Mr. Keith to " the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of London, and all others, the Honorable Members of the Society,'' dated the 29th of November, 1702, and giving an account of his labors since his arrival in Boston, on the 11th of June preceding, he says : " In divers places of New England where we traveled, we found many well affected to the Church, not only the people but several Presbyterian ministers in New England, who re- oeived us as brethren, and requested us to preach to their congregations, as accordingly we did. These were Mr, John Cotton ( a grandson to old John Cotton ) the Presby- terian minister at Hampton, where I preached twice, and Mr. Talbot ouce, having very great auditories ; Mr. Cushin, Pres- byterian minister at Salisbury, eight miles distant from Hampton westward, where we both preached on a Sunday, and had a great auditory ; Mr. Gurdon Saltonstall at New London, fifty miles west from Narragansetts, where we both preached on a Sunday ; the people generally well affected, and those three ministers aforesaid, all worthy gentlemen, who declared their owning the Church of England, and that if they were in England, they would join in external com- munion with her : and were there a Bishop in America, we doubt not but several would receive ordination from him."*

*Claurcli Record, vol. 1, no. xvli.

22 VISIT OF MESSRS. KEITH AND TALBOT.

This very circumstantial account clearly gives to the people of New London the honor of tirst welcoming in Connecticut the missionaries sent forth by the Venerable Society. But thei'e is no doubt Messrs. Keith and Talbot preached in all the principal places of the Colonies. Humphrey says : *" They traveled over and preached in all the Governments and Dominions belonging to the Crown of England, betwixt North Carolina and Piscataway Eiver in New England, inclusively,, being ten distinct Governments ; and extending in length 800 miles."' At all events, the reception given to Mr. Keith and his companion, reveals these facts : that even at that early date, there was a strong drift towards Episcopacy ; that the Congregational system, although in operation for more than half a century, without any interruption or hindrance, had begun to prove unsatisfactory to many of its prominent supporters, and that for a permanent settlement of the re- ligious question, the people, if allowed to choose, would prefer the ecclesiastical system of the Church of England. Of a visitation of Messrs. Keith and Talbot to Fairfield we have no satisfactory evidence. One tradition relates that they stopped there for a brief period, as they journeyed from New London to New York ; another that they crossed the Sound from New London to Long Island in a sloop which they hired. If New London was the only town in Connecticut visited by them, somehow they obtained in a brief space of time ample information concerning the whole Colony. Wri- ting home a few months afterwards, they reported of Connecticut that it contained " thirty thousand souls in about thirty-three towns, all Dissenters, supplied with ministers and schools of their own persuasion." One general result accrued from their protracted itineracy : numbers again had a taste of the worship of the Book of Common Prayer ; their courage to stand up in its behalf was fortified ; "while their longing for a settled ministry among them was

•History S. P. G., p. 20.

VISIT OF MESSES. KEITH AND TALBOT. 23

aroused. The proof of this is found in the announcement the Venerable Society was shortly compelled to make : " that it was unable to respond favorably to one half of the appeals from the Colonies, presented to it for its consideration."

After an absence of two years, Mr. Keith returned to England, and became incumbent of Edburtou, in the pleasant County of Sussex. It was in March, 1716, that he finished his earthly labors, and the simple record in the parish register under date of March 29th, reads : " Then the Rev. Mr. Keith, Rector of Edburtou, was buried."

The Venerable Society sent out no missionary more successful and self-sacrificing, than this godly man. He began the work and laid the foundations on which others built. Mr. Talbot was an effective and faithful coadjutor. The two labored together, harmoniously and enthusiastically, throughout their extended tours. After Mr. Keith's de- parture, Mr. Talbot became Rector of St. Mary's Church, Burlington, New Jersey, of which he was the founder. When he retired he was the oldest missionary in the Colonies, and in influence he stood first among the Churchmen of his day.*

*Mr. Talbot lias been the subject of a curious story. It is alleged tliat after twenty years of faithful service at Burlington, he went to England, and was consecrated to the Episcopate by the non-juring Bishops. McConnell : History of the Ameri- can Episcopal Church, p. lO-'i says: "Anderson, Hawks, Wilberforce, and Caswell aftirm that he did. The Rev. Dr. Hills, in his 'History of tlie Church In Burlington,' discusses the same subject exhaustively and maintains the same assertion. In Vol. I. of Bishop Perry's ' History of the American Episcopal church' is a Monograph by Rev. John Fulton, D. D., in which he re-examines the whole case, and arrives at the conclusion, that Mr. Talbot never received such consecra- tion ; and that the tradition arose froni confounding his name with that of another person."

CHAPTER IV.

The Rev. George Muirson ; the Rev. Messrs Talbot, Sharpe,

AND Bridge ; and the Rev. George Pigot, Officiate

AT Fairfield, 1706-1723, a. d.

In 1704, the Yeuerable Society established a mission at Rye, in New York, and sent over the Rev. George Muirson to take charge of it. He wrote thus to the Society in 1706 : "I have baptized about two hundred young and old, but mostly grown persons. I have now above forty communi- cants, though I had only six when I first administered the Holy Sacrament."" The fact of Mr. Muirson's settlement at IRje, and his successful labors there, soon became known in many of the shore-towns of Connecticut, and repeated and urgent petitions to visit them were sent by the Church-people. Possessed with the missionary spirit of St. Paul, Mr. Muir- son determined to comply with their request. In the sum- mer of 1706, in company with Colonel Caleb Heathcote, a zealous and affluent layman, at that time residing in West- chester county, he set out upon a journey, which it was pur- posed should extend as far as the Housatouic river. They rode to Fairfield, and thence to Stratford. The missionary, though *' threatened with prison and hard usage,'" preached to lai'ge congregations, and " baptized about twenty-four, mostly grown people."' "Writing to the Society, on his return, he says : "I have been lately in the Government of Connecticut, where I observe some people well affected to the Church ; so that I am assured an itinerant missionary might do great service in that Province. Some of their ministers have privately told me that, had we a Bishop among us they would

THE REV. GEORGE MUIRSON. 25

conform and receive Holy Orders, from which, as well as on the Continent, the necessity of a Bishop will appear."

Col. Heathcote was so favorably impressed by what he saw and heard during this visit, that he hastened to give his im- pressions concerning- it to the Venerable Society. He says : " We found the places we visited very ignorant of the Consti- tution of our Church, and tlierefore enemies to it. The chief towns are furnished with ministei's, mainly Independents, denying baptism to the children of all such as are not in full communion with them : there are many thousands in that Government unbaptized. The ministers were very uneasy at our coming amongst then, and abundance of pains were taken to terrify the people from hearing Mr. Muirson. But it availed nothing, for notwithstanding all their endeavors, we had a very great congregation, and indeed infinitely beyond expectation. The people were wonderfully surprised at the order of our Church, expecting to have heard and seen some strange thing, by the accounts and representations of it that their teachers had given them." *

In a later letter, dated Scarsdale Manor, Nov. 9, 1706, Colonel Heathcote enters upon a discussion of the general aff lirs of the Church in New York, New Jersey and Connecti- cut. He says : But bordering on Connecticut there is no part of the Continent, from whence the Church can have so fair an opportunity to make impressions upon the Inde- pendents in that Government, who ai*e settled by their laws, from Rye Parish to Boston Colony, which is about 35 leagues, in w^hich there are abundance of people and places. As for Boston Colon}', I never was in it, so can say little of it. But for Connecticut, I am and have been pretty conversant : and always w^as as much in their good graces as any man. And now I am upon that subject, I will give the best account I can of that Colony. It contains in length about 140 miles, and has in it about 40 towns, in which there is a Presbyterian

•Humphrey: History of tlie Venerable Society, p. 118.

26 THE EEV. GEORGE MUIRSON.

or Independeut minister settled by their law ; to whom the people are obliged to pay, notwithstanding many times they are not ordained ; of which I have known several examples. The number of people there, I believe, is about 2,400 souls. They have an abundance of odd kind of laws, to prevent any from dissenting from their church, and endeavor to keep the people in as much blindness and unacquaintedness with any other religion as possible ; but in a more particular manner, the Church, looking upon her as the most dangerous enemy they have to grapple withall, and abundance of pains is taken to make the ignorant think as bad as possible of her. And I really believe that more than half of the people of that Gov- ernment, think our Church is little better than the Papists, and the truth is, they improve everything against us. Yet I dare aver, that there is not a much greater necessity of having the Christian religion preached in its true light anywhere than amongst them. Many, if not the greater number of them, being in a little better than in a state of heathenism ; having never been baptized or admitted to the Holy Com- munion."* Concluding his letter, Colonel Heathcote recom- mends that Rev. Mr. Muirson be sent on a second missionary tour throughout the Colony. It was under such circum- stances that the Episcopal Church was introduced in form, both at Fairfield, and at Stratford. The following year, Mr. Muirson came again to Fairfield by invitation of the Church- people there, and preached to a large congregation in a private house, and baptized a number of adults and children. Concerning this visit he wrote to the Society : " The Inde- pendents used means to obstruct me. The people were like- wise threatened with imprisonment, and a forfeiture of five pounds for coming to hear me. It would require more time than you would willingly bestow on these lines, to express how rigidly and severely they treat our people, by taking their estates by distress when they do not willingly pay ta » Bolton : History ot Westchester County, vol. 11, p. 106.

THE REV. GEORGE MUIRSON. 27

support their miuisters ; and though every Churchman in that Colony pays his rate for the building and repairing their meeting-houses, yet they are so set against us, that they deny us the use of them though on the week days. All the Churchmen of this Colony request is that they may not be oppressed ; that they may obtain a liberty of conscience, and call a minister of their own ; that they be freed from paying to their ministers, and thereby be enabled to support their own. This is all these good men desire."'*

The missionary efforts of Mr. Muirsou were not long in producing a satisfactory result. Early in the year 1707, the Episcopalians of Stratford, probably in connection with a few from Fairfield, "embodied themselves in a religious society," and requested that Mr. Muirson might be sent to reside among them as a settled missionary. But before they received any answer to their application, he died, in October, 1708 ; and the few Churchmen, who had begun with much hope and amid cheering prospects, to lay the foundation of the first Episcopal parish in Connecticut, were called, in the providence of God, to await with patience, through a series of untoward events, dui-ing a number of years, the coming of a resident clergyman.

After the death of Mr. Muirson, the Rev. Messrs. Talbot, Sharpe and Bridge, missionaries located in New York and New Jersey, occasiouly visited Stratford and Fairfield. And at one time, Mr. Sharpe spent nearly a mouth, and took much pains, and baptized many ; among whom was an aged man, said to have been the first man-child born in the Colony of Connecticut. At leugth, in 1713, the Rev. Mr. Phillips was put in charge of the parish at Stratford ; but after a few months, during which his ministrations were very iri'egular, he suddenly left the Colony. And finally, to add to the disappointment of the scattered dock, not yet fully organized and settled as a regular mission, after several years of zealous • Humphrey : History of the Venerable Society, p. 119.

28 THE REV. CtEOKGE MUIRSON.

and patient effort to that end, the Rev. Aeneas Mackenzie, condi- tionally appointed for the supply of Stratford, was detained at Staten Island, by the offer of a gentleman to build and endow a Church there. Thus thwarted by various circum- stances, scarcely less discouraging than the opposition and hindrance presented by laws of the Colony, which were devised for the support of the Congregational system of religion, the Churchmen of Stratford and Fairfield, to whom Mr. Muirson had preached in 1706 and 1707, were not pro- vided with a resident pastor until 1722* Then, to their great joy, the Rev. George Pigot was sent hither by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, and located for a while at Stratford ; with a general charge of all the Church-people in these parts ; who seem to have been, as yet, almost confined to Stratford and Fairfield.

Mr. Pigot held his first service at Fairfield, at the house of Mr. Hanford, and preached to about six families, the 26th day of August. He arranged to officiate regularly thereafter, once a month. The other Sundays, when Mr. Pigot was offi- ciating at Stratford, or elsewhere, services at Faii'fleld were kept up by the aid of a faithful lay-reader. It appears from letters preserved in the archives of the Venerable Society, that in the year 1723, Dr. James Laborie, a French physician of eminence, who had left his native country towards the close of the seventeenth century, and been " ordained by Mr. Knight, antistes of the Canton of Zurich,"' taught and held service conformably to the usage of the Church of England in his own house' in Fairfield. According to the records of the Town he resided there in 1718, having bought at that time, of Mr. Isaac Jennings, a place known as " the stone house on the rocks," probably the same concerning which he afterwards said, that he had " destinated "' it to the service of the Church of England Anyway, using the Book of Common Prayer for a manual of worship, this zealous layman invited beneath his

* Rev. N. E. Cornwall : Historical Discourse, p. 9.

THE KEV. GEORGE MUIRSON. 29

roof, on Sunday mornings, those who still clung to the Church of England and its form of worship. Here, then, was a nucleus, independent of a settled minister, about which the Church sentiment could gather and grow ! And doubtless it did much to strengthen Mr. Pigot's brief but successful ministry. The latter served Fairfield, in common with Stratford and Newtown but a year and a half, when he was removed by the Venerable Society's order, to Providence? Rhode Island, the place for which he had been intended when he first arrived in America. It seems quite plain then that the Church in Fairfield, actually began with the lay services of Dr. Laborie. If the date of his coming to Fairfield, 1718, is correct, that would be the year of its inception. Mr. Pigot was the first clergyman who officiated regularly, but even in his time, 1722, the continuous life of the parish can be said to have depended upon the fervor of those Churchmen who met from Sunday to Sunday, and participated in Divine worship according to the Book of Common Prayer, the officiant being more frequently one of their own number.*

*In a " Registry-book " kept by Mr. Pigot and Mr. Johnson, at Stratford, there is a record of the appointment. In 1724, of two Wardens and nine Vestrymen " for Stratford," one Warden and two Vestrymen "for Fairfield," one Warden and two Vestrymen "for Newtown," and two Wardens and three Vestrymen "for Rlpton;" the Warden for Fairfield being Dougal Mackenzie, and the Vestrymen, James Laborie, Sen. and Benjamin Sturges. At the same time James Laborie. Jun. was one of the Vestrymen for Stratford.

CHAPTER V.

The Ministry of the Eey. Samuel Johnson and the Build- ing OF THE First Church at Mill Plain, 1723-1727.

Rev. Samuel Johnson.

In 1723, Rev. Samuel Johnson, succeeded Mr. Pigot as rector of the parish at Stratford, and animated with the same

THE REV. SAMUEL JOHNSON. 31

Boble spirit of his predecessor, still continued to give to the Church-people at Fairfield, a generous share of his time. He it was, who having been a tutor at Yale college, and afterwards a popular Congregational minister at West Haven, and having had a Prayer Book put into his hands,* had read and re-read it until he had become convinced that " there were no prayers like those of the Church of England;'' had crossed the ocean to the mother-country, and been " Episco- pally initiated, confirmed and ordained ;" and was now returned to Connecticut to extend the borders of the Church of his convictions. How few Churchmen of the present day are conversant with that stirring episode in the ecclesias- tical history of Connecticut ! Dr. Cutler, President of Yale, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Brown, also a Tutor at Yale, all men of great l^urity of character, of profound learning, and liberal culture, became convinced that their duty lay in returning to the Church of their fathers, the Church of England. One reason was. the Congregational system was not meeting the spiritual need of the time. This was the period of controversy. The principles of Puritanism had lost their hold upon many of the people. A re-action had set in, and the moral tone of the Connecticut towns was lowered. " The complicated relations of Church and State needed disentanglement and explana- tion." t Another was, it became evident after calm, unpreju- diced study, that unless God was the author of confusion, He would establish but one Church, not many so-called churches, to extend and conserve the Gospel of His Son ; that He had done so through His inspired Apostles, and that His Church with its Holy Scriptures, Ministry, Sacraments, and Liturgy,

• A good maD in Guilford. Smitlison by name— blessed be liis memory !—liad a Prayer Book wliicli he put into the hands of the youthful Johnson before he left his native town. Many of the prayers that he found tlierein, Johnson committed to memory, and afterwards used as occasion required, in public worship, alike to the comfort of himself and to the comfort and edification of his flock.— Beardsley : History of the Episcopal Church, vol. ii, p. .34.

t Child : The Prime Ancient Society, p. 20.

32 THE REV. SAMUEL JOHNSON.

existed just as really aud as mauifestly in the year 1722, as at the day of Pentecost. With this conviction born within them they could not rest where they were ; so they came out boldly aud announced their resolve to seek valid ministerial authority in England. Their action, which found numerous imitators, shook the Congregational Church like an earth- quake. *

No one can doubt the sincerity of Mr. Johnson's course, or that of his companions. Everything in the way of honor and preferment tempted them to stay where they were; while to obtain the ordination they sought, the terrors of the deep, and the dangers of pestilence, demanded a courage unsur- passed by that exhibited by the most valiant on the battle- field. Mr. Johnson's diary, written for his own, and not the public eye, immediately after the College Commencement of 1722, shows what was the inner mind of this holy man. He says: ''Being at length brought to such doubts concerning the validity of my ordination, that I could go no further without intolerate uneasiness of mind, I have now at length, after some private conferences with ministers, made a public declaration of my scruples and uneasiness. It is with great sori'ow of heart that I am forced to be an occasion of so much uneasiness to my dear friends, my poor people, and indeed to the whole Colony. O God, I beseech Thee, grant that I may not, by an adherence to Thy necessary truths and laws — as I profess in my conscience they seem to be — be a stumbling- block or occasion to fall to any soul. Let not our thus appearing for Thy Church be any way accessory, though accidentally, to the hurt of religion in general, or any person

"Ex-Presldent Woosleylu Ills Historical Discourse, 1850, says: A departure for the first time In the Colony, and of so many at once, from the views of the New England Churches, and a return to that Church from which the Pilgrims had fled Into the wilderness, filled the minds of men with apprehension and gloom— feelings which extended Into the neighboring Colony. I suppose that greater alarm would scarcely be awakened now, if the Theological Faculty of the College were to declare for the Church of Rome, avow their belief In Transubstantiatlon, and pray to the Virgin Mary.

1

t.OfllOINAI.	l.aCAY1»M OF TI|lt*rfV ft^tSCOTAL l.>«W«ICn A.*.|r>«.
a^CCOMD	- • • - « iTas.
9' THIN.	• • - > n - -lT»8.
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S.r.rrHfti.	mtt/tmr locatiom - » • - )fsa •
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MAP OF A F»0R■^ot>^ or the' TOWN or FAIRTIEI-D

SHOWINO THE VARIOUS LOCATIONS OF

TRir^tTY CHURCH SinCc its organization

L.ONG ISLAND SOUND

THE REV. SAMUEL JOHNSON. 33

in particular. Have mercy, Lord, have mercy on the souls of men, and pity and enlighten those who are grieved at this accident. Lead into the way of truth all those who have erred and are deceived, and if we in this affair are misled, we beseech Thee, to show us our error before it is too late, that we may repair the damage. Grant us Thy illumination, for Christ's sake — Amen."

Immediately after his return from England on November 4:th, 1723, Mr. Johnson took charge of the Church at Stratford ; and Mr. Pigot hastened to his charge at Providence. Mr. Johnson's position was somewhat like that of an itinerant preacher, as he officiated at Fairfield one Sunday in the month, and at Norwalk, Newtown and West Haven, frequently on week days. He describes himself as " alone, surrounded with bitter enemies, so that if he had not been of a very sanguine temper, he would have scarce avoided growing melancholly." It certainly would not have been strange if he had grown " melancholly," if the tradition is true which is told of his reception and residence at Stratford. The house which was procured for him was branded with a hot poker, by the good woman who vacated it, on the fire-boards and every available piece of woodwork, with large crosses — a vigorous protest against Popish invasion. It is also stated that for some time he was obliged to send to Long Island, fourteen miles across the Sound, for provisions which the excellent townspeople would not furnish. Writing to the Bishop of London shortly after his arrival at Stratford, he says : " There is not one clergyman of the Church of England, besides myself, in this whole Colony, and I am obliged in a great measure to neglect my cure at Stratford, where yet there is business for one minister, to I'ide about to other towns, when in each one of them there is as much need of a resident minister as there is at Stratford, especially at Fairfield and Newtown." This is true, but Fairfield had one incalculable advantage over other places in which he officiated.

34 THE KEY. SAMUEL JOHNSON.

Faithf al Dr. Laborie was serving as lay-reader there, whenever the Lord's day came round, and Mr. Johnson's duties called him elsewhere. Thus continuity and vitality were imparted to the infant parish. The Church at Fairfield at this time numbered about twenty families: Mr. Johnson writing in 1724 to the Secretary of the Venerable Society says : " The whole town would, I believe, embrace the Church if they had a good minister. I have a vast assembly every time I visit them. We have, however, no abatement of persecution and imprisonment for taxes, which sundry people, and those of both sexes have unreasonably suffered." In spite, though, of the harsh treatment to which it was subjected — so strong was the feeling against the Church, that by common consent Fairfield at this time, and for years afterwards, was styled " the chief seat of opposition to Episcopacy" — the young, but militant parish, decided upon the erection of a Church edifice. After much legal fencing, an eligible site was secured on Mill Plain, a central location, about a mile from the village of Fairfield and the work was begun. This Church building, the second Episcopal Church erected in the Colony, was set apart for divine worship, with a suitable discourse by Mr. Johnson, November 10th, 1725, the Thanksgiving-Day that year for Connecticut.

It is diffieult for us at the present time, to conceive how humble and plain this edifice was. Although designed for Episcopal worship, it varied little in size and appearance from the usual type of meeting-house of that day. The windows were hardly more than openings for light and air, their size being reduced by the scarcity and cost of glass ; there was no plaster on the walls ; no cushions took the hardness off the narrow benches; artificial heat was unknown, even in the bitterest weather ; there was the merest suggestion of a pulpit, and a rough carpenter-made reading desk, balanced it on the other side. Seats were provided for the colored people apart by themselves. In the early days in all the Connecticut

THE REV. SAMUEL JOHNSON.

35

towns, religious and other meetings were called by the beat of the drum ; one of the inhabitants making an annual contract for the service. It was considered a decided novelty, and a sign of great progress, when the enterprise of the congrega- tion connected with Trinity Church, caused a bell to be hung in the steeple of the second Episcopal Church erected thirteen years later.

Who were the donors of the funds wherewith this first Church was built? We cannot tell. The records, if there were any, were all destroyed by the fire of 1779. One thing

The First Church on Mill Plaix.

we know, the space about the edifice, began to be utilized in a very short time as a burial ground, and this fact has preserved for us the name of a worthy parishioner, whose benefactions to the parish must have been of a generous chai'acter. As late as 1881 there were seven tombstones, worn and disinte- grated by the passing years, still in place, on the site of the first Mill Plain Chux'ch. In that year they were removed by the

36

THE BEV. SAMUEL JOHNSON.

citizens of Fairfield villao;e to the old burying ground of thafc place, where they are now. The most important in size and state of preservation is that of Abraham Adams, who died August 9th, 1729, in the 80th year of his age, having been a worthy Founder and Liberal Benefactor to Trinity Church.

m

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dr

i \ 'M-:^

^t/4 V'

VV'j^i

\~{(;re Lye5 Buried;;

S Bodu of m;^- iI

A BKAHAH ADAMS' Who Dec- Aug- 172 c

His A^e

Havinq been aWoKthyToun & Liberal BettefdctortoTrmify

Church ,

%

Tomb 01 Alraham Adams.

The other stones are :

No. 1.

JOHN APPLEGATE,

Died 1712.

No. 2.

AVIS APPLEGATE,

Died 1717.

THE REV. SAMUEL JOHNSON. 37

No. 3.

REBECCA BROWN,

Died 1730.

No. 4.

BENJAMIN LINES,

Died 1732.

No. 5.

DAVID JENNINGS,

Died 1735.

No. 6.

ESTHER LORD.

The existence and location of these tombstones up to 1881, clearly remove the exact site of the fii-st Church erected by Trinity parish, from the uncertainties of mere tradition. The tombstones, within the recollection of many living witnesses, were taken from the spot marked No. 1, on the map of Church sites, which has been prepared for this work, and that, beyond dispute, is where the first Church built by the parish was situated.

CHAPTER YI.

The Rev. Henry Canee, the First Rector of Trinity

Church, and the Building of the Second Church

Edifice, 1727-1747 a. d.

Kev. Henry Caner.

Under the impetus given by the possession of a permanent building wherein the people could gather without hindrance for worship and Sacrament, the continued progress of the Church at Fairfield became assured. One need there was, however, that became more and more apparent, that of a

THE KEY. HENEY CANER. 39

settled minister. Inasmuch as Mr. Johnson, though actually Rector at Stratford, was practically missionary to all the parts adjacent, it was not to be expected that he could give the growing parish at Fairfield as much of his time as it required. It is true it had been favored for a number of years, with the invaluable services of Dr. Laborie, but about this date he had felt compelled, owing to bodily infirmity, to sever his relation with it as lay-reader. Providentially, a fit person was found to succeed him in that capacity.* Henry Caner was a recent graduate of Yale college, a communicant at Stratford, and a candidate for Holy Orders. He was, according to Dr. Trum- bull, " the son of the Mr. Caner who built the first college and Rector's house at New Haven." After having materially assisted in keeping up the services, as lay-reader, under Mr. Johnson, for two years, Mr. Caner crossed over to England, and having been ordained, was forthwith appointed missionary at Fairfield, by the Venerable Society. The second and most important stage in the history of Trinity Church was now reached. It had not only its proper Church edifice, but also for the first time in its history, a Rector whom it could rightfully call its own. Instead of coming at intervals from without to minister to the congregation, henceforth there was one who would make the parish itself the centre from which his influence would radiate. As was to be expected, a new era of prosperity ensued. In 1733, Mr. Caner informed the Venerable Society that " the Independents, who formerly thought it a crime to join with the Churchmen in worship, now freely came to^Church, and joined with seeming sanctity and satisfaction in "our service." Later he reported that in Fairfield, as well as elsewhere, the Church was in a growing

•The name of "Henry Canner" was enrolled In the "registry-hook" of Mr. Plgot, upon the list of communicants at Stratford, "Septr. 2d, 173a," and that of "Henry Caner, Jr." by Mr. Johnson, "March 28th, 1725." It may be well to observe that while the original orthography of Mr. Caner's name was that which is here employed, the received pronunciation of it was doubtless indicated more precisely by Doctor Trumbull, who wrote It Canner, and by the early Churchmen of Fairfield, who sometimes wrote it Conner.

40 THE REV. HENRY CANER.

condition, and never in as flourishing a state as at present." Early in 173G, exhausted by his arduous duties, Mr. Caner was induced by his physician to journey to England, for rest and recuperation. Writing to Mr. Johnson from London under date of March 9th, the Bishop of Gloucester said : " I wish Mr. Caner, who has the character from you, and every one, of a very deserving man, might acquire a better state of health by his journey hither.'' The Bishop's desire was realized. Change of scene, freedom from that "sameness that doubles care," speedily restored him to his normal condition, and in the autumn of the same year he was back at work in Fairfield, ready, if that were possible, to make greater sacri- fices than ever in its behalf. During all this time the parish was steadily advancing. The attendance on the Lord's Day had grown larger ; more than one parishioner had remembered the Church by will; while better than all, there were numerous indications of an abatement of the persecuting spirit and temper of those who, up to this time, had been bitterly hostile. About a twelve-month after Mr. Caner's return from England, the Church edifice, erected in 1725, on Mill Plain, had become, it was discovered, " much too little for the congregation ;'" besides, the location was inconvenient for many of the parishioners, being nearly a mile from the town-centre, which was Fairfield village. At this period, Fairfield was a port of entry, and the seat of the Courts for the whole County. Shops and dwellings were multiplying, and the population increasing rapidly in numbers and importance. A Church located close by, rather than over a mile distant, it was felt was a want of a pressing nature, even though a considerable part of the congregation might have to travel somewhat further to reach it. The project meeting with favor, at a town meeting held July 27th, 1738, a vote was adopted* giving " liberty to

* Tills action of the town was In Its civil capacity. We hear It sometimes Inti- mated that the Prime Congregational Society of Its own kindliness and good will graciously permitted the Episcopalians to organize and build. Beginning with 1827, the meetings of the Prime Ancient (Congregational) Society of Fairfield.

THE REV. HENRY CANER.

41

the members of the Church of Eagland" to build their pro- posed Church, upon certain conditions,* " on the highway near the Old Fairfield gate, about eighty rods eastward from the Prime Society's Meeting House. "f

This second Church, though built iu the infancy of the parish, was a very substantial and comparatively elegant structure. It was fifty-five feet in length, thirty-five feet in breadth, and twenty feet in height, "with a handsome steeplcj

The Second Chdrch, Fairfield Village.

and spire of one hundred feet, and a good bell of five hundred

weight." It had also capacious galleries.

according to Its own record were entirely distinct from "Town-Meeting," Tliat was a different affair. Moreover, the meeting referred to above, was lield at Greenfield, not Fairfield.

*one of the certain conditions was that Episcopalians who lived within a mile of the new edifice were granted the prlviliegeof paying their taxes for the support of it ; while all others were compelled to pay their taxes for the support, as of old of the Congregational Church

tsee site marked No. 3 on map facing page 35.

tx spire or steeple, in the early days of the Colony, was considered almost an essential to aneditlce belonging to the ( hurch of England. It distinguished it as such. "The steeple house " was the common name given to one of our Churches by the Puritans.

42 THE KEY. HENRY CANEE.

By this time, it is apparent that the parish of Fairfield had outstripped in some respects the older parish of Stratford, and taken the position of the leading parish in the Colonj'. It appears from original papers in the oflSce of the Secretary of State, that of six hundred and thirty-six heads of families, men and women, whose signatures were attached to a petition then presented to the Colonial Assembly, from nine parishes under the care of seven missionaries, of these, eighty-tioo, or more than one-eighth of the whole, belonged to Fairfield. Some conception of the rapid advance of the Church at Fairfield after Mr. Caner became its settled minister, and assumed the full charge, may be gathered from a comparison of the small number of communicants whom he found here as lay-reader under Mr. Johnson in 1725, namely twelve, with the number of families belonging to the parish in 1730, namely forty. No doubt such a satisfactory state of things was owing, in large measure, to the tact and ability displayed by Mr. Caner. During the years of his incumbency he had acquired great celebrity as a preacher. Nor was he lacking in the least in missionary zeal ; for although Fairfield claimed and received the largest share of his attention, he still found time to extend his ministrations to the other villages and towns that called for them.

In one of his letters he speaks of his parish as fifteen miles long, and more than six broad ; and says that this compelled him to keep two horses, which he found "expensive and troublesome." Norwalk, and Kidgefield, and Northfield (now "Weston), were visited regularly by him, and a great deal of ■effective work was done, by house to house visitations, throughout the then rough and sparsely settled country. Mr. •Caner's connection with the Church at Fairfield lasted twenty years, from 1727 to 1747. In the latter year, the few communi- •cants with which his ministry began had grown to over two hundred, sixty-eight of them being in Fairfield.* After this

•According to Hawkins, p. 246. there were slxty-elglit at Fairfield, one hundred and fifteen at Norwalk, and tweniy at Stamford. But such a statement, In view of the nature and extent of the mission, Is not very definite.

THE REV. HENKY CANER. 43

long period of faithful service Mr. Caner resigned bis charge,* and removed, greatly to the regret of all of his parishioners, to Boston, and took the services at King's Chapel. Much has been said and written to the detriment of the Colonial clergy. f It may have been that here and there one was found who did not live answerably to his holy calling. But as a general rule it was far otherwise. In the New England Colonies especially, there was little in the positions which the Church offered to attract unworthy men. One missionary, writing to the Venera- ble Society in 1718, says: '"They tried to tire me out with ill- usage. The shop-keepers would not sell me provisions. The dissenting miller sent back my grain unground, with the message to eat it whole, as the hogs did. Some of the leading people in the place never fail to avoid me when they meet me on the streets.' "What inducement was there to covet, except for principle's sake, such a life as that^ We may safely say that in endurance, as good soldiers of Christ ; in self-sacrifice ; in earnest work in the face of poverty, persecution and relentless opposition, the clergymen of the northern Colonies compared favorably with any of ancient or modern times. Such a man was Mr. Caner. He did, as all Churchmen of to-day must acknowledge, a great and lasting work in Fairfield, for which his memory will always be held in grateful remembrance.

• Mr. Caaer was Rector of King's Chapel, Boston, until 1776 ; about thirty years. And though not then a missionary of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, he continued to act as its confidential friend and correspondent, especially in regard to the recommendation of candidates for Holy Orders. In 1706, he received the honorary degree of D. D. from tlie university of Oxford. In March, 1770, he went from Boston to Halifax ; and soon afterwards sailed for England, wliere he " was received by the Society wltli the respect which he so well deserved as the father of the American clergy. The Society offered him the choice of any of the missions then vacant ; and he was appointed to Bristol, in Rhode Island, and thus through the changes and chances of life, he re-assumed in his old age, a similar employment to that which he undertooli in his youth."' Hawlilns' Hist. Notices, p. 247. He died In England at an advanced age, in 1792.

tThus we have this statement : It was the custom to send out to Virginia and Maryland the poorest specimens of clergymen that the mother country afforded. Men unfit for any appointment at home, were thought good enough for the Colonies.— Fiske : Old Virginia, vol. i, p. 26-2.

CHAPTER YII.

Rev. Joseph Lamson's Rectoeship, 1747-1773, a. d.

In 1745, the eloquent, but erratic George Whitefield, appeared in New England, an d started a wave of emotionalism that carried not a few staid and conservative Christians off their feet.* Mr. Caner early wrote that while the religious enthusiasm had made no progress at Fairfield, it had spread extensively at Stamford, Norwalk, Ridgefield, and other places. Perhaps a little of it at this time would have been beneficial to the Church-people of Fairfield ; then Mr. Caner would not have felt compelled to give the reason he did for leaving his parish : " The present state of my parish," he said, " does not yield me all the satisfaction I could wish. A cold, Laodicean disposition, an inconsiderate neglect of the great duties of religion, a visible deadness and formality, are what at present give me most concern, and prevent the success of my administrations. "' Many another faithful Priest of the Church of God has been discouraged and disheartened by the same indifferent spirit, manifested by his flock, and has felt constrained to seek else-

• In 1745, WhlteQeld again crossed the Atlantic ; and after organizing Ills scheme of charity In Savannah, he traversed the Southern States,— swept like a tornado across Philadelphia,— and preached In New York and Boston. The progress of no conqueror was ever greeted with greater felicitations ; men, on horseback, poured forth to meet him, and conducted him In triumph Into their cities. The Governor received him at his table, took him in his state carriage to the boat, and bade him farewell with embraces ; ministers welcomed him to their pulpits ; the chapela and churches were too conflned for his auditors, who followed him in thousands to the flelds ; day-break and night-fall beheld crowds hanging on his words. Physi- cal power, marvellous beyond e.Kample, kept pace with this flery energy ; a tour In America of 800 miles, during which he travelled the worst roads, left him at leisure, within two months and a half, to preach 175 public sermons, besides holding numberless private e.xhortatlons and conversations.- Colquohoun : Sketches of Notable Men, p. 227.

THE EEV. JOSEPH LAMSON's RECTORSHIP. 45

where, for those to whom religion is a solemn reality and not a pretence. It is apparent that Mr. Caner felt that the parish at Fairfield needed stirring up, and that some one whose methods were different from his own, might possibly succeed in accom- plishing the task. He soon found there was a clergyman of this type available, the Rev. Joseph Lamson, who had already made for himself quite a notable record. Bo/n at Stratford, brought up a Congregationalist, he had graduated at Yale College. Soon after taking his diploma he became a Churchman, and deciding to take Holy Orders, embai'ked for England. He was accompanied by Mr. Richardson Minor, a graduate like- wise of Yale, and for fourteen years, (1730 to 1744 ), pastor of the Congregational Society at North Stratford, now Trumbull, who was risking a voyage across the sea for the same laudable purpose. The vessel in which they sailed was captured by the French, and both were made prisoners, and taken to Port Louis, in France. After their release fi'om confinement, on the way to London, they reached Salisbury, where Mr. Minor was taken ill of a fever, and died, to the great sorrow of all his friends and especially of his dependent family. Mr. Johnson, on hearing of the event, exclaimed, " would to God we had a Bishop to ordain here, which would prevent such unhappy disasters."' Mr. Lamson having been ordained, re- turned to this country, and his friends welcomed him " as one risen from the dead, among whom the report had for some time placed him." Soon after his arrival, the Venerable Society willingly appointed him assistant to the Rev. Mr. Wetmore, the missionary at Rye, New York, and the particu- lar duty assigned to him was to minister " to the inhabitants of Bedford, North Castle, and Ridgefield, with a salary of £20 per annum, besides a gratuity of the same sum, out of compassion to Mr. Lamson's sufferings and necessities." From this responsible charge Mr. Lamson was transferred, upon Mr. Caner's resignation, to Fairfield, where he served with great acceptableness for twenty-six years — a ministry

46 THE REV. JOSEPH LAMSOn's KECTORSHIP.

only terminated by Lis death. A romantic story is told concerning Mr. Lamson. Before entering the ministry, while still in college, he became engaged to Miss Abigail Rumsey, of Fairfield, a beautiful young girl of good family, only sixteen years of age. While on a visit to friends in Stratford, she was suddenly taken ill, and it soon became evident that there was no hope of her recovery. Mr. Lamson was summoned to her bedside to bid her farewell, and before her death she directed that her gold beads — ornaments greatly prized at that day — should be taken from her neck, and given to her lover. It is said that he never parted with them ; but carried them upon his person until he died. Mr. Lamson afterwards married Miss Wetmore, daughter of the missionary at Rye.

After locating at Fairfield, Mr. Lamson continued to preach for a while at Ridgefield. He is also mentioned in the pro- ceedings of the Venerable Society for 17-48, as "serving Norwalk," which had become, with the parts adjacent, a parish " of one hundred and five families, exceeding in number any other Church, except that at Stratford." The Church was also growing eastwardly. At Stratfield, now Bridge- port, Church-people had become so numerous, that under the guidance of Mr. Lamson, in 1748, they proceeded to €rect a house of worship, which was called St. John's Church. This was the eighteenth Church edifice built in the Colony. In writing to the Venerable Society, in the autumn of this year, Mr. Lamson says : " I have formerly mentioned a Church built at Stratfield, a village within the bounds of Fairfield, in which they are very urgent to have me officiate every third Sunday, because we have large congregations when I preach there.'' This was the beginning of the now flourishing mother-parish of Bridgeport, St. John's, which owed its beginning and early growth to the fostering care of Mr. Lamson, and his successors in Trinity Church, Fairfield. It should be a source of pride for the present members of

THE KEV. JOSEPH LAMSON's RECTORSHIP. 47

Trinity Church, to remember that their venerable organization in the past was the foundress of many of the Churches that now exist in Fairfield County. It is a matter of record that the Rector of Fairfield, besides serving his own cure, officiated at stated times, through successive years, at Stamford, Norwalk, Greenwich, Chestnut Ridge, (now Redding) Ridgefield, Eastou, Wilton, New Canaan, and Stratfield, a district which now embraces twenty flourishing parishes, and in which, within one hundred and sixty-three years past, not less than thirty-five Churches have been built by Churchmen, in addition to the first small edifice erected by Trinity parish at Fairfield, in 1725. Of course, as the congregations in the outlying villages grew stronger, they came to have their own settled clergymen, and thus it came to pass that about twelve 3'ears before the war of the Revolution, Trinity parish was greatly reduced in numbers ; the Churches at Stratfield and Easton only, continuing to be dependent upon it for regular services. From this time onwards, it may be, because its ministers had fewer demands for his ministrations elsewhere, the home work appears to have grown steadily. In the records of the Venerable Society, very little mention is made of Fair- field during Mr. Lamson's rectorship. One reason was, the Ijeriod of struggle and opposition attendant upon the estab- lishment of the parish was successfully past ; another, that it had become largely self-sustaining. Even in Mr. Caner's time, it was a matter of pride that the parishioners had " tried to help themselves, manifesting, always, a willingness to contribute according to their ability." It was while Mr. Lamson was rector, that it was proposed and recommended " that every professor of the Church of England should, by his will, devote a certain sum to the support of this particular Church ; to be used by the Church-wardens, for the purposes designated by the Church.'' Already, while Mr. Caner was in charge of the parish, certain small bequests had been made, but this was a formal movement, intended, if possible, to

48 THE KEV. JOSEPH LAMSON S RECTORSHIP.

bring about the speedy endowment of the parish, and thus facilitate the perpetuity and enlargement of its usefulness in the future. Very soon two parishioners had left £100 each, and two supposed to be at the point of death had ordered, the one £100, and the other £50, to be appropriated out of their estates. In addition to this, Dougal McKenzie, the father-in- law of Mr. Caner, ordered in his will that the whole of his property, comprising besides his homestead in the village of Fairfield, a large tract of land on the eastern bank of Mill River, and two or three other valuable tracts in the vicinity, should be taxed forever for the support of the Church at Fairfield. In 174:7, a member of the parish, Mrs. Jerusha Sturges, left it a legacy of £50. And in 1762, Mr. St. George Talbot, a very liberal benefactor of several Churches in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, gave not only a solid silver communion service, which was a munificent present for this era, but arranged that on his death, the parish should receive £200, to be laid out in buying a glebe for the use of the Rector.* It thus came to pass that in 1767, upon the decease of Mr. Talbot, a glebe of nine acres of pasture and wood-land at Round-Hill, was purchased of Jonathan Sturges, executor of Samuel Sturges, in the name of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, " in trust forever, for the use, benefit and improvement of a minister of the Church of England, having charge of Trinity Church for the time being." Meanwhile, in 176-4, the parishioners of Trinity had repaired their Church at an expense of nearly £100 sterling, about five hundred dollars ; and Mr. Lamson

» A charitable layman, Mr. St. George Talbot, residing In the Province of New York, favored with his patronage the effort to plant the seeds of Episcopacy In a community of divided religious sentiments. He dedicated the energies of an active life and the resources of an ample fortune to strengthen its Influence in New York and Connecticut, and his liberal benefactions are associated with the early history of the Church In Fairfield County. In 176.3 he was present at the Convention In Ripton, and wrote of the Rev. Mr. Johnson's sermon: " It was excellent, pathetlcal, spirited, adapted to the occasion, and acceptable to the clergy and all who had the pleasure to hear him. " Beardsley : History of the Episcopal Church In Connecticut, vol. 1, p. 212.

THE REV. JOSEPH LAMSOn's RECTORSHIP. 49

wrote to the Society that the Church at Stratfield would cost as much more. In the same letter he remarked, that " the people of his mission seemed more solicitous concerning the Church than ever." Altogether it may be inferred from the statistics contained in one or two reports which are preserved in the archives of the Venerable Society, that Trinity parish continued, upon the whole, in a state of constant advance, until the time of Mr. Lamson's death, which took place in 1773. Thus, the long ministry of this faithful servant of God came to an end. He found the parish in rather a depressed condition, but from no fault of his able predecessor. Wisely, but energetically, he led his people, until blessed by the Holy Spirit, he was enabled to see the ebbing tide turn, and flow in again. For controversy he had no desire. He rather cultivated peace with the conflicting elements with which he was surrounded, confining himself to the simple truths of Christianity, and of the Church, so necessary to us all. There are many waj's of following our Lord, and doing His work. The Church has need of every gift ; it is well that some of its clergy should be eloquent, argumentative, able to force its claims upon the gainsayers, showing that every talent which God has given to man, may be used to His glory ; but still more needful for the Church's welfare are ordinary clergymen like Mr. Lamson, who by quiet presentment of its worth, show to those who differ, without contention or bitter side-glance, that within its fold the soul can find all the spiritual help and sustenance it needs. Such men are its stanchest pillars ; and no gift is a cause of greater blessing, thankfulness, and fruit to God, than they.

CHAPTER VIII.

The Rev. John Sayre s Rectorship — The Burning of Fairfield BY Gen. Tyron, 1774 to 1779, a. d.

Rev. John Sayke.

Shortly after the Venerable Society learned of Mr. Lamson's death, the Rev. Mr. Marshall, of Woodbury, was ajjpointed to Fau'field, but he deemed it inexpedient to leave his field of labor in Litchfield County. In 1774, the Rev. John Sayre, who had been for several years a successful missionary at

THE REV. JOHN SAYRE's RECTORSHIP. 51

Newburgh, in New York,* was assigned to the cure. The new Rector came to a united and prosperous parish. The Church edifice was one of the finest in the Colony ; and a commodious parsonage added greatly to the comfort of the incumbent and his family. Shortly after Mr. Sayre's arrival, the impressive service of Induction, or as we now term it. Institution, took place. According to its rule, on the Sunday fixed for the ceremony, the Church was closed ; the ponderous key was left in the door ; the people stood around in the Church-yard. The minister came, accompanied by the Wardens and Vestry, and stood before the closed door. The inducting person, usually a prominent parishioner, designated by the congregation for the purpose, took the minister's right hand and placed it on the key, and pronounced the words : " By virtue of the authority given unto me, I induct you. Reverend Sir, into the real, actual, and corporal possession of the parish Church of Fairfield, called Trinity Church, with all the rights, members, and appur- tenences pertaining thereto." The officiant then opened the door, and " put the minister in possession," and henceforth the Church was his for all sacred services and uses. The minister then proceeded to toll the bell, and immediately afterwards entered the Church, followed by the people. The Order for Morning Prayer was then said, and at its close the minister solemnly declared his assent to all the doctrines

♦ In 1V68, tlie Rev. Jolin Sayre was appointed missionary at Newburgli-on-tlie- Hudson, by the Venerable Society, at a stipend of £30 a year. Settling back In tlie country, lie preached alternately at Newburgh, Otterfleld, Wallklll, and New Windsor. "He was," says Cadwalader Golden, Jr., "a popular preacher, and gathered large congregations, and raised up a spirit of building Churches." In 1T73, a conflict of opinion arose concernlng;the location of a new Church building. The Vestry preferred Newburgh, holding that the glebe, situated within Its limits, would be claimed by New Windsor, which was In the next town. If the Church should be built In the latter place. Mr. Sayre was strongly In favor of New Windsor, because It had been the field of the earlier missionaries, and was known to the Society In England as the centre of the missionary work In that locaUty. Newburgh was successful ; and Mr. Sayre was much disturbed and discouraged at the conclusion of things. Shortly after he obtained a transfer to Trinity Church, Falrfleld. Newburgh Historical Society Proceedings for 1895, p. 40.

52 THE REV. JOHN SAYKE's RECTORSHIP.

and usages of the Church of England, as contained in the Book of Common Prayer. The people then saluted and wel- comed their Rector, and bade him God speed. Hence- forth he was theirs and they were his ; both being bound together by a tie as sacred as that of marriage.

Under different circumstances, no doubt Mr. Sayre's rector- ship would have been very successful. In his " Sketch of Trinity Parish," prepared in 1804, the Rev. Philo Shelton says of him: " that he was a man of talent, a good preacher, an agree- able companion, a pious Christian, and that during his stay the Church flourished." It was Mr. Sayre's lot, however, to begin his labors at Fairfield at a critical time in the nation's history — just after the destruction by the populace, of 8-40 chests of tea in Boston harbor — by which action, the whole country was thrown into a patriotic ferment. In a brief space, the impending storm of the Revolution burst upon the Colonies, and the Episcopal Church had to bear the popular odium against England's rule. Congregations were broken up, and many Churches were closed. Numbers of the clergy were exiled or imprisoned, or were watched and harrassed as suspects. Mr. Sayre, a native Briton, soon became obnoxious to the " Committee of Inspection," and on refusing to sign the articles prescribed by the Continental Congress, which obliged those Avho signed them, not only " to oppose the King with life and furtune," but also " to withdraw all oflQces of justice, humanity and charity, from every recusant,"' was banished to the village of New Britain, in Hartford County. After an absence of seven months he was permitted to return, on condition that he would not go beyond the parish limits, above four miles. This lasted eighteen months, when the area in which he might move was made co-extensive with the County. From this time on, Mr. Sayre maintained the regu- lar services in the three parishes, Fairfield, Stratfield, and Easton, until 1779 ; always omitting the Liturgy, preferring to

THE KEY. JOHN SAYBe's RECTORSHIP. 53

worship, for the time being, for peace sake, according to a way that would meet the approval of all men, whether in heart they were rebels or tories.

And now a momentous event came to pass, that was freighted with great calamity for the Church at Fairfield. In the summer of 1779, the movement of Colonial troops south- ward, through New Jersey, towards Philadelphia, stripped Connecticut of a large portion of its able-bodied men. The royalists in New York, realizing that the Colony was left in an unprotected state, promptly resolved to strike a blow that should inspire their enemies there with something of a distaste for war. The Fourth of July fell on Sunday, and the good people of New Haven had made their arrangements to celebrate the Declaration of American Independence on the day after. On Monday morning, before the exercises had begun, the tidings came that Gen. Ti-yon's fleet, numbering over forty- eight vessels, had dropped anchor near West Haven, at five o'clock, and that his troops, 3,000 strong, were marching towards the city. They came in two detachments of 1,500 men each ; one straight from West Haven ; the other, by a slightly diverging route, to attack and capture a small fort, located at Black Rock. The first of these met with some opposition, but by noon, all resistance had been overcome, and the invaders united and flushed with victory, were ready to plunder and de- stroy. Happily, they spared the public buildings ; but even as it was, a money loss of £25,000 was inflicted. Departing next day, the marauders sailed along the coast, and on the moi*ning of July 8th, appeared off Fairfield. Gen. Tryon had visited the village more than once ; had been the frequent recipient of its generous hospitality, and knew the locality well. About four o'clock in the afternoon the troops began to land. In the course of the night, several houses were consumed, and nearly all were plundered. Early the next morning the conflagration became general ; over two hundred buildings, forty eight stores and many barns, were turned to

54 THE BEV. JOHN SAYRE's RECTORSHIP.

smoking heaps of ruins. As a climax, on leaving, the enemy set fire to everything that up to that time had escaped the flames. Both hovises of worship, the Episcopal and the Congregational, were burned to the ground.

President Dwight, who lived at Greenfield Hill, thus de- scribes the scene : " While the town was in flames, a thunder- storm overspread the heavens, just as night came on. The conflagration of near two hundred houses illumined the earth, the skirts of the cloud, and the waves of the Sound, with a union of gloom and grandure at once awful and magnificent. At intervals the lightning blazed with a lurid and awful splendor. The thunder rolled above ; beneath, the roaring of the fire filled up the interval with a deep and hollow sound. Add to this, the sharp cracking of muskets occasionally discharged, the groans here and there of the wounded and dying, and the shouts of triumph; then place before your eyes, crowds of the miserable suflerers, mingled with the bodies of the militia, taking from the neighboring hills a farewell prospect of their property and their dwellings, their happiness and their hopes, and you will form a just but imperfect picture of the burning of Fairfield."

A similar destruction was wrought at Green's Farms ; scarcely a building of any description was left unharmed. The enemy crossed the Sound on the 9th, to Huntington Bay, and remained thereuntil the 11th, when they re-crossed to Norwalk, and re- peated their work of destruction there. By this time, the popula- tion of the interior was mustering in great force to meet Try on at his next lauding, when he prudently returned to New York. He had, however, inflicted upon Connecticut a loss of about £250,000, as appears by the proven claims, for which the General Assembly allotted 500,000 acres of northwestern lands, to the sufferers, in 1792. He had not, though, broken the spirit of the people; and his own loss in men, nearly three hundred, was enough to convince him that he had lost more than he had gained by his dastardly act. During the destruction of Fair-

THE REV. JOHN SATRe's RECTORSHIP. 55

field, Mr. Say re, in conjunction with Mr. Elliot, the Congrega- tional minister, was constantly among the people, doing his utmost as a faithful pastor, to succor the distressed, and if he possibly could, to avert the ruin that was impending.

In a letter written from the scene of desolation, on the fifteenth of July, just a week after the event, Mr. Elliot says: " Mr. Say re, the Church of England missionary, begged Gen. Tryou to spare the town, but his request was denied. He then begged that some few houses might be spared as a shelter for those who could provide habitations nowhere else ; this was also refused." At length, according to the same authority, he procured a protection, under the hand of Gen. Tryon, for the houses of Mr. Elliot and Mr. Burr, and a promise that the houses of worship should be spared. All were, however, consumed, not excepting Mr. Sayre's own dwelling; he thus found himself, his wife, and eight children, thrown upon the street, destitute of everything except the garments in which they were clad. Under such circumstances, the parish for the time being completely prostrated, the Church building destroyed, the parishioners ruined, he de- parted to New York, where he remained several months, recrui- ting his health and strength, both of which he alleged, had been seriously impaired. Would it could be recorded that Mr. Sayre had remained in Fairfield, and had proved faithful to his charge ! Mr. Elliot's spirit certainly, was more commendable. "Not a house for my shelter ; two-thirds of my personal estate plundered and consumed ; a wife and three small children dependent on me for their maintenance ; I feel myself in a state of uncertainty as to many of the necessities of life. And yet I am willing to undergo any difficulties in the work of the ministry for your sakes." Thus he wrote immediately after the fire. Mr. Sayre, when he had sufficiently recovered, although he failed to return to Connecticut, frequently assisted his brethren, the Kectors of the parishes at Jamaica, Newtown, Flushing, and Huntington, on Long Island. Later he emigrated to Nova

56 THE REV. JOHN SAYRE'S RECTORSHIP.

Scotia. In a letter from thence, dated Oct., 1783, he informed the Venerable Society, that he had an intention of settling upon the river St. John, where a large number of refugees had fixed themselves ; that he had procured two rooms for his household, and had "officiated in the meeting-house of the Congregational- ists, with their approbation, to a numerous audience, consisting partly of the refugees and partly of the old settlers." He added, that when he left Connecticut, " he had not a change of raiment for himself or his family, and had been obliged to bori'ow money to enable him to remove to Nova Scotia." And not long afterwards, it was apprehended by the Society that his health was in a very dangerous state ; and " a gratuity was granted him of £25." He died in New Brunswick in 1790.

CHAPTER IX.

Mr. Philo Shelton, Lay-Reader, and the Election of

Bishop Seaburv, First Bishop of Connecticut,

1779-1785, a. d.

The parish at Fairfield, after the havoc wrought by the senseless raid of Gen. Tiyon, was reduced to great straits. The Church edifice, and its contents : also the parsonage house and furniture ; the parish records, and librai-y of more than a hundred volumes were destroyed. Added to this was the unlooked for defection of the Rector. In such a crisis, his presence and influence would have been of inestimable value. What was especially needed was some one who could serve as a rallying point about whom the remnant could gather. A month passed by, and the faithful few that were left, esteeming it not manly " to hang their harps upon the willows," but re- lying upon the promise of God, that his Church should never become extinct, called a meeting, which was held at the house of Mr. John Sherwood, at Greenfield, a Churchman whose zeal no amount of disaster could dampen. On this occasion it was mentioned that Mr. Philo Shelton of Ripton, now Huntington, in this State, who had recently graduated from Yale College, was purposing to enter Holy Orders, and was even now ready to serve as lay-reader should any congregation desire his services.* The result was, a committee was

* Rev. Plillo Slielton was a grandson of Daniel Shelton, ( one of a family of fourteen children ) and was born In Ripton, now Huntington, May Tth, 1T54. He graduated from Yale College in 1775, just after the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, and soon became a candidate tor Holy Orders. While waiting for ordination, he married, In 1781, Lucy, daughter of Philip Nichols. Esq., of Stratford, a strong Churchman, and the first lay-delegate chosen to represent the Diocese of Connecti- cut In the General Convention of the Church.

The Ret. Philo Shelton. -Et. 30.

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READER. 59

appointed to hire Mr. Slielton " to read " and " to officiate " one-third part of the time at the dwelling of Mr. Sherwood, one-third of the time at Stratfield, and one-third of the time at Weston.* We thus see Trinity Church begin its new life under entirely different conditions. Hitherto it had been nurtured by the Venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, but henceforth it was to go forward depending solely upon the generosity of its own members. Naturally, the

House of Mb. John Sherwood at Greenfield where the First Services WERE Held After the Fike ok 1779.

operations of the Society in this country were ended by the

Declaration of the Independence of the United States. Its

work was, as it is to-day, to aid in the extension of the Gospel in

*"At a meeting ot the Episcopal Society, on the 24 tli of August, 1779, at the Dwelling House of Mr. John Sherwood, In Greenfield, voted, Mr. Ezra Katlln, Moderator of said meeting, also voted, Hezeklah Bulkley, Junr., Clerk ; voted, Messrs. Daniel Wheeler, Peter Bulkley, and Ezra Katlln, a Committee to apply to Mr. Shelton at Rlpton, In order to hire him to Efflclate for them If Mr. Shelton will please to come ; voted also the first Sunday that we have a Church, It Is to be at Mr. John Sherwood's Dwelling House, the next at Stratford, the next at North Fairfield." This Is the first entry In the Parish Record, hegun after the fire In 1779.

60 ME. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-HEADER.

the dependencies of Great Britain. Every Episcopalian in this Country, and especially this Diocese, owes it, however, a debt of the weightiest character, for the wise and lavish efforts it put forth to plant the Church of the Living God in these Colonies. Its ministers were self-sacrificing and Christ-like men. They had a reason for the hope that was in them. They preached sound doctrine ; they taught the young their Cate- chism ; they instructed the people in that Faith which " was once delivei'ed to the saints.'' They believed that the Church is of God, and not of man: that it is the Ark of God, into which Christians enter at their Baptism, and in which, if they are faithful to the end, they shall safely ride the billows of this tempestuous sea, and at last reach the Haven where they would be. May we of this generation, show our gratitude for what was done for us in the past, by giving as willingly on our part of our means, and our efforts, to extend our Apostolic Church everywhere, abroad as well as at home !

One of the imperative requirements of the Church in America, for many years, was a Bishop. Before the Revolution, it had been the custom for those desiring Holy Orders to resort to Eng- land for ordination, thusnecessitatingalongjourney, which was not only costly but full of perils. As the Episcopate is the centre from which all effective administration of the Church issues ; as without it there can be no confirming of those who have come to years of discretion, no ordaining of clergy, no consecration of Churches, the question arises, why did not the Church in England send a Bishop into these Western parts long before? The Rev. Mr. Pigot, writing to the Venerable Society in 1722, plead for such a boon; the Rev. Dr. Cutler, and especially the Rev. Mr. Johnson, followed up his effort at a later date, with even more fervor. In a letter to the Arch- bishop of Canterbury written in 1766 ; the latter says : " I have the great mortification and grief to inform your Grace, that those two hopeful young men who were ordained last, had the misfortune to be lost on their arrival on the coast, the

MB. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READEK. 61

ship beiug dashed to pieces, and only four lives saved out of twenty-eight. These two make up ten valuable lives that have now been lost, for want of ordaining power here, out of Mty- one, (nigh one in five) that have gone for Orders from hence. I consider the Church here for want of Bishops, in no other light than as beiug really in a state of persecution. Will the mother-country have no bowels of compassion for her poor depressed destitute children of the established Church (prob- ably a million of them) dispersed into these remote regions'?" The Rev. "Matthew Graves writing to the Venerable Society, 1771, says: "The blessing of a Bishop would make true religion overspread the laud. Hasten, hasten, O Lord! a truly spirit- ual overseer to this despised, abused, persecuted part of the vineyard, for Christ Jesus' sake, Amen! Amen!"

It must be borue in mind that the importance of sending at least one Bishop to America, had engaged the attention of the Venerable Society, from the very beginning of its existence. As early as 1712, "a draught of a bill was ordered proper to be offered to Parliament, for establishing Bishops aud Bishoprics in America."' In 1717 the Bishop of London, reported to the Society, a benefaction of £1,000 sterling, toward the mainte- nance of a Bishop in America, from a person who desired to be unknown. In 1718, the Hon. Elihu Yale of London, the principal benefactor of Yale College, from whom the institution derived its name, had subscribed £50 towards the same object. What stood in the way of sending a Bishop to America? The English Parliament: it is a fact of history that a majority of its members were always ready to listen to those opposed to the welfare of the Church across the sea. They were told it would "Episcopize the Colonies ; beget rebellion on the part of those who would hazard everything dear to them, their estates, their very lives, rather than to suffer their necks to be put under that yoke of bondage which was so sadly galling to their fathers;" and the result was they legislated against it- Many Bishops and Clergy, were heartily in accord with the

€2 ME. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-KEADEE.

project, bat the Church was tied hand and foot by its cou- nection with the State. The successful issue of the Revolution, while it was a "bridge of sighs" so far as further financial aid from England was concerned, speedily solved this problem. Those of the clergy of Connecticut who still held their parishes, met at Woodbury, in the last week of March following the publication of peace, and elected the Rev. Samuel Seabury to be their Bishop. That he might receive consecration, the Bishop-elect journeyed to England ; and after nearly a year of opposition and discouragement, such as would have appalled an ordinary man, realizing that success could only be achieved in a different quarter, he turned to the Non-juring Bishops of the Church of Scotland; and on the llth of November, 1784, he was consecrated a Bishop of the Church of God.* No words can measure the importance of that act. It ultimately forced the English Parliament to do for the Church in America, that which was absolutely necessary for its existence, and which should gladly have been done long before. Bishop Seabury was absent from this country two whole years ; and in the letter which he wrote from London to the clergy of Connecti- cut, after his return from Scotland, he said : "My own pov- erty is one of the greatest discouragements I have to bear with. Two years' absence from my family, and expensive residence here, have more than expended all I had. But in so good a cause, and of such magnitude, something must be risked by somebody. To my lot it has fallen : I have done it cheer- fully, and despair not of a happy issue." He reached New London, June 29th, 1785. No noise attended this first and undisguised entrance of a Bishop upon the soil of New

* Blsliop Seabury was consecrated In old St. Andrew's, Aberdeen, presentibus tarn e clero, quajn e populo testibus iiJoneis; and the edifice where the consecration took place was built for Bishop Skinner. It stands In an obscure part of the city, and is reached by a narrow lane, where no large carriages pass,— just the spot which one might suppose the Non-Jurors, In a time of distressful persecution, would select to offer their devotions, and escape the observation of their enemies. It was abandoned almost forty years since, on the erection of a new St. Andrew's in a better locality. Rev. E. A. Beardsley : The Churchman, August l, 1885.

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READER.

63

England. He came as a simple Christian citizen, and not in any outward pomp and dignity, such as before the war for Independence had commenced, the adversaries of the Church had apprehended. " The Presbyterian ministers,'' says Wilber- force : " appeared to be rather alarmed ; and in consequence of his arrival, assumed and gave one another the style and title of bishops, which formerly they reprobated as a remnant of Popery. "* Bishop Seabury was present at the Annual Com-

,*v^;^«r?--:^*^^ --■^:.-"^.---Vr:

Site of Old St. Andrew's, Aberdeen, where Bishop Seabury WAS Consecrated.

mencement of Yale College, in 1785, and when some one men- tioned the fact to President Stiles, and suggested that he should be invited to a seat among the distinguished personages," be replied that " there were already several bishops upon the stage, but if there was room for another he might occupy it." With joy did the clergy of Connecticut assemble in convention • Wllberforce : Hist, of the American Church, p. 213.

64

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READEE.

at Middletown, on the 3rd day of August, 1785, and publicly welcome and recognize their Right Reverend Father in God. A Concordate, " ' established in mutual good faith and confi- dence ' at Aberdeen, and the pastoral letter of the Scottish Bishops, were laid before the clergy, and excited in them the

^

TuE Rev. Samuel Seabdry, D. D.. First Bishop of Connecticut.

warmest sentiments of gi'atitude and esteem." * At this Convention, Bishop Seabury admitted to the order of Deacons, the Rev. Philo Shelton ; it being the first ordination ever held in the United States by a duly consecrated Bishop. t Mr.

* Beardsley : History of the Episcopal Church In Connecticut, vol. 1, p. 367.

tRev. Mr. Shelton was one of the four admitted to the Diaconate by Bishop Seabury at his first ordination, held in Mlddletown, on the 3rd of August, 1788. Mr. Ashbel Baldwin, another of the four, who afterwards became his nearest neighbor and friend and associate In efforts to build up the Church, used to say that the hands of the Bishop were first laid upon the head of Mr.

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READEE. 65

Shelton was now in a position that enabled him to take charge, as Rector, of the Church at Fairfield. Sometime earlier, in anticipation of his speedy ordination, a committee had been appointed by the parish, and the following agree- ment had already been entered into : " We, the subscribers, being appointed a committee by the several Episcopal Churches in the Township of Fairfield, and being fully em- powered by them to agree with Mr. Philo Shelton to settle with us as our minister, are empowered to give him for his maintenance One Hundred Pounds Lawful Silver Money, together with the use and improvement of a piece of land lying in Fairfield, at a place called the Round-Hill, containing about eight acres, which sum is to commence as soon as he shall become an officiating minister, and to continue as long as he shall pex'form Divine service among us, which sum shall be annually paid. And by the Powers delegated to us we do bind ourselves and the several parishes, to see the above agreement fulfilled. And until he is in Orders, we do agree to give him twenty-eight shillings lawful money, for every Sunday he shall officiate among us. And whereas there are three several places where Episcopal members assemble for public worship, viz : Fairfield, North Fairfield and Stratfield, Mr. Shelton is to hold Church at the places according to the listof members that attend, and belong to the several Churches. In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands this 24th day of February, 1785.

Ezra Kirtland, Thomas L. CoUyer,

Ozias Burr, Calvin Wheeler,

Elijah Burritt, Moses Burr,

Committee for Stratfield. Committee for North Fairfield.

Daniel Meeker, Seth Sturges,

John Sherwood, Ruben Beers,

Ebenezer Nichols, Josiah Bulkley,

Committee for Greenfield. Committee for Fairfield.

Shelton, so that his name really heads the long list of clergy who have had ordi- nation In this country by Bishops of the Protestant Episcopal Church. Rev. E. A. Beardsley : The Churchman, August l, 1885.

66

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-BEADEK.

Joshua Jennings, Shubael Goi'ham,

Peter Bulkley, Jonathan Coley,

Committee for Green's Farms. Committee for Saugatuek.

As Committee of the Old Society of Fairfield. From this time onwards, Mr. Shelton's ministrations were given without interruption, save during a brief period, two years after his ordination, when he was disabled by a serious illness. Even then the services in the three Churches were not

^

First Page of the Book of Record of Trinity Parish, Containing Account of THE Meeting Held at Mr. John Sherwood's House, August 20, 1779.

discontinued, for the people held a meeting and took measures to supply his place. The quaiutuess of the original record may provoke a smile ; for the meeting being warned, " to hire some suitable person to ''carry on' instead of Mr. Shelton, until he should get better,"' it was voted that the moderator of the

MR. PHILO SHELTON, LAY-READER. 67

meeting, Mr, Jonathan Bulkley, should '•'■ carry on ;" and still later a definite arrangement was authorized with the contigu- ous Churches to "hire a man to ^ carry on ' for three months."* There are several votes of this kind, which plainly show that ^' carrying on " was the old-time expression for conducting Divine service. * Rev. N. E. Cornwall's Historical Discourse 1851, p. 42.

*

CHAPTEK X.

The Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship. The Building of THE Third Church at Mill Plain, 1785-1825, a. d.

After the destruction by Gen. Tryon's troops, of the second Church erected by Trinity parish, the congregation, so much of it as was left, met for worship in private houses, first, as has been stated, at Mr. John Sherwood's, in Greenfield ; then at Capt. Hezekiah Sturges', in Fairfield. This arrangement continued until the Prime Ancient Society of Fairfield village had finished its new sanctuary, and thereby vacated the Town-House, which in turn, was used by the Church-people until 1790. During the decade that had elapsed since the fire, two questions had begun to agitate the minds of those who were interested in Episcopacy in the Town of Fairfield ; when and where shall the new Church be built ? Financially and numerically, the village of Fairfield was at alow ebb. Its former prosperity had departed. That many of the old inhabitants were scattered abroad by the calamity which had befallen them, and that the social and business aspects of the community were greatly altered, are manifest from the language of a certain vote in 1783, concerning, " all persons formerly inhabitants of the town, who had been so long gone fi'om this to any other town, that they might be presumed to have gained settlement there." This is a language which plainly implies that an extensive dispersion of the former inhabitants had taken place. And such was the fact. A formidable rival, the near-by city of Bridgeport, formerly Stratfield, was rapidly growing in importance. Ah'eady the Courts of the County, which formerly had helped to make

THE REV. PHILO SBELTON S RECTORSHIP.

69

Fairfield a great legal centre, had been absorbed by it. Besides, the harbor advantages of Mill River, here in our own village of Southport, as it is now called, were attracting attention ; while Greenfield Hill, Green's Farms, Saugatuck, were all becoming more and more populous. Upon the rate list for 1799, preserved in the records of the parish, fifty names are found, which were not upon that of 1789. Of

J

The Third Church Edifice, Mill Plain.

these fifty, nineteen lived in Fairfield, including what is now Southport ; twenty-one in Greenfield ; three in Green's Farms; and seven in Saugatuck. The question then as to where the new Church edifice should be erected easily became a burning one. There were those who favored building upon the former site, on the highway, near the Old Field Gate, eighty rods west of the Px'ime Ancient Society's Meeting- house ; while there were those who insisted upon going to Mill Plain, almost a mile distant, quite close by the spot where the

70 THE REV. PHILO SHELTOn's RECTORSHIP.

first Church was built, for the reason that that neighborhood was more convenient to the larger proportion of the parish- ioners. At first the advocates for the old site prevailed. At a meeting held at the Town-House, Jan. 9th, 1799, a " clear, "^ that is, a unanimous vote, was passed " that a Church be built and erected for Divine worship on the ground where the late Church stood, and which was unhappily consumed by fire." On April 10th, of the same year, at a meeting held at the house of Mr. Nathaniel Perry, another " clear " vote wa» passed, " that a Church be built on Mill Plain, so called^ where Jonathan Sturges, and Thadeus Burr, drove the stake by appointment of the Town, and that all former action with regard to building a Church be null and void." There was no change of purpose after this. The parish forthwith, began preparations to build. Dimensions of the edifice were ordered to be forty-eight, by thirty-five feet. Ichabod Burr wa» appointed a committee to get the timber for said house, and deliver it on Mill Plain. It was voted to have 8 x 10 window glass ; shingles three feet in length, and a circular roof ; the steeple was also to " go on " with the rest of the building. This, the third Church-structure, described by Mr. Shelton, in his brief Sketch of the Parish as " a pretty decent building, with a steeple and bell, and a gallery accross the end," was dedicated the 5th of September, 1790, when a sei'mon suitable to the occasion was preached by the Rector. The completion of the Church, and its consecration by Bishop Jarvis did not take place, however, until October 18th, 1798.* The Instru- ment of Donation is still extant, and is replete with the true Church spirit :

"At a meeting of the Church-Wardens, Vestrymen and Parishioners of Trinity Church in Fairfield, on the 2nd day of May, 1795, it was unanimously resolved and voted that as Almighty God had been pleased to put it into their heads to

•For location see map of Cliurcli-sltes, p. .33.

THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP. 71

build a new Church for the Celebration of His Worship according to the Litur<ify of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States of America, and had in the course of His good Providence enabled them so far to finish it as to render it fit for public use according to their best abilities, it was their full purpose and earnest desire that the said new Church be

The Right Rev. Abraham Jakvis, D. D., Second Bishop of Connecticut.

called Trinity Church, and be dedicated to the worship and service of Almighty God according to the Liturgy aforesaid. We, therefore, the Church-Wardens, Vestrymen, and Parish- ioners of Trinity Church, do for us and our successors, dedi- cate, appropriate, give and grant the said Church by us erected unto Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, to be conse-

72 THE REV. PHILO SHELTOn's RECTORSHIP.

crated and used for His Service and Worship according to the Liturgy aforesaid, divesting ourselves of all right and title and disclaiming all authority to employ it hereafter to any common or profane use. And we, the Church- Wardens, Vestrymen, and Parishioners aforesaid, do further resolve and vote that the two Church-Wardens, Mess. Reuben Beers and Samuel Meeker, do in our name and in our behalf, sign and seal this Instrument of Dedication, and do acquaint the Right Rev. Dr. Jarvis, our Diocesan Bishop therewith, and request that he would consecrate the said new Church to Almighty God and set it apart to be forever hereafter in His Service and His Worship, promising, so far as in us lies, to take care of the repairs of said Church, that it may be left, together with its furniture, sacred utensils, and books in a decent state for the Celebration of Divine Service : and also that we will, as God shall enable us, endeavor always to preserve and support a minister in Priest's Orders to Celebrate God's Holy Worship according to the Liturgy aforesaid. In witness whereof, we, the said Church-Wardens, have herewith set our hands and seals the day and year before mentioned.

Reuben Beers, Samuel Meeker. There are those still with us who worshipped in this Church on Mill Plain, and who remember well the primi- tive arrangements that characterized it, and which made it so vastly different from the commodious edifice in which we worship at the present time. At first it had no stove. Stoves were a rai'e luxury in those days, for the use of anthracite coal began at a far later date. The women used " foot-stoves," ( which may yet be found as relics, in the attics of old houses ; the writer has one which he prizes highly, which belonged to the late Mrs. Francis D. Perry), or heated bricks, or stones, to warm their feet. Certain of the parishioners, living close by, took upon themselves to make extra fires on ver}' cold Sundays, to supply the foot-stoves with live coals. A simple but high

THE EEV. PHILO SHELTON 8 RECTORSHIP.

73

reading-desk, held the great Bible, and Book of Common Prayer. Behind and above the reading-desk was the pulpit, which was reached by a short flight of stairs. The Commu- nion-Table stood quite in front. During the service the con- gregation remained seated ; and it required the action of the House of Bishops in 1814, to free those who desired to stand during the act of praise, from the imputation of introducing "a dangerous ritual innovation," Further than this simple modification, the service was precisely that in which Church- -people now participate every Sunday. The Church's Worship, in its essentials, never alters. The fathers drew near to

Foot Stove Used in the Mill Plain Church. Ood in Litany, Collect, and General Confession ; they praised the Most High in Venite, Jubilate, and TeDeum, and could they be in the flesh again, they would behold their children's children using the same old Prayer Book, un- changing and unchangeable " amid the wrecks of time ; " and finding its words as did they, not mere " forms," but full and satisfactory expressions of the soul's deepest needs.

There is nothing in the Parish Record anterior to the year 1800, that touches upon other matters than Church-rates and Church-building, save one : In 1786, a committee was ap- pointed " to make inquiry and endeavor to find out what

74 THE KEY. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP.

became of the plate,* for Commuuion Service, which belonged to the Church, and was taken from the Rev. Mr. Sayre, and take method for recovering the same ; also the iron taken from the Church, with the stone ; also the stone from Mr. Sayre's house, the parsonage." Andrew Eliot, in a letter^ 1779, to his brother, the Congregational minister at Fairfield, no doubt explains the disappearance of the silver. " The Hessians were first let loose for rapine and plunder. They entered houses, attacked the persons of Whigs and Tories- indiscriminately ; breaking open trunks, desks, closets, and taking away everything of value. They robbed women of buckles, rings, bonnets, aprons, and handkerchiefs. Looking- glasses, china, and all kinds of furniture were soon dashed iu pieces. Another party who behaved badly, were the American refugees, who, in revenge for their confiscated estates, carried on the same direful business."

So far as is known, no trace of the ancient Communion Service has ever been found. A silver paten, long iu the possession of the parish, and thought by certain parishioners to be, possibly, a part of it, was given, it has been ascertained,^ by Mrs. Jeremiah Sturges, as a memoi-ial of her father, the late Rev. Philo Shelton, Easter Day, 1826.

♦ A solid silver Service presented to the parish by Mr. St. George Talbot In 1762.

CHAPTER XI.

Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship Continued: The Lottery

FOR THE Relief of Trinity Parish, and the Founding

OF the Bible and Prayer Book Society.

Bishop Hobart's Visitation, 1817-

1820, a. d.

Quite a notable event, bearing upon the history of Trinity Church, to which reference should be made, was the organiza- tion of a lottery, for the replenishment of the parish treasury. This was permissible under the Colonial laws, and does not appear to have done violence to the religious sentiment of the age. Indeed, lotteries were then greatly in vogue.* In 1 774, " a lottery of £4,000 was projected to purchase a piece of ground, and erect a Church thereon for a congregation of the Church of England, which now assemble in Horse and Cart street, ( now William's ), New York." A month after, another lottery " was devised to erect a Church in Brooklyn, under the patro-

* Money was mucb needed. Taxes the people would not bear. To Issue bonds would have been useless for the authorities could not have insured the interest on them for a week. Lotteries, therefore, sprang up, and In a short time there was a wheel In every city and In every town. Wherever there was a bridge to be thrown across a stream, a school-house built, a street paved, a road repaired, a manufac- turing company to be aided, a church assisted, or a college treasury to be replen- ished, a lottery bill was passed by the Legislature, a wheel procured, a notice put In the papers, and often In a few weeks the needed money was raised. It was with the money collected from the sale of lottery tickets that Massachusetts encour- aged cotton-spinning, and paid the salaries of many of her officers; that the City Hall was enlarged at New Y'ork ; that the Court House was built at Elizabeth ; that the library was increased at Harvard ; that many of the most pretentious build- ings were put up at the Federal city. The custom. Indeed, continued for several years, and the " state of the Wheel " became as regular an item In the papers as the ship news or prices current. McMasters : History of the People of the United States, Vol, 1. p. 588.

76 THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTOESHIP.

nage of the Rector and Vestry of Trinity Church." This was the beginning of St. Ann's Church. Later a lottery was arranged for at Hempstead, called the " Church Glebe Lottery" with " not two blanks to a prize."

The fact was, that although quite two-score years had passed, Trinity parish had not recovered from the severe losses which befell it, by the destruction of Church and parsonage, and library in 1779 ; nor had it, in its impoverished conditiou, ceased to feel the financial strain caused by the erection of a new Church edifice, and its proper equipment for Divine worship. It was for these reasons that the authorities of the parish applied to the Legislature of the State, in the year 1818, " for the grant of a lottery, with liberty and authority to raise thereby the sum of six thousand dollars, as a remuneration for the Losses sustained by the parish, at the burning of the town." The application itself, explains and justifies the step thus taken so fully, that it is herewith reproduced : " Jeremiah Sturges, the present Clerk of the Episcopal Society at Fairfield, after considering the very low state of the Church, without any friends, and the great difficulty of raising money enough by Taxes on the members, to support the clergyman in the one-third part of his services, notwithstanding his small pittance of one hundred and eleven dollars and eleven cents per annum, and deeming it almost impossible to raise even that small sum by taxes, at a meeting of the parish held March 23, 1818, di-ew up the following petition " which was presented to the Hon. Gen. Assembl}' by the Gentlemen Representatives from this Town, ( viz.) Gideon Tomlinson, Esq., and Mr. Thos. F. Rowland.

" To the Hon. Gen. Assembly of the State of Connecticut to be holden at Hartford, in said State, on the second Thursday of May next. The petition of Abraham Bulkley, Walter Sherwood, Hull Sherwood, Jesse Banks, and David Jennings, Wardens and Vestry of the Episcopal Church in the Town of Fairfield, in the County of Fairfield, and the rest of the

THE KEV. PHILO SHELTON's EECTOKSHIP. 77

subscribers hereunto, members of said Church, humbly showeth that the Church in Fairfield, together with the Parsonage House, Barn, and Out Houses, was burned by the British Troops, under Tryon, in the Revolutionary War, at the time that the Town of Fairfield was burnt in the year 1779, and that the plate to a considerable amount, belonging to said Church, was at the same time carried away by the enemy; now your petitioners would further inform the Hon. Gen. Assembly that with the funds that they heretofore held, and the small Grand List of less than one thousand dollars, they have been about twenty-seven years engaged in building another small house for public worship, but have been unable to complete the same, and in doing it they have been obliged to dispose of all their funds, and sell the pi'incipal part of their glebe lands, which was heretofore appropriated for the support of their clergyman, which altogether, has proved a Loss, or Burthen to the said Church, in conse- quence of which the members, with all their Zeal and Exertion find it vei'y difficult and almost impossible for them to finish said Church, and at the same time to support their clergyman. Now your petitioners would further inform the Hon. Gen. Assembly that notwithstanding all Individuals and many Ecclesiastical Societies, that suffered Losses by the fire of so barbarous an enemy in the Revolutionary War, have by the Bounty of the Hon. Gen. Assembly, in some measure, been Remunerated, and knowing that all Societies and Indi- viduals who suffered Losses by the fire of the enemy are equally entitled to the Bounty of the Hon. Legislature, to whom they have never applied in vain.

Your petitioners never intended, nor would they ask for any indemnity for their Losses, could they possibly surmount them by their own exertions.

Wherefore your petitioners appeal to the Hon. Gen. Assembly as the only Resource from which they can expect any Relief for their great Losses, and Burthen, and praying

78 THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's BECTORSHIP.

your Honours to take their case into your wise consideration and grant them a lottery to raise the sum of Ten Thousand Dollars, not as a Remuneration for their Losses, or, in some other way grant Relief, and as in Duty Bound will ever pray. Dated at Fairfield, this Abraham Bulkley,

sixth day of April, 1818. Walter Sherwood,

David Jennings, Jesse Banks, Hull Sherwood, Jeremiah Sturges, Wm. Robinson, Abel Beers.

jy^^ilL ^^ AUTHORirY OF THE StATE OF CONNECTICUT.

i^tki't / '~T CLASS ir.

^^'^■<)..JLY(?.^^^^^^ Fairfield Episcopal Society Lottery,

&\ A, y ^^•''' "•

|,-(\">,\ll J'rriHI S^ TICK Er shall entitle the p05Sfs?r>r to such PRIZE as Bav he drawn fo its fVsi! i<.<J'''i !. ' HiBiber, in llie above named Lollery, iccording to the ternn ot the Schecae l-sB "jj' ' Subject to a Jedin

,„ , „, , J — ._ _ Uediicljoii of fifleeu per cent.

Fac Simile of Lottery Ticket. The answer to this appeal was permission to organize a lottery scheme that would give the parish a net sum of six thousand dollars, and a committee was appointed to carry out the project. February 9th, 1825, Jeremiah Sturges, the clerk of the parish, upon whom the chief part of the labor connected with the administration of the lottery, it would seem, had devolved, made his final report concerning it, which was duly accepted. He figured the total proceeds at $4,752.13, or thereabouts. The interest of the lottery fund was voted year after year to Mr. Shelton, in payment of salary. Subsequently portions of the principal were used to pay parish debts ; by the time the next Rector came in, it had all disappeared !

THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP. 79

In the same year that the lottery was applied for, an imdertakiug of a different nature, and with more promise of lasting results, was brought to a successful issue. When the Rev. Mr. Johnson, clarum et venerabile nomen, who has been mentioned before in these pages, was a Congre- gational minister at West Haven, it will be remembered that he committed to memory, and used, as occasion required, in public worship, portions of the Book of Common Prayer, to the comfort of himself, and the edification of his flock. So much were they admired that, we are told, " it was common for persons belonging to the neighboring churches to come to West Haven on purpose to hear them. To this day it re- mains true that there is no better advocate for the Church, in any household, than the Prayer Book. Possessed with this view, a number of laymen, members of Trinity Church, met on the first day of January, 1818 ; and under the guidance of the Eector, Rev. PhiloShelton, formed " The Bible and Prayer Book Society of Trinity Parish." The object was stated to be the gratuitous distribution of the two volumes mentioned, first, in Trinity parish ; next, in Fairfield County ; afterwards, if the funds warranted such expenditure, in the Diocese of Connecticut, or in the Church at large. A constitution was adopted, officers elected, subscriptions received, and the work of distribution at once begun. No better thing, the present Rector of Trinity parish, who writes these Annals, feels con- strained to say, has ever been done by it, than the founding of this admirable Society. The common complaint is, the masses are ignorant of the Church. It is then, the highest wisdom for us to circulate the Prayer Book among those to whom the Chui'ch is unknown. When people read those sublime prayers, which have been offered by king and peasant, as well as by martyrs going joyfully to the stake, and still are as applicable to their wants as if composed yesterday ; and become imbued with their chaste language and terse style, and compare them with mere extemporaneous efforts, they

80

THE REV. PHILO SHELTON S RECTORSHIP.

will begin to comprehend that there are worse prayers than are read from a book, and that they cau come from the heart without being prepared for the occasion. Besides, the Prayer Book cau enter many a house where our clergy cannot find a

The Right Rev. John Henry Hobart, D. D., In Charge of the Diocese of Connecticut, June, 1816, to June, 1819.

welcome. Acting as a " silent missionary," it may, as it often has done, prove a solvent of sectarian bitterness, by showing that Church doctrine is only Bible ti'uth ; and that Calvin's

THE BEV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP. 81

theories, or those of Arminius, are not comparable to the simple Faith, once delivered to the Saints, as the old Apostolic Church holds and teaches it.

The Bible and Prayer Book Society is still in active exist- ence (1898), and has given away, since its organization, nearly six thousand volumes. Its invested fund amounts to $561.12. Thus, the good it has accomplished is veorthy of the highest praise. The results of it in all their fulness, that great Day, when all that is hidden shall be revealed, can only make known.

After the death of Bishop Jarvis, the Bishop of New York, the Right Rev. John Henry Hobart, had the temporary over- sight of the Church in Connecticut. On the 6th of August, 1817, he came to Fairfield, where he remained a week, making the place his headquarters, but visiting the meanwhile, Weston, Wilton, and Redding. In the Church at Mill Plain, on the 12th of August, he confirmed thirty candidates, all of whose names will be found in the appendix. At Tashua, the following week, he confirmed eighty-two, the largest class presented to him on this visitation, except the class at Chatham, (now Portland), which numbered one hundred and two. Truly, those were the days when the Church had an ii-resistible attraction for the multitude, and it proves that weariness of the leanness and uncertainties of man-made religious systems, is by no means a development peculiar to these modern days.

CHAPTER XII.

Latter Years of Rev. Philo Shelton's Rectorship.

Mr. Shelton was exceptionally successful in the performance of the duties pertaining to two Rectorships. The parishioners of Trinity Church, at Fairfield, were devoted to him, while St. John's Church, at Bridgeport, under his care, grew to be one of the strongest and most flourishing in the Diocese. The initial services at Stratfield, were held, as has been already mentioned, by the Rev. Mr. Lamson in 1748, and the first parish Church was consecrated by Bishop Seabury. in 1789, being " the third in order of consecration, and the eighteenth in order of erection, in the Connecticut Diocese. It was built on the corner of the King's Highway, and Church Lane. Among the chief donors were Col. John Burr, Samuel Beardsley, Timothy "Wheeler, Richard Booth, Joseph Seeley, and John Nichols. The population later began to drift eastward, and in 1801, it was deemed advisable to demolish the old Church, and build a new one in a more advantageous location. The second edifice was so far completed that it could be used for public worship in the beginning of Advent ; and two years later, " the ground floor was sold at public vendue for the purpose of building the pews and seats thereon, and finishing the Church." The sum raised by the sale, amounted to between six and seven hundred dollars. The cost of the building over and above this, was thirty-five hundred dollars, which was met by the voluntary contribu- tions of the people. Mr. Shelton in speaking of the comple- tion of the whole work, said : " It had been conducted in harmony, with good prudence, strict economy, and a degree

THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP. 83

of elegance and taste that does honor to the committee, and adds respectability to the place." But even this second removal of St. John's was not final. In a score of years, a third edifice was found to be necessary. This was located on the corner of Cannon and Broad streets, the site, eligibly located, having been presented by Phillip Cannon, Esq., Mrs. Shelton's brother-in-law. In these two successive Churches, belonging to St. John's parish, Mr. Shelton ministered most acceptably, one half of his time being given to Trinity Church, Fairfield, until 1824, when failing health, and a disposition manifested by the congregation of St. John's to have the undivided services of a clergyman, induced him to hand in his resignation. Among his papers, the following interesting data, pertaining to the last year of his joint Rectorship, were found :

Parocbiales Notitise for Fairfield and Bridgeport :

Philo Shelton, Rector, Easter, 1823, to Easter, 1824.

Baptisms in the two Churches, Infant, 16 ; Adult, 1,

Marriages,

Funerals,

New Communicants in Fairfield,

" " Bridgeport,

Communicants in Fairfield,

" " Bridgeport,

" The congregation in Fairfield is not large, but very attentive and devout in Church. My services have been wholly confined to them since Easter, having at that time relinquished Bridge- port to my assistant, the Rev. Mr. Judah." Fairfield, June the 1st, 1824.

As intimated above, Mr. Shelton gave all his time to the Church at Fairfield, after his health began to fail, and be had resigned the rectorship of St. John's, Bridgeport ; but he did not long survive the changed condition of afi'airs. He died on the 27th of February, 1825, and was buried under the chancel of the

	17
	6
	16
II	12
	78
	120

84 THE REV. PHILO SHELTOn's RECTORSHIP.

Churcb at Mill Plain, at the altar of which he had ministered for more than forty years. A marble tablet was provided by the congregation to mark his resting place, on which, among other things, were inscribed the date of his birth, graduation, admission to Holy Orders, and the words, " The First Clergy- man Episcopally ordained in the United States." The body was afterwards removed, at the charge of the Wardens and Vestry, to Mountain Grove Cemetery, Bridgeport, and an imposing monument, finely chiseled, in Italian marble, was placed over it, on which is inscribed :

In Memory

OF THE

EEV. PHILO SHELTON, A. B.

Born in Huntington, 1754. Died in 1825.

Graduated at Yale College in 1775, and was forty years

Rector of St. John's Church, Bridgeport, and of

Trinity Church, Fairfield, with the charge

also of the Church in Weston, for

many years.

" A faithful Pastor, a guileless and godly man. For

twenty-four years member of the Standing Committee of the

Diocese, a firm supporter of Ecclesiastical Authority, and a

gentle, but steady upholder of primitive and Apostolic Order.

He was one of the four who first received ordination from the

hands of the first American Bishop, the Right Rev. Samuel

Seabury, D, D., who commenced on this Continent, in its full

offices, the one Catholic and Apostolic Church, in the certain

faith that it would continue to the end of the world. This

monument is erected as a tribute of filial affection, and in

grateful remembrance of the piety and virtue of loved and

honored parents."

Mr. Shelton's passing away was universally lamented. It was felt that a good man, one whose noble life was open and manifest to the world, had been taken out of it. At the Diocesan Convention, held June 1st, 1825, Bishop Brownell

THE REV. PHILO SHELTOn's RECTORSHIP. 85

remarked in his address : " He has faithfully and successfully labored for almost forty years in the parish from which his Divine Maker has now called him to his rest. He has taken an important part in the Ecclesiastical concerns of the Diocese, from the period of its first organization ; and the moderation and prudence of his counsels have contributed in no small degree to the welfare of the Church. For simplicity of character, amiable manners, unaffected piety, and a faithful

Home of Rev. Philo Shelton, Fairfield Avenue, Bridgeport, Conn.

devotion to the duties of the ministerial office, he has left be- hind an example, by which all his surviving brethren may profit, and which few of them can hope to surpass."

A few days after Mr. Shelton's decease, the committee appointed by the parishioners of Ti'inity Church, forwarded the following letter of condolence to the bereaved widow : *' Mrs. Shelton, Madam : We are appointed a committee and directed to wait upon and tender you the sincere condolence

86 THE REV. PHILO SHELTON's RECTORSHIP-

of ourselves and the rest of the members of the Episcopal Society at Fairfield, for the great and grievous loss which you have sustained in the bereavement by death of our worthy, respected, and beloved Pastor, the Rev. Mr. Shelton, your late consort, and our best friend. Our sincere and humble prayers are offered to Almighty God, that his loss may be sanctified to you and your family, through the merits of Jesus Christ, our Saviour, and we humbly pray that He will have you in His Holy keeping, and that you may bear the loss with Christian fortitude, trusting in the widows' and the orphans' God for support and comfort. The loss to you, to us, and to those we represent, we feel to be great, and sincex'ely lament it, but humbly submit to the will of the Almighty, for He gave and He taketh away, therefore, blessed be the name of the Lord.

As the Rev. Mr. Shelton has been our Pastor, and spiritual Advisor for more than forty years, and has built us up, and kept us together as a Christian Church, we in our own names, and by the special direction of the rest of the members of the Episcopal Society, hereby beg and request that you will permit us to show our gratitude and respect for him by burying him under the Church in Mill Plain, and by erecting a proper monument over his body, commemorative of his worth, and merits, and of our love and affection for him. By complying, you will confer a great favor on your sincere

friends and humble servants.

Walter Sherwood,

Hull Sherwood.

Committee from the Wardens and Vestry, and the members

of the Episcopal Society in Fairfield."

The Bishop of the Diocese also wrote :

Hartford, March 17, 1825. My Bear Mrs. Shelton :

I should have been with you in your affliction, to assure you of my sympathy and friendship, had it not been for the

THE REV. PHILO SHELTON S RECTORSHIP.

87

extreme badness of the roads, and a slight attack of the pre- vailing influenza. I feel that I have lost one of my best friends and counsellors, and that the Diocese has lost one of its best patterns of ministerial faithfulness, and Christian simplicity : but our loss is nothing in comparison with yours. It is true, that with the constitution and unimpaired faculties

Right Rev. Thomas C. Bkownell, D. D., Third Bishop op Connecticdt.

of your late husband, we might have hoped that he would have been spared to us for several years to come ; yet we ought rather to be grateful that he was preserved so long, and that he was taken away in the full maturity of his years — "like a shock of corn, fully ripe." Let this thought, my dear Madam, console you. It is the will of God, of a Being of infinite wisdom, who knows what is best for us, for our

88 THE EEV. PHILO SHELTOn's KECTOESHIP.

friends, for the Church : a Being, -whose every act is ordered in mercy and goodness. Let us then, ever bear in mind these attributes, and let us reflect on the multiplied ways in which they have been manifested to us. We shall then have reason to mingle our thanksgivings with our sorrows, and realizing the goodness and loving kindness of God, we shall seek support where all sufficiency alone resides.

Mrs. Brownell desires to unite with me in assurances of sympathy, and affectionate remembrances, to yourself and family. With great esteem, your

Friend and Pastor,

Thos. C. Brownell.

Addressed :

Mrs. Philo Shelton. Mrs. Shelton survived her husband thirteen years. Two sons entered the ministry of the Church. The younger of them, George Augustus Shelton, a graduate of Yale college, died in 1863, Rector of St. James' Church, Newtown, Long Island. The other, succeeded his father as Rector of Trinity Church, Fairfield ; and subsequently became the distinguished Rector of St. Paul's Church, Buffalo, the mother-parish of that important city.

CHAPTER XIII.

Rectokship of Rev. William Shelton, 1825-29, a. d.

Tht Rev. William Shelton.

The Rev. Philo Shelton died February 27th, 1825, and Trinity parish, for the first time in forty years, found itself without a Rector. His removal speedily developed a great amount of incertitude. The times were hard; the congregation was in debt ; consequently the prospect of supporting a clergy- man became \evy dubious. At the last meeting of the parish,

90 RECTORSHIP OF BEV. WILLIAM SHELTON.

held shortly before Mr. Shelton's death, February 9th, the pews were rented from " Easter Monday to the first Monday of January next," and brought a total of fifty-thi-ee dollars only. March 17th, there was another meeting, at which it was " resolved to appropriate one hundred and forty-five dollars, and seventeen cents, out of the funds of the lottery, to defi'ay the debts against the Society." This partly ex- plains why before the Rev. Wm. Shelton accepted the rector- ship, in succession to his father, there was an effort made to combine the Fairfield parish, with that of Stratford. On April 18th, at a special meeting of the parish, it was voted, " that the parish of Fairfield unite with the parish of Stratford, in hiring or settling a clergyman, provided the two parishes can agree on the clergyman, and all other subjects regarding the hiring or settling him." Voted, " that Walter Sherwood, Joel B. Bulkley, and Hull Sherwood, be a committee to call on the Wardens and Vestry, or some committee appointed by the parish of Stratford, to ascertain the best terms on which the two parishes can unite, and report at the next meeting." After this action, whether it was that the parish at Stratford was not responsive, or that the Episcopalians of Faii-field had determined to raise sufficient money among themselves, to maintain a separate existence, a different opinion speedily prevailed. At another special meeting held April 25th, it was voted, "that the Episcopal Society of Fairfield would not unite with the Parish of Stratford at present." It may have been that an intimation that the Rev. Wm. Shelton was available, and the fact that the parish had a quantity of land that could be disposed of, the proceeds of which would help to pay expenses for some years to come, had a great deal to do with this complete reversal of opinion. Anyway, about the time the Rev. William Shelton began to ofiiciate, it was voted to sell a piece of property, known as the Roxbury Farm, be- longing to the parish, for eighteen hundred dollars. The congregation, in accordance with the doubtful policy it was

RECTORSHIP OF REV. WILLIAM 8HELT0N. 91

pursuing, now found itself in a position to pay the Rector's salary, and its other obligations.

Extract from the Parish Record : " Nov. 1825, Sunday after Thanksgiving-day, Rev. Wm. Shelton began to preach, and left the parish, August 9th, 1829."

The Rev. William Shelton was the son of the late Rector, and brought to his new charge all the fervor and sympathy that a life long acquaintance with it could impart. From the very beginning of his rectorship, his preaching drew large and attentive congregations ; while his unremitting house to house visitations won for him the hearts of all his people. Fairfield was the first parish he served. In his convention sermon, 182G, Bishop Brownell remarked : " Rev. William Shelton has exhibited to me letters Dimissory from the Diocese of New York, and has been called to the parish at Fairfield. Few circumstances of my life have afi'ected me with a stronger interest than his recent ordination in the Church at Fairfield, and at the altar beneath which the bones of his late venerated father rest in peace. He now cultivates the field where the same pious father so often bore the heat and burthen of the day, and where for more than forty years he labored in the service of his Divine master."

The parish continued its prosperous career. In 1827, the list of communicants had increased from 50 to 80. In 1828, the connection between the parishes of Fail-field and Weston was severed. By vote of the parish, the Rector's services were here- after to be confined to his own people. For the first time in its existence, the services of its Rector were to be entirely de- voted to it. And this change proved ultimately the turning point in its later history. While Fairfield village had been decreasing, numerically and materially, the tiny hamlet located at the mouth of Mill River, one mile westward, had all along been steadily growing. New buildings had been erected, and the population had largely increased. A disposi- tion to change the name of the settlement from Mill River to

92 RECTORSHIP OF REV. -^VILLIAM SHELTON.

Southport, had also become manifest. Nor was the project lacking in earnest supporters. It was into this practically new communit}', that Mr. Shelton thought it advisable to introduce the Church. So far, no public religious services of any descrip- tion had been held in the village. In prompt pursuance of his plan, Mr. Shelton made abegiuning in October, 1828, in the upper room of the old Academy or school-house, now the well known residence of Mr. Jos. H. Furniss where he preached every third

'rf-^[;f	'
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''\.rZ .	*v

J "IJif ' ht "g'

The Old Academy. In This Building the First Church Services In Southport were Held,

Sunday afternoon in the month. From the first, this experi- mental service was so well attended thatit soon became apparent that the real centre of the parish, the point everyway most convenient to the great majority of the parishioners, scat- tered as they were, from the village of Fairfield, to Green's Farms, and Saugatuck, was not Mill Plain, but Southport. The result was, the Church in that place became permanently established In 1829, Mr. Shelton received a call to St. Paul's Church, Buffalo, New York. With unfeigned sorrow he decided

EECTOESHIP OF REV. WILLIAM SHELTON. 93

to sever the pleasant relations that had existed for four years, and enter upon a field of labor, that partook, even in those days, of even a more missionary character than that connected with the parish at Fairfield. Mr. Shelton's connection with St. Paul's Church, began on his thirty-first birthday, and lasted for fifty-four years. He died at his ancestral home at Bridgeport, October 11th, 1883, having been born at the same place, September 11th, 1798.

I

CHAPTER XIY

Rectorship of the Rev. Charles Smith. Erection of the Chapel at Southport, 1829-1834 a. d.

The Rev. Charles Smith.

The Rev. Charles Smith, succeeded the Rev. Wm. Shelton in 1829. He was a man of positive character, fine culture, large experience, and the parish, under his guidance, made a percepti- ble and encouraging advance. The most remarkable feature pertaining to the four years of his Rectorship, was the growth of the work begun, tentatively, at Southport, by the Rev.

RECTORSHIP OF REV. CHARLES SMITH. 95

Wm. Shelton. As time passed, all the services held in the Acad- emy building, were marked by the attendance of large congre- gations. The need of a proper and permanent structure, to be used as a Chapel to the Mill Plain Churchy thus became apparent. The undertaking once started, speedily matured, and in 1832, the corner stone of a suitable building was laid with appropriate ceremonies, by the Rev. Francis L. Hawks, D. D., then Rector of St. Paul's Church, New Haven.

This, the fourth edifice built by Trinity parish, within one hundred and ten years, was most advantageously located on a gentle eminence, in the centre of the village, and was of easy access to all who desired to worship God, according to the Episcopal Form.* Bishop Benjamin Tread well Onderdonk, of New York, consecrated the new Chapel, January 22nd, 1835.

The list of contributors to the Chapel is preserved in the Parish Record, and contains the names of so many who were active in Trinity Church, or interested in it at the time, and whose memory is worth perpetuating, that it is given in full. The land was purchased of Judson Sturges, and cost $300. The size of the lot was seven by eight rods. The subscription paper reads as follows :

" We, the subscribers, being desirous of building a House in the Borough of Southport, to be dedicated to the worship of Almighty God, according to the forms of the Protestant Episcopal Church, and to be known by the name of Trinity Chapel, belonging to the Episcopal Society in the Townof Fair- field, do promise to pay to Jeremiah Sturges, Esq., Treasurer of s'd Society, or his successor in Office, the several sums we have hereunto annexed to our names, and we do^hereby consti- tute and appoint Jeremiah Sturges, Esq., Andrew Bulkley, William Sherwood, Jr., Walter Bulkley, Abel Beers, the committee to purchase the land and to superintend the erecting the said building, and to draw on the Treasurer of

* See map of Church sites, p. .33.

96

RECTOBSHIP OF REV. CHARLES SMITH.

s'd Society, the amount subscribed for the above purpose, provided the several subscriptions hereunto annexed amount to two thousand dollars, one year from date. Otherwise, the subscriptions to be null and void. "Witness our hand. South- port, Januai-y 13th, 1832." Abel Beers,

Jeremiah Stiirges & Son, Julius Pike, Jonathan Godfrey, Joseph Perry, Walter Bulkley, Judas Sherwood, Wni. Robinson & family Wm. Sherwood, Jr., Henr^- Perry, Charles Perr^^ Moses Bulkley, Aaron J. Hubbell, Jon. Bulkle3% Levi Down, Gordon Perry, W. D. Dimon, Stephen Osborn, Joseph \V. Davis, Walter Sherwood, James BulkW, Hezekiah Bulkley, Jessup Alvord, Lijman Betts, Ebenezer Dimon, Jon. Sturges, Henry Dudley, Anna Robinson, L. H. Bulkley,

Two years only elapsed, and the attendance showing a constant increase, it was decided that the Chapel needed greater seating capacity. A second subscription paper was started, and in a brief space of time, the amount requisite, was pledged. A copy is herewith appended : " We, the subscribers, promise

$100.00	Wm. Bulkley,	$100.00
200.00	Thos. Robinson,	30.00
100.00	L. B. Wakeman,	40.00
50.00	W. W. Wakeman,	40.00
100.00	George Bulkley,	40.00
100.00	Charles Bulkley,	40.00
100.00	Hezekiah Davis,	35.00
, 100.00	Andrew Bulkley,	50.00
50.00	Simon Sherwood,	25.00
150.00	M. A. Sherwood,	30.00
50.00	B. A. Hawkins,	25.00
50.00	Hull Sherwood,	40.00
20.00	Joseph Jennings,	15.00
25.00	Andrew Bulkley,	10.00
10.00	Timothj' Williams,	10.00
25.00	Aaron Jennings,	10.00
10.00	Jessup Wakeman,	50.00
4-0.00	E. Sherwood,	10.00
50.00	Rachael Penfield,	10.00
50.00	Rev. Francis L. Hawks,	5.00
10.00	Eleazar Bulkle}-,	100.00
10.00	Griselda and Mar}'
10.00	Bradley,	50.00
10.00	Henry Beers,	10.00
40.00	David Coley,	5.00
5.00	Aaron Sherwood,	5.00
10.00	R. M. Sherman,	10.00
5.00	Sarah Hull.	25.00
50.00

RECTORSHIP OF REV. CHARLES SMITH.

97

to pay to Jeremiah Sturges, Esq., Treasurer of the Episcopal Society of Fairfield, or his successor in office, the respective sums annexed to our names, for the purpose of raising the sum of Four Hundred Dollars, to be applied to building an additional square of about 12 feet in extension of the length of Trinity Church, in Southport, the s'd subscription not to be binding unless the sum of Four Hundred Dollars shall be raised on or before the 23rd inst. Southport, April 16th, 1834.

Ladies' Association,	$100.00	Charles T. Nichols,	$10.00
Maurice Wakeman,	25.00	Chas. Thorp,	10.00
Lot Bulklej',	25.00	Sellick Sherman,	10.00
Thos. Robinson,	25.00	Capt. John M,	10.00
Wm. Bulkley,	20.00	David Bradley,	10.00
Andrew Bulkle}',	20.00	N. B. Alvord,"	5.00
Simon Sherwood,	15.00	Geo. Robinson,	5.00
Smith Robinson,	15.00	J. B. Wakeman,	5.00
Moses Bulkley,	10.00	Chas. Thorp, additional.	5.00
W. B. Meeker,	10.00	Albert Whitmar,	5.00
Henry Perry,	10.00	Henry Beers,	5.00
J. W. Davis,	10.00	James Bulkley,	5.00
Henry Sturges,	10.00	Jessup Alvord,	5.00
Chas. Perr3%	10.00	Aaron Sherwood, Jr.,	5.00
Hull Sherwood,	10.00	David Bradley,	5.00
Polly and Griselda		Abel Ogden,	3.00
Bradley,	10.00	Geo. Ogden,	2.00
Jeremiah Sturges,	10.00	L. Down,	2.50
James Jennings,	10.00	Joseph Sturges,	1.50

Very shortly after the addition to the Chapel had been decided upon, Mr. Smith's failing health made it imperative that he should seek a cure requiring less labor on his part ; and the joint rectorship of two small parishes, St. Peter's Church, and Christ Church, at Oxford, Connecticut, having been offered to him, he tendered his resignation to the Vestry. As his ministry had been most successful, and the congrega- tion was devoted to him, he was strongly urged to withdraw it. He plead, in return, that it be accepted because of his

98 RECTORSHIP OP REV. CHARLES SMITH.

inability to do the work required of him, and so, with great reluctance, the Vestry permitted him to depart. He was a faithful Pastor, andj'an excellent preacher. There are still those living, who treasure, with great affection, the remem- brance of his ministrations.

CHAPTER XV.

Kectokship of Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall : Teansfer of Services from Mill Plain to Southport: Demoli- tion OF the Mill Plain Church : Building OF THE First Parsonage House, 1834-1853, A. D.

The Rev. Nathaniel E. Coknwall.

On Mr. Smith's removal to Oxford, Trinity parish found itself once more without a Rector. The interregnum, however,

100 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

proved to be of brief duration, for the Vestry soon filled the vacancy, by calling to the Rectorship, the Rev. Nathaniel E. Cornwall, one of the most faithful and efficient ministers that the parish has ever had. Mr. Cornwall was descended from some of the best known New England families. Born in 1812, he was educated at Cheshire Academy, in which institution, his father, the Rev. Asa Cornwall, was for many years an instructor. He was graduated at the head of his class in Trinity College, Hartford, and went from thence to the General Theological Seminary in New York. Having finished his studies there, he came to Southport, and officiated for the first time, the eighth Sunday after Trinity, 1834. The Chapel in Southport was just then undei'going enlargement, and not being quite ready for occupancy. Divine service was held, one -third of the time in the Academy, and two-thirds of the time in the Church at Mill Plain. Early in 1885, the Chapel was completed, and at once became the religious centre of the neighborhood. It was the only Church edifice at that period, in the village. The nearest Congregational Society was at Fairfield, a mile distant. The Methodists had not made their appearance. All who loved Christ, irrespective of denominational differ- ences, worshipped together in delightful accord. So remarka- ble was this manifestation of Christian unity, that it moved Mr. Frederick Marquaud, one of the leading citizens of Southport, and also a strong Congregationalist, to present Trinity Chapel with a substantial proof of his good- will. A copy of the letter accompanying his gift has been preserved, and will doubtless interest all who peruse these pages :

New York, 30 March, 1835. Rev. Mr. Coi-nwall :

Dear Sir — I take the liberty of making you the medium of ofi"ering to the Episcopal Society of Southport, for their acceptance, a silver plated Communion-Service. It is not of solid silver, but of a quality that will present the same appearance for more than half a century, ( wath the ordinary usage ).

REOTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL. 101

It is offered as a tx-ibute of my regard for the Christian welfare, and prosperity of the Society. With sentiments of esteem,

I remain, your ob't se'v't and friend,

Frederick Marquand.

This Communion-Service is still in the possession of the parish. The popularity of Trinity Chapel, as was to be expected, militated against that of the old parish Church at Mill Plain. At the annual meeting of 1835, it was " voted, that Divine service shall be held at the Chapel of Trinity Church, at Southport, two-thirds of the time, for one year." At the next annual meeting, 1836, the same arrangement was continued. It required no prescience, therefore, to discern which way matters were tending. The parish had two Houses of Worship ; one in a thinly settled location ; the other in the midst of a thriving village. Inevitably, in such a case, the latter would prove more attractive than the former. Experience, moreover, had shown that the Chapel situate in Southport, was perfectly accessible. Those Episcopalians, who dwelt in the village of Fairfield, were scarcely any further from it, than they were from the Church at Mill Plain ; while those living on Greenfield Hill, at Green's Farms, and at Saugatuck, also found Southport equally as convenient. Above all, the new location furnished a majority of the worshippers. In the "Account of the Pews let in Trinity Church, Mill Plain, Jan, 5th, 1835, there are only fourteen names, and but one of them is wanting in the " List of Pews let in the Chapel at Southport," of the same date. On the other hand, the Chapel list contains forty-three names, and it shows also, that not only was almost every sitting rented, but that all who worshipped at Mill Plain, with one exception, were suffi- ciently contented with the Chapel, to become pew holders therein, and to attend its services regularly.

These pew lists are printed for the edification of those inter- ested in "Auld Lang Syne."" They contain the names of many,

No.

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104 KEOTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

whose professional and business acumen contributed largely to the successful development of Southport and its vicinity, and whose descendants are active members of Trinity Church at the present time.

From 1836 onwards, the attendance at the Mill Plain Church waned, so that the expense of keeping it open, and in repair, became an ever increasing burden. In 1841, the unwisdom of endeavoring to maintain two houses for worship, became self-evident, and at a meeting of the parish, held December 20th, 1841, a committee was appointed, consisting of Andrew Bulkley, Jesse Banks, and Abel Beers, to devise " the lawful means for annexing Trinity Church, Mill Plain, to the Chapel at Southport, and to devise ways and means for having continuous services at said Chapel." At a special parish meeting, March 28th, 1842, the committee reported : "that they have made all necessary inquiries of legal gentle- men, and find that due notice of the intention being given, in the warning for the meeting to be held, the Society when assembled, may remove the services by two-thirds of the members present voting for the removal." The meeting then adjourned to the last Monday in June, at 2 o'clock, when a vote being taken, the requisite two-thirds voted affirmatively, that the Chax^el at Southport should henceforth be the Church of the parish, and that the Church at Mill Plain, should remain closed, except for such occasional services as the Rector might appoint.

By this sensible action, the parish was materially strengthened, for henceforth it was enabled to concentrate upon the care and maintenance of one edifice, that which had been found wholly inadequate when divided between two : and it further con- duced to bring about a congregational solidarity, such as was impossible under the conditions previously existing. It also greatly bettered the lot of the Rector, for, in 1844, the parish felt strong enough to venture upon the erection of a parsonage- house, convenient to the parish Church ; and also to materially

EECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

105

add to the Rectors salary. In a letter to the parishioners of Trinity Church written about this time, Mr. Cornwall says : " the increase of my salary, in addition to the provision of a commodious parsonage, I consider an example on the part of my beloved parishioners, Worthy of commendation by their Pastor, and of imitation by the members of other parishes." When a permanent home for the Rector was decided upon, it was thought advisable to take down the Church at Mill Plain,

The Fikst Southport Parsonage.

even occasional services having ceased to be held there, and use whatever material contained in it, that might be found availa- ble in the construction of the new building. This was done, and in its changed form, the venerable edifice, built in 1790- 1795, exists substantially to-day, in the structure located close by what is known as the "Rectory crossing." The bell of the old Church was sold to the Methodist Society at Saugatuck, and is doing good service at the present time.

106 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

Mrs. Cornelia Ann Short, who worshipped in the Mill Plain Church, still retains vivid memories of it, and the recollection of one feature, she has enshrined in beautiful verse, which may fitly find place in these Annals :

THE OLD CHURCH BELL.

Methought I heard it now, Its silvery tones vibrating along The vale, and o'er the hills, as if perchance Some wandering mortal should escape the Sound, and thus forget God's Holy Day.

But Ah! 'tis Fancy's dream — no more those walls will Echo with thy music. Yet even that Imaginary sound has touched a cord Which vibrates to the Past — and Memory With magic power calls up the scenes of Early years, when first my childhood's steps were Taught with awe, to enter in that hallowed Place — where Christ's ambassador, with accents Firm, but mild, precepts instilled, which till Life's latest hour will ne'er grow dim. Who In his arms received the unconscious babe, and With baptismal dew, impressed upon Its brow the liquid Cross, a sign to guide The Christian through the narrow way — and hours When oft I've watched thy iron tongue as It pealed in joyous tones for the gay Bridal, or tolled the sad funeral knell. The festal Christmas time, when all With I'eady hand, there met — bright evergreens to Twine round columns high, and with the darker Fir to decorate the vaulted Fane. From Each old window arched, were gleaming lights And merry hearts were thronging there, to sing The praise of Bethlehem's Babe.

RECTOBSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL. 107

'Tis changed ; And voices that mingled in the chorus Of redeeming love on earth, are hushed, we Trust, but to resume the seraphic lays Of Heaven — and other hearts, once wont to Meet around that sacred board, now mourn that Not a trace remains to mark the place once Consecrate with heavenly themes.

Time hastens ! A small young tree now rears its verdant top Where the Church tower raised its glistening Spire. — And when in future years its branches Wave, and children play about its roots will There be none to pause amid the group, and Tell the historic tale, or speak of those Who, on each returning hallowed day Welcomed the sound of that Old Bell, and Gladly met for worship, praise and prayer ?

Mrs. C. a. Short. Fairfield, Conn.

In 1846, the New York and New Haven Raih'oad came into existence, and its roadway was located so near the parsonage, that the noise of passing trains, and the continuous shriek of the engine's whistle, made it wholly undesirable for a residence. This drawback continued to intensify with the rapid growth of the traffic done by the company, and it was accordingly determined that the parsonage should be offered for sale. In 1891, the railway company, finding the land pertaining to it necessary for the carrying out of the proposed duplication of its roadbed, bought the property for $3,500, and it is now in their possession.

CHAPTEK XYI.

Continuation of Eev. Nathaniel E. Corn-wall's Kectorship: State of the Parish: Kesignation, 1834-1853 a. d.

In the annual report of the state of the parish, printed in the Convention Journal of 1835, the Rector imparts the follow- ing information : " The number of families in the parish this year may be reckoned at 80. In this list, however, several single persons, unconnected with any other members of the parish, are counted as families. It may be, therefore, better to state the whole number of souls comprised in the cure, which may be estimated at 320. Of these 107 are communi- cants. There have been 9 communicants added during the year, 3 have died, 1 has removed. It is proper here to observe that the number of communicants in the parish last year, was incorrectly reported. The error was caused by copying from the record of the former Eector, without reference to the period of vacancy in the cure, during which there had been several removals. Eleven persons have been confirmed, eleven infants baptized, and the number of deaths is eleven. There have been no marriages in the parish, though I have three times solemnized the bans for persons from abroad. The number of Sunday scholars is about 60 ; teachers 14. From thirty to forty persons generally attend the meetings of the Bible class. The regular members of the class, who recite from Jackson's Questions on the Lessons, &c., do not exceed 20. A meeting of the Sunday school teachers has been held monthly, and is to be continued hereafter twice a month. The object of these meetings is to secure for the school that pastoral supervision which the spirit of the

RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

109

rubric concerning catechizing seems to require, and to render the labors of the teachers more efficient, by means of a mutual and free interchange of the results of individual experience, and the familiar exhortations of duty. The monthly missionary

"Thk Old Church on the Hill." The Fourth Church Edifice Erected by Trinity Parish.

meeting has been kept up through the year with such success as to afford abundant encouragement for perseverance. The object of these meetings is to diffuse missionary intelligence, and thus nourish that missionary spirit which the Church supposes to exist whei'ever the nature of the Sacrament of

110 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

baptism is rightly appreciated — a spirit which only languishes where it does languish — for want of appropriate sustenance. The sum of $90.60 has been raised for benevolent purposes, since January, chiefly by the plan of weekly contribu- tions. Of this sum, $40.21 have been appropriated by the contributors, to the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society ; $15.00 to Bp. Smith, for Churches in Kentucky ; $12.50 to the Fairfield County Missionary and Education Society ; $14.79 to the Sunday school of the parish, and $8.10 to the Society for the Promotion of Christian knowledge.

These contributions for benevolent purposes are exclusive of the sum of $250.00, which has been realized by the Ladies' Association, as the fruits of their industry in plain sewing, and applied by them to the furnishing of the new Chapel in Southport, which was consecrated on the 22nd of January last, by the Rt. Rev. Bishop Onderdonk.

The Chapel is about a mile distant from the old Church, and is occupied by the same congregation, services being held in the Chapel two-thirds of the time. It is one of the most commodious edifices to be found in the country parishes of the diocese, and is perhaps remarkable among Episcopal Churches in this State, as being the first and only house of public worship in the village where it stands.'"

All this is interesting, inasmuch as it shows what was the condition of Trinit}' parish in the year 1835. A few years later, as we have already seen, the Chapel became the parish Church, and was henceforth the only edifice used for public worship by the congregation. And what a multitude of de- lightful memories, even to this day, cluster about that "Old Church on the Hill," as the Chapel, in time came to be called ! Its location was probably the best that the parish has ever had, or will have. The views of woodland and the blue waters of Long Island Sound, were a perpetual feast to the eye : while the fact that it was in the very midst of the village, made it perfectly accessible to all. There was a

RKCTOESHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL. Ill

sturdiness moreover, in those who worshipped in it, that is sadly lacking in this age. The Church was the first object of their affections; not the last. Sunday was strictly given to God ; not devoted to secular enjoyments. A little had weather, or the slightest bodily or mental indisposition, did not keep them from the Sanctuary. The festal days of the Church were also highly appreciated. Miss Anna E Cornwall, daughter of the Rev. Mr. Cornwall, in a recent letter, says : " Has any one described to you the unique way of illuminating the Church for the Christmas-Eve service, that prevailed in the old days?

Pitch Pipe used in the Mill Plain Chukcu.

A square wooden framework, twined with evergreens, was erected in the body of the Church, just high enough above the pews, to clear the heads of the occupants. This frsime- work was pierced with holes four or five inches apart, laige enough for a good sized candle. Along the galleries, across the end, and on the sides, similar boards extended, pierced in the same way. The candles having been put in place, and thei:e were hundreds of them, they were lighted shortly before the service began, and being large and solid, lasted until the end. The effect was so pleasing that the Church could scarcely hold all who came from far and near to the Christmas-Eve service."

112 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

A communication from another of those who treasure pleasant recollections of this period says: "The music in the ' Old Church on the Hill ' should not be forgotten. It was the free-will offering of those who took part in it. It was not artistic, but it was hearty and sincere." In the early days, the i)itch of the tune of the psalm to be sung was set by a tnniug-fork. This was the custom in the Church at Mill Plain. In the " Old Church on the Hill,'' the tuning-fork was supplanted, at first by a base-viol. This was played sometimes by Timothy Williams, at others, by Aaron Jennin<i;s, while the vocal parts were rendered by a quartette, and a numerous chorus of volunteers. In 1848, progress was in the air ; culture, especially in the direction of Church music, began to exert a potent influence; an organ, something hitherto unheard of, was resolved upon. Again a subscription paper was passed round, and at the annual palish meeting in 1849, the organ committee reported that they had " paid $800 for the organ and additions now in the Church, and about $70 toward altering the Gallery for the same, and that it needed $120 to finish paying all the claims." The committee's report being accepted, it was further " voted that Jonathan Godfrey be added to the committee, and that they continue to solicit subscriptions to the amount required." The organ proved to be of excellent quality, and helped to advance the music of Trinity Church to a highly satisfactory standard. The first to perform upon the instrument, was Miss Anna B. Cornwall ; later, she was succeeded by Mr. Jdhn H, Wood, who served the parish most faithf i V.j, in the capacity of organist, for many years. The choir, that sang on the occasion of what, unwittingly to it, was the last service held in the old Church, was composed of the following persons: Miss Mary Ann Bulkley, Miss C. Malvina Bulkley, Miss Louisa D. Bulkley, Miss Mary Frances Burr, Miss Mary Josephine Bulkley, Miss Elizabeth D. Banks, Miss Mary Jane Banks, Miss Sarah Burr Bulkley, Miss Mary Jane Bulkley, Miss

RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL. 113

Emily Davis, Miss Cornelia Davis, Miss Jerusha Robinson, Mr. George Bulklej', Mr. Andrew Bulkley, Mr. Francis Jelliff, Mr. Edgar Burroughs, and Mr. John H. Sherwood. These young women, in the course of time, became, most of them, the staid and sober matrons, whose unswerving loyalty to the

Jeremiae Sturges, Vestryman, Clerk, and Treasurer of Trinity Parish,

1801-1845.

parish proved to be one of the chief sources of its subsequent prosperity. Of the gentlemen who sung in the choir of the " Old Church on the Hill," Mr. John H. Sherwood, is, so far as the writer knows, the only one who survives.

114 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

While Mr. Cornwall was Rector, Mr. Jeremiah Stux'ges, one of the great leaders of the parish, finished his earthly course. His death took place, December 12th, 1845. As vestryman, and also parish clerk, and treasurer, he served continuously from 1801, to the time of his decease. Well known in the community for his eminent executive ability, it was the com- mon remark, that nowhere did he bestow it with more devo- tion, and with less of stint, than in behalf of Trinity parish. Walter Sherwood, Henry Perry, and Walter Bulkley, all prom- inent among the vestry of the parish, passed to their rest dur- ing Mr. Cornwall's incumbency.

But in one respect, this is anticipating events. Long before the final services of thechoir, to which reference has been made, were rendered, the crying need was for more room, for those desiring to form part of the congregation. Every seat in the Church was taken; applicants were many in number. At the annual meeting, held December 8th, 1851, it was voted, after an informal discussion, " that the building should be again enlarged, and that a special committee be appointed to contract for an addition to the Church, extending out the same, in the rear 12 feet, more or less; of sufficient height to have the pulpit and desk moved back, forming an arch from the gallery, and make additional seats to fill up the space thus added. Also to add to the east side of said building, near the north end of vestry room, from 8 to 12 feet square, and open the present vestry room — provided it can all be done for the sum of six or seven hundred dollars." While the project was pending, for it necessitated the purchase of additional land to make it effective, Mr. Cornwall received an invitation to a new field of labor, which he felt it was his bounden duty to accept.

At the annual meeting, December 20th, 1853, the probable retirement of the Rector was announced to the parish, and a special committee was appointed, " to express the regret entertained by all at the contemplated separation, and the desire that he might resolve to remain." But time only the

RECTORSHIP OF BEV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL. 115

more conviuced Mr. Cornwall that his duty lay elsewhere. At hisrequest, a special meeting was convened, March 14th, 1853, to accept his resignation. Capt. Abel Beers was called to the chair, and the following letter from Mr. Cornwall was read :

March 14th, 1853. To the Wardens and Vestrymen of Trinity Church :

Beloved Brethren: — You are already aware that a serious consideration of the subject of my communication to you at the late annual meeting of the parish, has led to my acceptance of the very earnest call to another field of labor to which my attention was directed. I take the earliest opportu- nity afi'orded by the appointment of the special meeting, this day to tender you my resignation of the pastoral care of this parish, from the close of the present quarter, on the tenth of April ensuing. I need not say in the prospect of such a change of the interesting relation in which we have been so long and so happily united, that there is much that is adapted to excite the most tender sympathies of our hearts. Com- mending you to God, and to the Word of His grace, which is able to build you up, imploring for you all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, and desiring your best wishes and prayers for my own usefulness, I am, with best wishes for each of you, Affectionally yours in Christ,

N. E. Cornwall.

On motion of Capt. Jonathan Godfrey it was resolved unani- mously not to accept the Rector's resignation. Mr. Cornwall came into the meeting, and having expressed with much feeling his appreciation of the kindness shown to him, stated the urgency of the call, and the necessity that was laid upon him to accept it. Capt. Godfrey, thereupon moved the reconsideration of the former vote, and the acceptance by the parish of Mr. Cornwall's resignation, both of which were agreed to. After passing a resolution testifying to the high regard " in which the retiring Rector was held by the parish, as well as to the

116 RECTORSHIP OF REV. NATHANIEL E. CORNWALL.

faithful discharge of his various and arduous duties, often- times under disheartening and adverse circumstances,"' the meeting adjourned.

The Rev. Mr. Cornwall's Rectorship, thus unexpectedly brought to a close, was one of the most memorable in the history of the parish. A man of great urbanity of character ; of unusual administrative ability ; of fine scholastic and theologi- cal attainments ; of intense evangelical fervor and piety, it was most natural that the charge entrusted to his spiritual oversight, should prosper. For nineteen eventful years, not- withstanding the fact that during that period, questions of momentous import, that gave rise frequently to acute differ- ences of opinion, came up for settlement, he held his congre- gation together as a unit. By common consent, the entire community of the Town of Fairfield, irrespective of I'eligious aflfiliations, thoroughly respected him. As Rector of St. Andi-ew's Church, Pittsburg, to which place he went after leaving Southport, and later of St. Matthew's Church, New York, he continued for many years the same career of useful- ness. The writer of these Annals knew him well, and that only, as did all who wei*e favored with his friendship, to admire and love him to the end of his earthly days. He died in New York City, August 28tb, 1879, aged 69 years.

CHAPTER XYII.

Rectobship of the Rev. James Souveraine Purdy: Destruction

OF the Fourth Church by Fire— Change of Site, and

Building of the Fifth Church, 1853-1858, a. d.

Rev. James S. Purdy.

At a special meeting held May 10th, 1853, the Rev. James S. Purdy, at the time a tutor in Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., was unanimously called to fill the vacant Rectorship. The invitation was accepted by Mr. Purdy, and he forthwith

118 KECTOESHIP OF REV. JAMES S. PURDY.