Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1875-07-01


America. They came as congregation to
Massachusetts,, bringing with them as their
pastors the Rev. John Warham and the Rev
John Maverick. With New England colo
nies the custom of bringing from England
their pastor was very common. Impressed
with this mode of evangelizing the world, the
descendants of these same individuals, in the
year 1885, about sixty-fve years after the
settlement had been made in Massachusetts,
determined to send out similar colony to
South Carolina.
It seems that some persons from South
Carolina had solicited such thing. Will
liam Norman had gone from South Carolina
to induce the Congregational churches of New
England to establish such colony in South
Carolina.
The Puritans of New England were Con-
gregationalists. In South Carolina there
were Presbyterians, High Church men, and
Low Church men, and Baptists.
1t was customary to call all who were not
High Church men Puritans. There were
some individuals in South Carolina who, al.
though Purtans or Dissenters, were neither
Presbyterian, Baptist nor Low Church men,
but of the same persuasion of the New Eng
land Congregationalists. These individuals
were desirous to have church of their own es-
tablished in the colony. William Norman was
sent out to make known their desires, and on
the 22nd of October, 1895, conference Of the
ministers in the neighborhood was held at Do
chester, Massachusetts, and the Rev. Joseph
Lord was, according to the Congregational
mode, duly ordained and set apart for the
work of accompanying as pastor a congrega-
tion to South Carolina.
Two small vessels we're provided for their
transportation. The members of this newl ly
organized church embarked on the 5th of
December, 1896, and set sail on the 18th of
the same month. One vessel arrived on the
2Sth or 18th, whilst the other did not arrive
until near the middle of January, 1896.
They made their way, as best they could, up
the Ashley river, and finally found, as they
thought, favorable place for a settlement.
This, in honor of the place whence they came,
they called Dorchester. On, perhaps, the
second, or it may have been the first Sabbath,
after their landing, the Sacrament Of the
Lords Supper was administered by Joseph
Lord to this Church. The place was under a
large oak, which remained until within few
years to mark the precise spot.
At that time, Dorchester was twenty miles
from any white settlement The Westoes
and Stones were in the neighborhood. From
various causes, these tribes had become bitter
ly opposed to the white men. Whilst this
New England colony or church was building
houses in which the families might live, sen.
tinels had to be posted in the surrounding
forest, to warn the laborers of the approach of
the hostile Indians Notwithstanding the
many difficulties which the colony had to en-
counter, from the very brginning, nud the
many hardships it had to endure for num-
Der Of years. it succeeded. 1t was real ad-
dition to the population of the State, and in
after years the descendants added much to
the first settlers of Georgia. It may be
truthfully said concerning this Dorchester COL
ony thatit always furnished upright citizens
men who were ready to defend the rights of
their country when these rights were threat
ened.
1t has been said without good reason, that
this Dorchester church was the first church or
ganized in the State of South Carolina, and
that the communion which was administered
to the members of it by their pastor, the Rev.
Joseph Lord, was the first sacrament of the
Lords supper which was ever administered in
the State. This is, we think, hardly correct.
There were several church organizations in
the State before February End, 1896, the
time that the Sacrament was first administer.
ed at Dorchester. There were at least seven
churches in the State, with pastors, ten years
before this period. An Episcopal church in
Charles Town was founded in 1888. The
first pastor of this church was the Rev. Atkin
Williamson, who had been in the colony for
some time previous to the organizing of St.
Phillips (now St. Michaels.) The house
was built of cypress timber. There were
three Geneva Presbyterian churches in the
colony as early as 1857, or probably 1856
one in Charles Town and one on the eastern
branch of the Cooper river. The pastors of
these churches were the Revs. Flcrent Phil
lip Trouillart and Elias Prioleau, of the
one in Charles Town and the Rev. De La
Pierre of the one on Cooper river. There was
also Huguenot or Geneva Presbyterian
Church on the Santee, founded about the
same time with the Rev. Pierre Robert for a
pastor, and still another on Goose creek,
which was under the pastoral care of the Rev.
Florent Phillip Trouillart. This fact makes
it probable that its organization was before
1896. There was also in the province what
was called the Independent church or mixed
Presbyterian. This was probably the first or
ganized congregation in the colony. The
Rev. Thomas Barret, who was, so far as is
known, the first minister of the gospel in the
colony, was in some way connected with this
congregation. This church was organized
not more than ten years after the arrival Of
the first settlers. the Baptists had church
organization in Charles Town as early as 1888
Some of the emigrants who came with Lord
Cardross and some of those who came with
Joseph Blake, were Baptists. Blake himself
was Presbyterian, but his wife was a Bap-
tist, and so was her mother, Lady Axtell..