St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1879-02-28
St. Johnsbury Plain in 1910.
A Remarkable Letter.

"A
when the people OF his place were listening to
the historical address at the laying of the
stone of the North church last September, few if
any OF them knew that there was then living man
who dwelt here nearly seventy years ago. and
whose knowledge and impressions of this place in
1910, with every body and every thing it then
tanned are vivid as though it were only last
year. Aside from the value of this letter histOri
caly, it is also remarkable for its clearness,
ciseness and legibity. The handwriting is plain
print
KALAMAZOO, Oct. Sth, 1873.
Dear Brother and Sister,
| thank you most heartily for the
CdledOniGnS, and the photograph OF
your new and very beautiful pros
pective church. While being much in
terested with the account of the cere-
monies and exercises connected with
the laying of that corner stone, | was
much surprised and gratitied to learn
of the wonderful growth and prosperity
of your church, and your village. 1t
seems almost incredible that such great
changes could have been effected there
since my first familiar acquaintance OF
twelve families living on the Plain,
among whom were but six or seven
church members. At that time the
school house stood on the ground since
occupied by the residence of Russell
Hallet, and sometimes served for Il
sanctuary. In 1912 or 'l3, Miss Hannah
Paddock taught the district school in
that house, and also Il catechism school
every Sunday attornoon- Soon nft"r
that school house was moved south and
placed between the potash and the hol-
low, and there i'll that house, Mr..
Thurstin began his ministerial labors in
the fall of 1915, that being the establish
ed meeting house for the three follow
ing winters, which brings us to the
spring of 1918, when it began to appear
that more and better room might at
some future time be needed.
There was a building standing n few
rods east of the Arnold house, at the
head of the plain, where Mr.. Peabody
now lives which had been built i'll
early times for store, but after the
fall of 1910, it was used more or less of
the time by Fred. Phelps, for a meat
market. Mrs Phelps died in the spring
of 1916, and Mr.. Phelps left town i'm
mediately afterwards, never to return.
In the spring or summer of 1918, that
of Clark's store, and David Smith per-
formed the labor of fitting it up for a
meeting house, and Luther Clark paid
all the expenses, except small part
which was paid by his brother. If that
meeting house was ready for use in the
fall, or forepart of the winter, of 1918,
then certainly it was used by the undi-
0ided first church and society until the
division of the church in April, 1925,
and by the second, and new church,
until the fall of 1927, making nine years
in all, Gnstead of two,) that it was used
as church.
have a very distinct recollection of
listening to that historic discourse by
DR.. Luther Jewett in that house, Dec
Sd, 1918, it being very appropriately a
congratulatory, or dedicatory sermon,
adapted to our improved circumstances.
In February or March of 1919, Hezekiah
Martin and L. Moore were both mar
ried in that house on the same Sunday
evening at the close of the religious
service, by Luther Clark. In the win
ter of 1920, Maria West, a favorite
member of our singing choir, died at
Ephraim Paddock's, the funeral ser
vices being in that house, and conducted
by Mr.. Emerson, who preached in that
house many months before, and after
that sad event. Elder Dawson preach
ed Mrs. John Clark's funeral sermon in
that house, and Lois Baldwin had been
Mrs. Clark for years before 1926.
Everything appertaining to the church
and society had always passed along
pretty harmoniously until 1928 or '24
except for a short time, when much
dissatisfaction was manifested by some
because Mr.. Emerson by his preaching
strongly and persistently advocated a
new form of church government, which
was so very distasteful to some, that.
although some others were anxious to
have him settled, it was wisely con-
cluded to be best to allow him to de-
part as quietly as possible; and so the
scheme for Presbyterian church utter.
ly failed, and the angel of Peace and
Unity once more brooded over its pre-
cious charge.
In 1928 OF "a, there began to be
much earnest talk about dividing and
forming another church, the necessity
of which was strongly maintained by