The Cecil Whig., 1886-03-20
REV, THOs. L. P0UL8ON. D. =.
His Transfer to SlXty-firSt st. Church, New
Nurk-SketVh at His Life.

His Transfer to SIxty-Fir.St st. Church, New
York->,ket~h ot His Life.
Tie following sketch Of the LIE and
services Of the Rev Thomas L. PonIson,
ID. D., who has been transferred from the
Baltimore Conference of the ". L
church to the Sixty first street church in
New York, appeared i'll the B4ltmore
weekly -imtyic0a of last week 1t Will
doubtless be of interest 10 the many
friends and acqUajntanccs Of It's subject
in this county.
Rev. Thomas I.aymAn Poulson, y. D.,
was born rs Sadeburyville, chester
county, Pa, December, 18th, 1881. HIS
family removed to Odessa. Delaware. at
which place his father became the pyiEci-
pal of the New Academy. where he re-
ceived his first scholastic instruction
subsequently removing to WestcLcster,
Pa. he attended the High School until
about his sixteenth year, whcG lie en-
tired the printing office of tue IH!"ac
Rtrord, where he remained five years.
During this early period of his life Ike
was converted, and became 4 mem Der of
the Methodist Episcopal Church, under
the pastorate of the Rev. Alfred Cook
man. He was specially active rs 4 worker
in the Sabbath school, Of ~Liah he be
came assistant superintendent before he
reached his majority.
In the year 1>5l he became one Of tie
editors of the smyrna Times, Smyrna,
Del. 1t was staunch temperance paper,
and largely through It's iahueEce a pro
hib:tory law was passed the following
year by the legislature in that state. In
lS54 he married the oldest daughter of
an influential minister OF the Philadel-
phia Conference, Rev Penmell GOombc.
Soon aftarwaId he entered into meIcau-
tile business at Port Deposit, Nd. lie
was soon thrust into active church work
at thus place, and licensed as 4 local
preacher He was received into the reg
uIar ministry in 1851. He WAS seat to
AnnamesSeX, Somerset county, Md,
where he developed special talent as a
reyivalist, reporting over three hundred
conversions the G9st year. He was
then sent by the bishop to Cambridge
circuit for two years, and to Church
Creek circuit, where he was when the
war broke out in 1861. Colonel James
Wallace organized that year at Cam
bridge the First Regiment eastern
Shore) of Maryland Volunteers, l. s
A., and selected Mr.. Poulson as chap
lain, and he was commissioned as such
by Governor Hicks. lie accompanied
his regiment for over three years. n
the battle Of Gettysburg he was taken
prisoner.
He accepted an invitation to conduct i
revival service in the Methodist Episco-
pal Church at ODESSA DsI.. where he re-
mainad until the session of his conference
the following March, 1866. He was
again appointed army chaplain, to serve
at Fort d .laware, but declined, and was
appointed to the Charge Of Delaware
City station, where he served three years
with marked success. He WAS then ap
pointed to. ana served three Years. the
charge at North East, Cecil county, Nj. !:
then to Zion. in the same county. GA
the 1st OF October, ISL, he moved to
Baltimore to take charge of the FIRST
English reformed Church. to which he
had been unanimously and urgentlg
called. After serving IN this appoint
ment about three years he was invited t.
the Second Reform Church, on Calvcl {
street, and to Bethany independents
Methodist Church. He accepted the lat
ter charge, and served it about twelve
months, whe.. he resigned for the pa.
pose of organizing and building a :gCN
Methodist Episcopal Church in til.
western part of the city. Early in ScI-
teinber, lSi5, he formed a quarterly con
ference in his residence, and they lc-
solved to build new Methodist Episc3-
pal Church at once Accordingly :
arge canvass tent was procured anh
pitched Oh the corner of Mulberry and
G ,lmor streets, in wLic. a Sunday sch,e
and society were organized. Services
were held in this tent until about til F.,
middle of December, when they moved
into commodlouS frame structure
which, in the meantime, had bee
erected on said corner. This society sui
sequently butt and moved into the elC.
CANT Hail; m Park II. /. Church. Nh.
Poulson, with his new society, entered
the Baltimore Conference IN March, Is
BY the rules Of the church lie served