Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1893-01-11
The Watertown Congregational
Church, Past and Present.

Among the letters read at the re-
union of the Congregational church,
held on the evening of the I'd inst,
were the following which we take pleas
ure in publishing, because of the in
terost, especially to old settlers, at
tached to them:
From Rev. b. #. Parsons.
DERBY, N. H, Dec. 22 1892.
My Dear Brother: I am glad to see by your
letter that the church at Watertown has not
forgotten its first minister. Of late I have
been thinking good deal of Watertown and
the scenes Of my ministry there, and hoping
that next year l may be able to call upon you.
With your church commenced my minister
ial life in the autumn of '46, and was ordained
in January, AT. 1t was the day of small
things. The church organized the year be-
fore [ came; consisted of nine members, six
females and three males one of them absent
in New York. The community had the repu-
tatiOn of being a very wicked one: stores
open on the Sabbath doing more business
than on other days, gambling saloons in full
blast, nightly broils and carousals and all the
attendants of such q state of things.
The first land owners had not encouraged
moral and religious institutions The church
was so weak they felt doubtful about attempt
ing to sustain meeting. Other missionaries
who preceded me declined in looking oyer the
situation to remain. concluded to stop over
the Sabbath and preached in the partially
built Methodist structure. | found the next
day that strong interest had been awakened
to have continuous services. Men who had
manifested no regard for religious things
came to me and said: 1--WE want you to stay
here We, as 4 community, have come to be
about as bad as can be, and it is time to
turn around and do better Religious insti-
tutiOns have not been encouraged here and
we are reapin2 the bad results" A meeting
was accordingly opened in a small school
house i'll the woods, near the place Of your
first meeting house. A Sabbath school was
organized, and some Of the little boys took
turns in acting as sexton, going out into the
woods ana gathering up fuel and building
the fires. | wonder if any Of those good boys
are with you still and are active in church
work. In Il few weeks the whole community
was stricken down with fever and ague and
bilious fevers, myself and wife among the
rest. Many such scenes occurred during the
year, for the whole territory was visited next
year as never before with ali forms of bilious
diseases and many deaths occurred in Water
town. The memory of those times comes over
me with a shudder. But as health returned
the scene changed. Improvement was mani
tested on every hand. The shops and stores
were closed the Sabbath, the gambling
dens turned into schoolhouses and dwellings.
Instead of riOtOus nights, orderly ones sue
ceeded. The people of the village, feeling
that we were too far away from town, as we
were boarding over in Dodge county, on the
place where Carl SchurZ afterwards lived Sc
cured a house in the village, appointed do
nation party and gave us a joyful reception
to a home which they had partly furnished.
The house was so constructed that we were
obliged to put the cOOkStOve into a closet, with
the pipe pushed through the window. We
made a dry goods box serve for a table and
stOrehOuSc, and with a half dozen plates and
cups and saucers we set up housekeeping.
And may say, though we had many seasons
OF sickness and trial, some Of the happieSt
days of my ministry were spentin WatertOwn,
and had health permitted | should have re-
mained there longer. | shall always feel a
strong interest in your welfare and hope you
will let me know particularly of your growth
and prosperity. Are there any persons of the
early day still with you? | call to mind Dea-
con COe, Mr.. Hadley, Fountain, Dunlever and
others Are they or their sons with you? L
write this under great difficulty, as cataract
is coming over my eyes Of late. [ hope you
will be able TO decipher it. l may make you
a call if go West next year. Give my warm
est regards to the church and to any who re-
call the former days. My health has been
nearly perfect since / left the West Very
truly yours il the bonds of Christ,
PARSONS