The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1902-11-14
MEETING HOUSE OF 177l.

MEETING HOUSE OF l71l.
Sunday, Monday and Tuesday of this
week. The church was appropriate
ly decorated with evergreens, chrys-
anthemums and palms, while sus-
pended across the church was wire
with the date "1750'' on one side and
1909 on the other.
The pastor, Rev. Samuel Zane Bat
ten, preached a historical sermon in
the morning, taking for his text.
1.-The Lord our God be with us, as He
was with our fathers: Let Him not
leave us nor forsake us: That He
may incline our hearts unto Him.
To walk in all His ways, and to keep
His commandments, and His
statutes and His ordinances which
He commanded our fathers. Kings
8: 81, 58, from which we quote as
follows:
In the Providences Of God we
meet to celebrate the anniversary Of
our chnrch's foundation and to re-
view the history of our .ohurch's life
Such an occasion az this should be q
time Of. felicitation and joy, but it
should also be time of meditation
and prayer. We meet to review the
past, to chronicle what God has done {:
put we meet to do something larger
and deeper than this. We must en-
deavor also to assess the purposes
and powers Of our past and to outline
the faith and work of the future. We
are but q generation in the long life
of an institution that shall be young
when we are old and that shall live
when we are dead. But while we
live our lives are part and parcel of
the ohurch's life; and the church g
life is part and parcel of our lives.
We are the heirs of the past and the
parents of the future.
Just one leaf out of the early his
tory of this church. On June Sth,
1859, eleven persons obtained letters
or dismissal from the mother church
at Piscataway to constitute this
.Morristown church. On the 11th of
August following they were constit-
tuted as the Baptist Chucrh of Nor
ristown, in the Province of New
Jersey. The first meeting house of
the church was a log building some
two miles from town on the New
Vernon road. The building was small
and uncomfortable and rude, but to
our fathers it was indeed Palace
Beautiful.
The first stated supply of the church
was young man named James Man
ming, one of the most honored names
in the h story of American Baptists.
"Another honored name of the
eighteenth century is that of John
Gano, the first pastor of this church.
In the three years of his ministry
here he baptized six persons, but one
OF these was Hezekiah Smith, the first
one in fact, who became such
notable worker in the cause of Christ
and was known as the Baptist Apostle
of New England. He entered Prince
ton College, and was graduated in
1859, then he entered the Baptist
ministry and became one of the most
useful and successful evangelists In
the land.
THE Lord our God will be with us
as he was with our fathers: He will
not leave us nor forsake us. We will
follow His leading and will keep His
ordinances. 30 let us away, each to
His place, to accept His task and to
labor till set of sun, knowing that
God Is with us and that His reward
is sure.
The Sunday school lesson of the after.
noon was omitted, and special anniyer.
sary exercises were held, including an
address of welcome by Charlton A,
Reed, followed by addresses by Prof.
Albert T. Davis of East Orange, on "a
Fourfold Look and What 1t Reveals .
and Rev. John MacNaughtan on 1.-THE
Sunday School in Its Relation to the
Bible and the Church" The evening
service consisted of special features in
cluding sermon by Prof. Henry @.
Vedder, D. D., of Crozier Theological
Seminary-"Ou Baptist Fathers and
What They Teach Us"
On Monday the afternoon program
included:
Paper-"Gleanings from Revolution
ary History" Mrs. I. r Pierson.
Address-"The World at That Time"
Rev. Norman Fox, D. D.
In the evening addresses were made
by Rev. Leighton Williams, LII. B. of
New York, and Rev. John Humpstone,
D. D., of Brooklyn.
The concluding exercises were held on
Tuesday afternoon and evening. In the
afternoon Edward Howell of this city,
for many years actively connected with
the church, read paper on the His
tory of Our Church." from which we
quote.
o. On June IS, 1862, II members obtained
dismission from the mother church at
Piscataway, and on the 18th of August
following were constituted as the Bap-
tist Church at Morristown. The first
meeting-house was plain frame build
ing, located on the mountain road about
a hundred yards southwest OF the brick
schoolhouse. The first pastor was the
Rev. Isaac Eaton.
A lot was purchased on the Morris