The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-04-05
Opening to Be Marked BY Inter
esting Exercises.
HAPPY IN THEIR NEW HOME
Congregation viii Be Glad 10 Get in a
Handsome Church Again, After
Being Out for Over Year.
The Days Programme.

p,olic to.mo,;om. Exercises bctittinS the
event have been Planned and Wall Do
carried oui. Services morning, afternoon
:ind evening viii be held. and many ao-
dresses, dcdicatory, copEratuiatofy ana
otherwise Will be delivered.
Tho dedication OF the church. as may
be easily imagined. is an event OF much
interest and Importance to tho conGre-
cation. For more than a year past the
Grove Avenue people have been without
a church home, and now it is with a
natural feeling of joyousness that they
make ready to enter their new house of
worship. They have watched the new
church rise from the astes of the old,
and they are pleased, paEtor and people,
at It's completion.
BURNING OF THE CHURCH.
The burning of the Grove-Avenue
Church about year and a half ago was
an occurrence which shocked and Gricved
Inc community. The flames came
stealthily in the night, and on the morn
Ing of October 20. 1900, the once beautiful
structure was a mass OF ruins. Tho con-
gt'csa ton, thus suddenly bereft of It's
cnufch home, received the sympathy of
the entire city. Churches Of all denon1i-
nations offered their services, and from
one end OF Richmond to tho other The
people WED with one another in their en-
deayor to lend a heqdinS hand. The
slight Insurance upon the building did not
half cover the loss, and besides the mag
nificent private library Of the pastor, Dr..
a. B. Hawthorne upon which there was
no insurance at all, was totally de-
stroyed. entailing an Individual loss of
six or seven thousand dollars
Three months after the burning the
debris Of the old church was cleared
away and the work of construction be-
gan. Contributions were received from
many quarters, the very contractors join
Eng in. Since then the work on the build
ing has progressed steadily. and to-day
the new Grove-Avenue stands forth COM
lleted. more beautiful by far than as OF
old. The style Of the building is entirely
shanged and for the better. The new
fower is very much admired. and the
whole front Of the church is such as to
attract the attention Of all Tassers by,
Is MUCH BETTER
The entrances TO the lecture-room are
much more easily and conveniently ar
ranged. The old building was heated by
furnaces: the new one has a perfect syS-
tern Of steam heating. i can be lighted
either by gas or electricity. Persons~who
1lave seen it illuminated at night have
said that scarcely any building in the
country is more attractive. The organ
gallery is almost a. level with the
pulpit, the baptistry is under the organ
gallery and Immediately behind the pal
pit, and is so arranged that every person
3n the building can see distinctly the ac.
,ninistrat!on of the ordinance. Unlike the
old building, the roof is filled in for some
distance, making less space to be heated
and greatly improving the acoustics.
Tho pews are dark antique oak: the
cushions are olive and very heavy. There
Is more than the usual space between the
s,ews. Those who have visited the build
ing declare that they have never seen
more comfortable sittinEs. The carpet is
iolirc. The pulpit and pulpit furniture
contributed by the First Baptist Church
of Philadelphia are dark oak. The ila!lc-
t;ome stained windows are exceedingly
rheauiiful and are attracting much at
DENTON.
The organ was built by the Mosier Or
gan Company, of Hagerstown. Md. in
size it is second only TO the All-Saints
organ. 1t has four more stops than any
other in the city. All the musicians who
have tried it are delighted with the range
and quality OF its tones. The Grove-1Ave-
siue choir itself is one Of the finest in the
cits-. Mr.. Manly Is. Ramos is the organ
sst. and the quartette is made up as fol-
lows: Tenor, Mr.. l.. II. Cloves; soprano,
Miss Dozia Mitchell; contralto, Miss
knowles; basso, MIR. Norman Call. Miss
knowles at present is in New York. and
during her absence her place is being
ailled by Mrs. Jasper J.. Rowe There is
some talk of getting Mr.. Victor Mcneil
70 play on the violin at the church per-
mancnuy.
tion, is Gothic structure OF white brick.
All told it will cost about $4,000. The
main auditorium seats about 1000 people.
while the leciure-room, with seven or
eight class-rooms adjoined, will seat an
other thousand There are Two pariors
and a handsome pastors study. Also
The church is supplied With complete
Kitchen and culinary department, for use
during socals and entertainments.
THE SERVICES TOMORROW.
That the attendance upon the dcdica-
tory exercises tomorrow will be large is
andoubtcd. The congregation has grown
despite the difficulties it has gone through
and it will enter it's ncw church to-mor-
row larger than 1t WAS when the old one
was built The programme Of the excr-
ciscs follows:
MORNING.
frcludc-Gloria CMoZartl. ....,.-... Crsanist
Anthcm-Lord Remember David tWcsche,
Choir
Invocation. Rev. A. e Dickinson. ID. ID.
Tia Hundred. ...................Con Congregation
Scripture Selections. .........
Rev. George r. Hoves. D. d.
Anthcul-NNe Praise Thee. Oh. God, (t:ack,
Choir
Prayer. Rev. James Nelson. D. d.
Offerings. .DeaconS
Solo-The Peniteat Nandewater).
Miss Dozia Mitchell
fiylnn--dl oh Thou Whose Vast Temple.
Congrcga don
peaicatory serroa-.'Public Worship.
Rev ]. =. Hawthorne
eentcncc-Glory BE to the Father (Gou-
nod). --..Cholf'
Presentation on behalf of the architect.
Hon. II. r. Pollard
Acceptance of the keys for the church,:
Colonel John S. Harwood
Bedicatory PRAYER.
Rev. W. A Whitsitt. D. ID.
,iymn-tc, What We Have Builded, Lord.
BE thine. Congregation
Jsenediction... Rev. Alfred Sagby. D. D.
AFTERNOON.
Organ Prelude-Cujus Amman. ..-.-.......
L. Watson
Anthem Onward Christian Soldiers
Choir of tho First Baptist Church
Old Hundred. CONVERSATION
nnvocation.... Rev. Or. J. q. Garlick
Flirmn--(s). Congregation
PRAYER. Rev. DR.. J. e. Hutson
iAnthem-Hark. Hark Ny Soul tShel!eya
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