The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-07-01
HISTORICAL DISCOURSE
DELIVERED BY REV. DIR. ISAIAH
 ". SNEATH.


 tiOnaI ChurcI-The Church's Birth
 and PrOgress-Its PastOrs-An Ad-
 dress RepIete With Interest-MucIl
 of Interest Also Incidentally as to the
 History of Fair Haven-Names of
 Those for More Than Fifty Years
 Members of the Church-Many Well
 Remembered Names.
 The historical discourse preached in the Grand avenue Congregational church last Sunday morning by the pastor, the Rev. Dr. Isaiah W. Sheath, was an excellent one, and has received great commendation. Dr. Sneath's sermon in full is given below:
 HISTORY OF THE CHURCH IN
 FAIR HAVEN"
 Psalm 4S:12-f3.
 Walk about Zion, and go round about her; tell the towers thereof. Mark ye well Jsr bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following"
 The history of any community is never complete without the history of the church in that community. The history of Fair Haven will never be complete without the history of the first church of Fair Haven upon this seventy-ffth anniversary of the or ganization of this church. Let us walk about Zion, recount the deeds that have been done, mark well the bulwarks of faith and good works, con- sider the lives saved and the charac- tfrs developed, and record for the gen. erations following the life and work of this people. The first house in Fair Haven was a shelter for the ferryman at Red Rock, built in 1845. The town was then known as Dragon. Later a village grew into being, until in 1907 1t numbered about thirty families. The year 1908 marks the commencement of a distinctive religious history of the village. A revival of religion resulted in the conversion of more than one fourth of the one hundred and fifty residents. Thirty-one of these persons united with the church in East Haven, six with the North (now United) church, and one with Center church, New Haven. A Friday evening prayer meeting was established and services were held in the home of Ezra Rowe on the east side of the Quinnipiac, and in the school house at the corner of Grand llld Perkins streets. How those fore fathers did enjoy the prayer-meetingi They had not learned to forsake the assembling of the saints, as the man ner of some is to-day. The village grew in numbers and in 1916 and 1921 other refreshing scenes of grace were witnessed; and the company of believ- CTS increased. It was natural that a church in this village should be thought of. It was long walk to East Haven and hard on shoe leather. Many pilgrims walked with bare feet to the East Haven church and to the hay scales in New Haven, and then put on their shoes for the divine ser vice. Dr. Hart, In a sermon delivered in 1876, facetiously remarks, This is much better than some of their degen- crate descendants, who neither wear, nor wear out, their shoes by Sunday walks to church." The "school-house era' had passed away, and a house of worship" was demanded. A square plot of ground was given by Captain Nathaniel Granniss, subscriptions were taken, and the building was erected. The corner stone was laid on July 1, 1929, Rev. MT. Merwin, pastor of the North church delivering the address. At least one person Is present with us to-day who witnessed the corner stone laying, Mrs. Maria E. Seeley Barnes. On June 23, 1880, council of minis ters met organized the First church of Fair Haven and dedicated the house of worship The church was composed of fifty-three members. A large portion of them came by letter from the North church, and so MT. Merwtn, the pas tor, preached the dedicatory sermon. The church stood by the side of the school house, where the Strong school now stands. There they stood togethv CT for six years-symbolic of the two great factors in the American republic religion and education. It was also representative of a true Congregation altsm and in accordance with it's spirit and methods. The ediflce cost about nine thousand dollars. As usual, the ladies showed their willing and self, sacrificing spirit. The clock, carpets, blinds and communion set were fur nished by them. On the 24th of June the First Ecclesiastical society of Fair Haven was organized, with twenty-six members. The names of the first members of the church and society sound familiar. Rowe, Hemingway Parmalee, Goodsell, Landcraft, Brad ley, Mallory, Maltby Barnes, Granniss, Brooks Futile, Sanford, Ludington Ball, Thompson and Smith, May these names always find representatives in- terested in the work of this church! Soon after the organization Rev. | John Mitchell was called to the pas torate and was installed December g. 1880. He was a literary man, graduate of Yale college and Andover Theologi- cal seminary, and far five years had been the editor of the Christian Spec tator. During his pastorate and later he wrote and published "The Practical Church Membsr," 'The New England Churches" Notes from Over the Sea, ' Scenes and Characters in College" My Mother, or Recollections of Ma !