The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-12-28
PRESIDENTS AT CHURCH.
Aged Washingtonian Tells of Their
Religious Inclinations.

In the ninety-ninth year of his age,
and almost seeing the dawn of another
century, William Birth recently pene-
trated the veil between time and eter-
nifty in Washington City. One after
noon when ne was in comparative
health, he said to the narrator:
II have lived in this national capital
all of my life. and have seen it grow
from infancy to splendid maturity. I
nave known many of our presidents,
and have seen all but one of them
My earliest recollections are of
stories told to me by participants in
the war of 1872. 1t has always been
difficult for me to distinguish between
what then heard and what actually
saw. do not believe that I saw the
burning of the capitol: and yet. / heard
so many stories concerning it, that
have pictures of it in my mind, so that
1t has seemed to me that I~could act.
ually see it all of these years
II never saw President Washfngton,
but heard so much of him from those
who knew him that 1 feel as though
had known him in my childhood.
presume that Washington was our
greatest Christian president and that
Jackson was farthest from being an
ideal worshiper.
-Four of our presidents were church
officers, trustees or veStrymen namely:
Washington, John Quincy Adams. Gar
field and Benjamin Harrison. Madison
Mckinley were communicates.
Everybody knows that Washington
was an Episcopalian; and all visitors
to this city who have the time go to
Alexandria, Va, to see Christ Church,
where Washington worshiped. The old
Pohfck church, out in the county, is
seldom visited; and yet, as 1t was near
er Mt. Vernon than Alexandria is,Wash-
ington worshiped there more frequent
ly. In fact Washington selected the
IF ed he
greater part of the funds for building
and maintaining it. During the civil
war the Pohick church was vandaized,
and part of the time it was used as a
stable for the horses of cavalrymen.
It is now restored and little congre-
cation worships there regularly.
John Adams was a Congregational
list, but ultimately became Unitarian.
There was no church of either one of
these denominations in Washington, so
President Adams usually went to either
an Episcopal or a little Methodist
church. Methodism was not popular
in those days.
He always walked to church. In fact,
all of our presidents walked about the
capital city and mingled with their fell
low citizens as freely as they did at
their homes until the civil war came,
and since then they have been less ac-
ceSsible to the public.
president Thomas Jefferson attended
different churches, and was what might
be termed a cody man. and he was
an approachable man, too. He was not
a church member, and was denounced
in political campaigns as a French in
f1del.' His two daughters were educat-
ed in a Catholic convent in France.
President Madison was educated at
Princeton, where Presbyterianism was
and has been Graded, but he was an
always and regular at
tendant and COMMUNICATE.
President Monroe was also an Epis- |
copalian and regular in his attendance
at church. But he was reserved man,
and people thought him an aristocrat in
his tendencies. He never stopped to
did not mingle with the people very |
freely.
Although John Quincy Adams at |
tended the Second Presbyterian church |
in Washington. he was a Unitarian. |
There was no Unitarian church in |
so he attended the second
services.
president Jackson was Scotch |
Presbyterian, and he also attended the
Second Presbyterian church. Rev. MI.
Campbell was an eloquent preacher and |
had large congregations. He was I'M |
friendly to the wife of John H Eaton. |
secretary of war, a very beautiful wo- /
man, whose name was roughly handled |
by the gossips, and President jackson |
left the church on that account. He
stood by the abused woman, always to |
the day of his death defending her, |
and saying to the Christians who at /
tackled her: This is good woman and |
a good mother. Even If half OF the |
ISLANDERS were true, or If every one OF |
them were true, in the name OF the |
Christ only he whosis without SIN should |
cast stone at her.
Martin Van Buren, was a member |
of the same church of which President |
is q member, the Dutch Re-