Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-16
OLD TOWN OF WINDSOR
Names of Some of Its Dis
tinguished Sons Recalled.
OLDEST CHURCH SOCIETY
Controversy Between Timothy Ed
wards and His Congregation.
TOMBSTONE OF GEN. PUTNAM
Blue Laws Of onnecticut-Offenses
Made Punishable With Death
f.. in 1e42.
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
| Record Herald.

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
Record Herald
HARTFORD, Conn. July II, 1907.
Just north of Windsor is the home OF
Oliver Ellsworth, one of ale greatest men
of the colonial period, and the third chief
| justice of the United States He and all
his tribe for several genera lions were born
and lived there.
Windsor was also the birthplace and the
home of Roger Wolcott Q679-l767), author,
| historian, poet, lawyer, judge, governor,
major general and founder of a long line
of illustrious descendants. His first lit
erary work was published in 1925 and was
a curious little volume called "Poetical
Medtations, Being the Improvements of
Some Vacant Hours
His grandson, Oliver Wolcott Q76O-1S33),
who was Secretary of the Treasury under
Washington and John Adams, also wrote
verses, and published a pretentious epic
entitled THE Vision of Paris" which is
said to be very poor poetry.
John Fitch, who claimed to have invented
the steamboat long before Robert Fulton,
and made voyages up and down the Con-
necticut river, while Fulton was a child,
lived at Windsor and built his steamboats,
there. There is a monument of bronze
lHdt TACT
The Ellsworth homestead, a splendid
colonial mansion, perfectly preserved and
surrounded by noble ems, is familiar to
readers of history, because it appears as
Connecticut in the lives of the chief JUS
tees, in the biographies of Oliver Ellis
worth, in the histories of Hartford, and in
many other volumes. 1t is now owned by
the Ruth WHY'S Chapter of the D. A. r.
of Hartford, to whom it was presented by
the heirs. The Daughters have recovered
much of Its former furnishings and have
put them back in their old places, while
the remaining rooms have been furnished
with chairs, tables. Settees and other pieces
of Oliver Ellsworths time. 1t is one of
the most notable colonial mansions in the
country and is regarded as an excellent ex-
ample of the architecture of the early part
of the eighteenth century. 1t stands the
bank of the Connecticut river surrounded
by a glorious grove of elms The trolley
cars from Hartford pass each half hour.
Oldest American Church.
According to its records, the Congrega-
tional Church of Windsor is the Oldest re-
ligious organization in America, having
been organized in Holland in 1916, before
the Pilgrims came over and it was located
at Windsor in 1880 The list of pastors in
scribed upon a marble table beside the
several changes, and only few years ago
Warnham, who preached from that date
1630) to 1670-forty years. Several of his
successors mnistered to the congregation
even lor ger than that. The c-urch has had
very few ministers.
The present building was moved from the
other side of the road IN 1894 ALI partially
rebuilt. Since then the hand of the vandal
has defaced its original beauty by making
several changes and only a few years ago
the old-fashioned box pews were taken
out and modern pews substituted. A pipe
organ has been placed in the gallery and
is most obstructvely out of place; but the
into +
Is gem, modelled after a Greek temple
a Lat table supported by lines of columns
painted white. gallery runs around three
sides of the interior cutting in half the
long widows which are shielded by green
blinds In the panels of the gallery have
been painted the names of the mem who
have served as deacons since the organi-
zation of the society, one deacon to a panel,
in big black letters.
The exterior proportions of the church are
superb; the portico is supported by four
ionic columns; the steeple Is almost as
shapely as that of the old church at Farm
ington, and coat of white paint upon
the clapboards and a coat of green upon the
blinds make it look as neat as if it were
nodded of confectionery. 1t stands upon
the top of hill just above the Pennington
river and is approached through a covered
bridge. Behind it is one of the oldest Gene
| teries in the United States and proba bly, the
Oldest in Connecticut. The dead of Wind
| sor have been laid there since 1890 and
| their graves are shaded by magnificent
| elms.
| East Windsor, equally historic occupies
the opposite side of the Connecticut river
which is wide at that part, with high
! muddy banks, lined with cottonwooGs pop
| lars and willow trees There is no bridge
| and the river Is crossed on a curious ferry
| boat, which lands at the foot of steep hill
| If the boat Is on the other side of the
| stream you ring bell that is supported on
| a pole near by to call the attention OF
| Charon. This ferry has been operated con-
| tinuously since 1913. 1t was formerly run
| by sail, but now Yankee ingenuity has ar.
ranged it SO that the force of the current
| carries the boat along on a cable which
| runs through pulleys. The boatman ad.
| justs the centerboard and the rudder, places
| the pulleyS at the right angle and then sits
down on an empty box and gossips with his
passengers while they riding across
| East Windsor is a great tobacco center
| Every acre of the river bottom is utilized
| Tor plants and the people are all rich.
| Home of Rev. Timothy Edwards.
| East Windsor is also famous for being
| the birthplace of iona than Edwards, whose
| father Rev. Timothy Edwards, began his
| ministry there on May TO- 1894 immediatel,
! after being ordained to preach the Gospel
| Timothy Edwards prepared for college al
| the grammar school at Hartford entered
harvard In 1857, graduated in 1851, and, by
| reason or his scholarship, received the two
| degrees of bachelor of arts and master OF
| arts on the same day, which | believe is
| unprecedented in the history of that uni
] Versity. He never had any other pastora r.
| put East Windsor. He preached there al
| ms NE and was the most influential as vel
! as the most arbitrary member of the com.
munlty for more than half century
| lie possessed the same dogmatic temper
| that characterized his distinguished son
He was equally uncompromising and intol.
Grant and as he grew older became more
ana more tyrannical and despotic in the ad
| mlnlstration of his spiritual office until ir
| 1852 after he had been pastor for forty
| years he proclaimed a law that the pastor
| alone. without the concurrence of the dea-
| cons should determine who could and who
| could not be admitted as members of the
| church. and who could and who could no;
| partake of the holy communion He an.
| nounced at the same time that hereafter
the vote of the congregation would be of
| no force or validity concerning any matter
| without the concurrence and approval OF
| the pastor. He arrogated to himself the
| right of veto and approval
| ms was violent assault upon the fun
| damental principle of Congregationalism-