Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1912-09-18
FIRST CoNGL CHURCH
CELEBRATES CENTENNIAL AND
DELEGATES NEW ORGAN.
Grave OF FIRST PASTOR DECORATED
LARGE AUDIENCES AND BRIL-
LIANT ADDRESSES.

Thursday-set apart Iof the observance
=, the one hundredth anniversary OF the
,o,nding OF the First Congregational
.hprcb OF Ellsworth. Nature could not
have been kinder, and many a silent song
~ thankfulness was sung. The few pre-
o.ding DAYS had been anxious ones, and
n was not until the day before that it was
certain the exercises could be held in the
church, for the freight car containing the
new organ did not arrive in Ellsworth
until Monday.
But with IL came crew Of skilled men
who went to work with q will, and set up
the instrument in record breaking time,
working far into the night, and turning
the magnificent instrument over ready for
use Thursday morning.
beautiful picture greeted the eye at
the entrance to the church; the stately
organ al the rear OF the pulpit, the pulpit
itself. fine type OF architecture, the APP
proacbes. the splendid decorations all
combining in an effect chaste, artistic,
grand.
Long before the hour of the morning
service, the pews began to be filed, and
each arrival was greeted with soft strains
from the organ, which gradually swelled
into glorious music, as the pastor, Rev. r.
B. Mathews, assembled the steps OF the
pulpit at 1880, the opening hour. The
congregation, led by choir OF twenty
six voices, sang the opening hymn. The
pastor read psalm of thanksgiving; then
mass, sung by the choir, and for the first
time the power and splendor OF the new
organ were revealed.
The prayer OF dedication followed, the
response being Morrison's "God is our
Refuge, sung by the regular church
choir.
Then came the address by the pastor, a
fine historical review OF church music and
the growth and development of the organ
and its place in the services OF the church.
The ADDRESS in part was as follows:
Music is so integral a part OF worship
that the building and perfecting Of the
church organ is but the out working OF a
natural and inevitable trend OF events.
The first mention that we have of an in
strument impelled by wind or water is in
tle WFttluRs Oh HUTCH, Oh AleNHuurtA, De-
scribing such an instrument owned by his
master Ctesibius. Mention is made OF an
organ owned by Julian the Apostste in
the fourth century, ana also in the writ
ings OF st. Augustine ailusion is made to
the same thing.
In 757 the Greek emperor Constantine
Copronymos presented an organ to the
Frank king Pepin. This organ Pepin had
placed in the church of st. Corneiile in
Compieigne. In this same century Harun-
al-Rashid sent to Charles the Great an
organ built by Giafur, an Arab. The
Venetian organ builders were originally
the best, but later the French and Ger
man builders forged to the front. There
are said to have been more than 200 organ
makers in Saxony between 1859 and 1850.
The French invented the reed stops and
the Germans gave us the gambia stops.
The largest organ of antiquity was that in
Winchester cathedral. The pedal system
was the invention Of a German of the
twelyeth century. The shutters used in
the swell organ were the invention OF an
Englishman, Abraham Jordan, in 1910.
The hydraulic press operating the key
board was invented as late as the nine
tenth century. We are indebted to an
other Englishman, Z. s. Barker, for this
device which did away with the lever
system with its cumbersome apparatus
and immensely aided the performer.
Thus the three great inventions OF the
bellows, the swell and the modern key
board were given us by the English,
building upon and perfec.ing the art OF
French and German organ builders.
The address closed with an appropriate
reference to the donor OF the new organ
George Nixon Black, whose grandfather
had presented the old organ to the society
more than half a century ago. The
speaker expressed the disappointment felt
by every body that Mr.. Black was unable
to be present.
After the singing OF the closing hymn the
audience was requested to accompany the
pastor and Rev. Q. j. Il. Ropes to the ceme-
terry at the rear OF the church to participate
in the ceremony OF decorating the grave
of the Rev. Peter Nourse, the first pastor.
Here Prof. Ropes read the 90th psalm, and
offered prayer, after which beautiful
wreath OF oak leaves and purple asters was,
with appropriate words by Mr.. Mathews,
placed at the foot of the granite shaft
which marks the resting place OF the
ehurch's first paster.
Many remained in the church to listen
to the grand postlude, which was played
especially with view OF showing the
capacity of the organ.
THE AFTERNOON SERVICE.
At the afternoon session Mr.. Justice
King presided; occupying the pulpit with
him were the pastor and Chaplain David
Ii. Tribou, U. s. N, retired, who read
from the scriptures and offered prayer.
Following hymn by the chorus and con-
gregation came the historical address by
the pastor; this covered the history OF the
church for the past hundred years; it was
of intense interest; in substance it was as
follows:
HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.
The First Congregational church OF
Ellsworth was esta blished on Sept 8, lSl2.
preparatory work had been carried on
for two years previous by the Rev. Peter
Nourse, who had come to Ellsworth as
representative OF the Massachusetts, evan
gelical missionary society in July, 1910.
He had labored among the people as
sehoolmaster and preacher, and the found
ing OF the church was due, probably, IN a
large measure, to his labors. The mis-
sionary origin of the church is a TACT IN a
its history not to be passed over lightly.
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