Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1916-07-14

ton. The church must lead in the de-
vclopment of this kind of patriotism.
Man s religion begins when he fluids
that God is part of himself. AS many
as are led by the spirit of God, they
are the sons of God. We should bring
ourselves under the great impulse that
moved the men and women of a cen
tury ago. We do not find the mean
ing of this centennial unless we do
that.
Jesus Christ founded this church.
The building is one monument to what
he has done, and the marker is an
other. At this communion service We
snotfld look past all the memorials to
Christ himself.
For closing hymn the following
written by the pastor, Rev. Richard
II. Clapp, was sung to the tune, Duke
Street:
o God, whose grace and power be,
nign
Enfold our brief and Swallowed days,
All power in heaven and earth is
Thine,
And in Thy hand are all our ways.
Thou was our fathers God; the dim
Stern forest spaces, which they won
For home and freedom heard Thy
name.
They rest in Thee. Their work is
done.
Swift fleets the century; all the land
Blossoms in beauty, wealth and peace;
Gift of their toll of mind and hand;
Their heart s desire; their dream s
increase.
Grant us the faith that made them
great,
A soul by time and chance unawed,
A steadfast WILL hope elate,
That we, like them may rest in God.
The Church in Retrospect.
Sunday night the services of the cen
tcnnarv closed with a historical adj
dress by Walter A. Gilbert, covering
more especially the material side of the
church s history. The choir rendered
an old-timc anthem, Mrs. w. II. Bond
sang a solo and Rev DR.. Martin offered
PRAYER. A good sized and attentive
audience was present.
The speaker mentioned the lax &C.
clesiastical conditions which existed in
the West Brattleboro church, from
which the Centre church sprung, for
which reason when it was decided to
| organize q church here it was decided
that the society would be more ortho-
dox than the church and so the society
was given preference in the matter of
calling a minister.
He read four pages from the record
book of Arson Barber, the first church
clerk, which pages are in the hand
writing of Rev. William Wells, the first
minister, and mentions the first minister
in Brattleboro, Rev. Abner Reeve, who
came here in 1770, and the first meet
ing-house in town, which stood on
Meeting House hill Rev. Mr.. Wells
succeeded Rev. Mr.. Reeve, coming here
in 1894 to settle on a farm. He was
an Englishman and preached 20 years
for the Congregational church in West
Brattlcboro, then the only church in
town.
Rev. Mr.. Wells had been preaching
occasionally in the schoolhouse in this
village, now the Chase street school
which formerly stood on the common
Finding the task of ministering to the
whole town too much for his health h,
gave up preaching in March, 1914. I'm
mediately the people i'll this part of the
|
alone. He began the first Sunday il
April and on the Goth of that montl
the Brattleboro Village Mectinghous
society was formed. The societ,
bought land of Grindal r. Ellis, whicl
comprised practically all of the presen
village common, being four acres in ex
tent, and built church on the sit
which was marked last week. Tn
church was not finished so that it coul'
be occupied until December, 1915, an
, was not dedicated until August %
, 1916.
2 The church was organized July
1916, and the first communion servic
| was held two days later, July 7. -Four
v teen members withdrew from the Yves
= BrattlebOro church to form the organ
= cation, and on the 9TH four more unit
= ed. Mr.. Wells returned to England i
r April, 1918, to visit, and died here i
} December, 1927, at the age of s3.
= The building faced south and had
l much shorter stceple than now, also
bell and clock, but not the ones no'
! in use. The pews were straight, wit
). doors at the ends. For some time Their
: was no method of heating the churc
!, except by foot stoves. There was re
frescoing on the wall back of the pu
3 pit in imitation of drapcries. The hig
pulpit was supported by four pillar
c and under it was recess where tn
e minister sat at communion. Late
II stoves were introduced and the pipe
o ran out through windows. There wi
Il row of pillars in the front of I'll
y church.
r Jonathan McGee succeeded Mr.. Wei
and was the first man to be ordained
&c minister in Brattleboro, the date beir
n Jan. Is, 1919. 1t was mild like OctObe
IS with no snow on the ground.
y The first parsonage was built, on IL
:, site of the present one on Putney roa
= in 1923, Mrs. Sarah Holbrook furnis
= ing the site and the Female Fund S
80 ciety contributing $400. At the meetir
20 when Mrs. Holbrook made the offer
- the site, her husband, John HolbroO
20 the first deacon and a man prominel
10 ~ in the church affairs, gave $500 whit
a was the beginning of the pcrmanc
~ fund for the support of the gospel.
1t is stated in Burnham s history
n. Brattleboro that Grindal r.. Ellis ga
: the land for the meeting house on co
= dition that the house be built thel
but Mr.. Gilbert said he could find
es proof that the statement was corret