The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-07-23
TOWNSHEND.
Fifty Years as Minister.

Sunday, July II, marked the Doth an
niversary of the service of Rev. *. Ii.
Bosworth, pastor of the local Congrega-
tional church. as a minister of the gospel.
The day was observed by Mr.. Bosworth
by an appropriate and uplifting address
at the morning service, his text being the
same as that of his first sermon preached
Julya16, 1871, taken from Matthew lbs
% The church was tastefuly decorated
with a profusiOn of flowers IN honor OF
the occasion.
Mr.. Bosworth was born in the north
eastern part of Ohio, known as the West
ern Reserve. He was of New England
parentage and a grandson of captain
John BoswOrth, who served IN the war
of the Revolution. Childhood and youth
up to the age of 10 years were spent on
the farm interspersed with about two
years of school life taken at intervals.
His first public confession of faith IN
Christ was made while in his 18th year
and later he was received into the MEM
bership of the Methodist Episcopal
church. of which his parents were MEM
bers throughout their lives.
After Mr. BoswOrth passed his 21st
birthday he was issued a local preach
er's license by the quarterly conference
of the church of which he was a member
and the year following, on July Is, 1871,
he preached in his home church his first
sermon. During the year 1S7O-11, he
preparatory department of the North
western university, Evanston, Ill. lie
entered Wesleyan university, Blooming
ton. H., from which he graduated in
1915, meanwhile preaching as occasion
offered and for six months serving as act
ing pastor of the Methodist Episcopal
church at Champlain, Ill.
His marriage took place in the autumn
of 1875 and he was called to the pastor
ate of a Reformed Episcopal church in
Chicago, where he continued his minis
try several years. During this passionate
he took two years of theological training
in the Chicago Congregational seminary
and one year in the Methodist Episcopal
Theological school at Evanston, receiving
later ordination in connection with the
Reformed Episcopal church. After sew
eral years he was called to the pastoratc
of the same denomination in New York
state, serving there until invited to the
position of assistant pastor in Plymouth
Congregational church, Brooklyn. \. V,
beginning service there in January, 1889.
Rev. Mr.. Bosworth held pastorates
afterwards at Springfield. Mass, and
greensboro, \. Y, coming from the lat
ter field to his present church in Towns
bend early in the year 1914. Since that
time 73 members have been added to the
church roll.
During the earlier years of his minis
try considerable time was devoted to tenn
perance work as an organizer and lee
turer, especially in connection with the
Good Templars and Sons of Temperance.
Mr.. BoswOrth has followed the Chau-
tauqua movement with much interest,
taking the full course of reading for sew
eral years He is n man of unusual depth
of mind a scholar and a thinker. His
clearness of expression and pleasing and
forceful delivery. combined with an orr
iginality and soundneSs of reasoning
place him high among orators and it is
seldom a man of his calibre Is found in
a country pulpit.