History of Fairfield County, Connecticut

"The vote Wiis taken Jan. 3(1, 1732, and is signed by six,ty-four males, all apparently active members of the society, showing that, notwithstanding tlie witlidrawal of Mr. Beucli and his party, the society was vigorous, large, and strong. Tiiis is further shown by the fact that Mr. Kent's .salary in 1740 was two hundred iiounds, and his successor's, in 1744, three hundred pounds, or about filteen hundred dollars, — a large sum for those days, even if paid in what were called ' bills of credit.' The society, it apjiears, al.so gave Mr. Kent one hundred and four acres in settle- ment, provided (and here I quote from the record) 'that Mr. Etisha Kent shall give good security that if he shall see cause to alter his principles from ye foun- dation on wliich he shall be settled, he will ]>ay ye above Presbyterian party ye sum of four iiundred pounds lawful money,' or about two thousand dollars. You will obser>'e tha^those shrewd men did not in- tend to lo.se their minister again without making him pay roundly for the trouble he would cause them. "But they did not foresee the trouble he would make in another direction. About ten years after his .settlement certain charges were alleged against liim ; there was a long and tedious investigation on the part of the church and a.ssociation, and he finally was dis- missed. The documents relating to the trial and to the man are very voluminous, and after a somewhat careful perusal I am in doubt (and it seems to me that his associates were in doubt) as to his innocence or guilt. I cannot but think that he was harshly judged, and .so misjudged. He appears to have lived a useful life ever after, and was much esteemed by his church in South East, N. Y., where he died July 17, 177<i. He was the grandfather of Chief Justice and Clianeellor Kent, one of the most eminent men of his day, and great-grandfather of Elisha Kent Kane, the renowned Arctic explorer." I'A.STOBATE OF REV. DAVID JUDSON (1743-1776). " Mr. Kent's successor was Rev. David Judson, who was ordained in September, 1743. For many years the church and society were united and ]iros|)erous under Mr. .ludsoii. I note a few items of interest: In 1745 the cluireh edifice was repaired at an expense of two hundred and thirty pounds; glass was inserted in sashes, — something new for those days; a bell of five hundred pounds' weight was procured, and ap- parently Wits melted and recast and rehung on the 3d day of July, 17fW. This bell cost twenty-seven pounds four shillings. It still hangs in the steeple, and for more than one hundred years has summoned the people to the sanctuary and tolled the knell of the departed. I saw it recently, and read upoii it this inscription: 'The gilt of Ca|). .\mos Botsford and Lt. Nath. Briscoe; John Witter, fecit 17i;8.' Perhaps some one who now reads this will follow their example, and put a new bell in the steeple to record his name and speak his fame with its iron tongue for one hundred years to come. "Mr. Judson and the majority of the church, it would seem, were not favuraMe towards the Saybrook I'latform, and some items recorded have led me to think that they sympatliized with the Sandemanians, or Glassites; but no definite action was taken, and the church .soon returned to the orthodox faith. "Mr. Judson died, after a long ministry of thirty- three yeai-s, Sept. 24, 177ii, aged sixty-two, of a disea.se caught, as it is said, while visiting the -Vmerican camp in the Revolutionarj' war. His grave is in our ceme- tery ; a cypress, evidently self-sown, grows out of the heart, as if to keej) his memory green. " There is among the records of the church a time- stained and faded, but very valuable, record of the birtlis, marriagtw, and deaths for a quarter of a cen- tury, in Mr. Judson's handwriting: the last entry is that of Mr. Judson's own death, made by some friendly hand. "The following summary of Mr. Jud.son's min- istry may he of interest; it was compiled from the i NEWTOAN. 4r.;> nnciunt rccdril retVnvd to: Ministry tV<ini 174.3 to 177f), tliirty-tlnve years; iiuirri:iires, 1748 to 177fi, t\vo liimdri'd and twenty-six, or ye;irly seven ; deaths, 1 7'iii to 177(i, three hundred and seventy-eij;lit, or yearly nineteen; baptisms, 1744 to 177ii, eiL'lit Imndred an<l eighty-seven (inehiding thirteen slave-chililren owneil liy seven masters), and eight adults, — only eiglit, — sl\o\ving how almost universal infant liaptism was at that time. The average numher oJehildren baptize<l yearly in this eliureh was twenty-seven. Reeeived into the ehureh: ((/) On owning the covenant, from 1743 to 177li, ninety ; (l>) liy letter, 17.'i7 to 177(), five; (c) by profession, 17."i7 to 177(i. one hundri-(l ami sixty-nine (or yearly eight). Total additions in twenty-three years, two hundred and sixty-four, "There were probably one Imndred and titty fam- ilies eonneeted with this eongregation at that time, and over two hundred members. All the eight hun- dred and seventy-nine eliihlren whose baptism is re- corded liy Jlr. Judson are now dead ; the last survivor was ;\Ir. Lampson Birch, who was baptized ( )et. 27, 1771. (His widow reached the advanced age of one hundred and two, and died in bS7!). ) " In the year \7'i>i (the record continues) tlu're were thirty-four deaths, nearly double the usual nnndier. (_>f these, oni' was a child of IJeut. Winton, 'which waded into Taunton I'ond and was drowned, aged .■seven years;' another a son of Alexander Itryon, who died in tlie Revolutionary army ; and another a son of William Xorthro]i, about twenty years old, 'who was lost in the armie by the sword of the erie- mie in Seiitember.' This was the year (d' the ca|Jture of Louisburg and of the expedition against Ticonde- roga and Crown I'oint. "In tlie church in that year (177■'^) 'Watts' I'salms were adojited to be used altogether in public W()rshi|>, and Deacon Xorthrop read the Psalms and Kbcne/.er Ford and .Tames Klackmau tuneil tliem.' "Among the baidisius recorded is this: 'Venus, negro (diild belonging to Abner Booth, baptized Oct. 26, 174.'1' "Among the marriages this: 'Peter Negro and Ginny Negro (Negro being usc<l as tlie family name), servants to ilatthew Curtis, wer<- married April 'A, 17.52.' "Negro slavery in Newtown I How strange this reads ut the jiresent day, when not a slave exi.sts in the United states. "There is also in this ree<n-d a, long list of deaths, with the diseases whicli ended life, — a, list enunicrat- ing all the ills to which flesh is heir. If I should give the list many, perhaps most, of the present native inhabitants of this town would learn when, where, and of what their ancestors died, for there is searcidy a family name in Newtown but is ineluiled in this list. This is one thing that ought to unite all the residents of this town in their interest in and atl'ection for this church ; in this church your ancestors were baptized, and by its ministers thev were marriecl and buried. This church is the eeclesiastii-al homestead of all New- town. Let me suggest that measures be taken to eopy ami preserve this old record ; it is becoming nn>re and more ille.trible every year, and yet more and more val- uable every year, I have deposited it for safe-keeping in the town clerk's olliee, " It is sup]iosed that the church ediliee of the ( 'on- gregational Society was occu|iied by troops duiing tin- war of the Revolution, and the vane now on the sti'e- ple bears the nnirks of bullets then tired. This town was intensely loyal to the 'loving and loved Sov- ereign Lord, King (u'ca'ge,' as he was styled, and in 177o ]ircsented an able protest to the State Legisla- ture against the action of Congress. (See town rec- cords, vol. iv., pagis .''.Il-:14.) The town, however, furnished its quota. " This society at the close of the Revolutionaiy war was ill a low condition, on account of the loss in men ami means occasioned by the war, and the parsonage, whieh must have stood on or near the site of the present Ejiiscopal chiiii-h edifice. Was sohl to jiav its debts." PASTORATE OI'' HKV. Z. II. SMITH ll7s:i-n;)8l. " /ephaniah II. Smith was the next minister. Pie, as well as all his predece^s^r^ ami most of his suc- cessors, was a graduate of Yale College. His pas- torate began in 17.S::1. A tax of one ]ienny on every ]iound was assessed in order to ]irovide him a settle- ment. A bouse on the main stn-et was also Vmilt for him in 17S<i (the same iiow' owned by Jlr. ( ieorge Stuart), but he made the .soeiety a ]Hior return for their generosity. The rei-onls show that he trie(l to break up the church organization and to form a Saii- demanian Church U]ion its ruins. He caused those who opposeil him to be excommunicated, and finally aliandoiieil his charge without being dismissed, leav- ing the cliiiridi almost a wreck, floating upon the troubled sea without a pilot and almost without a crew. But a few faithful souls remained in tlie ship, and, although diseoura.ged, they nobly stood at their ]iost and n'scucd the Zion they loved from litter de- struction. Mr. Smith removed to ( llastonbury, in this State, became a lawyer, and died in 18o(i, aged seventy-seven. His daughters still reside there, and have become known to fame by their refusal to pay taxes unless allowed to vote. They are also known as ai'complished scholars, and have recently pub- lished a translation of the Bible from the original Hebrew and (ireek, tor all of wliicdi Newtown can claim its share of the honor. "The ehiindi edifice, whieh until 17'J.'1 had stood in the middle of the street, nearly o]iposite its present location, was moved back to its present site, the Kpis- co]ial Soeiety (since it was for their aecommodatiou) hearing the ex|iense and doing the work." I'ASTOUATK OF IIKV. .IKUi: CLARKK. ".lehn Clarke was the next ]iastor. He resided just opposite the present parsonage. He was in- 466 HISTOEY OF FATllFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT. stalled in 1799, the services being held (by invita- tion) in the Episcopal church. The Congregational Church was now at the lowe.st ebb in its history ; it was so completely demoralized that it was reorgan- ized, and eom])aratively few were found who were willing to identify them.selves with it.