History of Fairfield County, Connecticut

some hrownstone edifice onCourtland Street occupied .\moiig the members of St. .Tolin's who entered the by the congregation of this church since its erection Fuion army during the Rebellion were the Ki'\. Dr. in Ls,'i2 cost about thirty-one thoitsaud dollais. A ('oil, who resigned to accept a position a- chaplain: lecturc-rooni was added in 1S7(I at an e\pen-c of nine pev. .L M. Willey, clia|ilaiu of the Third ( 'onuecticut thousand dollars. Tlie first wardens of the parish (three months'i Keginu'Ut ; Major William L. Hub- were t 'hai'les liostwick, senior warden, and Unssdl bell. Seventeenth Connecticut \'oluuteers; ,\ilj. Wal- Tondinsou, junior warden. Among the names of its ter Fitch, Si.Kth Conneetieut Volnutei'rs; F. 11. ]iriimiiu'nt nu'mhers deceased are those of Charles Thomjison, of the naval service ; and otheis. Piostwiek, S. S. Clap|i, .S. B. Ferguson, Stephen Tom- Kev. Mr. Willey, whose death occurred iu .\pril, linsiiu, Frederick \V I, L H. Whiting, and Ilaniel ISdi;. is the only rector who has died while holding Hatch. (If the older member.s of the Vestry, Kusm'II the ortice. Tomlinsou, P. B. Segee, George Keeler, Luzon W. Sr. P.\i i.'s CiifiU'll (Protestant I^piscopal ) was Clark. W. H. Xoble, S. B. Beardsley, S. Titus, C. P. organized .lune 4, lS."iS, at the houic of William II. llotchkiss, Clapp S| cr, and llenjamin Kay still .\oblc, on Stratford .Vvenue, and the Kew I!. S. Coit, remain. Pusselj Tomlinson is the pre-c ut senior D.D., of St. .lohn's Church, wa- cIiomii rector. The warili 11, and ( ieorge C. Waldo junior warden. The .'<uuihiy-sehool at first met in the coal-olli if D. W. presiait number of comniuuicaiits is :;.')'.l, and the Thoin]isou, near the cast end of ( 'eiitre I'lridgc, after- member-hip of the Sunday-school about li-'lo. wards iu moms over a ;^ture upon the corner of 114 illSTUKV OF FAIHFIELI) COr.NTY, CONNECTICUT. Crescent Avenue and East Main Street. Rev. N. 8. Richardson, D.D., wa."s tlie first settled rector of St. Paul's parish, liis ministry here heginniiig January, 1868. The corner-stone of St. Paul's Church, a handsome stone building upon Ko.ssuth Street, fronting Wash- ington Park, was laid hy Bishop Williams, Oct. 6, 1868; the structure was dedicated ami occupied for worship July 2il, ]S6!I, but not consecrated until May 18, 1880. It cost about thirty thousand dollars. Rev. Dr. Richardson, in addition to parochial duties, is now editor of the Church Guardian news- paper of New York City, Rev. (ieorge S. Pine assist- ing him in the care of the ])arish. The communicants at St. Paul's number 296, and the Sunday-school has 4li;{ members. Trinity Church (Protestant Episcopal) was or- ganized June 1, 18()3, and .services were at fii-st held in a hall over the New York and New Haven Rail- road Depot. The corner-.stone of the church, which is built of freestone, and stands at the corner of Broad Street and I'^airficld Avenue, was laid Nov. 2, 18()3. The first services were held in it July 3, 1864, and the building wa.s consecrated November 2d of the same year. The cost of this church was ten thousand dol- lars, or, including the lot and church furniture, sixteen thousand dollars. The original luuidier of comnuinicant-s was .'>7 ; present number, 284; the Sunday-school has l.")7 members. Rev. Sylvester Clarke has been rector of this church from its organi- zation until the present time. Tiu.NiTY JIem()iu.\i, Church, in West Stratford, is also under the pastoral care of Rev. Mr. Clarke. This is a mission of Trinity Cluirch, Bridgeport, and a meuu>rial of the Rev. ( i. S. Coit, D.I). Tlie first services were held at the house of Sihis Scofield, in AVest Stratford, Sejjt. 20, 1871, and a Sunday-school was begun four days later in the Newfield district school-house. The corner-stone of the present ehajjcl wius laid Nov. 29, 1871. First service, the Holy Conununion, Whitsunday, May !l, 1872, at seven A.M. Cost of the chapel, including lot, etc., was six thou- sand dollars. The present number of communicants is 30 ; membership of Sunday-school, 70. The Fik.st Methodi.st Episcopal Church. — If this is the same religious body that was founded by Rev. Jesse Lee, it is the oldest Jlethodist church in New England, and its centennial anniversary, Avhich occurs in IXS'I, ought to be duly celebrated. The late Isimc Sherman, however, in his historical sketch, jmblished in l.SliO,. mentions Rev. Nathaniel Ruggles ami liev. John N. Maflitt lus the " founders of the first Metlio<list church in Bridgeport in 1X02." Before they had a meeting-house of their own the members of this denominaticm used to gather for worship in the wooden block which is still standing upon the corner of Main and State Streets. Tlie church wits built in 1822. upon the corner of Fairfield Avenue and Broad Street the site now occupied, and was destroyed by fire JIarch 23, 1849. Its successor, the jjresent brick structure, was completed and dedi- cated in the latter part of the same year. Among the many ministers who have been settled, over this church, one of the most successful wa-s Rev. Heman Bangs, who was stationed here in 1847 and 1848. Rev. Charles E. Harris is now pastor. The numlier of communicants is 370, and the Suntlay-school has 345 members. Washisgtox Park Methodist Episcopal Church was organized Sept. 12, 1853. The church building, which .stands upon the corner of Barnum and Noble Streets, in East Bridgeport, wa.s com- [ileted and occupied in the same year. Its original cost was only four thousand dollars, but in 1867 it was cidarged and imi)roved at an expense of eleven thousand dollars. The present value of the property is about twenty thousand dollars. Rev. J. E. Searles, who is now pjistor, began his work here April 1, 1879. There are 380 communicants, and the Sunday-school — one of the largest in the city — has .585 teachers and scholars. The Tabek.n acle Methodist Ki'iscui-al rii l kiii was founded in July, 1873. In March, 1874, the house of worship, which stands upon North JIain Street, at the loot of F'rank Street, was completed, and in the following month Rev. A. B. Sanford was api)ointed ]iastor. His .successors have been Rev. S. H. Smith, Rev. David Osborne, and the Rev. Joseiih R. Dumble, the latter commencing his labors here in March, 1880. The cost of the church building, including the lot, W!is about four thousand five hundred dollars. The church has ninety-five communicants and a Sunday- school of one hundred and seventy-five mend>ers. There are two African Methodist Episcopal chapels upon Broad Street, a short distance north of Scitsidc Park. The older (or Bethel) Church was built in 1835 ; the younger and larger, known as Zion Church, was completed, as a tablet over the door informs the ])a.sser by, in June, 1843. This tablet also formerly contained an inscription from the Old Testament, — "The glory of the latter house shall exceed that of the former," — but the words are now erased. Rev. J. B. Small is pastor of Zion Church, which has eighty-two members and a Sunday-school of seventy. Bethel Church, with twenty-eight members and a Sunday- school of twenty, is at present without a settle<l min- ister. The First Puesbyteriax Church was consti- tuted Oct. 16, 1853, at which time eighty-two persons entered into covenant and resolved to join the Presby- tery of New York. The pastor. Rev. Dr. Hewit, and a considerable number of the members had ])rcvi(iusly been connecteil with the Second (or South | <'<ingrega- tional Church of this city. The first meeting for pub- lic worship wiLs held Oct. 9, 1853, in the upper room of the brick school-house. No. 200 State Street, Dr. Hewit iireaching from the text "Jesus Christ, the same yestenlay, to-day, and forever." October 31st BRIDGEPORT. 115 till' iliurrli was ailiuitted t<i tlic Prrsliytcrv (if New Yurk, 1111(1 Fell. 1, lA"i4, tht- chain'l cm ]\Iyrtli' Avciuu' was dedicatt'il, having cnst almut tlirci- tliijusainl ilnl- lars. Till' church ailjoiuing, U]iiiii the cunicr nf ^lyr- th' Avenue and West Lilierty Street, «as deilicaled AufT. 8, isri"), and ciist twenty-eight tlniusaiid dollars. The lilt upiin which the church and eha|iel stimd was the iiit't 111' C'apt. Jiihn Bruoks and ('apt. I'urr Kiia|i|i. In 1S7H the chapel was taken duwn and a new niir, cdstiiiir eleven thousand dnllars, was erected at his own expense by C'apt. Broiiks and presented U> the cluireh. The ex|iense of enlariiiiig' the church organ, already one of the hnest ill Xew England, ami ol' ]iuttiiig a new roof upon the church, anioiiiiting to aliout five thousand ilollars, was also liornc entirely hy ('apt. Brooks. These and other iiiiiirovenients were not ipiite eoiii- pleted, when on Wednesday evening, Dec. ',1, 1X74. hotli chnndi and chapel, with all their contents, were totally destroycil liy tire, probalily occasioneil hy the careless use of candles hy a workman. Tlic Imrniiig steeple, two hundred a.iid twenty-seven feet in heiglit, was tlu' most inagniiicent spectacle ever seen in Bridgeport. The loss upon the huilding.s and their contents amounted to seventy thousand dollars; insurance, tliirty-tivc thousand dollars. Resolutions of condo- lence ami tenders of the use of their several edifices were made liy most of the other churches in B.ridgc- port, hut the church ]ireferred to occupy the opera- house, corner of State and Main Streets, for a season. ( >wing to the liberality of C'apt. Brooks and otlier inemhers of the society, rebuilding was promptly comnienced. The new church, which stands n]ion the corner of State Street and Myrtle Avenue, cost, including the chapel, organ, and furniture, about ninety-four thousand dollars, and was dcilicated ( >et. IL', bSTd.