A History of Old St Andrew's Church

ST. ANDREW'S CHURCH

A History of Old St. Andrew's Church

READ BY MISS CORSELIUS

Before the Last Monthly Social at Harris Hall.

The Time When the Church Goers Took Their Own Candles to the Church as Well as Their Foot Stoves.

My scant knowledge of the early history of St. Andrews' church consists of few memories of incidents related to my by older members some of whom have since passed away, supplemented y my own latter memories.

I might have stored many more of the early incidents had I deemed at the time how valuable they would be now.

Probably the first religious service held by our early settlers was held in he open air in October 1824, when the little band of emigrants clustered around their wagons and returned thanks regardless of sects for their safe arrival at this haven of rest after their perilous journey across Lake Erie and through the sparsely settled territory of Ohio and Michigan. We imagine them raising their voices in old coronation while he oaks took up the echo which resounded from tree to tree startling the dusky natives lurking in the shadows; for Indians were numerous here 75 years ago and for several years afterwards. Once a year those living farther west would come this way and join those encamped about here and go on to Detroit for their bounties. They were all friendly. When Miss Lacy Ann Clark played on her piano (the first piano west of Detroit) the Indians were often seen listening under her windows.

"In 1824 Rev. Richard Cadle was sent as a missionary to Michigan territory. The same year he founded St. Paul's church, Detroit. It was as early as 1825 or 1826 that he first visited Ann Arbor and n 1827 or 1828 organized a missionary church in the place. This organization is thought to have taken place in the house of Mrs. Hannah clark, the mother of Gen. Edward clark and of Mrs. James Kingsley both well known to the older people of Ann Arbor. Mrs. Clark had in her possession as an heirloom a silver tankard without its cover, this later having descended in some other branch of the family and has since been made into spoons. This vessel was used in the early eucharistic offices of the church and once at a baptismal service. Miss Jane Brigham recollected seeing Mrs. Clark bringing this cup with her into the houses where the service was to be held.

"The following is the story connected with this heirloom. A boy called John Harpin was placed on shipboard in France with this cup in his possession with orders that he was to be educated on the ship and never to land in France. When he became of age he could be put ashore in any place in America which he chose to make his home. This event is supposed to have occurred during the reign of Louis XIV. This manner of disposing of an inconvenient heir was often resorted to in those days. Mr. Harpin became a doctor in Connecticut from which state the Clark family moved to Michigan. The tankard is now the property of Mrs. Chapin, widow of Charles Chapin and daughter of James Kingsley." (From Prof. Ten Brook's Ann Arbor Sketches.)

It was some years after this before this parish had a settled clergyman. Services were held by missionaries who occasionally came this way. The Rev. Wm. N. Lyster, who spent his own and several other fortunes to plant his beloved church in different places in this virgin soil deserves to be mentioned first.

Rev. Silas Freeman, John P. Bausman and Samuel Parks all had charge of this parish with intervals between before Dr. Cumings was called here. Mr. O'Brien, of Tecumseh came over occasionally for a service and once Mr. Gregory, who was passing through the village on his wav to visit his brother in Dexter solemnized the marriage of my father and mother by special request as there was no Episcopal clergyman here at that time.

Miss Lucy Ann Clark at her wedding had the marriage service read by a layman to give solemnity to the occasion while the ceremony was preformed by a justice of the peace.

In the absence of a rector, a young candidate for orders named Huxford often read a sermon.

Rev. A. G. Hollitser carne into the diocese in the early 40 's. St. Andrews has reason to be grateful to him for coming to her aid during vacancies, for a period of several years.

In my father's diary under date of March 1, 1835 occurs this item: " I attended church today. Heard Mr. Bausman on the excellence of the Liturgy, etc. Then again : Detroit, Oct. 24, of the same year he notes: "was at Ann Arbor two weeks ago today. Mr. Bausman has gone to Delaware, Ohio. He left Ann Arbor accompanied by the regrets and good wishes of many friends." Then Detroit, Nov. 1, 1835: "Heard a sermon this morning by Bishop Hobart 'Search the ways', sound, just and evangelical." We most of us know that Bishop Hobart took charge of the diocese of Michigan for a short time before we had a bishop here of our own. Nov. 26 of the same year my father writes: "The convention of the diocese met today and recommended Dr. McCoskry of Philadelphia for Bishop." Then Aug. 28, 1836, "Heard Bishop McCoskry's first sermon."

It is difficult to ascertain who all the gentlemen were who first served as vestrymen. We know of Edward Clark, Henry Rumsey, George W. Jewett, Andrew Cornish and James Kingsley. When a name was proposed for the church Edward Clark suggested that they should take Mr. Cornish's name Andrew and call the church St. Andrew's. So the church was named. When Mr. Cornish left and where he moved to, no one seems to remember.

When Bishop Gillespie was rector here, he formed the Sunday school into a missionary society, each class having its own name, motto and design. Miss Mary Clark proposed that there should be an Andrew Cornish class with a church founded on a rock for a design, with the text for a motto, "Upon this rock will I build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. " This suggestion was taken up and a little church was made of tin and fastened on a flat stone. The class was taught by Miss Hattie Young, now Mrs. Skinner of Bad Axe.

When it became no longer advisable to hold services at the homes of the parishioners, a wooden building on the old jail square was used as a church. This square was bounded by Liberty st., Fourth and Fifth avenues and William st. This building was afterwards used as a carpenters shop. It faced Liberty st. and stood near the corner of Fifth ave. I remember playing in this shop years afterwards with the children of the neighborhood and adorning my straight tow colored locks with curls of clean pine shavings. Mother told me that that was where she used to go to church.

The grounds belonging to St. Andrew's are part of a quarter section bought by John Allen of the U. S. government in 1824. Mr. Allen disposed of portions of this tract from time to time to different people. In 1834 George Corselius conveyed one acre of this land to St. Andrew's church, giving a warranty deed for it dated Dec, 9 of that year, recorded the same day.

In 1841 the church purchased another strip south of the acre already owned, of John Allen and William S. Maynard. This strip had six rods frontage on Division st. joining John Maynard's land on the south. It extended east 26 and two third rods. The church and chapel are on this strip now. The old church stood where the rectory now stands.

In 1840 St. Andrew's church was sold on a mortgage, a sheriff's foreclosure, for $494.45. Mr. Volney Chapin and Judge Kingsley came forward in this extremity and paid up the indebtedness. So St. Andrew's could hold up her head again.

I find in a private memorandum of my father's dated Jan. 16, 1840 a minute of his recording a deed that day for St. Andrew's parsonage. This was the property now owned by the Misses Ladd.. Mrs. Chapin found among her father's effects a list of subscriptions toward St. Andrew 's patronage : Charles Kellogg, goods, $40, Brigham & Platte, lumber, $25, F. H. Cummings, $15, George Danforth, store pay, $15, A. M. Gould, note, $20, Miles & Wilson, store pay, $30, James Kingsley, order, $20, Chapin, notes or store pay, $3, Chas. Tull, lumber, $15, W. M. Sinclair, goods or lumber, $15, James Orr, $10, L. Stillson, goods notes or store pay, $10, J. Wallace, store pay or cash, $10, Eben. Wells, note or store pay, $1, Willard Parker, glass, $10, John Brannagin, labor, $12, Sam Baldry, labor, $6, Wm. G. Tuttle, work, $1, H. Goodspeed, store pay, $10, D. Cleaveland, work, $10, G. W. Jewett, note or store pay, $30, Rob. P. Clark, good note, $10, E. Mundy, lime or note, $25, J. H. Lund, lumber, $12, E. R. Everest, shoes, $15, Dan W. Kellogg, $15, J. C. Mundy, lumber, $10, W. F. Brown, store pay, $10, John S. Reade, store pay, $6, -- Shepherd, glazing, $10, Thomas Butler, lumber, $5, David Page, lumber, $10, W. W Green, work, $10. A total of 33 subscribers amounting to $491.

Dr. Cummings lived in the parsonage during his rectorship. It was sold in Mr. Taylor's time, he owning a farm which he lived upon and worked weekdays, while he ministered to the spiritual needs of his parish on Sundays.

The Michigan Whig, bearing date, April 9, 1835, contains this advertisement headed St. Andrew's Church. (The paper was edited by George Corselius.): "The estimate of timber necessary to build said church having been made, this is to give notice that any person who may be desirous of furnishing either sawed or hewed timber to apply on his subscription will please call on Henry Rumsey Esq., or the subscriber and take a list of such timber as they will undertake to furnish, and it will be necessary that such call be made by the 20th inst. Any person who has not subscribed, but will contribute timber or other materials for said church will confer a great favor. By order of the building committee. George W. Jewett."

The church was not finished until 1838, although the basement was used to hold services in before that time. Nov. 18, of that year it was consecrated by the Bishop.

Mr. Marks was the first rector in the new church.

I will quote here an extract from a letter from Mrs. Fennel, of Linden, California, who will be remembered as Miss Jessie Clark:

"You ask about old St. Andrew's church. I don't remember any more about it than you do, although I can go farther back for I am older. I can remember the days of Dr. Cummings how the church used to look perched upon a high wall so we had to mount twelve steps to get into it. (I think there were 20) There it stood innocent of paint and gray as the old man of the sea. There was a basement underneath the church where a school was kept. The door was at the right of the steps and was left open a good deal which made the church very cold. I have seen old ladies carrying their foot stoves. The high pulpit was a great attraction. I used to wonder how the clergyman got up into it. He went out from the chancel and the next thing he would appear in the pulpit. The cushions of the reading desk and pulpit were of black cloth and trimmed with yellow cord and tassels. On each side of the pulpit were candelabra with crystal drops. It was my delight as a child to watch the play of lights through these drops. Once in awhile the minister in his gestures would hit these drops and make them rattle which was a great diversion for me. I know I felt more at home in that dear old church than I ever have felt anywhere else."

This is a pretty good description of the church as far as it goes. The slips in the body of the church were of uniform length. Each pew holder furnished his own cushion, carpet and foot stool if he had any. At first the wall pews were all square with a table in the center and a shelf around the edge. When there was evening service one person in each family carried a candle and candlestick or a lamp which was placed on this shelf. Afterwards the square pews were changed all but the one in the south east corner which was kept for the Bible class. Mrs. Kingsley presented the first white linen spread for the communion table.

It is worth while to mention the inevitable box stove which stood near the door and devoured innumerable chunks of hickory wood and sent out great puffs of heat to roast the backs of those near it while the rector shivered in the chancel.

As I remember the old church it was painted white with green blinds. The long steps were the whole length of the platform which extended across the front of the building to the basement door. There was no railing to this platform and when the steps became old and rickety it was risky business getting in and out of church. There was a belfry on top from which sweet tones of the bell pealed for every service. St. Andrews came near not having her bell at this time, for want of money to pay for it. This was a great sorrow to her people for it was hard not to have the bell. Mr. Volney Chapin and Judge Kingsley, the gentlemen who had helped the church through tight places before came forward again and opened their purses in time of need. No wonder the church members feel sad because they no longer hear their dear old bell calling them to worship.

Iu 1848 the ladies of the church collected money to purchase lamps. The following is a copy of the list of subscribers, which Mrs. Chapin found among her papers :

Ann Arbor, June 1. 1848.

We the subscribers agree to pay the sums severally affixed to our names respectively for the purpose of purchasing lamps for St. Andrews' church, Ann Arbor. Witness our hand:

Eliza Sinclair $3, C. M Loomis, $3, C. Chapin, $5, Mrs. R. S. Wilson $3, Sophia Page $3, Mary E. Hawkins, $2, Mrs. James Kingsley, $2, Mrs D. J. D. Leseure, $1, Mrs. Fasquelle $1, Helen M. Platte $1, Kate W. Kellogg $1, Mrs. Fuller $1, Mrs. Lawrence $1, Mrs. E. T. Williams $1, Mrs. S. C. Hall, .50, Mrs. C. Clark. .50, Mrs. R. Sinclair $1, Mrs. C. Millen $1, Miss Spelman $1, Mrs. Gott .50, Mrs. G. D. Hill $5, Mrs. Howard $1, Mrs. Hooper $1, Mrs. Mundy $2, Miss Hubbard $1.50, Mrs. Danforth $1, Mrs. Tull .50. 

In all there were 27 names and the amount raised was $44.50.

St. Andrews' never owned a font until Bishop Gillespie's time, when the Sunday school purchased the one we are now using. When a baptism was to be celebrated the little silver basin was filled with water and placed on a stand in the chancel.

The old vestry room was a small building attached to the rear end of the church, with a door opening on the left of the chancel. This old vestry room has for many years been merged into the kitchen of the Wilcoxson house and is now torn down. The old church was taken down from its high perch and added to in Mr. Lumsdon's time, '54 and '55. When we were through with it, in the '80's, when our chapel was built, the front, the original church, with the little room over the vestibule which Bishop Gillespie added, was sold to Mr. Stabler who tore it down and removed the heavy timbers which were correctly spelled with a capital T in '35, to his farm near Fosters and built a barn with them. The rear end, Mr. Lumsdon's addition, is now Mr. Ross' carpenter shop where one can get a glimpse of it by looking across the Street from the church.

Such was St. Andrews' old church built in territorial days and the home of more than a generation of worshippers. Once singed by fire ; oft times burdened with debt, threadbare and poverty pinched, with winter's snows drifting through her shattered frame. But a few valiant souls were ever prayerfully toiling for her welfare. And now behold our present edifice, her walls of stone, her gates of butternut clamped with iron prepared to breast the storms of the coming century.

The Rev. Charles C. Taylor and the Rev. David F. Lumsdon are the only ministers I remember in the little old church.

Mr. Taylor was my childhood's minister. He was a man of fine presence; tall with dark hair and expressive eyes. His manner was quiet.

All his life he had been a hard student delving deep into the mines of knowledge till his mind was a storehouse of learning. In those days the sermon counted for as much as the services and Mr. Taylor prepared sermons and preached to his congregation clothed in beautiful chaste language

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