XXI. RECTORS OF ST. PETER'S CHURCH, ALBANY. The Rev. THOROUGHGOOD MOOR was the earliest Church of England clergyman in these parts, after the Rev. Mr. Talbot's short stay. He arrived at New York in 1704, and proceeded thence to Albany, as Missionary to the Mohawks. Owing to the influence of the fur traders, his efforts to convert the heathen were entirely without fruit, and he returned to N. York. He went next to Burlington, N. J., where he was so scandalized at the indecent conduct of Ld. Cornbury and his Lt. Gov., that he refused to admit the latter to the Lord's Supper. For this he was imprisoned, but having contrived to escape from jail, he embarked for England. The ship, in which he was a passenger, foundered at sea, and he, with all on board, unfortunately, perished. The first rector of St. Peter's Church, Albany, as far as our knowledge at present extends, was the I. Rev. THOS. BARCLAY. This gentleman was chaplain to the fort in 1708, and read the service and preached to the citizens in Dutch. He officiated also at Schenectady, and for the Indians, until Nov., 1712, when the Rev. Wm Andrews came out as successor to Mr. Moor. Mr. A., however, had not greater success among the natives than his predecessor, and he abandoned his mission in 1719. Mr. Barclay's congregation met, for seven years, in a small Lutheran Chapel, when Gov. Hunter encouraged them to erect a church for themselves. To aid 1 A clergyman, named Wm. Andrews, was a missionary in Schenectady, where he also kept a school, as late as 1773, but his health failing, from the labors attendant on these avocations, he was obliged to resign his charge. He removed to Williamsburgh, Va., but learning that the mission at Johnstown was vacant, by the retirement of the Rev. Mr. Mosley, pastor of that place, he immediately applied to Sir W. Johnson for that church, but we have not ascertained whether he ever returned to the Mohawk Valley. them, he furnished all the stone and lime necessary for the building; the city presented £200, and contributions were received from Schenectady, and other parts of the province. The garrison also subscribed, and £600 were soon collected. In Nov. 1716, the first English Church in Albany was opened for service. handsome stone building, 58x42 feet. The communion service presented by Q. Anne "to the Chapel of the Onondagas," during this rectorate, was, it is presumed, retained for the use of this Church, where it is still preserved. The Soc. for Prop. the Gospel withdrew its allowance soon after, the consequence of which was, the church ceased to have a minister, until the arrival of the II. Rev. Mr. MILN. This clergyman was appointed in 1728, and continued until 1737, when he was transferred to N.J. He was succeeded by III. Rev. HENRY BARCLAY, the son of Rev. Thos. B., a native of Albany, who graduated at Yale Coll. in 1734. He was appointed, at Mr. Miln's recommendation, in 1735, Catechist to the Indians at Fort Hunter, and became rector in 1737-8, which office he filled until 1746, when he was appointed rector of Trinity Church, N. Y., where he died in 1764. and IV. Rev. JOHN OGILVIE, a native of New-York, and graduate of Yale Coll. Being a Dutch scholar, he was appointed to this mission in 1748, and arrived at Albany in March, 1749. In 1760, he joined the expedition against Niagara, and continued attached to the army until the close of the French war. He succeeded Mr. Barclay, as rector of Trinity Church, N. Y., died Nov. 26, 1774, aged 51. His portrait is in the Vestry of Trinity Church. An attempt was made in 1763 and 1766 to have a translation of the book of common prayer, (prepared by Messrs Andrews, Barclay and Ogilvie) printed in New-York by Weyman, in the Mohawk language. But the difficulty to print such language was found almost insurmountable, as there was not at the time, "a Letter-makers founding House" in the Colonies. Weyman completed nine sheets, or as far as the 74th page, when he died bankrupt. The work passed then (1771) into the hands of Hugh Gaine, when 400 or 500 copies, it is said, were printed. V. Rev. THOMAS BROWN, B. A. of St. Albans Hall, was the only child of the Rev. G. Brown, of Oxford, Eng. He was ordained Deacon by the Bishop of London 23d Sept., 1754. He came to America some time after it is supposed with the 27th Reg't, of which he was chaplain, and married Martina Hogan, of Albany, on 24 Aug., 1761. He served with his Reg't at the reduction of Martinico in Feb., 1762, and having returned to England, received the order of priesthood, and was commissioned missionary to N. America, by the Bishop of London, 8th of July, 1764. He succeeded the Rev. Mr. Ogilvie, as pastor of St. Peter's, and served the church until 1768. He then moved to the south, and was appointed, 30 May 1772, rector of Dorchester, Maryland. He died 2d May, 1784, aged 49 years, leaving a wife and seven children; the survivor of these, a daughter, is still living in Albany. She has portraits of her father, grand father and grand mother, in good preservation. VI. Rev. HARRY MUNRO, in whose time the church was incorporated, was rector from 1768 to 1773 or 1774. The congregation is represented as consisting of not more than thirty families' which Mr. Munro, in a statement before us, classes thus :Attendants, 156; Communicants, 44, of which 30 were gained by him or joined the church since his appointment, and he "had all the rest" (he says) "to reconcile or bring back, his predecessor having had but three communicants, when he last administered." Baptised since his appointment in Albany, 345; Communicants lost by death, removals, &c. 14; desertions 4=18. "Three of these have left the church because they were not permitted to wrest the government out of the vestry's hands; the other, because he could not relish Bishop Tillotson's, Sherlock's & Atterbury's sermons, and because Mr Munro did not preach spiritual Sermons." The church was vacant during the war of the Revolution, though it is stated that service was performed in 1776.3 VII. REV. THOMAS ELLISON, A. M. of Cambridge, Eng., was appointed rector on the 1st May, 1787, and one of the Regents of the University, Feb. 28, 1797. He was in private life, a gentleman of a sociable disposition, and remarkable wit, whose society 1. 2 Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll. i, 148. 2 N. J. Hist. Soc. Proc. ii, 111. VOL. III. 73 was much courted, for it is said of him, that he was "as much above a mean action as an angel is above a calumniator." The old church, in the centre of State-street, was demolished, and the present edifice erected in his rectorate, Anno 1802, on the 26 of April, of which year, Mr. Ellison died. Bishop Chase, of Ohio, studied divinity under this clergyman. A vacancy, of more than a year, now occurred. VIII. Rev. FREDERIC BEASLEY, of Philadelphia, was elected rector in July, (though others say 1st Sept.,) 1803. Possibly he took up his permanent residence at the rectory at the latter date. He served six years, having resigned in August 1809, and left the city the following month. He became afterwards provost of the University of Penn. IX. Rev. TIMOTHY CLOWES, son of Joseph C., of Hempstead, where he was born March 18, 1787, graduated at Columbia Coll. in 1808. Having received Deacon's orders he preached in Jersey City and Jamaica in 1809, on the 19th of Nov. of which year he preached for the first time at St. Peters. He began his ministerial duties in this church on 23d April, 1810; but it was not until the 31st Dec. of that year that he was regularly called, or inducted as rector. Having obtained the pre-requisite order of presbyter on 26th Nov., 1813, he was "instituted” on 3d Feb. 1814. His connexion with this church terminated in the latter part of 1817, when he returned to his native town and taught a classical seminary there for three years with great success. In 1821, he became principal of Erasmus Hall, Flatbush; in 1823, was chosen president of Washington Coll., Md., and rector of the church in Chestertown and St. Pauls, Kent Co. The college being destroyed by fire, Dr. Clowes, now LLD., again opened school at Hempstead. He presided over the Clinton Liberal Institute, Oneida county, from 1838 to 1842, when he removed to Philadelphia, where he pursued his usual business of instruction. He died in 1847, at the age of 60. Dr. Clowes united himself, it is understood, to the Universalist Society in the latter years of his life. 1 Address of the Hon. Lt. Gov. Tayler and others to the congregation of St. Peter's Church; Answer of members of the congregation of St. Peter's church, Albany, to Lt. Gov. Taylor's pamphlet, printed for the Congregation, February, 1816: Tompson's Hist. L. I., ii. 126. X. Rev. WILLIAM B. LACEY officiated from July, 1818, to the spring of 1832. He resides at present, according to the Church Almanac, in the state of Louisiana, where, we believe, he confines himself to the department of education. Rev. HORATIO POTTER, was instituted rector in 1833. INSCRIPTION ON THE FRONT OF ST. PETER'S CHURCH. Glory be to the Lord for he is good-for his Mercy endureth forever. Formerly standing in the centre of State, at its junction with Barrack St. Demolished and this Edifice erected A. D. MDCCCII. THOMAS ELLISON, Rector-JOHN STEVENSON, GOLDSBROW BANYER, Church Wardens. PHILIP HOOKER, Archt. |