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After Steven Mumford's death in 1707 there were many waterings down and
changes which started to take place in their fundamental beliefs.
On March 2, 1708 they apparently changed their observance of
Passover from the yearly Bible observance of it on the 14th of
Nisan to a monthly or bimonthly event. Here is a quote from their
Church minutes: "it is ordered and appointed that the
last Sabbath in every month, the time of breaking of bread, it
is also agreed that if by reason of the season, or otherwise
the Church neglect the breaking of bread at any of the times
appointed, then they shall break bread the next Sabbath after,
except at the time of the yearly meeting." I.e., they
appointed a time each month to observe 'The Lord's Supper', or
Passover. This is the 1st appearance of this in any of their
records, one year after Steven Mumford's death. As of
1708, Rachel Langeworthy was the only one of the original 7 still
alive. They now had 40 members and Will Gibson was their minister.
Historic thread
One recently discovered historic thread connecting the Waldensian believers
with the Sabbatarian believers in England, and then in Rhode
Island: “The
Third Lateran Council took place under Pope Alexander III, Frederick
I being emperor….it condemned the Albigeneses and Waldenses
(Catholic Encyclopedia). The famous inquisition began in 1233 in
southern
France
, when Pope Gregory IX charged the Dominican order with wiping
out Cathari and others not approved by the State church. A
family was discovered that can trace their roots back to southern
France, a family condemned by the Third Lateran Council, and made
it through all of this and eventually made it to
America
. Richard Nickels of the Church of God Seventh
Day (
Stanberry
,
Missouri
) relied on multiple sources to uncover this and reports:
Roswell
F. Cottrell. He descended from a long
line of Sabbath-keepers; the Cottrells were an Albigensian family
or clan of southwestern France….The Cottrell family of
England
was descended from John Cottrell the Norman, one of the few
survivors of the devastating Albigensian Crusades. In
1638 (two years after
Rhode Island
plantation was founded by Roger Williams), Nicholas Cottrell
came from
England
and settled in
Rhode Island
.
The Cottrell name is found among the earliest
Church
of
God
people (later Seventh Day Baptist) people in
America
. John Cottrell was a member of the “mother”
church in
Newport
,
Rhode Island
in 1692. Nicholas and Dorothy Cottrell were members
of the
Westerly
Church
(
Rhode Island
) in November 1712.
After photographing the old cemetery, and then their meeting house that
held 2,000 members in
Hopkinton
,
Rhode Island
, while driving away from it toward Route 95 we passed either a
mansion or plantation with the name Cottrell on it, and it was
owned by the local historical society. This may have been the property
of the children of Nicholas and Dorothy Cottrell, or maybe their
actual dwelling. We
didn’t have time to stop, as it was running late. We
had searched in vain for their tombstone. But
the Cottrell presence was all over
Westerly
,
Rhode Island
. In 300 years one family can grow large.
We’ll get
back to the Cottrell’s a little bit later, as they
provide a very
interesting connective thread between the Waldensian
era, all the way to the Church of God Seventh Day (headquartered
in Stanberry, Missouri), which denomination Mr. Herbert Armstrong
was a minister in for a brief period of time. They’re
an interesting family, to say the least.
1715/16:
Joseph Crandall was ordained a minister. In the written record of the ordination
ceremony it stated, "Being an example to the flock, and when the chosen
Shepherd shall appear you shall receive a crown of glory that fades not away." They
still believed in the resurrection to Immortality at Christ's 2nd Coming, and
not the 'doctrine' of going to heaven when one died.
1729: In 1729 they built their first meeting-house, in
Newport
,
Rhode Island
. They called the buildings they met in
'meeting-houses' and called themselves 'the Church', 'Sabbath-keepers',
or simply 'The Church of God'. All the Sabbath-keeping meeting-houses
followed this style. Up until 1882, this building and all their
buildings had no steeples or crosses. It had a pulpit and front
door right next each other. If you were late everyone knew it.
There was no way to sneak in. This building held 45 people, and
the highest
Newport
attendance reached 75 people. It has really fine carvings and woodwork
and is now a part of the back of the
Newport
Historical
Society
Building
.
“The soul and spirit of the Newport Sabbatarian church lives
on in the lives of countless men and women in New York, New Jersey,
Ohio, Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and the Pacific coast, who trace
their spiritual lineage back to those who founded the Newport Seventh
Day Baptist church in 1671 [when it was called “the Church
of God, keeping the commandments of Christ”]. They
are reminded of their religious foundations by the carefully persevered
meeting house in Newport, built in 1730. The Seventh Day
Baptist Meeting House is significant not only for its architecture,
but also as a reminder of the importance that its members had in
Newport and American history: “This beautiful and architecturally
significant interior was and is a symbol of the wealth, education
and talent of the congregation’s distinguished members.” The
Newport Seventh Day Baptist church was not able to weather the
storms that shook it, but it scattered the seeds further than any
could have imagined over three hundred years ago.” [Newport
History, Bulletin of the Newport Historical Society, Vol. 66, Part
1, Summer 1994, Number 226, Seventh Day Baptists in Newport, Their
History, Their Meeting House, p. 32, par. 4.]
“The meeting house had twenty-four box pews on two levels. The
main floor had four in a cluster in the center, four along the
west wall, three along the east wall, one on the right of the pulpit
against the north wall, and one on either side of the front entrance. The
pew box to the right of the entrance was reserved for strangers. In
the gallery there were four smaller boxes along the railing on
the west side, three along the middle section, and three along
the east gallery railing. The stairway to the gallery occupied
the southwest corner of the meeting house. There is no known
record of the names of the pew holders, but as indicated by Maud
Howe Elliot, the Ward family had a reserved pew and other prominent
families certainly followed the common practice of renting or even
buying their pew space. One report indicates that the pews “in
the east gallery were occupied by colored people.” The
church records contain the names of a number of African-Americans
and Indians who were baptized and accepted as full members of the
church.
Although C. H. Greene
may have viewed the box pews as advantageous for keeping one’s eye focused
on the pulpit, their primary advantage was conservation of heat. Few
meeting houses were heated adequately, so each family brought foot warmers
(metal boxes filled with live coals), and a boxed-in pew preserved the warmth. The
box pews also provided a sanctuary for children, and adults, who might find
diverse amusement or even fall asleep during the normal two hour sermon. “Long
and tedious must have been the sermons in former years,” wrote Getrude
Ehrhardt Elliot in 1930,
For even today may be plainly seen initials carved in the railing. This
was not because the pastor lacked knowledge of the fleeting hours,
for there was before his very eyes hung the clock made by William
Clagget, a worthy member of the Sabbatarian congregation in 1731
and an excellent clock maker of that period.
That clock still hangs on the center balcony railing of the Meeting
House.” [ibid. pp. 32-33, par. 2-3, & 1 resp.
1740's: It was during the 1740's that both Richard and Samuel Ward
were Governors of Rhode Island. The Church is quick to claim them
as members as they started seeking credibility in the world's eyes,
but Richard Ward didn't become a baptized member up until 9 years
before he died, (1754), long after he was out of political office
and politics, reflecting the Church's belief in that baptized members
should have nothing to do with politics. Richard Ward died in 1754.
Mary Ward, his wife was a baptized member for 55 years (1713-1768)
and died October 19, 1768.
1769: In 1769, August 5th, Samuel Ward wrote a letter stating to
the Westerly Church of God, "...believes in God the Father,
and God the Son, and the power of God's Spirit (showing
he doesn't believe in the Trinity Doctrine), all the Holy scriptures,
which excepting the ceremonial law and some part of the judicial
law peculiar to the Jews, it is the duty of all mankind to whom
they are made known, sincerely to believe and obey. [I.e., both the Old Testament and New Testament]. My sins
I have sincerely and heartily repented of, and firmly rely upon
the unbounded goodness and mercy of God, and His only begotten
Son, Christ for pardon and Eternal life. And I sincerely desire
and resolve by His grace for the future to walk in all the Commandments
and Ordinances of the Lord. Signed, August 5,
1769, Sam Ward. Samuel
Ward was a member of the Continental Congress. He died March 26,
1776. He died just days before the signing of the Declaration of
Independence, which he probably would have signed. There is no
record of Samuel Ward ever being baptized. [Samuel
Ward who wrote the music for, "
America
the Beautiful."]
1765: A college was founded in 1765 called '
Rhode Island
College
', in
Warren
,
Rhode Island
. It was founded by 7 men, 4 of which were Sabbath-keepers. They
were: Sam Ward, Joshua Babcock, Joshua Clark (the pastor in
Westerly
), and Job Bennet. The college was originally founded to preserve
religious freedom. Today the college is
Browne
University
located in
Providence
,
Rhode Island
. It has 2 fine libraries where some of our research was done.
They are the Rockefeller Library and the John Haye Library. It
was in 1770 that the college was moved to
Providence
and renamed
Browne
University
.
“The
Revolutionary War had considerable effect upon the diverse congregations
of Newport. As a leading
seaport with an exceptionally good harbor, the British were quick
to occupy the town. Trinity Church was depleted after the
British evacuated Newport in 1779 because many of its members were
Loyalists. Other places of worship were used by the
British as barracks or hospitals. Some
were even used as stables for horses. However,
the Seventh Day Baptist Meeting House was undisturbed. Tradition holds that the church was spared
because of the presence of the Ten Commandments behind the pulpit
and the design on the underside of the sounding board, which resembled
the Union Jack. Others
believe that several prominent members of the congregation were
sympathetic to the British.” [ibid. p. 33, par. 2]
1780's: The Church of God in
Newport
dies out, but it had moved westward to
Westerly
and
Hopkinton
,
Rhode Island
.
The photo above is a small former Sabbatarian meeting-house we found opposite
Hopkinton Post Office, on the same road that leads to their much
larger meeting house in Hopkinton.
THE
CHURCH
OF
GOD
IN
WESTERLY
, AND HOPKINTON,
RHODE
ISLAND
1672: In 1672 Ruth Burdick, Bathia and John Clark, were the 1st
3 Sabbath-keepers to start the Church in
Westerly
,
Rhode Island
. [Located on High Street
in
Westerly
.]
1680: In 1680 a little north of
Westerly
, with 20 members, they built a building (meeting-house) that would
hold 1,000 people. This Church preceded the building of the town
of
Hopkinton
,
Rhode Island
. They founded that town. They continued to call themselves 'The
Church', or 'The Church of God', or the '
Sabbatarian
Church
,' but never registered their name. They refused to register their
name (i.e., have an official name) because to have an official
name, they felt, would mean that they would have to seek sanctions
from the State, because they felt they had a higher sanction, and
that was from God. That is why they never registered their name.
They simply called themselves 'The Church', 'The Church of God',
or 'The Sabbatarian Church'.
1757: In 1757 the town of
Hopkinton
was founded. [The year Fort William Henry was burned to the ground
by the French at
Lake George
. (See historical note, page 55.] 90% of its'
inhabitants were Sabbath-keepers. These Sabbath-keepers founded
that town. Sarah Mumford, granddaughter of Steven Mumford, is buried
in the area.
The
Sabbatarian
Cemetery
in
Hopkinton
,
Rhode Island
We found this plaque next to the main Church building in Hopkinton, the
one that was built to hold 2,000 members.
1812: Dr. Joshua Babcock, member of the Church, and friend of Benjamin
Franklin, died. His friendship with
Franklin
caused the rumor to take root that
Franklin
was a Sabbath-keeper. Ben Franklin was never a Sabbath-keeper. We found the headstone of Anna Babcock,
and it mentioned Dr. Joshua Babcock on it as well.
1816: As of 1816 they still haven't adopted the official name 'Seventh
Day Baptists'.
1818: In 1818 the name 'Seventh Day Baptist' was officially adopted
as the name of the Church instead of the Bible name, '
Church
of
God
.' It was also in 1818 that they reached their highest membership
level with nearly 2,000 members in
Hopkinton
,
Rhode Island
alone. Meeting-house Bridge, 2 miles from the cemetery (
Hopkinton
Cemetery
, original location of the meeting-house), is where they brought
everyone to be baptized. This bridge was the only crossing of the
Pawcatuck
River
from
Connecticut
into
Rhode Island
(at this point). People who lived in
Connecticut
had to walk up the Pawcatuck River 5 miles to cross this bridge
to go to Church.
Boom Bridge Road
and
Boom
Bridge
, 5 miles down the river, was a short-cut they used to get to services.
Boom
Bridge
was originally a tree that had fallen across the river. Some would
cross this tree and walk to services. People who fell in the water
would show up wet. This is why, if you didn't show up at Sabbath
Services 3 Sabbaths in a row, after the 3rd Sabbath all the ministers
showed up at your house the very next day to ask 'why?'.
What follows is the plaque we found next to
Meeting
House
Bridge
, adjacent to the
Hopkinton
Cemetery
.
1835: This meeting-house they walked 5 miles to, the current meeting-house
they meet in, was built in 1835 at the current location of the
Hopkinton
Cemetery
. It holds somewhat less than 1,000 people. They sold pews to finance
the building, so the people ended up owning their own pews. This
caused some heated encounters when the Church had to disfellowship
some members from time to time. How could you tell a person not
to attend when he owned his own pew? It was now his
own personal property. 1852: In 1852 they moved their present
building (built in 1835) by dragging it on oxcarts 5 miles, from
the cemetery in Hopkinton to its present location in
Ashaway
,
Rhode Island
.
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