St. Paul's Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg Founded in 1760 Rev. Mark D. Isaacs St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg 371 Wurtemburg Road Rhinebeck, New York, 12572 October 22, 2004 Time & Place & Sacred Space The History and Architecture of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg, Rhinebeck, New York “If you seek his monument, look around you!” --The epitaph on the tomb of Architect Sir Christopher Wren, (1632-1723) FORWARD On June 29, 1935, to commemorate the 175th anniversary of the founding of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg, Alvah G. Frost (1875-1954) delivered an interesting address to the congregation. According to Mr. Frost, “The first historical sketch of the church of which we have knowledge was prepared under the authority of Synod by Rev. Dr. George Neff (1813-1900).” [Note: Dr. Neff’s handwritten historical sketch is preserved in the 1873 Church Record Book in the archives of St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg)]. Pastor Neff, a Gettysburg Seminary graduate (1842), served as pastor of St. Paul’s from July 1855 - July 1876. Later he served as a professor at the Hartwick Seminary and president of the New York and New Jersey Synod (1878-1886). Pastor Neff read his “historical sketch” at a meeting of the Conference held at the Wurtemburg Church in June 1872. Dr. Neff’s paper was placed in the hands of Rev. G. U. Wenner, the Synod historian and later printed in the Lutheran Observer. In his historical sketch Dr. Neff states, "The church records of St. Paul's congregation at Wurtemburg give but little light upon its early history, and the old members, who took an active part in its interests, having long ago gone to their reward, but [a] little [information] can be gathered from tradition.” The central challenge of the local church historian --and student of church art and architecture-- is to sift and cull often vague and imprecise records, newspaper clippings, and fragments of tradition in an attempt to reconstruct and piece together an accurate historical record. Often in small rural congregations memories have been preserved via the oral tradition. As a result, there tends to be frustrating gaps and fragments of stories and details that have been forever lost with the deaths of the storytellers. In this essay, I have endeavored to pull together and piece together as much information as possible about St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg). At the same time, “gathering from the traditions,” and attempting to reconstruct an accurate picture of the past 243 years at St. Paul’s will be part of an ongoing historical project. I would invite readers to contribute additional materials and stories in an effort to accurately preserve the history and fond memories of St. Paul’s. I would also invite future researchers and editors to freely improve and update this humble history as more data becomes available. INTRODUCTION When driving north from Hyde Park, New York, on highway 9-G, about two miles after crossing into the town of Rhinebeck, we see a large white church set on a high hill encircled by an impressive necropolis. For more than two centuries this stately white church --located four miles east of the village of Rhinebeck, and seven miles from the Hudson River-- has served as an area landmark reigning majestically over the Wurtemburg hills. From the study of comparative religions we learn that nearly all world religions believe that “the gods dwell on high places,” and to commune with these gods morals must make an ascent toward the heavens. St. Paul’s is such a high place. This location commands --and demands-- respect and inspires a feeling of reverence and awe [mysterium tremendum]. From an aesthetic point of view, the building and church grounds are in harmony and in context with the area countryside. At the same time, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg is --and always has been-- a simple and plain country church. It was built by practical area farmers who, because of distance and bad roads, found traveling nearly five miles west to the Staatsburg Church, or four miles north along Pilgrims Progress Road to worship at St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church (The Old Stone Church) difficult. From a distance, St. Paul’s resembles a classic 18th century New England church or meetinghouse [see photo group # 1]. The basic style is Colonial Georgian, i.e., Neoclassical American Architecture [c. 1780-1850]. The Colonial Georgian structure has been lovingly overlaid and embellished with generations of architectural improvements and add-ons. Today, in 2003, the building stands as an eclectic conglomeration of different styles reflecting various waves of changes and shifts in theological trends and liturgical styles. From a purist’s point of view it would be easy to be critical of many of these “improvements.” However, when we meditate upon the whole design --including the cemeteries and the grounds-- we come to appreciate this special sacred place as it has evolved holding to a dynamic tension between a domus dei and a domus ecclesiae style church. St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) is a true transgenerational family meetinghouse with each generation leaving its distinctive layer of architectural contributions. DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDING St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) is presently located on 14 acres of land. The building is located on a high hill facing south. The altar has not been placed on the east wall, as custom would dictate. Instead, the altar is on the north wall [see photo #2]. The entrance to the church faces south onto a large natural looking gravel parking lot and driveway surrounded by three cemeteries. St. Paul’s churchyard style colonial cemetery (c. 1802-1852) flanks the building to the immediate north and east [see photo #3]. To the south is the 1853 “Rural [style] Cemetery.” The new cemetery [c. 2000] is located just across Wurtemburg Road on the west side. The church is surrounded by open land with a dramatic view of the Catskill Mountains to the west. St. Paul’s was built “in the [New England] meetinghouse tradition as adapted by Georgian craftsman.” Reflecting Puritan austerity these classic meetinghouses are deliberately less ornate than Romanesque, medieval Gothic, and Renaissance era churches. Like buildings of similar style found in New England, colonial builders translated stone designs into wood. St. Paul’s is beautiful because of its geometric simplicity and its chaste and simple style. The practical symmetry allows for cross ventilation. Combined with an ideal hilltop location this design takes full advantage of the nearly constant breeze from the south or the west. To this day, when the weather permits, services are held on the hill with windows and doors open to the fresh air. A 1980 Building Structure Inventory Form, complied by the Rhinebeck Historical Society for the Division for Historic Preservation New York State Parks and Recreation, describes St. Paul’s as “a two story clapboard structure with a broad gable roof and a three bay facade with a pedimented gable. The building --and the Parsonage-- rests on a raised fieldstone foundation, typical of early 19th century era construction methods. The windows are twelve over twelve… with plain sill and molded lintels. The facade is characterized by two double paneled entrance doors and central tripartite windows with boldly molded tracery and central keystones.” Two sets of [red] double entry doors are framed with an impressive tympanum, i.e., New England style ornamental doorway with ornate trim. “The half-wheel windows at the front and the decorated cornices are particularly representative of the post-Colonial period.” The portico is constructed of massive bluestones quarried from the area [see photo #4]. “The second floor windows are twelve-over twelve and fall just below a medallion cornice which extends across the gable. Above the cornice in the gable peak is a round window with Lombard tracery. Beneath cornices a series of dentils --small rectangular blocks-- have been added for decoration. Slightly to the rear of the gable peak rise the square bell tower which supports an octagonal belfry capped with a bell cast roof and octagonal finial [see photo # 5].” St. Paul’s has a very unique “comet” weather vane, reportedly one of only two in the Hudson river valley. This weather vane is original. The Building Structure Inventory Form continues, “The interior dates to the mid-19th century renovations of the building [i.e., 1831, 1861 and 1890], except that the gallery paneling and two Federal style doors [with original latches] in the balcony appear to be earlier. The interior shows the evidence of the resurgence of classicism noted at the mid-century through the Italianate taste [see photo #6]. This is especially evident in the nave decoration, completed entablature and [cast iron] support columns [which support the gallery] [see photo #7].” ARCHITECTURE Between 1786 and 1839 three distinctive architectural styles successively made their appearance in Dutchess County, i.e., the Georgian, Federal, and Greek Revival. Following the Revolutionary War, the Georgian style replaced the functional vernacular Colonial styles of the early and mid-18th century. Typically these buildings, many constructed by early Dutch settlers, were one or one and a half story structures built of fieldstones and mortar. The result were “stark, no nonsense” structures that still survive in many areas of Dutchess and Ulster County. The origins of the Georgian style can be traced to 17th century England during the reign of the three Georges --hence the name “Georgian.” This style first arose in England during the reign of King George I who ascended the throne in 1714 and continued until after the American Revolution (King George III). This style, the dominant style of the 18th century America, jumped the Atlantic and became “Colonial” Georgian architecture. The origins of Georgian Colonial style can be traced to an Enlightenment inspired reworking of Italian Palladian architecture, which exhibited strong interest in Greco-Roman features such as the classical orders, pediments, porticos, cornices, a rigid symmetry and careful placement of architectural detail. Domestic architecture in the high Georgian Colonial style is rarely evident in Dutchess county. On the other hand, public architecture --especially churches-- can be found in many areas of the county. They typify such Georgian features as symmetry, well-proportioned arched windows and a prominent centralized bell tower. Hence, serious American buildings during this period closely adhered to English precedents. The Georgian architectural influence was transmitted to the New World in of in two ways: First, due to increased immigration, trade, and visits to European countries by leading figures such as Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, Americans became familiar with these new styles. An increase in the number of skilled men in the building trades, combined with an increase in disposable income, undoubtedly improved the quality of design and construction in this country. And second, through a number of well-known architectural handbooks no architect was necessary. A local skilled carpenter or joiner could easily adapt these outstanding architectural patterns to his own uses. Through the use of pictorial architectural handbooks there is a direct connection from the British designs of Christopher Wren (1632-1723) and James Gibbs (1682-1754), and influential American Architects such as Charles Bulfinch (1763-1844) and Asher Benjamin (1773? -1845). Charles Bullfinch and Asher Benjamin’s designs were especially influential by the turn of the 18th century. Asher Benjamin’s handbooks, such as The Country Builder’s Assistant (1797), and The American Builder’s Companion: Or A System of Architecture Particularly Adapted to the Present Style of Building (1827 sixth edition) were very popular. Armed with a copy of Benjamin’s Country Builder’s Assistant or The American Builder’s Companion a modern observer can literally see how these designs were incorporated into the main design and into the details St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg). Thus, the key to understand the architecture of St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) is Charles Bulfinch and Asher Benjamin. St. Paul’s was clearly inspired by the Bulfinch-Benjamin New England style meetinghouse concept. Inspired by an Asher Benjamin type architectural handbook, and with “variations adopted by the Georgian craftsmen” including “round-arched windows and doors and decorated cornices are elements of this Georgian style” St. Paul’s took its present distinctive form. The Federal style of architecture was a later and more classic form of Georgian. The Federal adaptation of Georgian architecture was heavily influenced by British style, but uniquely American. The Federal style tended to be simpler and more “rational” than Georgian. The chief characteristic Federal motif is the porticoed doorway with its elliptical fanlight extending over narrow, flanking sidelights. Applied to church design, the Federal style typically features a columned and porticoed entrance and a belfry or steeple atop the roof. The Hopewell Dutch Reformed Church was of this type. It is often misleading to describe the architecture of a given building as "pure" Georgian or "pure" Federal, since there are no sharp lines of demarcation between the two styles. Many public buildings, as well as the majority of Hudson River estates built during this period embody characteristics of both. A third was the Greek Revival architectural style. In America Greek Revival flourished from about 1820 until the Civil War. At this time the Greek temple became the universal inspiration for public buildings, churches, and homes. The Pleasant Plains Presbyterian Church, located a few miles south of St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg), is an outstanding example of Greek Revival style, particularly pure in that they eliminated the steeple in conformity with its temple prototype. St. Paul’s is also interesting because it is essentially a hand made building. At first it is not apparent until one looks into the hidden and inaccessible places in the building. But in places such as the belfry and under the ceiling in the fellowship hall under the nave we see that the building has been constructed with logs with the bark still on the beams, and with ancient recycled hand-hewn colonial barn beams. The wood on these old barn beams bares visible notches which once bore the weight of some German farmer’s hay loft. The wood is so old that it is nearly impossible to drive a nail into these nearly petrified timbers. This building has been worked and re-worked by generations of members and area volunteers. The end result is a functional and practical worship space filled with stories and memories. ST. PAUL’S IN CONTEXT: A BRIEF AREA HISTORY St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg was founded in 1760. It is important to know that despite the fact that by most standards 1760 is old, this church was founded by second-generation settlers. Rhinebeck, New York was founded in 1688 when a treaty between five Dutchmen [Gerrit Artsen, Henry Kip, Jacob Kip, Jan Elton, and Arie Roosa] and six Sepasco Indians [three of their names reportedly being “Aran Kee, Kreme Much, and Korra Kee”] resulted in the sale of 2,220 acres of land along the east bank of the Hudson River. For the land the Indians received about $35 worth of goods such as blankets, clothing, cooking utensils, various tools, wampum, guns, powder and lead for making bullets. In 1697 Judge Henry Beekman (d. 1716) [father of Col. Henry Beekman, Jr. (d. 1776)] obtained a land grant from the English Crown and established the present village of Rhinebeck about 2 miles to the east. The name “Ryn Beck” was first used by Judge Beekman in 1713. THE PALATINES The German Lutheran congregations in the Colony of New York were made up of refugees from the Palatinate on the Rhine [The Pfalz] and from the Duchy of Wurtemburg [modern Baden-Wurttemberg]. Heidelberg was the capital and leading city of the Palatinate. The Palatines arrived in four great waves of migrations in 1709, 1710, 1722, and in 1737. They first settled near Newburgh, West Camp, and in Germantown in Columbia County in a series of “camps” or Dorfs. These colonies of Palatine Germans were brought to New York by the English Crown to produce naval stores. These stores included tar, pitch, hemp, and ship masts for the British navy. Hence, their early settlements were inelegantly called “tar camps.” The scheme to produce Naval Stores proved to be a disaster. The tar camps failed for two reasons. First, the Palatines were independent farmers and not experienced loggers. Second, the native pine trees in the Hudson River Valley were unsuitable for making tar and pitch. Soon, seeking better land and opportunities, the Palatines moved northward, southward, eastward, and westward. In 1715, the first of many refuges from the Palatinate arrived in Rhinebeck. This included “35 Palatine families, containing 140 persons besides widows and children,”. The Palatines were part of a major migration of Germans driven out of their homeland by relentless political upheaval and warfare in the area of the Rhine Valley and southwest Germany. The Lower Palatinate had been ravaged by almost a century of uninterrupted war and plundering. The Palatinate was first devastated by The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). The people of the Rhenish Palatinate were then caught in the fury and crossfire of The War of the League of Augsburg (1689-1696); The War of Spanish Succession (1702-1713), and The War of Austrian Succession (1740-1748). In France, striving toward the Absolutist ideal of “one king, one law, one faith,” Louis XIV (1643-1715) --the “Sun King” and the builder of Versailles-- attempted to impose religious uniformity upon his own people. In France, with the help of the Jesuits, Louis XIV waged a long aggressive campaign against the Quietists, the Jansenists as well as the Huguenots [French Calvinists]. For example, in 1685 Louis revoked the Edict of Nantes which had provided legal tolerance for the Huguenot minority since 1598. Denied their basic civil rights --and with their professional, artistic, and businesses skills-- thousands of Huguenots fled France. The Huguenots fled to England, Germany, Holland, and America. In the long run, the departure of the industrious Huguenots proved to be a major blow to French economic development. In addition, some historians believe that the economic impact of the exodus of the middle-class Huguenots set the stage for the French Revolution (1789-1799). In order to establish a vast buffer zone between the German territories and the French border, Louis XIV, ordered the Protestant inhabitants of the Palatinate to leave their homes. It has been estimated that more than 30,000 Palatines were displaced at this time. Many of these displaced Palatines found temporary refuge in Holland, and then England. There, by way of London, Queen Anne (1702-1714) arranged for their transportation to the American colonies. In America the Palatines were scattered in three main areas, “Pennsylvania, around New Berne, North Carolina, Hudson River valley in New York.” Thus, Henry Jacobs notes, “These Palatines were the first Lutherans whom religious persecution drove to these shores.” In 1766 Benjamin Franklin said of the Palatines, “They brought with them the greatest wealth, industry, integrity, and character that have been developed by years of suffering and persecution.” 1743 PALATINE HOUSE To get a vivid picture of how the first Palatine Colonists lived in the New World it is only necessary to take a short drive from Rhinebeck up to Schoharie, New York [75 miles north of Rhinebeck]. In the village of Schoharie, the old Lutheran Parsonage [The 1743 Palatine House] --the home of the Rev. Peter Nicholas Sommer (January 9, 1709-October 27, 1795) and his wife Marie-- has been beautifully restored and preserved. Pastor Sommer came to Schoharie from Hamburg, Germany in 1743. During his long 46-year ministry, from the Lutheran church in Schoharie, Pastor Sommer served Lutheran congregations in Stone Arabia, Palatine Bridge, Cobleskill and other outposts in the area. Pastor Sommer received his theological education at the University of Jena. On May 16, 1744 he was married to Maria Kayser of Stone Arabia. Orthodox Lutheran leader, the Rev. Wilhelm Christoph Berkenmeyer (1687-1751) of Loonenberg (i.e., now Athens, New York), presided at the wedding. The couple had 11 children --including two sets of twins. In 1743 the Palatine colonists living near Schoharie built a medieval German peasant-style Parsonage for their new minister. The modern visitor is struck by how difficult life must have been in those early days. Pastor Sommer, his wife, and their 11 children lived in three small rooms, i.e., a kitchen and workroom, a great room/ “master” bedroom [where church services were once held], and an unfinished upstairs loft. The entire house was heated by two great “jamless” or open brick fireplaces. The house must have been filled with smoke, dirt, insects, and foul odors. As was the custom of the day, they drank out of a common cup, and they ate from a large common rectangle shaped wooden bowl with their own spoon stored on a “spoon board.” The first pastors of St. Paul’s must have lived under similar primitive conditions. Seeing these rustic conditions we recall the famous quote from Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), that in the state of nature there are, “no arts, no letters, no society, and which I worst of all, continual fear and danger of violent death, and that the life of man solitary, poor, brutish and short.” THE FAITH OF THE RHENISH FATHERS The Palatine immigrants, including many Lutherans with strong Pietist leanings, introduced a different --often non-Orthodox-- strain into American Lutheranism. In addition, in New York, the Palatines tended to live in "mixed" communities living among adherents of the German and Dutch Reformed Church. Historically, the Palatinate and Wurttemburg were especially fertile soil for the growth of a Lutheran Pietism rooted in the tradition of Rhenish mysticism. The German Theology [Theologia Germania] and the "Devotio Moderna" of the Brethren of the Common Life both originated in this region. Thus, in Wurttemberg, “Pietism gained and retained a large popular basis.” In Wurttemberg there were two main forms of Pietism that were thoroughly integrated into the parish life of the region. The first was a radical form of Pietism which following the teachings of Gottfried Arnold (1666-1714) and Count Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf (1700-1760). Unlike mainstream Pietist, these radicals tended to have no interest in internal reform of the Church. Rather, they cultivated the experience of “the inner word” and “the inner light.” The second, a more conservative and orthodox form, was known as “Wurtemburg Pietism.” The best example of “Wurtemburg Pietism” is the great Johann Albrecht Bengel (1687-1752). Bengel, a second generation Pietist, was the son of a Lutheran minister. He was born on June 24, 1687 in Winnenden, Württemberg, a small town located 12 miles northeast of Stuttgart. Interestingly, Bengel was an exact contemporary of the famed German Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). In 1693, only four months later after his father died, during a French invasion of Suabia under Louis XIV, the town --including his widowed mother’s house-- was “miserably destroyed and burnt to ashes by the French.” This tragic fire not only caused the loss of their humble home, but also lost to young Bengel was his dead father’s precious theological library. Later in life --and typical of his deep faith in God-- Bengel thanked God for this tragedy stating that “The providence of God had removed from him the temptation of reading too great a variety of books.” Instead of “a variety of books” Bengel was left with only the Bible to study. With his Bible Bengel went on to become “the exegete of Pietism.” Orthodox theologians of the time tended to view the Bible as a fragmented arsenal of proof-texts to be employed in theological disputations. Bengel, on the other hand, saw the Scriptures as an organic whole, “a revelation in which each part was to be considered.” As one of the foremost New Testament scholars of his day he was the author of the famous Gnomon, which became a standard of Biblical interpretation for generations of pastors. He is also remembered as being the father of textual criticism, a careful Bible scholar, an independent thinker, and a chiliast. Bengel, meticulously calculated the return of Christ in 1836, hoped for “the glorious church of the millennium.” While his prediction 1836 did not materialize, “his exposition of the book [of Revelation] left abiding results.” Pietism traces its roots to the writings of Johann Arndt (1555-1621). In his most famous book, True Christianity (1606-1609), Arndt asserted that orthodox Lutheran doctrine was not enough to produce Christian life. Arndt, who was regarded by later Pietists as a Luther redivivus, advocated a mysticism which he borrowed largely from the late Middle Ages, i.e., Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153) and Johannes Tauler (1300-1361). For Pietists in Germany, Scandinavia, and the American colonies, next to the Bible, Arndt’s True Christianity was the most important devotional work. Pietists also read Sacred Meditations by the great systematic theologian John Gerhard (1582-1637), and Philip Jacob Spener’s great call to reform Pia Desideria, i.e., “Pious Desires” (1675). Spener, a prolific writer and preacher at Strasbourg, and as pastor and senior of the ministerium in Frankfurt-am-Main, emerged as the leader of the Pietist movement in Germany. Spener believed the spiritual life to be more important than “correct” doctrine. He also felt that preaching should call its hearers to more pious living rather than deeper philosophical thinking. Spener’s approach triggered a radical critique of sterile Orthodox and neo-Scholastic ministerial training of his day. He also called the laity to a more pious and active Christian faith. His visionary reform program did much to reform the standard religious instruction of his day. He advocated a contextual approach to biblical preaching, restored the rite of confirmation, set aside days of fasting and prayer, and argued for the necessity of Busskampf, conversion, and holy living. He is probably best known for setting up what he called collegia pietatis-small groups of pastors and laymen that met together for Bible study and prayer. In the end, the Orthodox University of Wittenberg charged that Spener was guilt of 264 theological errors. August Herman Francke (1663-1727) was the great successor of P.J. Spener as the leader of German Pietism. At the University of Leipzig Francke and two other professors formed the collegium philobiblicum for the exegetical study of the Bible. Soon, for his Pietist views, Francke was forced out of the university. Spener helped Francke secure an academic appointment at Halle University. With Francke’s labors and influence Halle University became the academic citadel of the Pietist movement. Through Francke’s organizational genius, Halle also became a literal Pietist “New Jerusalem," a seedbed for the new piety. In 1695 Francke began with the establishment of a school for the poor. Three years later he founded the Halle Orphanage. This orphanage, devoted exclusively to the care and education of orphans, was the first such institution in Germany. Later on, additional schools and enterprises were joined to Francke's numerous institutions. This included a print shop devoted to the mass production of religious literature and the publication of Bibles for distribution in Germany and abroad, and an apothecary shop. In addition to "internal missions” Francke also supported a worldwide network of foreign missions. Many of the pastors who ministered to Lutherans in colonial America were commissioned and sent out from Halle. Their reports, i.e., Hallische Nachrichten [Halle Reports], represent the most complete record of early Lutheran church life in America. For example, Rev. Justus Falckner (1672-1723), “the first Lutheran minister ordained in this country,” was educated at Halle University under A.H. Francke. Falckner came to American in 1700. He was ordained in Philadelphia in 1703 and served many Lutheran churches in Pennsylvania and Upstate New York. The congregations in the Central Hudson cluster, including St. Paul’s (Wurtemberg) were also served by two very important Halle former students. These were Johann Christoph Hartwick [see Appendix B], and the Rev. Dr. Frederick Quitman [see Appendix C]. Francke’s son, Gotthilf August Francke (1696-1769), also sent Henry Melchior Muhlenberg (1711-1787) to America to become the organizer of the colonial Lutheran Church. Muhlenberg, though not the first on the scene, has been called “the patriarch of American Lutheranism.” His theology was clearly shaped by Hallensian Pietism. In 1750 Muhlenberg, a friend of Hartwick’s, came to Rhinebeck in an attempt to settle a dispute with the congregation. Added to this Pietist background, their worshipping communities often began as union churches of German-speaking Protestants, consisting of both Reformed and Lutherans, which lasted until sufficient immigration of Lutherans and Reformed permitted division into separate, self-sustaining congregations. For example, the first Protestant church in the Rhinebeck area was built in 1716. It was located was at located Pinck's Corner, or Wey's Crossing [just north of modern intersection of highways 9 and 9-G]. This was a union church, belonging both to German speaking Lutherans and Reformed Protestants. St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church mother church and hub of a cluster of area Lutheran churches. ST. PAUL'S LUTHERAN CHURCH, WURTEMBURG. According to the Rev. William Hull, the first organization from which St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg grew was located near Staatsburg. Alvah G. Frost, quoting Dr. Neff, states that, “This had been called `the Staatsburg Church.’” The Staatsburg Church was a humble “missionary station on the Hudson River” that was “served by different preachers, the famous Johannes Christopher Hartwick, among them.” "Here," Dr. Neff continues,"a few [High] German families resided. A small building was erected for divine worship and one of the early missionaries preached to them. In time it was discovered that in the interior of the town a few honest, upright and industrious families from the Kingdom of Wurtemburg had left the comforts of home in the Fatherland and had pitched their tents in a section that was then a dreary wilderness but which had great facilities for farming purposes. These families were always distinguished by the Hollanders [Low Dutch folk who tended to be Reformed] who were numerous around them, as 'Wurtembergers' from whence the settlement and the church received and still retain their historical title-'Wurtemburg." Alvah G. Frost gives the location of that first “missionary station and church” as “on the farm then occupied by Stephen Fraleigh and family at the foot of Primrose Hill Road.” He adds that on the Stephen Fraleigh farm, located at the south end of the Beekman Patent on the King's Highway, “at the foot of Primrose Hill Road, stood a small wooden building, with a cemetery across the road.” Frost supports this location by adding that, “the missionary station [was located] on the main road leading from New York to Albany [i.e., the Old Albany Post Road, now bypassed by Route 9], about five miles from the present location of the church." Driving on current roads, this location is 3.8 miles west of the present Wurtemburg Church. As time passed, these “Palatine families found better farm lands further back from the Hudson river and they moved thither.” Dr. Neff refers to the communication sent Col. Beekman and his permission given under date of April 27th, 1759 for the erection of the first church. On March 20, 1759, Leonard Wager (Weger) and (Johann) Michael Pultz (1739-December 12, 1823 [see photo #8]) applied to Col. Henry Beekman, a large land-owner in that section, and the father-in-law of General Morgan Lewis (d.1844), the fourth Governor of the State and “the father of public education,” for a grant of land to build a church. He replied on April 17, 1759, granting their request for the privilege of building. Col. Henry Beekman’s sent the following reply: "New York, April 17, 1759 "Messrs. [Leonard] Wager & Boltz [Michael Pultz]:- Having received your letter of the 20th, concerning leave to build a church, etc., which reasonable request I willingly grant, and give you what further assurance that shall be adjudged for such purpose necessary, wishing you good prosperity in the meanwhile, am and remain, Your well-wishing friend, HENRY BEEKMAN Johann Michael Pultz and Leonard Weger and his son Michael each gave an acre of land for “ein Gottes Haus und ein Gottes acker.” Thus, in April 1759, the first St. Paul’s, “probably not a very costly one,” was built on this piece of land. The first recorded baptism at St. Paul’s, dated October 23, 1760, was the baptism of Salome Geiger (born November 22, 1759), the daughter of Wilhelm Geiger. The first recorded confirmations at St. Paul’s occurred on September 16, 1763. This included 28 people, including 7 married couples such as “Jacob Kling & wife Margar.” Fifteen years later, on November 5, 1774, Col. Henry Beekman also conveyed to the trustees of the church 19 ¾ acres about a mile west from the present location. Smith explains that to conduct a church in those days a government license and special charter were required to receive and collect subscriptions. On September 5, 1774 “for the sole and only proper use, benefit and behoof (sic) of the Protestant Church now erected on the southeast part of Rhinebeck, commonly called the `Whitaberger Land.” In this connection, Dr. Neff adds: "They (the congregation) having selected the commanding site on which the church now stands, beautiful for situation and one of the finest on the line of the Hudson River and their church building becoming somewhat dilapidated, they decided to build a new church, and in 1802 the present building was erected." Thus, in 1802, during the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, a new building -at the present location-- was erected. At this time, the Staatsburg church was taken down, and some of the lumber was used in the construction of the new Wurtemburg Church. The 19¾ acres were sold in 1807 and the proceeds were used to pay for the new building. June 1, 1785, George (1741-January 1, 1821) and Sebastian Pultz and Paul and Sebastian Wager deeded two acres of ground, one acre each For a picture of what worship was like in those early days we have an interesting recollection from The Diary and Ledger of William H. Traver. He wrote: "I recollect when Domeny [i.e., Dominie, “Pastor” in Dutch] Quitman died [see Appendix C]…. I recollect Dominy Quitman when he used to preach in Wertenbergh. At them times they used to go to Church there without fire and the way they used to keep warm, every family had a foot stove. It was a square box 10 or 12 inches square and about the same heath with a door on one side and in that box there was an iron cup and that they would fill full of live coal and that would last and if it wasn’t warm enough, they would go in the sexton's room. He always had a big fire. It was built with a great big fireplace. The schoolhouse stood about where the schoolhouse now stands and the sexton's room was build against the school house on the east side so he was sexton and School Master.” In 1832 the church was repaired and improved and a distinctive octagonal steeple was added [see photo #9]. The belfry builder and architect was Stephen McCarty. Stephen McCarty was a well-known local “joiner” who also built the octagonal belfry for St. Peter the Apostle Church [the Old Stone Church] in the 1824 [see photo group #10]. McCarty also built the octagonal belfry on the Rhinebeck Dutch Reformed Church. From this 1832 job we have preserved The Day Book Of LeGrand Curtis dated September 26, 1831: “Job $875 Wirtemburg Church Commence New roof, pews, Pulpit & ceiling find all to work in Old stuff that will do painting outside & in paint & painting $125 New steple by Job $275 Partion in front of church $25 for laying lower floor $20 $125 paint job $875 $1320 515 days Carpenters work painting out $125 Whole job $1195” The Rev. Dr. Charles Adam Smith, a Hartwick Seminary graduate, ordained to the ministry of the Lutheran church in 1830, came to Wurtemburg in 1840 from the Lutheran Church in Stone Arabia, New York. In 1872 Dr. Neff stated that during his time at St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) --1840-1850-- Pastor Smith “labored zealously and faithfully.” How zealous and how faithful? In 1915 the Rev. Chester Traver recalled that Pastor Smith, “was among the New Measure men of that day, believing in revivals and temperance.” Evidently, Pastor Smith’s “New Measures” awakened such bitter hostility that a “dissatisfied portion” of the members of St. Paul’s withdrew their membership from the church. In September 1848 this dissatisfied faction appealed to the New York Ministerium that happened to be holding its 53rd session at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran in Red Hook, New York. After hearing the case, the New York Ministerium adopted a resolution that stated: “Resolved that the control of the church property being placed by law under the trustees in office, it is out of our power to interfere in the affairs of the Wurtemburg Church; therefore the declaration from former members of that congregation cannot be sustained by this Synod.” The Ministerium decree added: “Resolved, that this synod cherished undiminished confidence in the ministerial character and deportment of Rev. Charles Adam Smith and in the present congregational organization of the Wurtemburg Church; and we believe that in the course which he has pursued as pastor of said Church he had been actuated by a solemn sense of duty to God and the interests of vital religion.” Dr. Traver adds that during the bitter struggle, “as Rev. Smith came to church one Sabbath, he saw many intently looking up into the Basswood tree standing along the west fence. His enemies had placed his effigy there.” At this same time, the secretary of St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) was warned not to pass a certain barn where the seceders held their meetings. In support of Pastor Smith, he replied, “I cannot die in a better cause.” During the ministry of the Rev. Dr. Charles Adam Smith a Lutheran church --The Third Evangelical Lutheran Church-- was organized in the village of Rhinebeck. When Dr. Smith served as pastor of the Wurtemburg church (1840-1850) there was no parsonage. As a result, as his predecessors had done, Pastor Smith lived in the village of Rhinebeck. Seeing a need for a Lutheran church in the growing village of Rhinebeck Dr. Smith began holding Sunday evening services at the Baptist Church. For several years Pastor Smith preached in the forenoon on alternate Sundays in the two churches. In 1849, when both churches desired a morning service Pastor Smith relinquished his call at Wurtemburg and became pastor exclusively at the village church in Rhinebeck. Starting in 1842 a church building and parsonage were erected. Pastor Smith went on to serve a Lutheran church in Easton, Pennsylvania in 1852. After leaving Rhinebeck Pastor Smith had charge of a Presbyterian church in Philadelphia, and then of a parish in East Orange, New Jersey. After which he devoted himself to literary pursuits. In 1850 he originated and published a monthly home journal entitled The Evangelical Magazine. It 1888 it was published as the Lutheran and Missionary. For a time Charles Adam Smith also served as an editor of the Lutheran Observer. He translated many works from the German, including Krummacher's Parables (New York, 1833). He was the author of The Catechumen's Guide (Albany, 1837); Popular Exposition of the Gospels, with Reverend John G. Morris (Baltimore, 1840); Illustrations of Faith (Albany, 1850); Men of the Olden Time (Philadelphia, 1858); Before the Flood and After (1868); Among the Lilies (1872); Inlets and Outlets (1872); and Stoneridge, a Series of Pastoral Sketches (1877).” In 1860 the basement was dug under St. Paul’s and, “in 1861 it was enlarged and remodeled.” During this renovation the north gallery was removed, the pulpit was put in the recess, the narthex was added on the south side, the belfry was moved from the north end of the building to the south side, the pews were reversed, and the old bell hung in the new tower. The specifications for this renovation included reusing the doors, windows and siding from the old building. Up until 1857 pastors of St. Paul’s lived in the village of Rhinebeck [4 miles to the west]. At this time the sexton’s house was remodeled and “the promise of a new parsonage soon” was made. The Civil War caused a delay in this plan until 1870. Another cause for the delay was the 1860 project of digging a basement under the church and the extensive 1861 remodeling of the church. Finally, in 1870, the second parsonage -the present parsonage-was completed. Typically, during the 19th century, weddings were conducted in the Parsonage or in member’s homes. In the 1873 Church Record Book, under the date of October 24, 1870, the Rev. Dr. George Neff, while recording the marriage of Clemet Sweet and Henrietta Doyle of Milan, New York noted, “first ceremonies in the new parsonage.” Over the years, many major improvements and repairs have been made to the Parsonage. Writing in 1881, Rev. William Hull reported that “the whole church property, nearly free from debt, comprises a good church building with basement, ample sheds, a fine Parsonage and a beautiful cemetery. It reports 210 members and is a large and prosperous country congregation.” During the late 19th century and early 20th century many interesting organizations were formed in conjunction with the ministry at St. Paul’s. For many years the Wurtemburg Church has served as a center for community life. In 1960 Elizabeth McR. Frost recalled that it was a long custom that for twenty weeks each winter a Singing School was held. At this school, in addition to “the pleasure of the music, instruction was given in singing by note.” An organization called The Wurtemburg Lyceum also held meetings at St. Paul’s. The Lyceum programs included “declamations, essays, debates, and complete dramas.” With “the coming of moving pictures, radio, and television,” lamented Elizabeth McR. Frost in 1960, “in a sense crowded these activities out, and stopped the constant gathering of the church members.” The Woman's Home and Foreign Missionary Society was formed in 1879. Elizabeth McR. Frost wrote, “It has always been very active and is still active today. Regular meetings are held, there is a great deal of study, and there are constant contributions to all missionary work.” In 1890, The Ladies' Aid Society was also formed. Elizabeth McR. Frost wrote, “A good deal of money for the church expenses has been earned by this group.” In 1957, these two societies were united under the name, The United Lutheran Church Women, each organization having its own officers. “Recently,” added Mrs. Frost, “a complete union has been effected, with one set of officers.” In 2002 the women of St. Paul’s formed WELCM [“welcome’], i.e, the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Conference and Ministerium. Unlike the wonderful old 19th century style The Woman's Home and Foreign Missionary Society and The Ladies' Aid Society this group meets less regularly -often in retreat formats-- and focuses on the spiritual needs and concerns of working women. In 1879, the young men of St. Paul’s also formed an association. This group met at the church monthly on Sunday afternoons. Upon marriage, a member became an associate member. According to Elizabeth McR. Frost, “this Young Men's Association came to an end about 1900, because there were no more bachelors.” In 1915, The Men's Brotherhood was formed, holding a business and social meeting once a month. Elizabeth McR. Frost notes that, “there was always a program, a speaker, or pictures; and once in a while, when something especially delightful was planned, the ladies were invited to attend. This organization was extremely beneficial in many ways and, in particular, it sponsored the restaurant booth at the Dutchess County Fair.” In the Brotherhood minutes from 1916 record an interesting discussion among Brotherhood members on why the United States should support Germany in the present Great War. Despite these valid sentiments, when Woodrow Wilson declared war in April 1917 Wurtemburg sent its sons into combat. To this day “the Great War Honor Roll,” and the American flag to the right of the pulpit demonstrate the patriotism of the Wurtemburger’s. In 1913 The Luther League was organized. Elizabeth McR. Frost wrote that, “This is now one of the most active societies of the church. Devotional and social meetings are held, money is being raised, and a great deal is being done for the church by these young people. The beautiful red altar-linens are their latest gift.” Today, these paraments are still in use at St. Paul’s. In 2002 The Luther League was revived. The League currently meets on Sunday evenings. In August of 2003, after a busy year of activities and fundraising events, St. Paul’s send 20 members and adults to Camp Son-Rise in Schroon Lake, New York. On July 20, 1890, following another series of repairs and improvements, St. Paul’s held a special “Re-opening” service. A specially printed bulletin states, “The Church having been closed for repairs since the first day of June will be reopened on the 20th of July, 1890… All are cordially invited to attend not this occasion only, but all occasions of Public Worship.” The guest preacher for this event was the Rev. Henry Ziegler, D.D. of Des Moines, Iowa. Dr. Ziegler, Rev. George William Forthey’s father-in-law, was visiting the parsonage at the time. The Rhinebeck Gazette, reported that, “the sermon [text Romans 7:1-2] was a plain practical discourse such as the doctor is accustomed to deliver and the new desk [pulpit] gracing the platform for the first time, gave forth no uncertain sound.” According to The Rhinebeck Gazette this renovation included “lowering the pulpit platform with the removal of columns and posts; transferring the choir [and the organ] from the south gallery to the north west corner of the main floor; where a comfortable and tasty platform was raised, carpeted and furnished with chairs. The whole interior of the church was papered and repainted pure white.” In addition to these improvements “a full set of new pulpit furniture” was added. This included three chairs and “two stands.” This set was made “of fine black walnut upholstered in dark crimson plush.” The large preacher’s chair was donated by Barbara C. Rykert (1815-August 13, 1890), and the two smaller chairs [still used in worship today] were donated by Alfred L. Moore and Alfred Cookingham (March 31, 1817-April 4, 1898). The Young Men’s Association donated two chancel chairs. The Gazette adds, “The fine pulpit-desk [also still in use today] was the gift of Edward Cookingham and was made by Edward Grube of Rhinebeck. It is a handsome piece of furniture and is alike credible to the maker and donor.” “The cost of these repairs, including the generous gifts… amounts to nearly $500.” During the summer of 2003, after the rediscovery of the 1890 Re-opening, the St. Paul’s Church Council has begun a project to refinish and restore this furniture and to place memorial plaques on these historic items. In 1913 the basement of the church was refitted with a new ceiling, painted and beautified at the expense of about $300. Between 1916 and 1924 “the Jesus-The Good Shepherd” stained glass window was installed [see photo #14] . The stained glass window bears the inscription “In memory of the Travers who were the pillars in this church.” A small plaque on the sill reads, “Installed by Charles R. Traver.” An undated Poughkeepsie Journal newspaper column (c. 1979) states that “to celebrate its 200th anniversary in 1960 the church installed indoor bathrooms and an electric pipe organ to replace the old pump organ.” The new organ, “a Conn Artist Model with a #123 C speaker in Walnut finish” was purchased on April 14, 1960 from the Poughkeepsie Music Shop and Studios for $2,500 “with your old [pump] organ” in trade. On June 5, 1960, with the Rev. Herbert Finch (Pastor Emeritus) and the Rev. Rolf W. Eschke (Pastor), a special Bicentennial Service was held at St. Paul’s. Participating Clergy included the Rev. Alfred L. Beck D.D., Litt.D, President of the United Lutheran Synod of New York and New England, and the Rev. Paul C.White, Ph.D., D.D. and Ed.D., Secretary of the United Lutheran Synod of New York and New England. The bulletin for the day also states that the following are sons of St. Paul’s who called the Ministry: The Rev. William Edwin Traver (1847- ); The Rev. Dr. Chester Henry Traver (1848- 1929); The Rev. Dr. John Gideon Traver (December 24, 1863-August 20, 1941); and the Rev. Philip E. Bierbauer. Pastor Bierbauer was licensed at Amsterdam, New York in September 1897. His first parish was in Boulder, Colorado. After serving there for 12 years he was called to the Muhlenberg Memorial Church in Philadelphia. To this list we add the Rev. Dr. Henry H. Wahl (1891-1953), the husband of Verna E. Traver (1893-1961), buried in the Wurtemburg Cemetery. The Rev. Roy Steward, President of the Evangelical Lutheran Conference and Ministerium [ELCM] grew up on a dairy farm on Wurtemburg Road, was baptized at St. Paul’s. In a recent interview Pastor Roy fondly recalled attending Sunday School in the gallery and pumping the organ during worship services. In 2000 Pastor Roy recalled that, “The first sermon I ever preached was at the Wurtemburg Church on a Youth Sunday when I was probably in junior high.” In January and in July 2000 St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) voted unanimously in two separate votes to leave the ELCA and join the ELCM. Starting in 1985 St. Paul’s began an effort to raise more than $22,000 for the purchase of a new organ. In 1989 the congregation selected and had installed a Roger’s Classic 205 organ. It was installed by Rick Tripodi of the Altenburg Piano House in Elizabeth, New Jersey. John Stokes voiced the pipes. This fine organ is still in use today. During the summer of 1998 St. Paul’s spent $13,000 on a major project to repair and restore the belfry and steeple. During this process the distinctive comet weathervane was removed, restored, repainted and replaced. In the summer of 2000 the lightening rod was also repaired and reinstalled. In 1999 vinyl siding was placed over the ancient Wurtemburg clapboards. After serious discussion and debate, the congregation agreed to go ahead with the vinyl siding because it was not “a terminal decision.” At some future date, if funds are available, the vinyl could be removed and the original clapboards could be sandblasted and repainted. During the summer of 2002 the old wainscot ceiling in the basement Social Hall --which had been installed in 1913-- was removed and replaced. The opportunity was taken to rewire the downstairs with updated electrical service. New stronger lights were also installed. During the restoration, when the old ceiling was removed, massive beams made from logs were exposed. The ancient bark is still visible on these timbers. Other supporting beams appear to be recycled hand-hewn barn beams with the notches still visible. Over the years these ancient beams have dried, cured, and hardened so that it is difficult to drive a nail into them. Perhaps these beams were taken from the original Staatsburg Church. UNIQUE TRADITION In 1859 the first annual Turkey Supper --a great Wurtemburg institution-- was held. The Turkey Supper has been held every year since, except 1918 and one year during WWII. Alvah Frost explains that “The records would indicate that it has missed but one year during that entire period that year was during the last Great War when certain supplies were obtained with difficulty [provisions were rationed].” For the same reason, during WWII the supper was not held for a year. For decades, before the appearance of the automobile, the supper was held in November. It was typically held on the first moonlight Wednesday and Thursday evenings in November. In recent decades the Turkey Supper has been held on the third Saturday in October. The Turkey Supper was held prior to Election Day so that area politicians could attend to electioneer among the Wurtembergers. Barbara Frost tells a great story about how at one of these suppers a Republican candidate, groveling for votes, mistakenly took the new hat of his Democrat rival. Needless to say, when that story got around it cost the Republican the election. Alvah Frost adds, “This annual event has been widely known and during all the years it has also been a homecoming for the community and former residents.” The annual Turkey Supper is a great tradition that still continues. In 2003, keeping this great tradition alive, Wurtemburg will hold its 142nd Annual Turkey Supper. In 1860 the [Carriage] Shed Association was incorporated. The Wurtemburg Sheds were intended to provide shelter for the horses during worship services and other church events. The Rev. Chester Traver explained the need for the Sheds writing, “the merciful man is merciful to his beast.” The Shed Association issued stock, purchased land west of the church, and built fifty horse stalls [see line drawing #11]. In 1935, Alvah Frost noted that, “it was not uncommon in those days to find that there was insufficient shed room for those who drove to Sunday morning services.” Ownership of the Sheds was passed down from father to sons for generations. Over the years the Sheds fell into disrepair. Peter Grim, to the horror of his mother, recalls playing in the old Sheds as a child. In the early-1960s the landmark Wurtemburg Sheds were torn down. However, before this could be done, Attorney Benson Frost, Sr., had to meticulously track down the Shed owners to get them donated back to the Church. TRACKING ARCHITECTUAL CHANGES AT ST. PAUL’S From 1802 until sometime shortly after 1916-1924 the worship space of St. Paul’s was set up with a lecture-hall floor plan. The lecture-hall floor plan evolved in two stages. During the late 18th century, reflecting “Wren’s auditory church,” the Enlightenment, and Zwinglian-Reformed theology the pulpit was often a massive “tub” type structure with a high sounding board. These huge raised pulpits “gave a note of authority to the preached word which transcended the individual preacher.” At this time, congregations were thought of as passive audiences. Worship, centering on edifying sermons, “was something done for them and to them by experts.” The second stage of the lecture-hall floor plan can still be seen at the St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church. This church, founded in 1715, was the mother church for Lutheran congregations in this area. This church was disbanded during the Great Depression and officially closed in 1938. Today, the Old Stone Church still stands frozen in time. For the past ten years the building has been used -with the worship space basically unaltered-- by the Grace Bible Fellowship, a non-denominational fundamentalist church [see photo #12]. James F. White explains that this design is reflective of the influence of 19th century Revivalism. In this design, the pulpit-desk is placed front and center and located on a raised platform. As photo # 12 indicates, this plan, a logical flowering of Zwinglian-Reformed theology, also stresses the preached Word. The pulpit is located at the center with the communion table below. Hence, the preached Word is given priority over the Sacrament. However, unlike the earlier Enlightenment design, with this Revival design, the preacher on the raised pulpit platform could “make sorties in all directions as they pleaded for conversions.” This approach to worship was “emotional, subjective, and individualistic.” As the photo #12 also indicates, at St. Peter’s, there are three great chairs located behind the pulpit-desk. This is typical of this era. White explains that these large three chairs “had a much more practical use that representing the Trinity.” Several different worship leaders used them during the worship service. One chair might be for a songleader; the other for a visiting minister or head elder or deacon; and the larger central chair was reserved for the preacher of the day. White adds that, “some of these chairs from pulpit platforms will be museum pieces in the 21st century if not destroyed before then.” As stated above, at St. Paul’s we still have three finely crafted black walnut chairs [dedicated in 1890]. Once these chairs, like St. Peter’s, were positioned behind the centrally located pulpit-desk. Two of these three chairs are still used at St. Paul’s. However, they have been moved off to the east side on the level of the congregation, and they now occupy a less central position. Sometime between 1916 and 1924, St. Paul’s abandon their previous Zwinglian-Reformed /Revivalist inspired worship space and redesigned the building reflecting the influence of the Oxford Movement which tended to stress, “the authority of the clergy and the importance of the sacraments.” In church architecture, inspired by the theology of the Oxford Movement, the Cambridge Movement was composed of men who were “convinced that the Middle Ages represented the height of Christian piety and worship.” Similar to Romanticism in literature and the arts, the Oxford / Cambridge Movement began in England between 1833 to 1841 as a reaction to the cold and sterile rationalism of the Enlightenment, to the subjectivist anti-intellectualism and emotionalism of the Wesleyan and Evangelical revivals, and to the social upheaval and uncertainty caused by the shock of the Industrial Revolution (c.1750). Luther Reed explains that early Oxford Movement leaders “were reformers concerned with fundamentals.” He adds that “their doctrinal and historical studies led the movement into higher appreciation of the episcopal office and recognition of unique values in corporate worship. There was a great revival of church life. Ancient church buildings were restored; new edifices were erected… daily services and frequent communions were encouraged…” White notes that since its inception, the ideas of the Oxford / Cambridge Movement “have [since] dominated a large segment of Protestant building.” This is certainly true of the architecture of St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg). Reflecting a powerful domus dei theology, the Oxford/ Cambridge Movement sanctuary model [see photo #13] replaced the old Zwinglian-Reformed style central pulpit [which was in place from 1831 until c. 1919!] with a high tomb-altar with a retable and a throne holding a fine brass cross on the north wall. Two credence tables, on the left and on the right, were later attached to the wall. The congregation is separated from the chancel by a rail and three-steps. The pulpit [formerly the 1890 Revival pulpit-desk] was moved to the left, and a lectern was placed on the right. The “Jesus the Good Shepherd” stained glass window [see photo # ] above the altar serves as a reredos. At this time, when the old Zwinglian-Reformed style central pulpit was moved aside and replaced with three steps in the center leading up to a high altar, Barbara Frost tells an interesting story about her father’s reaction to these radical changes. After the change Benson Frost, Sr., was told that the three steps leading up to the altar represented the Holy Trinity. He was then asked “don’t you believe in worshipping the Trinity?” Benson replied, “not with my feet!” It is interesting to note that although these Oxford / Cambridge Movement changes were made in the chancel area of St. Paul’s, the Georgian style box pews -with no central aisle remained in place. These charming Colonial Georgian style box pews are similar to the pews found at Christ [Episcopalian] Church in Alexandra, Virginia -George Washington’s home church. Hence, if we read the architecture, we can see that the congregation worships in the meetinghouse domus ecclesia mode while the clergy operate in the domus dei mode. The Neo-Gothic style Baptismal font [see #15], which has baptized generations of St. Paul’s Christians, was given in memory of Millard Boomhower (1902-1919). A brass plaque bears the inscription, “Baptized and Confirmed in this Church, Buried in the Churchyard. Served it the World War May-December 1918.” Millard Boomhower was only 17 years old when he died on December 18, 1919. In his obituary The Rhinebeck Gazette wrote that Millard was “one of the youngest lads in the country to enlist and overcame all sorts of obstacles to offer himself for duty.” During WWI he served in the U.S. Naval Reserves. During his service he was stationed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard; New London, Connecticut; and Provincetown, Massachusetts. He also served on a “dangerous expedition on the U.S.S. Allacuty to Portugal and Siberia from which many of his companions never returned.” While in service Millard became ill with “an attack of influenza [the “Spanish flu” epidemic of 1918 killed an estimated 18 million people] and tonsillitis.” He was discharged on December 18, 1918. Although he recovered from the initial flu, Millard continued to suffer from complications. He had “inflammatory rheumatism from which heart trouble developed.” He died one year to the day after his discharge. His oldest brother, the Rev. William G. Boomhower, served as pastor of St. Paul’s (July 5, 1914- July 1, 1916). The Rhinebeck Gazette wrote, “He was a lad remarkable for the promise of his manhood, striking personality, mental ability, daring love of adventure hatred of shame and show and advocacy of all the ideals of true Americanism.” They added, “He was buried close up by the Parsonage which he had his happy boyhood home while his brother was Pastor of the Wurtemburg Church.” This old baptismal font, like the objects and the architecture of St. Paul’s in general, serve to connect today’s members with the joys and sorrows of 250 years of Lutheran Christians who have worshipped here before us. It is a sacred and awesome thing to hold an infant in your arms and say, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” In this act we initiate the child into the life of the Church and connect them to the story of generations of Christians -including the precious memory of Millard Boomhower, “a lad remarkable for the promise of his manhood” whose young life was cut short by the Great War. In July 1996, following the influence of the liturgical reform movement, and the worship reforms of Vatican Two, Rev. Mark D. Isaacs, after consulting the Church Council, relocated the altar [see photo #16]. While retaining the 1916 era tomb-altar, this fine piece of furniture was pulled off the north wall. It now acts as a communion table enabling the presiding minister to face the congregation during weekly communion. The retable and a throne holding a brass cross were also retained by separating them from the altar and fixed them to the north wall. Also at this time two credence brackets were added to the wall to hold the brass altar vases. Previously these vases were placed on the retable. Moving them off to the left and the right made the retable and the altar cleaner and simpler. The baptismal font was also moved to the center of the worship space at this time. One of the benefits of not having a central aisle is that the baptismal font can be placed in this position. The overall appearance of the worship space at St. Paul’s is healthy retention of the best of the Oxford / Cambridge Movement style worship space with the increased harmony and utility. Relocating the altar/communion table helped to change the dynamics of the worship experience at St. Paul’s reflecting more of a domus ecclesia spirit. During weddings, when additional space is required for the ceremony, the altar can be moved back under the retable against the north wall. On the south wall of the church --high in the galley-- is a replica of the famous 1890 Hendrick Hoffman painting of “Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.” The original Hoffman painting is displayed in a special side chapel at the Riverside Church in New York. The replica, by Nina Traver Young, was painted from the original in 1942. Nina reportedly made many trips to the Riverside Church to match the colors. This copy originally hung in St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Kingston, New York. In 1999, after the Kingston church had been disbanded, the sons of Nina, John Young and the Rev. Paul Young, Jr., presented the painting to St. Paul's (Wurtemburg). It is fitting that Nina Young’s painting hangs here at St. Paul’s. Nina Traver Young (1890-1972), the wife of the Rev. Paul Young, Sr. (1885-1976), is buried in the Wurtemburg Cemetery. THE WURTEMBURG CEMETERIES Funeral industry historians Robert W. Habenstein and William M. Lamers state that typically, “Early American burial was in the churchyard” or in a decentralized family plot. The first cemetery at Wurtemburg is churchyard style graveyard reflecting the European and New England practice of placing the graves of the departed in rows in and around the yard of the church. Hence, from 1802, “the ground east and south of St. Paul’s church at Wurtemburgh was used for burial purposes.” In May 1913, Dr. J. Wilson Poucher counted and cataloged 326 inscriptions from the stones in the old Wurtemburg churchyard. Over the years, many of these old headstones have gotten badly weathered, broken, or even stolen by vandals. Today, because there are no written records for the churchyard, many of these old graves are unmarked and the dead are known only to God. This old country churchyard is more than a quaint memory of the past. It is a powerful theological statement. Unlike the modern and post-modern “American way of death” which centers on denial of death cloaked by euphemisms such as “passed away,” early rural New Yorkers and New Englanders “recognized death as a natural, inevitable, and common place reality.” The people of old Wurtemburg would agree with their New England neighbors of the time that “the grave was as familiar as the cradle, and they never saw any reason to ignore or disguise it.” To this day, when the doors and windows of St. Paul’s are open during the spring and summer, worshippers feel a strong connection with the Church Triumphant, that “great cloud of witnesses” that surrounds and embraces the Church Militant. The ministry of the churchyard is a vital part of the St. Paul’s worship experience. During the mid-19th century a combination of over-crowding in urban areas and public health concerns led to the creation of a movement which called for interment of the dead outside of the corporate limits of towns and cities. A 1806 report from the New York City Board of Health advised the removal of all graveyards from the city. In the U.S --inspired by London’s the garden style Highgate Cemetery-- Mt. Auburn Cemetery near Boston (the first garden cemetery in the U.S. was founded in 1831); Laurel Hill Cemetery near Philadelphia; and Greenwood Cemetery in New York City (1837) and many other great American cemeteries were founded. As a part of this nationwide movement New York State passed the Rural Cemetery Act of 1847. This act provided for the legal establishment of cemetery associations. It granted these associations certain privileges such as tax exemption, the right to make their own rules and regulations, and to distribute payment for land purchase for cemetery uses over the life of the cemetery. Reflecting this “the rural cemetery movement” the Wurtemburg Cemetery Association was formed on October 2, 1852. From this point on, “the old graveyard… remained the only repository for the dead up to 1852, when increased facilities for burial purposes was apparent to the then large and prosperous congregations.” Poucher states that Wurtemburg, “in 1852 and 1866 land south of the church was acquired for burial uses.” On October 2, 1852 a Wurtemburg Cemetery Association was formed with Jacob G. Lambert, President and Gideon A. Traver, secretary. The association was incorporated on January 6, 1855. At the time of its organization it bought one acre of ground to the south of the church and since then at least two additions have been made. A walk through the Wurtemburg Cemetery is like taking a tour through American history. A plaque placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution commemorates that fact that the Wurtemburg Cemetery holds the remains of more than 10 Revolutionary War soldiers. David P. Traver, Revolutionary War Veteran, died July 9, 1835 at the age of 76.years and 13 days; Henry M. Ackert, Civil War Veteran from the 150th Regiment, New York (Dutchess County) Volunteer Infantry. The 150th fought at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1,2, and 3, 1863. Their valor is remembered with an impressive monument on Culp’s Hill. Spanish American War Corporal William J. Bradley of the 8th Regiment NY Volunteers, Company C (October 10, 1877- September 1907); Private Roy T. Crucius, Medical Corps KIA is remembered in the framed Honor Roll of the Great War. Sgt. George Monsees, US Army, KIA France WWII, July 7, 1903 - June 20, 1944, was buried at the Normandy American Cemetery in St. Laurent-sur-Mer, France [Plot F, Row 12, Grave 43]. As a part of the 313th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Division Sgt. Monsees landed on Utah Beach on June 14, 1944. The 79th Division entered combat on June 19, 1944 as a part of the drive for Cherbourg. He was killed in action in fighting along the Valognes-Cherbourg Highway on June 20, 1944. Cherbourg was liberated on June 29, 1944. Sgt. Monsees was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart. He is honored by a memorial marker at St. Paul’s Cemetery. The Wurtemburg Cemetery is also the final resting place for veterans from the Korean and the Viet Nam Wars. Our cemetery is a microcosm of American history. The Rev. Chester H. Traver (1848-1929), pastor and author of the wonderful September 18, 1915, Rhinebeck Gazette, “History of the Wuremburgh Church,” is buried in the new 1853 cemetery. Well-known Lutheran Pastor and Educator, Rev. Dr. John Gideon Traver, (Hartwick Seminary, 1883) is also buried in the Wurtemburg Cemetery. He was born on December 24, 1863 on the family farm near Wurtemburg. He was married at St. Paul’s on August 22, 1888 to Ettie F. Tompkins, with the Rev. G. W. Fortnoy presiding and Fred E. Traver as best man. He was associated for most of his career with Hartwick Seminary, as instructor and principal. Dr. Traver was named principal of Hartwick in 1893. He held this position for 27 years, “longer than anyone.” He was a descendant of Sebastian Traver, one of the original settlers of Wurtemburg. Behind his back Hartwick students affectionately called him “Uncle John.” He jauntily rode his bicycle everywhere… and [his students] enjoyed his enthusiastic approach to life.” On August 20, 1941, while riding his bicycle near the Hartwick Seminary, Dr. Traver was struck and killed by an automobile driven by a coal dealer named George Bower of Endicott, New York. He is buried at the Wurtemburg cemetery following a service led by Rev. William G. Boomhower (former pastor of St. Paul’s) and the Rev. E. J. Himes. In 2000 the Wurtemburg Cemetery Association acquired a tract of land for a new -a third cemetery-across the street to the west of the church. Raymond Rhodes (1931-November 14, 2000) was the first burial in this cemetery. WURTEMBURG SCHOOL DISTRICT No.8 Showing strong Lutheran support for education, three one-room schoolhouses stood on grounds of St. Paul’s over the years. The first school, a simple two-room structure, was built in 1796. The Rev. Chester Traver explained that, “Our father also believed in secular education.” On February 7, 1796 George and Sebastian Pultz were granted a release in so far that a schoolhouse might be erected on the north part of the lot.” The schoolhouse occupied the site where the 1870 parsonage now stands. One room was used as a schoolroom, and the other room housed “the man who combined the duties of school teacher and church sexton.” This building was torn down about 1835 and replaced by the second school. This building, which was later moved to the farm of George Marquart and “is still (c. 1940) being used as a farm building.” The third Wurtemburg School, “Rhinebeck School District No. 8,” was built in 1878 [the location of the schoolhouse is shown on photo #9]. This was a solid one-room schoolhouse lined with wainscoting and a vestibule. It was said to have been one of the finest one-room schoolhouses in the area. The building measured 24 feet by 30 feet and was located on the south side of the church building. Today at St. Paul’s two of our precious oldest members: Mary Traver Baas, and Eda Steward recall with affection their years as students in the old Wurtemburg School. With the movement toward consolidated school districts one room schoolhouses were closed and the children were bused to central schools. Hence, sometime in the 1930s the Wurtemburg School was closed. For years, the old building stood empty. In April 1954 the old school house was purchased by Mr. and Mrs. John Dorrer and moved north on 9G. After extensive remodeling, the building still stands, and serves as a private home. CONCLUSION What can we say about St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) today? It would be easy to dismiss this old building as hopelessly out of date and in need of replacement by a modern and efficient redesigned building. Richard Giles, a general advocate of “re-ordering church buildings” could have been thinking about St. Paul’s when he complained that churches tend to suffer from the disease of “the fossilization of worship space…” with “the tendency to live with at least one foot in the past is not defined merely by the lack of `mod cons’ …but the failure to realize that a Christian community at the outset of the third millennium will require a different set of tools from those available 100 years ago if it is to do the work of God in the dramatically changed context of a pluralistic society.” However, to dismiss this wonderful historic old building and the spirit that fill this sacred place would be to miss the point. The walls and the grounds are literally animated and saturated with generations of sacred moments, stories, and memories [see photo #17]. St. Augustine’s concept of the Visible Word best helps us to understand the people, the building, and the grounds that surround St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Wurtemburg. St. Paul’s is literally surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. In the summer, when the doors are opened to allow for a cooling breeze, the tombstones from the ancient churchyard minister to the worshipers inside. In fact, St. Paul’s is enveloped on all side with three cemeteries on the 14 acres. The weather beaten names of generations of Travers, Cookinghams, Ackerts and the Pultz’s preach to us the powerful image of the church militant/ and the church triumphant. The site provides a continuity and faith witness that transcends generations. We know our place, and we know our destination. In addition, John Naisbitt’s concept of “high tech and soft touch” helps explain the aesthetic appeal of St. Paul’s. Naisbitt teaches us that “we must learn to balance the material wonders of technology with the spiritual demands of our human nature.” He is correct. The more cold and impersonal high technology we have around us, the more we seem to need the human touch -the soft touch. St. Paul’s is a traditional soft touch/human touch space. When one enters this ancient sacred space to worship the weary high tech post-modernist is instantly reconnected to something eternal and timeless. In the hard and fast post-modern age of flux, uncertainty, a myriad of distractions and temptations, “land-cruisers” and “mobile phones,” and sterile technology, God’s Word and Sacrament feed us in the nurturing atmosphere of St. Paul’s. Ancient St. Paul’s stands as a soft touch sanctuary in a high tech world. Today, through the grace of God, St. Paul’s Lutheran (Wurtemburg) is an active, vibrant, and growing congregation. St. Paul’s has grown into a community and an area congregation with a diverse membership of many people from many different traditions. We certainly cherish our rich heritage, and we also look forward to many more years of faithful service to Jesus Christ Our Lord and Savoir. APPENDIX A: CLERGY WHO HAVE SERVED ST. PAUL’S (WURTEMBURG) Rev. Johannes Christopher Hartwick [or Hartwig] (January 6, 1714-July 17, 1796), (Halle University), spent 12 years as a pastor in the area (1746-1758). ************* Rev. Johannes Fredrick Ries (1760-1791), March 7, 1760-January 5, 1783; Rev. George Heinrich Pfeiffer (-October 26, 1827), May 17, 1784-1794; Rev. John Frederick Ernst, 1794-1798, (Halle University); Rev. Dr. Frederick Henry Quitman (August 7, 1760 - June 26, 1832), February 18, 1798-August 23, 1825 (Halle University, Doctor of Divinity degree from Harvard University); Rev. William J. Eyer, September 1825- September 1837; Rev. Anastasius Theodosius Geissenhainer, June 8, 1838-1840; Rev. Dr. Charles A. Smith (June 25, 1809 - February 15, 1879), (Hartwick Seminary), 1840-1850; Rev. Dr. William Nace Scholl (September 9, 1805-June 12, 1889), 1850-1855, (Gettysburg Seminary, 1833); Rev. Dr. George Neff (December 23, 1813-August 6, 1900), July 1855-July 1876, (Gettysburg Seminary, 1842); Rev. Dr. Joseph G. Griffith (February 11, 1839- December 11, 1907), September 1, 1876 -March 1, 1881; (Gettysburg Seminary, 1867); Rev. John Kling, September 1, 1881-June 1, 1887, (Hartwick Seminary, 1865); Rev. George William Forthey (December 27, 1845-August 30, 1909), January 1, 1888- May 26, 1895; (Gettysburg Seminary, 1873); Rev. Chauncey W. Diefendorf; September 1, 1895-December 1, 1898; Rev. Rosco C. Wright, April 1, 1899-September 1, 1907; Rev. John Kling, (recalled) February 1, 1908- December 1, 1913, (Hartwick Seminary, 1865); Rev. William Gibson Boomhower, July 5, 1914- July 1, 1916, (Hartwick Seminary,1914); Rev. Oscar A. Noren, July 1917-March 30, 1919; Rev. E.L. Davison, July 20, 1919- November 30, 1924; Rev. Elder Jay Himes, May 10, 1924-September 15, 1946 (Hartwick Seminary); Rev. Carl A. Rosomer, September 1, 1947-1949; Rev. Herbert Finch, 1949-1954; Rev. John L. de Papp, 1955-1958; Rev. Rolf W. Eschke, 1959-1962; Rev. Frederick Charles Dunn (1924-1984), 1963-1967; (Wagner College, 1959, Philadephia Seminary, 1963) Rev. William Beck, 1968-1970; Rev. Sylvester Bader, 1970-1977; Rev. Daniel M. Strobel, 1978-1984 (Lutheran Theological Seminary-Philadelphia, 1978); Rev. Richard Mowry, 1984-1996 (Lutheran Theological Seminary-Philadelphia); Rev. Mark D. Isaacs, 1996- (Lutheran Theological Seminary-Gettysburg, 1992); APPENDIX B: Johannes Christopher Hartwick Johannes Christopher Hartwick [or Hartwig] (January 6, 1714-July 17, 1796) was born in Germany in 1714 and educated as a Lutheran minister at the University of Halle. He arrived in America in 1746 to serve as a missionary for the German settlers. He spent 12 years as a pastor in the area (1746-1758) riding a circuit that included Rhinebeck (St. Peter the Apostle Church), Staatsburg (later St. Paul’s Wurtemburg); Ancram, and Tarbosh (Livingston). During the summer of 1750, Henry Melchor Muhlenberg (1711-1787) --the father of American Lutheranism-- traveled from Pennsylvania to settle a dispute between Hartwick and the Rhinebeck area congregations. The eccentric Hartwick has been described as “restless, desultory, and uncouth.” Rev. Wilhelm Christoph Berkenmeyer (1687-1751) of Athens, New York --an old-line Orthodox Lutheran-- charged that Hartwick was a “crypto-Herrnhuter.” Working with disgruntled members of the Rhinebeck congregations, Berkenmeyer sought to depose Hartwick. Hartwick later wrote that during the conflict, “I fought with the wild animals in Rhinebeck, after the fashion of men, since Berkenmeyer’s `epicurean’ followers attacked me in church, not only with words, but also with fists, tore off my wig, hit me in the face and wanted forcefully to drag me out of the church.” Perhaps thanks to Muhlenberg’s efforts to mediate the conflict Hartwick was able to remain in the area until 1758 when he resigned. Servants dreaded visits from Hartwick because of his long prayers before eating meals. A life-long bachelor, he preached in his blanket coat, changed his linen infrequently, and was such a fanatical misogynist that he would cross the road or leap over a fence to avoid meeting women. He was a very eccentric man with a rigid personality and little tolerance of people's vices. He frequently required his parishioners to sign a covenant that "they would forswear shooting, horse-racing, boozing, and dancing." In the spring of 1764 he wrote an article vehemently protesting the death penalty for theft on the grounds that such a punishment was contrary to divine law, an opinion that did not set well with 18th century city officials. He also envisioned government-run educational institutions. After his service in Rhinebeck, for the remainder of his life, Hartwick apparently traveled from place to place. Traces of his missionary service have been found in more than 20 Lutheran congregations from Waldoboro, Maine to Frederick, Maryland. In 1754 Hartwick was able to purchase 21,500 acres of land from the Mohawk Indians in Otesgo County, New York. In 1796 Hartwick died at Clermont Manor, the home of Robert R. Livingston. Hartwick left this large estate to endow “an institution for training up young men to become missionaries among the Indians according to the Augsburg Confession and the tenets of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.” Although he complicated matters by designating Jesus Christ as his heir, the executors of the will were able to overcome this and other thorny legal problems. Eventually the estate was settled and the funds were used to found Hartwick Seminary in 1797, closed in 1940. In 1928 the Seminary became Hartwick College. During the debate on where to locate Hartwick’s seminary, Rhinebeck was considered as a location with the Rev. Dr. Frederick Henry Quitman being named as the professor of theology. APPENDIX C: EXCURSUS ON THE REV. DR. QUITMAN The Rev. Dr. Frederick Henry Quitman (August 7, 1760 - June 26, 1832) served St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg) from February 18, 1798 to August 23, 1825. Quitman studied a Halle University during the period of “Illumination” under such lights as August Herman Niemeyer (1754-1828), Georg Christian Knapp (1753-1825), and Johann Salomo Semler (1725-1791), and others of the Rationalist School. He arrived in American in 1795 via Holland and Curacao. For more than 30 years Dr. Quitman divided his time “circuit riding” among a network of Lutheran churches in the Hudson River Valley. Dr. Quitman often preached 7 or 8 times a week in German, Low Dutch, or English. He lived at the parsonage at St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church. The Quitman House has been restored and preserved by volunteers working with the Rhinebeck Historical Society. Dr. Quitman served as president of the New York Ministerium from 1807-1825. During the protracted discussions on where to locate the Hartwick Seminary (founded in 1797) serious consideration was given to locating the seminary in Rhinebeck so that Dr. Quitman could serve as Professor of Theology. Dr. Quitman received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Harvard University. Dr. Quitman’s personal appearance was very imposing. “His well-proportioned and ever erect frame stood 6 feet high and was of great bulk weighing generally about, and sometimes above, 300 pounds.” He had “a cheerful disposition,” refined manners, and had great conversational powers. Well-read and well educated Dr. Quitman never used a manuscript in the pulpit. He was greatly “reverenced” by his congregations. Known for his acid wit, seeing his scarred face, a woman once asked, “Dominie, have you had the small pox?” Dr. Quitman replied, “No, mother, it has had me!” Dr. Quitman's letter of call required him to preach 18 Sundays and 3 festival days at St. Peter’s in Rhinebeck; 18 Sundays and 3 festival days at Germantown; 9 Sundays and 1 festival day at St. Paul’s (Wurtemburg); and 7 Sundays and 1 festival day at Livingston. As his salary he was to receive from St. Peter's thirty pounds New York currency, ten bushels of wheat, firewood, and the use of the parsonage and church lands. From Germantown he received thirty-five pounds and eight bushels of wheat; from Wurtemburg thirty pounds and eight bushels of wheat, and from Livingston twenty-five pounds and eight bushels of wheat. His call from Wurtemburg had a resolution attached, that he should notice the names attached to the call, and that he should be free from all pastoral duties to those who contributed nothing to the support of the church. Dr. Quitman was the author of several interesting and controversial books. The first was his Evangelical Catechism, or a Short Exposition of the Principal Doctrines and Precepts of the Christain Religion (1814). This work, which did not sell well, is typically condemned by orthodox Lutherans as “Rationalistic” and even “Socinian (Unitarian).” Two copes of Dr. Quitman’s Evangelical Catechism are preserved at the rare book room at the Gettysburg Seminary Library, and one at the Quitman House in Rhinebeck. Dr. Quitman also wrote a strange and interesting 70 page book entitled A Treatise on Magic, or On the Intercourse Between Spirits & Men with Annotations (Albany: Balance Press, 1810). This book is also preserved at the Quitman House in Rhinebeck. In 1824, because of poor health, Dr. Quitman gave up his call to Wurtemburg. He died on June 26, 1832, and is buried in the churchyard of St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church. At present his grave is need of restoration. APPENDIX D: EXCURSUS ON JOHN A. QUITMAN John Anthony Quitman (1799 - 1858) was born in Rhinebeck, New York on September 1, 1799. John was the remarkable son of the Rev. Dr. Frederick Henry and Anna Elizabeth (Huecke) Quitman (1768-1805). John grew up in the Lutheran parsonage at St. Peter the Apostle Lutheran Church in Rhinebeck [now “The Quitman House”]. John’s father, the Rev. Dr. Frederick Quitman, intended for John to enter the ministry. He was sent to study at the Hartwick Seminary. After graduating in 1816, John became a tutor in Hartwick Seminary’s classical department. In 1818 he taught at Mount Airy College, Germantown, PA. Seeking new opportunities in the West, in 1819, Quitman moved to Ohio to study law. In 1820, he was admitted to the bar and moved to Chillicothe, Ohio, and then, in 1821, to Natchez, Mississippi. Here, as a transplanted northerner, John became more southern than most southerners. In Mississippi Quitman became a wealthy and influential plantation and slave owner, a lawyer, a military officer, and powerful politician who held strong southern secessionist views. Quitman was elected to the Mississippi State House of Representatives in 1826 and 1827. Quitman later served as Chancellor of the Superior Court (1828-1834); a member of the Constitutional Committee (1832); and, in 1835, President of the Senate. For a short time he also acted as Governor. In 1839 elected judge of the court of errors and appeals. In 1836 he fought for the independence of Texas. He helped found the Natchez Fencibles Mississippi Volunteer Militia Company. During the Mexican-American War (1846-1848), Quitman was commissioned a Brigadier-General of volunteers by President James Polk on July 1, 1846, and commissioned a major general in the Regular Army April 14, 1847. Quitman rendered gallant and noble service under Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott. He was in the Battle of Monterey and marched from Vera Cruz to Mexico City, during which time he was engaged in many daring exploits. On the morning of September 13, 1847 his division assaulted the castle at Chapultepec. Dashing across the plain carrying the artillery they found on their route, Quitman's troops forced their way up the side of the steep hill on which the ancient fortress was built in the face of destructive fire. Having gained the summit, they carried the castle by assault thereby securing the key to Mexico City. In the afternoon of that day, Quitman led his division in an attack on the Belen Gate, which they carried at the point of the bayonet. His troops were the first within the city walls. Quitman, who lost his boot during the fighting, entered the city with only one boot on. He received the surrender of the citadel and was appointed by General Scott civil and military governor of Mexico City. Hence, John Quitman was "the only American who ever ruled in the halls of the Montezumas." He was honorably discharged July 20, 1848. For his role at the Battle of Monterrey (1846) Quitman won a congressional sword and was promoted to the rank of major general. After the war Quitman was elected and served the fifteenth governor of Mississippi Governor of Mississippi (1850-51) and also served as a U.S. representative in Congress (1855-58). During his political career Quitman was a Democrat who championed the cause of slavery and states' rights. He tried to persuade Mississippi to secede from the Union during the 1850s. Asserting the right of secession and the desirability of forming a confederacy of the slave-holding states, Quitman anticipated by nearly ten years the action that led to Mississippi’s role in the Civil War. He also opposed to dueling, gambling, and other vices. John Quitman died on his plantation, “Monmouth,” near Natchez, Mississippi on July 17, 1858. 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Hill & Co., 1889. Sunday Worship Weekly at 10:00 AM ( 9:30 AM during the months of June, July, and August ) *** The sanctuary of the church is handicap-accessible. Member of the Evangelical Lutheran Conference and Ministerium    371 Wurtemburg Road, Rhinebeck,NY   12572