Metadata
Title
Correspondence and other records, 1841-1844
Alternative Title
Letters concerning St. Peter's Church in Phoenixville and Christ Church sexton Robert R. Bringhurst
Date
1841/1844
Digital Identifier
ChristChurch.CorporationCorrespondence_4-2-0-51
Call Number
4.2.0.51; F539
Description
Two documents relating to Christ Church. The first is a letter from Oliver A. Shaw dated June 21, 1841, soliciting pecuniary aid for St. Peter's Church in Phoenixville, Chester County, Pennsylvania, to complete their church edifice for consecration. The second document is a letter from Horace Binney to Moses Kempton dated December 3, 1844, detailing Binney's conversation with Robert R. Bringhurst, the sexton, regarding deficiencies in his performance, including absence during service, lack of assistance to the Rector, inadequate cleanliness, and poor ventilation. Bringhurst responds to the complaints and ultimately resigns his post, effective at the end of his quarter on January 10, 1844.
Subject
Place
Pennsylvania--Philadelphia
Pennsylvania--Phoenixville
Congregation
Christ Church, Philadelphia, PA
Extent
2 documents
Format (Digital)
tiff
Rights
http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/
Language
eng
Type
Text
Abstract
The first document is a solicitation letter dated 21 June 1841 from Oliver A. Shaw, Minister of St. Peter's Church, Phoenixville, Chester County, Pennsylvania, addressed to Christ Church requesting pecuniary aid. Shaw states that the edifice intended for worship is nearly completed and that five hundred dollars, judiciously expended, would render it fit for consecration [p.1].
The second document is a letter dated 3 December 1844 from Horace Binney, written from South 4th Street, to Moses Kempton, Esq., reporting on his interview with Robert R. Bringhurst, the Sexton. Binney explains that the weather prevented his visit, so he set down in writing the results of his conversation, which took place the previous evening after he sent Bringhurst a note [p.2r]. Binney, appointed as a one-person committee at his own instance, presented four deficiencies in Bringhurst's performance: frequent absence during service, want of regular assistance to the Rector (including an instance where the Rector had to raise the chancel blinds for the Bishop), want of attention to cleanliness, and neglect of proper ventilation [p.2r].
Bringhurst answered each charge: he complained his salary of $200 per annum was too low, that burial fees had declined from 80 to 30 in a year, and that fees for baptisms and vestry notices were trifling, comparing his compensation unfavorably to Cotteril of St. Peter's; he stated he sent a boy when absent; he explained he personally paid $52 per annum for weekly sweeping and dusting and that the church had been scrubbed only once during his tenure; and he attributed foul air to furnaces drawing on interior rather than exterior air, noting he could not raise the heat above 60 degrees and had pointed out the furnace defects to vestrymen [p.2v]. The following morning, Bringhurst called and, feeling taken by surprise and believing the Vestry had determined to replace him, declined to continue as Sexton, with his quarter expiring 10 January. He blamed Dr. Dow for the movement, but Binney corrected him, stating that he himself had moved the resolution. The letter was read to the Vestry at the meeting held 15 December 1844 [p.2r].
The second document is a letter dated 3 December 1844 from Horace Binney, written from South 4th Street, to Moses Kempton, Esq., reporting on his interview with Robert R. Bringhurst, the Sexton. Binney explains that the weather prevented his visit, so he set down in writing the results of his conversation, which took place the previous evening after he sent Bringhurst a note [p.2r]. Binney, appointed as a one-person committee at his own instance, presented four deficiencies in Bringhurst's performance: frequent absence during service, want of regular assistance to the Rector (including an instance where the Rector had to raise the chancel blinds for the Bishop), want of attention to cleanliness, and neglect of proper ventilation [p.2r].
Bringhurst answered each charge: he complained his salary of $200 per annum was too low, that burial fees had declined from 80 to 30 in a year, and that fees for baptisms and vestry notices were trifling, comparing his compensation unfavorably to Cotteril of St. Peter's; he stated he sent a boy when absent; he explained he personally paid $52 per annum for weekly sweeping and dusting and that the church had been scrubbed only once during his tenure; and he attributed foul air to furnaces drawing on interior rather than exterior air, noting he could not raise the heat above 60 degrees and had pointed out the furnace defects to vestrymen [p.2v]. The following morning, Bringhurst called and, feeling taken by surprise and believing the Vestry had determined to replace him, declined to continue as Sexton, with his quarter expiring 10 January. He blamed Dr. Dow for the movement, but Binney corrected him, stating that he himself had moved the resolution. The letter was read to the Vestry at the meeting held 15 December 1844 [p.2r].
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