by Angela Tweedy and Martha Daniel
Welsh emigration in the eighteenth century to the middle and southern Atlantic states of America was substantial. In Wales, despite the Toleration Act of 1689, the climate was uncomfortable for religious groups who did not share the beliefs of the established Anglican church. The emigrants, primarily Welsh Old School or Hard Shell Baptists, sought true "soul liberty" and naturally looked to the new world for religious freedom.[1] Emigrant William Penn arrived in America in 1682 on the ship WELCOME with a group of Baptists and Quakers. This original group of Baptists settled in what is now Bustleton and organized their first church in 1688, originally called Lower Dublin and later known as Pennepek.
In 1701, the persecuted Baptists of Pembroke and Caermarthen in South Wales of Great Britain arrived at Pennepek.[2] The sixteen-member group, organized into a formal church in Wales and led by Reverend Thomas and Elizabeth Griffith, Elisha Thomas and Enoch Morgan, sailed from Milford to Philadelphia on the ship James and Mary.[3] The group remained around Pennepek about a year and a half, gaining twenty-two new members.
In 1701 William Penn granted a tract of 30,000 acres of land in the Pencader Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware to David Evans, William Davis and William Willis in order to develop the iron industry around Iron Hill.[4] In spring 1703 the enlarged Welsh Baptist group relocated, due to a disagreement with the Pennepek membership about points of discipline, specifically, the issue of "the laying of the hands."[5] They placed their "meeting house on the banks of Christiana Creek, at the foot of Iron Hill," due to the fact that the hill reminded them of the mountains of their native Wales.[6] In the Welsh tongue, Pencader means highest point, which is the origin of the name of Pencader Hundred. Upon arrival at Iron Hill in 1703, the congregation immediately began construction on a new meeting house built of logs and commonly called "the Baptist Meeting House by the Iron Hill".[7] Welsh Tract was one of the original five churches forming the Philadelphia Baptist Association in 1707 and was for many years the most influential member of that organization.[8] Mr. Vedder, in History of the Baptists, claims that "The Welsh Tract Church was the only Baptist Church in Delaware for more than three-quarters of a century.[9]
The establishment of the London Tract Meeting House is a direct result of the growth of the Welsh Baptists in the area around northwestern Delaware and southeastern Pennsylvania. The Welsh Tract settlement in Delaware grew rapidly due to the discovery of iron ore and successful farming in the area.[10] By the end of the colonial period, the Welsh settlement in and around Philadelphia was approximately 6,000, with another 1,000 in the Delaware Welsh Tract![11] The membership of the Welsh Tract Church totaled fifty-one by the end of their first year, had doubled in 1710, and had tripled by 1717.[12] In order to meet the needs of the growing population, the Welsh Tract Baptist Church became a mother church to a total of seven other sister churches in Delaware and the nearby area, as well as the equally known Welsh Neck Baptist Church on the PeeDee River in South Carolina. Members, often those who lived closer to the newly established churches, were dismissed from the Welsh Tract Congregation in order to establish the new churches and create an extensive regional network of Welsh Baptists.
The London Tract Meeting House was the first daughter church of the Welsh Tract. John Evans, Sr. and Jr., both elders of the Welsh Tract Church, had significant landholdings in Chester County, Pennsylvania on the White Clay Creek (near Strickersville) and in 1725, they conveyed several acres for the erection and use of a Baptist Meeting House, for "six pence sterling, if demanded"[13] (This was also the same year that the inhabitants of the New London Township petitioned the Court of the Quarter Sessions for a new division of the township, called London Britain.) The exact date of the construction of the stone meeting house is uncertain, although believed to be 1729. It is certain, however, that the meeting house was built sometime between 1725 and 1731, when the first reference of the meeting house is made in the will of Thomas Morris, who left "ye sum of two pounds for the use of the meeting house that is in the Indian Town in London Britain."[14]
Although the congregation met at the London Tract Church beginning soon after its construction, the church did not become independent from the Welsh Tract until November 21, 1780. It appears that this was the first daughter church to become constituted, but it was followed closely by: Duck Creek Baptist, Bryn Zion Baptist, and Cow Marsh Baptist, all located in Kent County and constituted in 1781; also Mispillion Church in Sussex County (1783); First Baptist in Wilmington (1783); and Bethel Primitive Baptist in 1786.[15] Despite the separation, however, close ties continued to exist between London Tract and its mother church until as late as the 1960s.
As many of you may know, all of the church records from the founding of the church until 1780 are lost, so little is known about the growth of the congregation, the frequency of its use, or general church business until 1780. However, included in the church records is the statement of separation from the Welsh Tract, including the list of original petitioners--a group consisting of three men and fifteen women--as well as the naming of Thomas Fleeson as the first pastor. From 1802 until 1832, there is a pretty clear sense of church membership, as the church records indicate who was coming in and out of the church, in addition to baptisms and deaths. The period of highest growth in the church appears to be from its founding through 1807. Growth continues at a smaller, but steady rate, until the 1830s when the membership records terminate.
The new church members seemed to come to London Tract for only a few main reasons. Primarily, they were dismissed from a sister church in the region and received into London Tract because they moved "into the bounds of the [your] congregation." Occasionally new members would come from as far away as the City of Washington or Baltimore (2 from England), but most came from no farther than Philadelphia. Many people simply left the congregation through death and were buried in the churchyard. Others, however, left to form new churches, moved to other places (a few to western country in the 1830s), and several were even excluded or excommunicated from the church for improper conduct. The largest out-migration of members was in 1812, when at least twenty members left when the only known daughter church of the London Tract, Rock Spring in Quarryville, Pennsylvania, became independent. Another large exodus in 1808 and 1809 also parallels the erection of Rock Springs meeting house in 1808.
The subpopulation of the church can be estimated during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century as being predominantly female in a ratio of approximately two to one, which was very common during this period. In addition, the only mention of African American members was in 1806, when Thomas Parker, listed as a "black man," and his wife were received into the church.
Meetings during this period were rather infrequent, usually one Saturday a month from April to November through the 1850s, with an additional day for Lord's Day (communion). Because of the cold weather and travel conditions, the church did not meet from December through March until around 1830.[16] This gives us some indication that the church community extended well beyond the London Britain township, and many had to travel from various places in Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania to go to meeting; it also suggests that the meeting house was not yet heated by the two pot-bellied stoves that were later installed in the church. Beginning in the early 1860s, church meetings were twice a month, either on a Saturday and Sunday consecutively or on the second Saturday and fourth Sunday of the month. This change may reflect transportation improvements as well as a physically closer church community boundaries. Although there was usually only one pastor for the church at a time, on many occasions guest pastors would speak, as would elders of the church.
The configuration of the church makes a clear statement that the original entrance in these first years was on the south elevation, facing the road. The original doorway has been filled with stone, although the scar and stone quoining indicate its location. In addition, the best stonework is on the south elevation. Wooden joists above the doorway also suggest a pedimented entryway similar to the existing one over the present entrance. This style of stone one-room meeting house is typical of those of many different religions in the region of Delaware and Pennsylvania. The wall around the churchyard was not built until the mid-nineteenth century, as a reference in the church book of July 10, 1830 discusses "business respecting a balance due Davis Whiffing, esq. for building the wall round the graveyard..." Although only speculation, it appears that the reason the entrance of the church was changed to the east elevation in 1863 due to awkward entranceway after the wall was built.
As listed on the chronology handout, the Sexton's House was not built until 1830, as recorded in the church records at a cost of $460. Described as a caretaker and overseer of burials, a Sexton became necessary during this period to manage and care for the growing number of burials as well as to regularly maintain the meeting house and churchyard. This position became even more important when the church expanded the graveyard to its present size in 1879. The earliest mention of the Sexton's salary was in 1927; the church paid him twelve dollars a month, two dollars more than the rent of the house. Over time there were many changes to the house, as noted in the meeting minutes, the most significant being the addition of the porch in 1859 (which was later enclosed in 1959) and a rear shed addition built pre-1888 (photograph) and removed in the 1950s. There is also mention of a garage to be built for use of the Sexton in 1938, and electric lights installed in the house in 1940.
London Tract's membership seems to decline around the turn of the century. Minutes of the regular church meetings continue until 1921, and only the yearly trustees meetings continue until 1960. Trustees tended to stay the same for many years and often failed to meet for a period of several years. Beginning in the 1930s, the congregation only met for a special yearly meeting, with an attendance of about forty or fifty. As early as 1942, members of the Mt Carmel Church in Bel Air, Maryland, sought to utilize the church for members who had moved closer to Chester County. The trustees at first opposed this request until 1945, when they leased it for $5/month for one or more Sundays.
A disagreement between the London Tract and Bel Air group occurred in 1947, however, because the Bel Air group organized under the name of the London Tract Old School or Primitive Baptist Church and the trustees took "such steps as is necessary to protect their [our] incorporated title." After changing their name to the Landmark Primitive Baptists, the Bel Air congregation continued to reconcile their differences with the trustees until they entered into a formal lease agreement in 1960. At this time the meeting house was remodeled, the old dark wood pews replaced, the bathroom addition added and (the pre-1888) shed addition and two pot-bellied stoves removed. According to the minutes, the London Tract group continued to have yearly meetings through 1969.
| [1] | Descendants of Early Welsh Tract Families (Newark, DE: The Morgan and Griffiths, n.d.), 2 ↩ |
| [2] | Percy Roberts, The History of the Welsh Tract Church and the Life of Elder John Green Eubanks (n.p., 1981), 2. ↩ |
| [3] | Descendants of Early Welsh Tract Families, 8. ↩ |
| [4] | Elizabeth Waterson, Churches in Delaware During the Revolution (Wilmington, DE: Historical Society of Delaware, 1925), 3. ↩ |
| [5] | Ibid. ↩ |
| [6] | Descendants of Early Welsh Tract Families, 2. ↩ |
| [7] | Roberts, The History of the Welsh Tract Church, 3. ↩ |
| [8] | Ibid., 4. ↩ |
| [9] | Waterson, Churches in Delaware During the Revolution, 5. ↩ |
| [10] | George Hartmann, Americans From Wales (Boston, MA: The Christopher Publishing House, 1967), 50. ↩ |
| [11] | Edward George Hartman, Americans From Wales (Boston: Christopher Publishing House, 1967), 54. ↩ |
| [12] | Elizabeth Waterson, Churches in Delaware During the Revolution (Wilmington, DE: Historical Society of Delaware, 1925), 4. ↩ |
| [13] | Percy Roberts, The History of Welsh Tract Church and the Life of Elder John Eubanks (np, 1981), 6. ↩ |
| [14] | (Will Book, etc.) ↩ |
| [15] | Percy Roberts, The History of Welsh Tract Church, 15. ↩ |
| [16] | London Tract Church Book, 1780-18 ↩ |