East Corinth United Methodist Church

History of the Corinth United Methodist Church

The first account of Methodism in East Corinth was in 1818, when Benjamin Jones organized the Exeter Circuit. Embracing the towns of Exeter, Corrina, Palmyra, Dexter, Harmony, Ripley, Garland, Corinth, Bradford, and perhaps other towns and unincorporated territory, the Exeter Circuit had previously been included in what was known as the Norridgewock Circuit. A membership of two hundred fifty-six is recorded as within the circuit, chiefly in the more westerly part of it.

Beginning in 1819 and on in to the 1830's, the charge was in the hands of several different preachers. Reports tell us little about their life-style or acomplishments, except for the amount of money they were able to raise. At that time, the various ministers amassed on average seventy-seven dollars annually, ranging from a low of forty-two, in 1823, to a high of one hundred twenty, in 1827. Here follows a list of those preachers, in order of when they served the Exeter circuit, and the amount of their reported receipts for the year:

S. Bray, it was said, arrived in the Exeter Circuit after only one year in the Conference. His claim was only of a single man, as the discipline did not then allow for a wife until the preacher had travelled four years (Allen, 156).

In 1820, Articles on a settled minister were passed in the Town of Corinth when it voted to call Elder Stephen Dexter for the first settled (Baptist) minister. However, it was not until August 21, 1823, that the writings were drawn. It covered two large pages in the Town records, reading thus:

"He was to preach in the town, on the Lord's Day, eight months in the year, as long as he was able and capable. As compensation, he was given a deed, of one-half the public lot, set aside for this purpose, free from any rates or taxes. Were he discharged from said duty, he would not forfeit any right or title to the public land. The other half of the public loot was sold, and the proceeds formed the nucleus of the fund, still held by the town, the income, to be divided each year, among the various religious groups."

The earliest division of this income was in 1837. At that time, the Independent Baptists had 73 members, the Methodists 66, the Free Baptists 33, the First Congregational or Christians 30.

Rev. Stephen Dexter was born in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 1776 and died in Corinth in August 1836. Mason Palmer Skinner wrote, in 1883, that Mr. Dexter's ministry was "very acceptable to his people; he was a man of industry, and equally at home on the farm, in the shop or pulpit; his family was large and sons and daughters learned to follow a father's judicious example and timely instructions" (p. 14).

In 1822, Melvin B. Cox was the preacher in the young Corinth church. Extracts from his diary give us a hint of what life at the time must have been like.

"From the Bath Conference I received my first appointment from the bishop." He continues, "As was usual in such cases with novitiates, I was sent to the Exeter Circuit, then called the 'Methodist College' meaning 'training school'. I wept like a child when I heard the appointment read out."

His diaries go on to say that the Exeter Circuit was in a new part of the country (Corinth had only been incorporated a decade earlier), and its inhabitants generally poor, although it had many precious brethren in its humble log huts. Many of them were men of sterling worth. Much of Cox's work consisted in "softening prejudices" and reviving religion among the brethren. He writes:

"If I had confined myself to the plan, I might have had rather an easy time of it, but there were too many calls for help to permit this, and, wherever I had an invitation I would go, and at least preach once. Sometimes I had to wade through swamps, sometimes to follow footpaths."

One evening of a cold winter, he had been preaching in some remote settlement on his Exeter Circuit when it had come to be late. After a hard day's work, he was told by the family with whom he had taken tea, that they could not accomodate him with a bed. he exressed his gratitude for favors already received, and started off in the night, through the woods, a perfect stranger in the region, with roads crossing in every direction, to find the house of a former acquaintance .

In 1832, Cox became the first Methodist missionary to Liberia. He died on July 21, 1833, at the age of thirty-five. Also in 1833, Corinth and Bradford were organized into a charge, part of a new circuit that also included Charleston, Hudson and Levant. However, the new charge, which boasted a membership of one hundred thirty-eight, demanded more labor than one man could supply. The first report of Sunday Schools appears this year and was comprised of four teachers and thirty scholars. Reverand J. Isaac Lord (Jeremiah March took care of th Bradford side) was later chosen as the new preacher. The circuit raised some one hundred seventy dollars, which was paid out as follows: to J. Spaulding, Presiding Elder, seventeen dollars; to J. Marsh, steward, ten dollars; and the balance to J. Lord, preacher in charge (Allen, 157). Early writers of the Church remark:

"the advance in receipts [showed] increase of strength of the membership. The receipts were meagre but were satisfactory, for though barely meeting pressing necessities, the preacher was cheered by the consciousness that it was to the extent of ability, and often out of deep poverty, that they had remembered those who had cared for their souls (Allen, 155)."

Following Rev. Lord, Mr. Ryder was the pastor for the two years, and R.C. Spaulding for the subsequent nine. During those nine years, 132 members were added to his church.

The first meeting house in Corinth was built during Rev. Dexter's pastorate, about a mile south of the village. Bertha Tiplady, one of our older members thinks it was located near the former Morison farm. Her grandmother used to walk to the meetings. In 1857, this was taken down, and rebuilt with a vestry basement, in the village.

In 1837, Rev. George Pratt pastored here, living in a parsonage on the so-called Ridge Road. Meetings were held on the east and west sides of the ridge, where an extensive revival took place. Other significant revials took place in 1848, '52, '56, and '68, adding a number of stable, promising young members to the church.

Later, a parsonage was bought two miles out on the Hudson Road, but was used only one year.

The Methodist Episcopal Church in East Corinth was built in 1837, by Nathan L. Merrill at a cost of $1500, and dedicated September, 1838. The lot was purchased from Joshua Herrick, for $85. The meeting-house on the west side of Town was raised April 30, 1845 and dedicated February 21, 1849. In 1871, it was repaired at the cost of four hundred twenty-five dollars. Palmer wrote, "Both churches are of medium size, well finished, and so cleanly kept that all must admit the fact that Methodists believe in internal purity in the sanctuary, as well as in practical life.

The bell was installed in 1880 and was characterized as being of "large size and great power". Some time later, the Memorial Windows were installed, along with hardwood pews and floor. The rear choir loft was removed and the pulpit platform extended to the right wall. These Memorial Windows, located in the sanctuary, are in the memory of the following:

The second Corinth Methodist Meeting House, located on the Skinner Settlement, is a product of the frontier revival movement of the 1830's and 1840's. It was begun in 1845 and dedicated in 1849. It is a country Greek Revival clapboard srtucture, 34' X 42', with double entry doors. Original floors and pews remain in excellent condition. The pews have a rather unusual open ended armrest in an Empire style. Matching choir lofts are placed over each entry way. The church is still heated by two large wood burning box stoves which have been in use for over a century. The only major alteration to the structure was a metal ceiling in 1899. The building was nominated and sponsored by the Honorable William Cohen for listing in the Nation Register of Historic Places in 1973. It along with the other buildings of the Skinner Settlement enjoy such distinction.

Arrangements for a parsonage were made in 1837, but efforts had failed. In 1866, Brother William H. Crawford started a subscription that eventually purchased property and built the former parsonage. "There are few charges, " adds Allen, "where a preacher can find a more comfortable home." The Methodist Hymnal Book of 1812 was in use during the early days of Methodism here in Corinth.

The first trustees were:
Chauncy Cochran
Jefferson Stevens
William Gay
William Tozier
William McLaughlin
Scolloy Baked
Charles Kitteridge
William Preble
Benjamin Haley

On April 26, 1887, Pastor Arthur J. Lockhart, on behalf of the Board of Trustees of Church Property, wrote a circular letter in order to solicite funds for the reparations needed at the parsonage, which, upon careful examination, was found in condition much to require it. A meeting of the Trustees on April 18 of that year, resolved that the reparations take place if some five hundred or more dollars could be raised. Pastor Lockhart appealed to the community's best judgement and sense of frugality in writing, "If the work is delayed the money already invested in the house is being lost, and repairs will be attended with at greater expense when made." He also makes a clear statement about the sort of prevailing attitude in the town concerning its outward appearance. He adds,"...the outward appearance of the house will add something to the general respectability of our village--which, happily, has but few blemishes in the form of decayed and dilapidated buildings." Finally, he states, "In a community like ours we have no need of appearing shabby, and certainly we do not wish to be ashamed of our public or church property."

From 1923 to 1926, Corwin Olds was pastor here, in East and West Corinth, coming from Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada, for his first ministry. During his pastorate here, one of his projects was the publication of the Corinthian Forum, in lieu of any local newspaper. He, also, was instrumental in the building of the parish house. This structure, which has since been torn down, had several rooms for Sunday School. The building also served the Boy Scouts and was the site of many suppers, etc. It was located behind, and to the west, of the former parsonage.

On December 30, 1979, Corwin Olds' grandson, born October 31, 1979, at Rockport, Maine, was baptized by Pastor Sidney Buzzell, here in the same church where Pastor Olds began his ministry and where, while here, his son was born on a corn-husk mattress at the parsonage.

Pastor Olds served churches in Maine, California and Hawaii. He also saw service as Army Chaplain in several southern states, in and around much of the South Seas and Pacific area, and in 1963 preached at the South Pole. It was at the South Pole where the son, born on the corn husk matress in East Corinth, was Executive Officer of the Antarctica Activities Command of the U.S. Navy. They were the first father and son team in history to stand at the geographic South Pole.

The son retired as a Navy Commander after twenty-one years, studied medicine and is now a practicing obstetrician and gynecologist in Camden, Maine.

Prior to 1950, the Church had been closed for several years, but when reopened, saw a large attendance and many additions to membership. The pastors in charge of the Corinth Church have often shown great creativity in their work. Sometimes, building a sense of community and spirit was achieved through a revival and more often through the efforts of its leaders. Rev. Milton Smith, who arrived in January 1954, with his wife and three sons (soon to be four as Fred was born in 1956), when both the Baptist and Methodist Churches were at a low period in their histories. He started a "Talent" program, based on Christ's parables. In recent correspondence with Rev. Smith, he explained how the program worked. He writes, "...we gave out silver dollars. The money received enabled us to renovate the church inside and out, purchase the hanging dorcal cloth, and Hammond organ, and other things. It did a lot to build the spirit of the Church Family."

Rev. Milton Smith, who began and ended his formal ministry in Corinth, the church physical plant had much changed in the time that had lapsed between his two stays. During his second stay, in purchasing the Sally property the church increased parking, gained thirty-six acreas of land, built a new parsonage and sold the old. He notes also that the church community had changed very little (except for the public school growth--certainly due to the change in its structure when it became Central High in 1970). He says it felt like 'home'.

One of the major changes to which Rev. Smith referred in his letter was the construction and dedication (on August 21, 1964) of the Church Fellowship Hall, officially known as the Eliza Ford Morison Memorial Annex. It was to be used in the community for various functions as needed. It included flush toilets, excellent kitchen area, and educational rooms. The money for its construction was donated by Abner Morison, a Corinth resident for many years, in memory of his mother, who attended this church. Leah M. Brown, in some of her remarks given at the dedication service, states that Mr. Morison was a very giving man in many ways. In fact, she adds, "several of Corinth's citizens had their various deformities corrected at the Shriner's Hospital" thanks to his generosity. Later an adjoining office and lounge was added to the Fellowship Hall. In 1975, the parsonagee was renovated and a double garage utility room attached.

In 1984, A Schulmerich "Magnebell" II Bell Carillon Instrument, a the cost of $3045, arrived from Sellersville, Pennsylvania and was installed in the Church. Rev. Clark Osborn was at the head of our church at that time.

The Methodist Church has long been home to many other organizations. One such social organization connected to the church was known as a "sewing society". It was principally managed by the ladies of the Church. It held weekly meetings in which all could participate and where a "woman's industry and work" benefited the church and contributed to the general social enjoyment.

There exists also a Methodist Youth Fellowship group, whose motto is, "Christ above all". According to Marion (Sweet) Wilson's membership card, signed by Mrs. Mclaughlin, the group's leader and Rev. Donald Rohrcaste in 1962, the group had a strong covenant which read as follows: It is our purpose in the Methodist Youth Fellowship: To live clean lives following the highest that we know; To give our loyalty and service through The Methodist Church of which we are a part, working with others that she may more peacefully follow the Master and more worthily bless mankind; To hold the ideals of unselfish service ever before us, striving continually for human betterment, placing the welfare of others above our own; And in simple trust, to follow Jesus as our Saviour and Lord.

Much more could be written about the Sunday School teachers, musical leaders, the Couple's Club, the Strawberry festival, and the United Methodist Women.

Click here to see a more complete list of former Pastors

Sources

1. Allen, Rev. Stephen, D.D. and Rev. W.H. Pilsbury. History of Methodism in Maine 1793-1886. Augusta, Maine: Press of Charles E. Nash, 1887. pp. 155-158. (Bangor Public Library)
2. Brown, Leah M. Remarks -- Dedication of Church Annex, August 21, 1964. (available at the United Methodist Church office)
3. Lockhart, Pastor Arthur J. Circular Letter, dated April 26, 1887. (available at the United Methodist Church office)
4. Palmer, Mason Skinner. Early Gleanings and Randomn Recollections of the Town of Corinth, Maine, from 1792 to 1883. Bangor, ME: Whig and Courier Press, 1883. (Atkins Memorial Library, Corinth)
5. Trask, Evelyn. History of the East Corinth United Methodist Church. (loose leaf) available at the United Methodist Church office.
6. Correspondence dated 12 November 1998 between Rev. Milton Smith, residing in Tilton, New Hampshire, and James R. Wilson of Corinth.
7. National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form. United States Department of the Interior and National Park Service. Entered June 4, 1973, Hon. William Cohen sponsor.