Concord Township.

been the scene of many incidents connected with the family history of the old families of Concord and surrounding townships which will ever render it a place of interest and considerate care.

St. John's Episcopal Church. - The first mention of an Episcopalian Church at Concord occurs in the letter of Rev. Evan Evans, dated London, Sept. 18, 1707, on "the state of the church in Pennsylvania, most humbly offered to the venerable Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." Rev. Mr. Evans, in 1700, was sent to Philadelphia by Bishop Compton, the then Bishop of London, to aid by his ministry and teachings the infant Christ Church, the congregation of which, in 1696, had erected a place of worship in the "Great town" in the colony. This missionary gave glowing accounts of the growth of the doctrines of the Church of England among the people of the province, and in order to show how deeply the seed he had sown had taken root, records, "And the true religion (by the frequent resort of persons from remote parts to Philadelphia) did so spread, and the number of converts did so increase that I was obliged to divide myself among them as often and as equally as I could, till they were formed into proper districts, and had ministers sent over to them by the venerable society. For this reason I went frequently to Chichester, which is twenty-five miles; Chester or Upland, twenty; Maidenhead, forty (where I baptized 19 children at one time); Concord, twenty; Evesham, in West Jersey, fifteen; Montgomery, twenty; and Radnor, fifteen miles distant from Philadelphia. All which, though equally fatiguing and expensive, I frequently went to and preached, being by all means determined to lose none of those I have gained, but rather add to them till the society otherwise provided for them."

In the same letter Mr. Evans states, "Our winters, being severe in these parts, detain many from church whose plantations lie at a distance, and for that reason Mr. Nicholas preached sometimes at Concord in the week-days."¹

The first St. Paul's Church at Chester was built in 1702, and on Sunday, Jan. 24, 1703 (new style), it was opened for public worship. In 1704, Rev. Henry Nichols was assigned by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts as missionary in charge of St. Paul's parish, then including Marcus Hook and Concord; hence the week-day services mentioned by Mr. Evans must have been held in that year, certainly prior to 1707. On March 17, 1682/3, Jeremiah (or, as he is usually termed in the early records "Jeremy") Collet, an earnest Episcopalian, entered on rent two hundred acres of land in Concord, and on March 1, 1686, conveyed the property to John Hannum (who settled in Concord about that time, certainly within two years thereafter), an ardent churchman, who is alluded to by Rev. Mr. Ross in his report to the society, June 25, 1714, in which he furnished "an account of the Building of St. Paul's at Chester," as among the "Parishers who were chief helpers to carry on the work." In 1702, John Hannum gave a lot of ground at the northwest corner of his tract on which to erect a church, and doubtless a log building was located thereon about that year. A tradition prevails that long previous to this date the Swedes were accustomed to hold divine service in Concord. A similar tradition maintained until within recent years that the early Swedish settlers had a church at Chester on the site of the old St. Paul's; but careful investigation has so fully demonstrated the error of this statement that it is no longer an open question. Indeed, previous to Penn coming it is extremely doubtful whether a Swedish person ever saw the territory now Concord township. The tradition originated in the fact that often for months together no clergyman of the Church of England could be procured to preach in these remote settlements. And as late as 1751, Rev. Israel Acrelius records that the Swedish pastor in charge of the Lutheran Church at Christina was frequently requested to preach in the Episcopal Churches, "as otherwise their (the parishioners') children would become unchristened heathens or Quakers, their churches would be changed into stables alongside of Quaker meeting-houses. They praised Mr. Tranberg as a warm-hearted man, who had always assisted them. The Provost, therefore, took some time to see whether it was possible to please everybody. He preached once a month in all these places. He was at Christina every Sunday, but on week-days and saints' days in the others. That became the rule, and at first was all right, but afterwards each congregation wanted preaching on a Sunday. So there were also added the churches at Concord and Marcus Hook, which presented the same request; and then there were not as many Sundays in the month as there were congregations to serve, and so Christina would always have been vacant. The good old Swedes now began to murmur, partly at the minister, and partly at the English, who wished to have him with them and never once paid his expenses of travel."² Hence, while the names of several Swedish ministers appear among the list of pastors of St. Paul's, St. Martin's and St. John's Churches, they were there merely to fill a vacancy, and were never regularly ordained rectors of St. Paul's parish, which included until 1835 St. John's Church in Concord.

Ralph Pyle, of Concord, who was a liberal contributor to the first church of St. Paul's, at Chester, in his will, dated Jan. 1, 1739, and proved Sept. 1, 1741, provided:

"Item. I give twenty pounds, that is to say, the Interest of the said money, for the use of a minister of the Church of England, to preach three sermons yearly in the Township of Concord, that is to say, the