The early Baptists of Philadelphia

Front matter

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Spencer 7 David,

Contents

CHAPTER I. — 1684 — 1690. — Philadelphia Founded. — Religious Liberty.— Welsh Parentage. — Origin of Baptists. — John Holme Purchases Land. — Rev. Thomas Dungan. — Cold Spring Church. — Bucks and Philadelphia Counties. — William Penn and Thomas Dungan. — An English Baptist. — A Celebrated Spring. — Persecution in Wales. — Settlement at Pennypack. — An Indian Deed. — Meaning of Pennypack.

— Rev. Elias Reach. — The First Baptism. — Lower Dublin Church Constituted. — Change of Calendar. — Quarterly Meetings. — Conference Meetings. — Decease of Rev. Thomas Dungan, — Rev. John Watts. . 17

CHAPTER II. — 1691-1700. — Keithians. — Baptists and Liberty of Conscience— Rev. Thomas Killingsworth. — William Davis. — Preaching at Cold Spring. — A Catechism and Confession of Faith. — Quaker

Preface

This work, on the Early Baptists of Philadelphia, does not claim to exhaust all that might be said about them, nor does it profess to be infallible on every point. The material for it has been collected and prepared amidst the pressing duties of pastoral and other denominational work, and it is presented to the public in this form, in the hope that, at no very distant day, an abler pen may do more ample justice to the memory and work of the men who in the past have rendered such valuable service to the cause of truth in these parts of our great and growing country.

In publishing a few of the earlier chapters in the National Baptist the following incident was given : —

In an old Welsh Bible belonging to the Lower Dublin Baptist Church of this city (now in the collection of the American Baptist Historical Society), printed in London, in 1678, is the following record ; —

Sarah, daughter of Peter Davies, Baptist minister, Dolau, Radnorshire, South Wales, came over and settled in Penepec, in the year 1680, and through her letters, induced to follow her, George Eaton, John Eaton and Jane Eaton, together with Samuel Jones, a preacher in Dolau, and they were amongst those who founded the church in Penepec, in 1688. This Bible was brought over by them and has been preserved ever since in the Penepec Church, now called Lower Dublin. May God continue to bless and prosper this dear old church.

October 12th, i86g. Thomas Price, Aberdare, Wales.

Dr. Price made the above entry, while on a visit to this country in 1869. Meeting with it at Lower Dublin, and wishing to determine the correctness of it, Dr. Price was written to for his authority. He replied promptly, and sent very full notes from a lecture prepared with great care for the Welsh in America. He says, ‘‘ I was then

PREFACE.

(1869) assisted as to dates by the late Rev. William Roberts, L.L.D., the first pastor of Rev. P. L. Davies, of New York. Dr. Roberts had spent a life-time in gathering together material for a Baptist History, but I regret that he is now dead, and I fear that his great labors, to a large extent, will be lost. I am not able now to give you documentary proof of any date, but I had implicit confidence in him.”

A thorough examination into the above, warrants the statement, that it is entirely without foundation, and therefore it is expunged from the body of this work.

Praying the blessing of heaven upon this humble contribution to the historical literature of our honored denomination, it is sent forth upon its mission of interest to those who may peruse its pages.

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Early Baptists of Philadelphia.

PHILADELPHIA FOUNDED.— RELIGIOUS LIBERTY— WELSH PARENTAGE. —ORIGIN OF BAPTISTS— JOHN HOLME PURCHASES LAND.— REV. THOMAS DUNGAN,— COLD SPRING CHURCH.— BUCKS AND PHILA- DELPHIA COUNTIES.— WILLIAM PENN AND THOMAS DUNGAN.— AN ENGLISH BAPTIST.— A CELEBRATED SPRING.— PERSECUTION IN WALES.— SETTLEMENT AT PENNYPACK.— AN INDIAN DEED.— MEAN- ING OF PENNYPACK.— REV. ELIAS KEACH.— THE FIRST BAPTISM.— LOWER DUBLIN CHURCH CONSTITUTED.— CHANGE OF CALENDER.— QUARTERLY MEETINGS.— CONFERENCE MEETINGS.— DECEASE OF REV. THOMAS DUNGAN.— REV. JOHN WATTS.

UCH that is exceedingly interesting clusters around the early history of the Baptists of Philadelphia, coeval as it is with that of the city itself. William Penn received the charter of Pennsylvania March 14th, 1681. He did not, however, reach the site now occupied by the city until the early part of November, 1682. An old record of a meeting held at Shackamaxon, on the 8th of November, says : “At this time Governor Penn and a number of Friends arrived here, and erected a city called Philadelphia, about half a mile from Shackamaxon.”

The frame of Government as established, was in the main on the broad platform of Religious Liberty. The thirty -fifth law of the statutes as agreed upon May 5th, 1682, declared “That all persons living in this Province, who confess and acknowledge the Almighty and Eternal God to be the Creator, upholder and ruler of the world, and

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EARLY BAPTISTS OF PHILADELPHIA.

that hold themselves obliged in conscience to live peaceably and justly in civil society, shall in no ways be molested or prejudiced for their religious persuasion or practice in matters of faith and worship, nor shall they be compelled at any time to frequent or maintain any religious worship, place or ministry whatever.”

The Welsh Baptist historian (J. Davis) claims that “Wales is to be considered as the parent of the Baptist denomination in Pennsylvania.”

The question is sometimes asked, where did the Baptists start from? Those who know no better say from Roger Williams, in Rhode Island. Philadelphia Baptists trace their origin to Wales, and the Welsh Baptists have traced their history back to A. d. 63. From that date to Christ in Palestine, it is not difficult to track out the New Testament doctrines and practices which still distinguish us as the followers of Jesus.

Between Penn’s reception of the charter and his arrival in Philadelphia, the sale of land had commenced. In his letter to Philip Ford, dated May 22d, 1682, the name of John Holme is given as one of the first purchasers of land in this city. It is not improbable that he is the same man of whom Morgan Edwards says, “In the year 1686, one John Holmes, who was a Baptist, arrived and settled in the neighborhood.” He was the ancestor of the Flolme family, for many years associated with the Holmesburg Baptist Church of this city, and of Rev. J. Stanford Holme, D. D., of New York.

Rev. Thomas Dungan was the fir^t Baptist minister who located in these parts. He came with a colony from Rhode Island, where he had been a member of the First Baptist Church of Newport, and settled, in 1684, at Cold Spring, in Bucks county, about three miles north of Bristol. Here he founded a Baptist church — the first one west of New Engf.

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