THE HISTORIOGRAPHER of

THE NATIONAL EPI SCOPAL H ISTORI ANS AND ARCHIVISTS and

THE HISTORICAL SOCI ETY OF THE EPI SCOPAL CHURCH published to promote the preserving of church records and their writing of parochial and diocesan history

December 2009/January 2010 Vol. XLVll No.3

Editor: Deborah B. Crall, Diocese of New Jersey, 808 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08618 Email: TheHistoriographer@gmail.com

CONTENTS Historiographer in the Diocese of Forth Worth Diocese of New Jersey and the Great Depression 3 - 6

HSEC Grants 8

Tri-History Con­ference 7

By David Leedy

On 8 November 2008, the bishop and several other diocesan leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth voted to leave the Episcopal Church. On 7 February 2009, a convention to reorganize the diocese was called by

�------� Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori. The Right Reverend Edwin F. "Ted" Gulick, Jr. of the Diocese of Kentucky was elected as provisional bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth. I was elected historiographer.

My first responsibility was to learn exactly what a historiog­rapher is and does, as I am an accountant by profession. For this education, I turned to Mark Duffy, head of the National Archives of the Episcopal Church, Barbara Turner, Histori­ographer of the Diocese of Dallas, and Carol Roszell, Arch i­vist for the Central Texas Conference of the United Method­ist Church at Texas Wesleyan University. Subsequently I have been helped in my education by many historiographers and archivists in a variety of dioceses, seminaries, and li­

braries.

Those leaving the Episcopal Church have kept control of much Episcopal Church property and other assets, including the archives of the diocese. That is now the subject of litiga­tion. The result was that on 7 February, the Diocese of Fort Worth had no access to our archives. Since we do not know how long the litigation may take or what shape the archives may be in when we recover our property, we decided to

create an additional archive by combing through the ar­chives of the Diocese of Dallas, as we were divided from Dallas in 1982, and through solicitation of Episcopalians remaining in the Church. As of December, we have accu-

mulated a library of more than seventy publications regard­ing the history of the Church, the Church in Texas, dioceses, and parishes; all made available through three small finan­cial gifts as well as donations from a number of individuals and institutions.

One of my many adventures in the acquisition of publica­tions involved the history of Holy Comforter in Cleburne, Texas. This church was one of the first Episcopal churches in North Texas and celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary in 1971 by publishing a history authored by its rector. For nine months we have been monitoring on-line book sellers and a number of people in the diocese, including a former rector of that parish, were looking for the book. Finally, out

Mr. David Leedy (left) and the Rt. Rev. C. Wallis Ohl

(right) at the Archive Exhibit during the convention of the

Diocese ofFort Worth on 14 November 2009. Bishop Ohl

is the retired bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Northwest

Texas and second provisional bishop of the Episcopal Dio-

cese of Fort Worth. Photo courtesy David Leedy.

Continued on page 2

NATIONAL EPISCOPAL HISTORIANS AND ARCHIVISTS

509 Yale Avenue Swarthmore, PA 19081

Phone/Fax 6 10-544-1886 E-mail: nehahqs@aol.com

www.episcopalhistorians.org

The Rev. Christopher M. Agnew President 12433 Richards Ride King George, VA 22485 540-775-6245

Ms. Susan Witt Vice-President 31 Central Avenue

Hamburg, NY 14075 716-881-0660

Ms. Barbara S. Turner Secretary 5 l 19 Horseshoe T rai I Dallas, TX 75209-3324 214-366-4436

Ms. Sarah Hockings Treasurer 200 Library Place Princeton, NJ 08540 609-921-6284

Ms. Elizabeth E. Allison 18 First Street Vergennes, VT 05491 802-877-3895

The Rev. Philip Ayers 3232 NE 12th Avenue Portland, OR 97212 503-281-9610

Ms. Susan Rehkopf Diocese of Missouri l 210 Locust Street St. Louis, MO 63103 314-231-1220

The Rev. Bindy Snyder 539 Cherry Road Memphis, TN 38117 90 l -682-0438

Ms. Mamre Marsh Wilson 302 Moore Street Beaufort, NC 28516 252-728-5442

HI STORICAL SOCI ETY OF THE EPI SCOPAL CHURCH

Ms. Susan Ann Johnson, Director of Operations PO Box 1749

Harlingen, TX 78551 Phone: 866-989-585 1

Fax: 956-412-8780 E-mail: administrator@hsec.us

www.hsec.us

Dr. Frederica Harris Thompsett President 104 Hamlin Avenue Falmouth, MA 02540 508-495-0273

The Rev. Dr. Robe1i W. Pritchard 1st Vice-President 3737 Seminary Road Alexandria, VA 22304 703-461-1737

The Rt. Rev. Carol Gallagher 2nd Vice-President revcjg@aol.com

The Rev. Or. N. Brooks Graebner

Secretary St. Matthew's Episcopal Church PO Box 628

Hillsborough, NC 27278 212-325-7647

Mr. George Defilippi Treasurer 3417 Barger Drive Falls Church, VA 22044 516-785-5807

Dr. Edward Bond Editor, Anglican and Episcopal History 902 State Street Natchez, MS 39120 60 l-445-9366

The Rev. Dr. Alfred Moss

Chairman, African American Historical Collection Committee 1500 N. Lancaster Street Arlington, VA 22205 301-405-4317

2

Diocese of Forth Worth, Continuedfrompage I

of frustration, we "googled" the author's name and found him on the staff of an East Texc;ts church. He had one pristine, bound copy left, which he sent to us along with a bulletin from that centennial service. The book is now residing in our History Library in an acid free packet.

From the archives of the Diocese of Dallas, we obtained cop­ies of items such as news articles, correspondence, and peti­tions for nineteen separate parishes and missions. From vari­ous other sources, we have obtained pamphlets, booklets and books for the history of nine parishes and missions. We have a large quantity of copies of newspaper articles and other materials regarding past bishops and events both in the Dio­cese of Dallas and in the Diocese of Fort Worth. We have made copies of all but a few diocesan convention journals and will obtain the remainder this year. We have a copy of the journal of the convention of the Diocese of Dallas, in which Fort Worth was divided, several national convention journals, and we purchased on E-bay the journals of the Con­vocations of the Missionary District of Northern Texas for 1882 to 1891. We have collected material for the eventsheld in 2009, including the service bulletin and articles regarding the first woman ordained in the diocese on 15 November.

We have a number of projects started or about to be started for 20 l 0 including several investigative projects, a project to archive photographs in the parishes, and a project to create an educational resource for the Episcopal Church history both nationally, in Texas, and in the area which is now the Diocese of Fort Worth, which will be made available to parishes and other organizations.

The Diocese of Fort Worth is open for business.

David Leedy, Historiographer Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth

The Episcopal Church djleedy@sbcglobal.net

Editor's Note: The editor apologizes for the tardiness of the current issue. The delay was due, in part, to relocating to Arizona from New Jersey. Please note that future issues of The Historiographer will be mailed from Trinity Cathedral in Phoenix, Arizona. Thank you for your patience.

Correction: In Volume XLVII, No. 2, the caption under­neath the photo on page 10, column 2 incorrectly identified the Historiographer of the Episcopal Church, the caption should read "Historiographer J. Robert Wright giving his report."

The Diocese of New Jersey and the Great Depression

Researched and Compiled by hands, the meager pension due our beneficiaries. This he has consented to do, and the beneficiaries have been paid. The Rev. Canon Laurence D. Fish

The Rt. Rev. Paul Matthews (1866-1954), Fifth Bishop of New Jersey

( 1915-193 7). Photo courtesy Ar­chives, Diocese of New Jersey. ��������������

The financial problems that face our nation and the Diocese of New Jer­sey today are hauntingly akin to what the nation and diocese faced in the Great Depression. Here is an overview of those problems, from 1932 to 1935. The Right Rever­end Paul Matthews was Bishop of New Jersey duringthis period.

Evidently it took some time for the fiscal woes of the country to trickle down to the church. The various Tables in the Journal show decreased

income from most churches but, because Bishop Matthews risked everything to get approval of his hoped-for Cathedral, he did not so much as mention financial problems in his 193 1 address! The fifth paragraph of his lengthy 193 1 Address began: "It would be a matter of considerable embarrassment to me if you were disposed to the latter course," that course being fo reject plans for the Cathedral.

1932

The first inkling of trouble is found in Bishop Matthew' s Convention Address of 1932. The pertinent text of the 1932 Address follows: [As you will read, Bishop Matthews was not without humor. ]

The Diocese has had its own severe financial trial. Ow­ing to the closing of the Burlington City Loan & Trust Company, which was the depository of our Diocesan Trust funds, we have suffered a heavy loss.

Under existing Canons of the Convention, the Aged and Infirm Clergy fund and the Widows' and Orphans' Fund is accumulated for a whole year before appropriations are made from this so-called available fund. This income was deposited in the banking department of the Burling­ton Bank, and became subject to the conditions of ordi­nary deposits. This has meant that none of this fund was available for use, and it will mean a probable heavy loss when depositors are finally paid in part.

To meet this condition, I asked the Treasurer of the Dio­cese to pay, out of the funds of the Convention in his

3

If I did wrong in this, it is your privilege to say so and to administer the proper discipline, which, I presume, should be decapitation; but I hope that if I have exceeded my au­thority in giving such counsel to our Treasurer the punish­ment will fall upon me, who is to blame, and not upon the faithful Treasurer who has stood like a rock on a troubled shore, breaking every assault of a raging sea into harmless foam . . .

I n the meanwhile, the Trust Funds of the Diocese are still as secure as they were. The securities have been placed in the hands of the Trenton Trust Company, and arrangements have been made whereby the income as well as the princi­pal corpus of each fund shall be kept in the trust Depart­ment of that Institution.

This situation, which came as a great shock to us, points the way for a reorganization of our Diocesan Financial System.

The matter was taken up by the last Convention after sev­eral recommendations on my part, and a committee "to consider the advisability of combining the various Endow­ment and Trust Funds" was appointed. We shall have from that Committee and from the Cathedral Foundation some very definite proposals which I hope will receive careful and favourable consideration.

Such a simplification and combination will involve some Canonical changes and the Committee on Canons has been asked to prepare this matter for our consideration.

1933

The I 933 Convention Address was a good deal stronger in tone and a lot more space was given to the financial situation. In addition to the Cathedral plans, the 1934 General Convention, to convene in Atlantic City, was a concern.

Bishop Matthews' Address

My dear Brethren:

This year has been, for a multitude of people, the hardest of their lives. For three years and a half they have been pa­tiently and quietly enduring an ever-increasing money stringency, a stoppage of business, and calamity prices for commodities that have meant the severest hardships and positive want for a lqrge number of people. Multitudes, whose only desire is to work and produce, have been face to ace with a growing unemployment. Great financial val­ues have shrunk to insignificance. Large fortunes have disappeared.

It is an amazing thing that through all this period of trial

Continued on page 4

NJ and the Great Depression, Continued from page 3

the people of the United States have behaved with a pa­tience, restraint, and good nature that has turned a trial into a triumph, and a catastrophe into a conquest. Facing war conditions, the men and women of America have found a war spirit. Quietly, and uncomplainingly, almost with gai­ety, they have faced a foe the more deadly because invisi­ble, intangible, sweeping upon them with unseen forces

and from unexpected directions.

It has been a trial that has proved a test of character, and has discovered to us unthought-of depths of faith and cour­age. There have been no labour troubles of any moment; the most significant of any have been the farmers' protests, in most cases a passive resistance against mortgage en­forcements, and only rarely joined with violence, and much kindness, sympathy, and most substantial help have

emerged.

The Church, I think, has suffered less financially than the larger part of organized business, and in spiritual and moral force I believe the Church has been strengthened. Congre­gations have been more closely knit in the consciousness of a common need and of a wide appeal for sympathy and by the conviction that the grace of God appears the greater and the stronger and the more satisfying as the sense of our own impotence is borne in upon us by the stress and strug­gle of the world around.

Number

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

Total

4

vidious for me to do so, but a reduction in Diocesan ex­

penses seems eminently desirable at this time.)

The immediate cause for this condition, locally, is the disastrous failure of the 'Burlington City Loan & Trust Company, which was the custodian of our Diocesan Trust Funds. While the actual securities are intact, it was found that a large amount of our Diocesan money was in insecure investments, and a considerable sum is in de­fault.

In addition to this, some of the parishes, in fact a large number, are heavily in arrears in their payments on their Diocesan assessments. Some of these arrearages are of several years' standing. ·

We have a poorly worded and somewhat ambiguous Canon which provides that a Parish which is in such arrears for 'two years or more shall lose its lay represen­tation in this Convention. This Canon should be made more stringent, I believe, and apply to any delinquency, so that no parish could be represented here which was in arrears at all. And further, to really produce results,

something should be added to the Canon to deprive the

rectors of delinquent parishes from seats and votes. I say

this because I have been driven to the belief that both in

Missionary Apportionments and Diocesan Assessments

failure is due more to indifference and neglect on the

part of the clergy than to the unwillingness of the laity to

meet their obligations.

Amount

$1,394.40

1,236.96

747.31

688.38

682.60

6 1 1.25

567.27

532.78

532.49

463.95

452.62

450.45

$8,360.46

Continued on page 5

NJ and the Great Depression, Continued/rampage 4

There are some sixty parishes in arrears for the years 1930-3 1 and 1932, and of course for this years as well. In addition, some forty others are in arrear for this year, no payment having been made since January first.

This means that 100 parishes owe money to the Diocese. A good part of this year's assessment will undoubtedly be paid, and probably much of it has already been paid, but the unpaid assessments for this current year were reported to me very recently as being nearly $12,000. It is rather discouraging to grant the appeal of a hard­pressed congregation to have their arrearages wiped out and charged off, and then with their promise to do better in the future, have them fail to keep their word and pay their current indebtedness to the Diocese.

One parish was forgiven a debt of $ 1,500, but has not paid this year its quarterly assessment of $56. Another was forgiven a debt of $500, and has not paid its $25 quarterly assessment this year. Another parish, largely endowed, owes the Diocese $985, with no prospect of payment.

The Treasurer reports an aggregate of $ 16,576.57 owing on assessments, of which $9,698.29 is due for Pension premiums.

In addition to this, the Board of Adjustment has charged off nearly $3,500 this year. l believe that at least ari' equal amount might be charged off for equally good rea­sons, but I am not in favor of such a course of general

amnesty. I think it is time that our parishes generally

should be held to a stricter account. It is not just or fair

that the parishes which do pay should bear the burden

any longer; nor is it right that the clergy whose parishes

are so delinquent in their Pension premium payments

should be kept on a sort of charity list. Such a condition cannot continue. It is not surprising that our Diocesan Treasury is depleted, and the Treasurer will hardly be able to pay the next quarterly installment due for pen­sions.

We have had a fine system, now operating for years in this Diocese, of paying the Pension premiums by the Diocese itself, the money being raised by assessments on the parishes, and of course this has amounted to a guar­antee that all the premiums would be paid. The system now breaks down, by the default of so many parishes, and if it seems that it must be abandoned at once, the duty of paying the premiums must be laid upon each parish individually and directly.

Some of the clergy will, 1 fear, suffer some hardship if this has to be done, and, of course, one objection which naturally rises to such a course is that the premiums for

5

the Missionary clergy and for the Diocesan officers would

have to be met from the Missionary treasury, thus increas­ing the Missionary quota by the amount needed for such purposes. It would add, I think, approximately $3,000 to the apportionment.

1934

The 1934 Convention Address continued in a bleak mode. However, Bishop Matthews was heartened by a move made by some Southern Ohio laymen. It makes interesting reading to­day!

Bishop Matthews on the Financial Situation

We are all appalled at the deficit which faces the National Council, and the results which may follow. A half million dollar deficit at the close of the year just ended, and an­other similar deficit for the current year would of necessity mean not only no forward steps, but also the cutting off of many important and apparently vital parts of the present programme. I believe that this deficit is due to causes be­yond the control of the National Council and its existence cannot be considered in any real sense their responsibility.

The deficit is due partly to the shrinking of values in in­vested funds and in legacies, and also in a very large meas­ure to the fact that the Diocese failed to pay the amount which the National Council was assured they would pay. This lapse amounts to something over $ 125,000, about one-quarter of the entire deficit for the year.

This failure to meet the amount definitely undertaken is a matter of grave concern. It does seem to me that an official notification from the Diocese of what they expect to pay amounts to an obligation of honour. I am thankful to say that New Jersey paid, and slightly overpaid, this "expectation."

It seems a strange thing that the National Council should have in its elected membership representatives of some Dioceses which have most woefully failed to meet their engagements.

A ray of hope appears in the movement started by the lay­men of Southern Ohio, under the leadership of Mr. Charles P. Taft, for an Everyman 's Offering, to enable the National Council to hold the line and balance the budget. 1 hope that New Jersey laymen may be moved to undertake their share in this volunteer task, and to shoulder a real and definite part of this burden.

Bishop Matthews on Diocesan Finances

We have our own troubles in the Diocese. There has been a great shrinkage in values in invested funds, and I fear a total loss of considerable amounts. This has affected our Episcopal fund for the payment of Episcopal salaries, a

NJ and the Great Depression, Continued/rampage 5

number of the funds belonging to Parochial endowments, and also the graver loss and depletion of income in the Aged and Infirm Clergy fund and the Widows' and Or­phans' Fund.

To make the situation critical, we have delinquencies in payment of assessments on the parishes which amount to the formidable total of $20,222.40. Some of these arrears seem to me to be unavoidable and due to causes quite be­yond the control of the parishes involved, but on the other

hand I believe that some of it is avoidable.

It points the gravity of the situation that the Finance Com­mittee could not recommend any appropriation for the ex­penses of entertaining delegates to this Diocesan Conven­tion, and as a consequence the custom of years has been abandoned, and you will have to pay all your own ex­penses, including luncheons and the Fellowship Dinner.

It is, of course, a much greater concern to me that the wid­ows of the clergy received only a fraction of the already pitifully meager sum hitherto appropriated for them. Forty­five dollars, l believe, was the total grant for the past year. It makes my heart ache to think of it. One lady, whose means perhaps barely made the sacrifice possible, has re­turned to the Diocese the amount recently sent her, as she felt that by doing so she could help to augment the pay­ment to those poorer than she is. I give her your grateful thanks for her generosity, but I am rather ashamed in doing

so!

The widow of one of our clergymen who has recently died, and whose pension premiums had not been paid owing to a long period of enforced inactivity, has been notified by the Church Pension Fund that her annual pension will be thirty-nine dollars. I am far from faulting the Church Pen­sion fund. I am sure this great enterprise is a wonderful benefit to the Church, and is being managed in a very hu­man way. I did not expect that this lady would receive any­thing from that source. It is a surprise to me that she is go­ing to get nearly forty dollars. But that is what her assured income is, and that is all of it.

Our Pension payments are so seriously affected by these arrears that some drastic action is forced upon our Finance Committee. It begins to look as though the Diocese would

find it impossible to "carry" much longer, if at all, clergy­men whose parishes are in arrears. The Diocese has suf­fered for years from delinquencies, and it has come to the end, not of its patience, but of its resources. It can no longer pay for parishes which are unable or unwilling to meet their obligations to the Diocese.

More than gratitude is due to the unremitting and skillful attention given to the financial affairs of the Diocese by

6

our Finance Committee and by the Trustees of our Di­ocesan funds. The present Trustees were elected when things were at their worst, and they have been doing, for

'

the past two years or more, a work for the Diocese which I can best describe as a salvage job.

We have on our Finance Committee busy and distin­guished men, whose time is valuable. They have given largely of their time, and unsparingly of their expert knowledge to the service of the Diocese. They have been holding monthly meetings. The day of perfunctory per­formance has passed, and we are now having personal service.

In conjunction with the almost heartbreaking work of our Finance Committee, I am more than glad to recognize publicly the constant and unremitting labour of the As­sistant Treasurer of the Diocese, Mr. William F. Stroud. He is effective, expert, and unsparing. He gives to his work his whole self, and my feeling is that he has worked altogether too hard. I doubt very much whether the N.R.A. would approve of it. However, he is an ex­ecutive and so can give eighteen hours a day to his task, if he wants to. And he often does.

I think the least you can do to show your appreciation of his work for the Diocese is to elect him to some addi­tional office!

1935

From 1 930 until 1 934, the losses looked like this:

TOTAL RECEIPTS (1930-1935) Diocese of New Jersey

Year Amount

1930 $1, 198,968*

1931 $1 ,11 5,0[6

1932 $935,516

1933 $799,1 82

1934 $847,308

1935 $924,205

*approximately $15,000,000 in 2007 dollars $8,360.46

The percentage of loss from the high of 1 930 to the low of 1 933 was just over 34 percent.

The 1 935 convention Address mentions nothing about finan­cial distress as it appears the distress is over.

The Rev. Canon Laurence D. Fish Archivist of the Diocese of New Jersey

lfish@newjersey. ang!ican. org

Tri-History Conference: Raleigh, NC Monday, June 21 - Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Registration Form

Name(s)

Address

NOTE: The last postmark deadline for this registration form is lune 1, 2010

City, State & Zip Code _____________________________ _

E-mail Address -------------------------------­

Phone Number--------------------------------

Fee No. of people Total

Full registration fee per person if postmarked by $100.00 x =

Aprill

Full registration fee per person if postmarked by $130.00 x =

June l

Pauli Murray Bus Tour-Wednesday afternoon $35.00 x =

June 21: l day only-Monday evening Service & $25.00 x =

Reception

June 22: l day only-Tuesday all day, Tour & $75.00 x =

Banquet

June 22: l day only-Tuesday late afternoon, Tour & $40.00 x =

Banquet

June 23: l day only-Wednesday morning + lunch $40.00 x =

TOT AL ENCLOSED $

Please make check payable to:

EPISCOPAL DIOCESE OF NORTH CAROLINA (note "Tri-History Conference" in memo line on check)

Please mail completed form and check to:

Lynn Hoke, Arrangements Coordinator

Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina

200 West Morgan, Suite 300

Raleigh, NC 27601

Email: lynnhoke@bellsouth.net Phone: 919-602-4305

HOTEL: Reserve 'Tri-History Conference" room directly with Clarion Hotel at 919-832-0501 or l -800-

4CHOICE

Please advise us of any dietary or physical needs along with this form.

For more information see: www.trihistory.org/index.html

7

HSEC Grants

The Historical Society of the Episcopal Church invites ap­plications from both individual scholars and academic and ecclesiastical groups for grants to support significant re­search, conferences, and publications relating to the history of the Church of England, the Anglican communion world­wide, and the Anglican and Episcopal churches in North America. These grants are usually modest in amount: $ 1,000 to $2,000 generally, though more or less may be awarded depending on the number of awards given and the amounts of funds actually available in any particular year. Typical grants would include travel to collections or re­sources, dissertation research, and seed money for larger projects.

Applications must include:

I - a description of the project and an explanation of its importance - this must be double-spaced and may not ex­ceed two pages

2 - a bibliography of the project, no more than a single page

3 - a concise curriculum vitae

4 - a projected budget and the specific amount being re­quested; if this is less than the total budget, it must be made

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clear how a small grant would help and what other re­sources are available or being pursued

5 - at least two letters of recommendation (in the case of graduate students, we expect that one of those letters will be from the project's main supervising professor)

6 - a sample of scholarly writing (an article, essay, or chap­ter of approximately twenty pages)

Applications must be submitted by I May 20 10. Applica­tions should be sent to:

The Rev. Craig D. Townsend Historical Society Grants and Research Committee St. James' Church 865 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10021

Applications may also be sent via email to:

ctownsend@stjames.org

Grants will be awarded in July 20 I 0. It is expected that win­ners will make an appropriate submission to Anglican and

Episcopal History.

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