St. Bartholo
I I
ew’s
Feu churches iii .\orlh Carolina
are richer in historical associa¬
tion Ilian is this lialloutMl struc¬
ture in Chatham County.
ft if HARRY
/.
TCCKF.lt
II J I.B tin- record* of the bis¬
tory of St. Bartholomew's
Olmreh at Pitt
Лого
go back
to colonial «lay# — ninl wo love the
heritage that is our.*— all the empha¬
sis is not to l»o laid on the past. The
organization has just finished a com¬
plete restoration of the old church, and
the restoration of the cemetery is to
follow.
Visitor* to this lovely little Epis¬
copal church — tourists, newspaper
and magazine writers and others — are
of one acclaim. St. Bartholomew’s
Church is one of the beauty spots of
North Carolina.
While the name Bartholomew was
known to the warring Regulators, the
present church was not eroded until
1831. It was btiit by the 1 1 ills, of the
Lower Capo IVar, who had spacious
summer homes in and near Pitt shore.
In fact, this section of Chatham Coun¬
ty was “the summer colony” of the
aristocrats from Wilmington's hin¬
terland. The Hills were descendants
of Governor .lames Moore, an early
Carolina celebrity.
A Reverent Spot
Upon entering St. Bartholomew’s,
one instantly feels the air of reverence
which pervade- the little sanctuary;
and the changing light from the many
handsome memorial windows bespeaks
of things holy. Although the interior
of the church remains unaltered,
everything glows with that sense of
refinement which proclaims that this
is the tabernacle of faith, and of
beauty-loving people. The many
churchly appointments pay evidence
to a congregation which, for years,
has labored earnestly for the growth
and good of St. Bartholomew's.
Among the church furniture is an
ancient pipe organ, probably almost
two centuries old. No longer capable
of supporting the choir, the little in¬
strument retain* its original position
— and has not been pushed hack into
some corner of neglect. Upon the or¬
gan a placard tolls that Mrs. Law-
I laugh to
и,
who died in 10 1C,
played this in-trumonl for nearly sev¬
enty years. The handsome marble
font, mode over a century ago by
Lauder, of Fayetteville, is one of the
oldest in use in the State. Lauder, n
famous atone cutter in his day, came
to North Carolina from Scotland
about 1820. The chancel furniture
was made from a walnut tree at "Hail-
bron." the up-country home of Thom¬
as Hill, of Wilmington.
The First Recorded Marriage
Tin- first marriage recorded in the
Parish Register is that of its first
Rector, the Reverend .1. F. Davis to
Miss Aim Moore, April
Ю,
ls32. Mr.
Davis was later Bi*hop of Smith Caro¬
lina.
One notes with interest the record
of the marriage of the Roverond Wil¬
liam Mercer G i4N*n to Mi-* Charlotte
Fleming, December 10, 1*35. Mr.
Green was later Bishop of Mississippi.
Of interest, too, are the marriages
consummated here during the dark
Civil War days. Many of them were
solemnize! while the young soldiers
were at home on furloughs. Among
these, June 4. 1*01. Thomas N. Hill,
of Scotland Neck, to Kli/a Hall. On
January 24, 1903. Claudius B. Den¬
son. of Virginia, to Matilda Cowan:
on November 14, 1804, Captain Wil¬
liam Lord London to Caroline Hough¬
ton; on February 22, 1865, Harring¬
ton Pope, of South Carolina, to Della
Williams. Miss Williams was the
daughter of John Barber Williams,
whose plantation, "Logvilh* Hall,”
was three miles northwest of I’itts-
bo rn.
When these marriages took place,
feminine finery was scarce in the
South. With the blockade closed,
brides had little with which to pre¬
pare a trousseau. The church records
show how the brides of the W» bor¬
rowed dresses from one cousin, slij>-
pets from another, anil a veil from still
another. In renovated wedding gowns
they marched bravely down the aisle
of St. Bartholomew’s resplendent in
made-over finery, uud very happy to
Front view of St. Bartholomew’s
Church at Pittsboro, where many
famous North Carolinians have wor¬
shipped.
he the brides of gallant Confederate
captains.
Entering the well-kept ground* of
this church, memory picture* con¬
vince the visitors that the cemetery
is more English than American. It i*
.-aid by many to be a copy of that at
Stratford-on-thc-Avi.n. Other* claim
that it is more like Stoke Pogi*. It i-
at least similar to Stoke Pogi*. in that
St. Bartholomew’.- cemetery is the
resting place of the men and women
whose fame na- largely confined to
the neighborhood in which they lived.
There are notable exception* here,
however.
Turn to the grave of William Boy-
lan, who died in 182*, at "Buck Horn
Plantation,” south of Pittsboro. Then,
too, there is the grave of John Wad¬
dell, a famous name in colonial .law.
One "f the most illustrious person¬
age.* buried here i- Colouol Edward
Jones, born in Ireland, and brother
of William Todd Jones, the Irish
patriot. He came to
«
'liathani in IT95,
and built his home, "Rock Rest,"
northwest of Pittsboro. lie was So¬
licitor General of North Carolina.
Here arc the graves of two gov¬
ernors, John Owen, of Bladen I ’.unity.
(Continued on page twenty-four)
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rence