Tuesday, October 06, 2015

“The Great Awakening” of 1875 in St. Johnsbury: Part Five


By Ken B.
© 2015 Anonymous. All rights reserved

 
St. Johnsbury Caledonian, St. Johnsbury, Vt., Friday, Mar. 12, 1875

 
A.A. cofounder Robert Holbrook Smith, M.D. (“Dr. Bob”) was born on August 8, 1879, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.[1] The “Great Awakening” of 1875 in St. Johnsbury had a profound effect on the town of St. Johnsbury during and after the time Walter Perrin Smith and Susan Amanda Holbrook (who became Mrs. Smith in August 1876) were both living and working in the town. 

Walter Perrin Smith, the father of A.A. cofounder Dr. Bob, was living and working in St. Johnsbury when the “Great Awakening” of 1875 in St. Johnsbury happened. He:

·         Was born on his father’s farm in Hardwick, Vermont, on November 4, 1841.[2]

·         His parents were Vermont natives John Stoddard Smith (a blacksmith by trade and later a farmer in Hardwick in Caledonia county, where he passed away May 5, 1886) and Sophronia Maria (Perrin) Smith (who passed away October 15, 1887).[3]

·         Attended academies at Hardwick, Vermont, and Morrisville, Vermont.[4] (The “academies” of that day were roughly equivalent to what we call “high schools” today.)

·         Graduated from the University of Vermont in 1867.[5]

·         Was briefly principal of Hardwick Academy in Vermont after his graduation from the University of Vermont in 1867.[6]

·         Studied law at the University of Michigan from 1867 to 1868, but did not graduate.[7]

·         Pursued the study of law with Powers & Gleed, attorneys of Morrisville in Lamoille County, Vermont.[8]

·         Was admitted to the Lamoille County bar in May 1869.[9]

·         Moved to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, in the autumn of 1869.[10]

·         Was a partner of Hon. Jonathan Ross in St. Johnsbury for one year in 1869 to 1870, which partnership ended when Ross was elected to the supreme bench.[11]

·         Practiced law alone from 1870 on, except for a brief partnership.[12]

·         Was superintendent of schools in St. Johnsbury under the town system.[13]

·         Served as state’s attorney for Caledonia county from 1874 to 1876.[14]

·         Married Susan Amanda Holbrook on August 15, 1876—either in Lyndon, Vermont (most likely) or in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.[15]

·         Their only child, Robert Holbrook Smith, was born August 8, 1879.

·         Represented St. Johnsbury in the state legislature in 1880.[16]

·         Was continuously elected probate judge beginning in 1882.[17]

·         Was a director of the Merchant’s National Bank in St. Johnsbury.[18]

·         Was a director of the First National Bank in St. Johnsbury.[19]

·         Was a director, vice-president, and member of the board of investors of the Passumpsic Savings Bank in St. Johnsbury.[20] He also eventually became president of this bank.[21]

·         Passed away at his home in St. Johnsbury on October 16, 1919, at age 77.[22]

 Susan Amanda Holbrook (who became Susan Holbrook Smith when she married Walter Perrin Smith on August 15, 1876), the mother of A.A. cofounder Dr. Bob, was also living and working in St. Johnsbury when the “Great Awakening” of 1875 in St. Johnsbury happened. She:

·         Was born in Hardwick, Vermont, on June 26, 1855.[23]

·         Was the daughter of Perley Rogers Holbrook, M.D., and Louise Maria (Lawrence) Holbrook of St. Johnsbury.[24]

·         Attended private schools.[25]

·         Graduated from St. Johnsbury Academy in 1874.[26]

·         Was a teacher at St. Johnsbury from 1874 to 1876.[27]

·         Married Walter Perrin Smith on August 15, 1876--probably in Lyndon, Vermont.[28]

·         Passed away August 7, 1942, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.[29]

And now, here are key statements about the “Great Awakening” of 1875 in St. Johnsbury and related matters from the Friday, Mar. 12, 1875, issue of St. Johnsbury Caledonian newspaper:

Left-hand column (column one) 

Religious Meetings.

Free Baptist Church . . . Rev. O. Roys, pastor.

Methodist Church . . . Rev. D. E. Miller, Pastor.

North Cong’l Church . . . Rev. Chas. M. Southgate, Pastor.

South Cong’l Church . . . Rev. E. T. Fairbanks, Pastor.

Church of the Messiah, Universalist . . . Rev. B. M. Tillotson, Pastor.

Baptist Church . . . Rev. J. H. Marsh, Pastor.

. . .

Local and State News.

Laymen’s meeting at Avenue Hall Sunday afternoon, at 3 o’clock. All are invited. 

. . .

There will be a donation to the Rev. O. Roys, at the Free Baptist hall, on Friday evening, Marc 19.

Annual meeting of the Y. M. C. A. at the close of the young people’s meeting at the North Church next Saturday evening.

True Repentance, and what leads to it, will be the subject of discourse at the Church of the Messiah next Sunday evening.

. . .

Some touching letter and beautiful remembrances have been received by several persons in this place, from the Massachusetts laymen who came here strangers, but left warm friends.

About forty persons united with the several churches in this place last Sabbath, some of them in the fruits of the revival now in progress. Thirteen adults and three children were baptized at the North Church.

Union meeting at North Church tonight Thursday. Young people’s union meeting at the same place Saturday evening. Young converts’ and enquirer’s meeting at the several churches, Friday evening. 

. . .

Column Two 

. . .

The Great Awakening.

The religious awakening in this place continues with power. The union mass meetings are continued twice a week and are largely attended. The people do not come together to hear orators from abroad, for there are none. But they hear the words of truth and soberness out of the mouths of those in whom the Lord has put a new song. These include worldly men, moral men, bashful men, timid women and children—all classes and conditions who believe with their hearts, are all ready to make confession with their mouths. Every meeting some new ones rise and ask for the prayers of Christians. One marked feature of this revival is the illustration of the power of prayer. Many an one as in substance said: “I have sat under preaching unmoved; the solicitations and arguments of friends only set me more firmly against all good influences; but when I found my Christian friends were making my case the subject of earnest and united prayer, it touched my heart, and I could hold out no longer.”

Another pleasant feature of this awakening, is the earnest manner in which converts go to work. There is a good religious interest in the towns all about, and the Macedonian cry, “Come over and help us,” is heard on every side, and is gladly responded to. Some converts of six weeks standing have experienced more spiritual growth and joy in service, than many Christians of as many years. They believe with the Psalmist that the redeemed of the Lord should say so; and they have strength given them to do it.

In Lyndon, Burke, West Concord, Danville, Barton, etc., there are union meetings being held, and good religious interest. Other towns are reaching out their hands for this great salvation. May their prayer be answered. Union meetings by the laymen, begin at Lyndonville to-morrow, and continue over the Sabbath. It is expected that similar meetings will be held at St. Johnsbury Centre the same days.

 . . .

Column Four

. . . 

St. Johnsbury Centre.

. . .

Rev. H. J. Broadwell, who has been supplying the pulpit of the Congregational church at the Centre for a few weeks, has closed his labors and returned to his home at New Haven, Conn., the present week. Mr. Broadwell did not wish to remain unless he could be settled, and as there was no probability of this being done, he withdrew.

It is expected that a series of union meetings under the auspices of the Y. M. C. A. Committee, will begin at the Centre on Friday evening of this week, and continue over the Sabbath—conducted by laymen. 

. . .

Column Five

. . . 

Y. M. C. A.

The annual business meeting of the Y. M. C. A. will be held at the North Church on Saturday evening, March 13, at eight o’clock. The election of officers will take place and all members are invited to be present. Those wishing to join are invited to be present, or send in their names. It is desirable to increase the membership by addition to the number of ladies who are members, and they are especially invited.   F. B. Denio, President.


[1] DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers (New York, N.Y.: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc., 1980), 9. “. . . Dr. Bob . . . was born August 8, 1879, in the front bedroom of a large 19th century clapboard house at Central and Summer Streets in St. Johnsbury, Vermont.”
During our first research trip to St. Johnsbury in October 2007, my dad (pen name “Dick B.”) and I searched the birth records for Robert Holbrook Smith at the Town of St. Johnsbury building (which contains offices of the fire department, of vital statistics, and of public officials). The building was located on Main Street, very close to the St. Johnsbury Athenaeum. We then had a clerk there produce for us a certified copy of the birth certificate for Robert Holbrook Smith (Dr. Bob), and we purchased it. Bob’s birth records did not indicate whether he had been born in a hospital or at home. The clerk who assisted us with Bob’s records opined that he had been born at home based on those and similar records from that time period. (See Dick B. and Ken B., Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous: His Excellent Training in the Good Book as a Youngster in Vermont (Kihei, HI: Paradise Research Publications, Inc., 2008), 93, 113, 242: http://www.dickb.com/drbobofaa.shtml.
At the time of Dr. Bob’s birth in 1879, the street address for the house in which he (apparently) was born was “20 Summer Street.” [See, for example: “Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed. (Chicago, A. N. Marquis & Company, 1916), 994: http://mcaf.ee/1qfp6o.] During one of my dad’s and my four research trips to St. Johnsbury (2007, 2008, 2012, 2013), someone in St. Johnsbury told us that the street addresses for Summer Street had been renumbered sometime since Dr. Bob was born in 1879. And that person told us that that was why the street address for “Dr. Bob’s Birthplace and Boyhood Home” today is “297 Summer Street.”
[2] Hiram Carleton, ed., Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont, Vol. II (New York: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1903), 172: http://mcaf.ee/1qfp6o.
[3] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172. See also “Smith, Walter Perrin” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[4] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172; and “Smith, Walter Perrin” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[5] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172. In its “Deaths” section (pages 128-30), Walter Perrin Smith is listed under the “Non-Graduates” heading as follows: “Walter Perrin Smith, l ’67-’68, A.B. (Vermont) ’67, A.M. (ibid.) ’70, d. at St. Johnsbury, Vt., Oct. 16, 1919, aged 78. See The Michigan Alumnus, Volume XXVII, October, 1920—August, 1921 (Ann Arbor, Mich.: The Alumni Association of the University of Michigan, [1920]), 130. The listing in The Michigan Alumnus would seem to indicate that Walter Perrin Smith obtained an A.B. degree from the University of Vermont in 1867, and an A.M. degree from the University of Vermont [which would seem to be the meaning of “(ibid)” in the listing] in 1870. The listing for “Smith, Walter Perrin” in Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994, states more clearly: “. . . A.B., U. of Vt., 1867, A.M., 1870; . . .”
[6] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172.
[7] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172. The abbreviation “l ’67-’68” in the listing for Walter Perrin Smith in The Michigan Alumnus  would seem to indicate that Smith studied law at the University of Michigan from 1867 to 1868, but that he didn’t graduate from the university with a law degree. See The Michigan Alumnus, Volume XXVII, October, 1920—August, 130. The listing for “Smith, Walter Perrin” in Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994, states more clearly: “. . . student Ann Arbor (Mich.) Law Sch. 1 yr.: . . .”
[8] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172.
[9] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172; and “Smith, Walter Perrin” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[10] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172.
[11] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 172-73.
[12] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173.
[13] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also: DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[14] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also: DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[15] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994. The listing for “Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Marquis states: “m. St. Johnsbury, Aug. 15, 1876, Walter P. Smith.” However, the listing for “Smith, Walter Perrin” on the same page in Marquis states: “m. Lyndon, Vt., Aug. 15, 1876, Susan Amanda Holbrook.”
[16] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also: DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[17] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also: DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[18] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173. See also: DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[19] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173.
[20] Carleton, Genealogical and Family History, vol. II, 173.
[21] DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 9.
[22] The Michigan Alumnus, Volume XXVII, October, 1920—August, 130. See also “Death of Walter P. Smith had long been identified with the best interests of the community” in the October 17, 1919, issue of the evening Caledonian: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=143051078; accessed 10/6/2015.
[23] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[24] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[25] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[26] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[27] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[28] Smith, Susan Holbrook” in Albert Nelson Marquis, ed., Who’s Who in New England, 2d ed., 994.
[29] “Susan Holbrook Smith”: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=138700602; accessed 10/6/2015.