Rog Hiemstra’s Blog

Almost everything you read about Sam indicates that he was quite “Saintly” in his demeanor. He was kind, respectful of others, and even-handed in the way he dealt with people. Terms like “Peaceful Warrior,” “Christ-like,” and “brother to all” were commonly used to describe Sam. Yes, he supported passionately many social causes and fought vigorously to right the many societal wrongs he saw, but he did so in a way that people still respected and often loved him even in disagreements.

However, Sam finally reached an end to his tolerance level when the Fugitive Slave Act was passed. It allowed slave holders to send hired “gun men” into the “free” states for purposes of capturing escaped or presumed former slaves. He was especially irked with some fellow Unitarians who did not stand up to fight the related injustices. From one of his publications he stated, “The Unitarians as a body dealt with the question of slavery in any but an impartial, courageous, and Christian way.” The American Unitarian Association (AUA) tried and failed to deal with the Fugitive Slave Law at its October, 1850, convention. Sam, the following year, having been so appalled that many prominent Unitarian ministers had actually supported the Law, proposed that the AUA condemn both the Fugitive Slave Law and these prominent leaders. He named such people, calling them “unsound” and obedient to the law of not upsetting their wealthy parishioners.

Unfortunately, the resolution failed to carry by three votes. Rev. May expected more because he believed in the power and duty of the pulpit to effect change. He said, “The pulpit has no higher function than to expound, assert, and maintain the rights of man.” He felt that when the pulpit is “false to its charge,” the societal consequences are huge and horrible. In essence, what we all can learn by Sam’s example is that there are times when you simply must stand up for what you believe. It is no wonder, then, that at Sam’s funeral in 1871, Black people in Syracuse put on mourning badges and lowered their flags to half-mast. At his funeral Blacks, whites, and Native Americans sat side by side, a microcosm of integration that took many, many decades to achieve in our country.

As a closing note, I am pleased to announce the outstanding unpublished biography of Sam May that we discovered in our archives is finally all online. It was written in 1947 by SU Professor W. F. Galpin. I heartily recommend it as there is much more to learn about Sam. It is long, but well worth the time. You can read it at http://history.mmuus.org/galpin-may.html

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written May 20, 2008

We know Sam as an outstanding minister, a tenacious abolitionist, and a long time supporter of human rights. We also know a bit about his involvement as an educator throughout his adult life, including the work he did in Syracuse with the School Board during his later years. However, I keep discovering new material by Rev. May, and am especially fascinated by a speech he gave at a meeting of The Normal (Teacher’s) Association in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, August 8, 1855. Entitled “The Revival of Education,” this 153 year old speech has much relevance for educators today.

In his presentation, which must have been at least two hours in length, Sam initially provided a very learned history of youth education throughout Europe and into the United States. I thought I knew a little about this history, but there was much information new to me. Sam also described how he became involved with adult education, my particular field of interest. As a young man he met Josiah Holbrook, the founder of the American Lyceum movement, a system for providing popular lectures, performances, and debates throughout this burgeoning country on various topics by outstanding orators in the 1820s up until the Civil War. Sam worked with Josiah to establish Lyceum opportunities in New England and gave numerous lectures over several years.

Then he launched into a part of his presentation meant to inspire the many teachers in attendance, especially the younger ones. He spoke words that would fit right in with today’s emphases on learning how to learn and helping learners take responsibility for their own learning. He noted, “The office of a teacher is second only in its importance and sacredness to that of a parent . . . The first duty of a teacher is to lead his [sic] pupils to think, to observe and reflect on what they observe . . . Children should be led to use their own powers and opportunities for the acquisition of all knowledge . . . The teacher should be to his pupils . . . not so much a dictator as a guide.”

It is the History Committee’s intent to place this presentation, as well as several other little known publications and little read presentations authored by Sam, on the Web in the near future. The more you find out about Sam, the more appreciative you become of his depth, breadth, and passion for improving life on earth.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written May 3, 2008

Regular readers of this column have heard me say before that historians get all the fun. Well, it has certainly happened again. Through the assistance of Kathy Cardell and Vicky Schipper, I have been going through some file folders representing Rev. Nick Cardell’s ministry at May Memorial, as well as earlier in his career. This opportunity to gain some new insight into Nick’s thinking, sermon preparation, and work as a minister is both satisfying and awe inspiring. Although I’ve only examined a small percentage of these folders, I certainly look forward to viewing the remainder.

As an example, Nick kept his treasure trove of materials in either labeled folders or thematic collections. I loved how he built his folders with actual finished products and some of the inspirational material he gathered to help him create them. He also had several folders with such intriguing names as “sermon ideas,” “gestating sermons,” “future sermons,” and “seasonal sermons.” I even discovered one folder that provided lists of sermons by titles and dates for several years. This will be very helpful as the History Committee works to compile as comprehensive a collection as possible of his work, especially during his time at May Memorial.

Just as an example of how his mind may have worked, he had a folder that described his work on what he called the four tyrannies. This resulted in a sermon he delivered at the Barneveld church in 1964 long before he came to May Memorial. From that idea seed years later he gestated four individual sermons, some of which long time May members may have heard:  The Tyranny of Freedom, The Tyranny of Peace, The Tyranny of Perfection, and The Tyranny of Words. I even found later sermons where he went further with this “tyranny” notion.

Thus, it is the History Committee’s long-range plan to organize this treasure trove and make some of it available to scholars and others interested in Nick’s work. We anticipate a portion of the material will be housed at Syracuse University, some in our own church, and some on the Internet. Nick, like all of our past ministers, left us with much information to help us understand the growth of liberal religion in Syracuse. We are all that much richer because of it.

Here is an update on Rev. Armida Alexander’s wonderful piece on Sam May that I referenced in the past few newsletters. The information is now available on the alternate web page and I highly recommend it because she presents some fresh new insights into Sam’s life. You can read it at http://history.mmuus.org/armida.pdf

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written April 19, 2008

About a year ago I wrote about one of the true heroines who interacted with Sam May, Prudence Crandall. As a young woman, this plucky lady opened a female boarding school in 1833. It was in Canterbury, CT, a community near Brooklyn, CT, where Sam had his first ministry. Prudence soon enrolled Sarah Harris, a very able daughter of a Black farmer. An uproar began almost immediately because of the inherent prejudice within the community. Leaders demanded she dismiss Sarah. Instead, she not only refused, but soon enrolled additional Black girls whom she believed warranted a good education. Even though Sam was one of the first to offer her help and tried to work with community officials, she and her Black students were harassed so badly psychologically and physically, that she eventually had to close the school out of fear for their safety and probably her own.

She left the community and the story might have ended there. However, I have learned from the material written by Rev. Armida Alexander (I’ve mentioned her previously and her work will soon be available on the Internet), that Prudence eventually was recognized by community members for the positive work she had tried to do.

Prudence soon married and moved west where she opened another school, raised two stepchildren, and, according to Susan Strane (A whole-souled woman: Prudence Crandall and the education of Black women, New York: W. W. Norton, 1990), continued to be both independent and forward thinking in what she did.

Although it did take awhile, in 1866 voters in Windham County, in which Canterbury and Brooklyn both existed, cast a vote in favor of Negro suffrage. The citizens of Canterbury finally repented their behavior in regard to Prudence and her school. Some twenty years after the Civil War, they petitioned the Connecticut legislature to recognize the wrong done to Prudence and, after a few more years, she was granted a small monthly stipend from the state of Connecticut. In this way, Canterbury publicly recognized that Prudence had had a right to run a school for Black children in Connecticut. Prudence is another example of the courageous women who made a real difference in the 19^th Century.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written April 2, 2008

I recently was reading in a file on the 2003 Sam May Day service in which Rev. Dr. Frank Carpenter, minister of the Cincinnati church, delivered a sermon on Dr. William Ellery Channing, an important and influential Unitarian minister in the first half of the 19^th Century. Our 9^th minister, Rev. John Channing Fuller, was related to Dr. Channing. Dr Channing served somewhat as a mentor to Sam May early in Sam’s training and ministry. For those who may remember that 2003 Sam May Day, it was a remarkable sermon.

Dr. Channing actually had an interesting take on slavery, including what must have been some confusion and conflict as he grew to manhood. On the Channing side, some relatives were involved with the slave trade and his father was decidedly pro-slavery. His angst was no doubt created on the Ellery side, as his mother’s father, William Ellery (with whom he was quite close), was a Customs Collector in Rhode Island who commanded searches and even seizures of suspected slave vessels. Thus, Rev. Channing began developing a few antislavery essays and sermons in the early 1830s.

However, people like William Lloyd Garrison and Sam May believed that he was too mild in such efforts. Dr. Channing, in turn, thought that the abolitionist were too intolerant, too abusive in their language, and too confrontational in their approaches. Sam eventually moved beyond thinking of Dr. Channing as a mentor to that of frustration as he believed the famed Unitarian leader was not using his voice to further the antislavery cause.

Sam eventually confronted Dr. Channing and recalls in his Recollections (1869, p. 174) saying the following: “Why, sir, have you not spoken to the nation long ago, as you, better than any other one, could have spoken?” After a long and embarrassing silence, Dr. Channing finally replied in a kind voice: “Brother May, I acknowledge the justice of your reproof. I have been silent too long.” That began Dr. Channing’s turn around as a more direct and vocal critic of slavery. It helped make a difference in our country’s struggle with slavery. Way to go, Sam, once again!

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written March 11, 2008

Information in this article was inspired from the material written by Rev. Armida Alexander, the UU minister mentioned last time. We all can be proud to know that when the infamous Fugitive Slave Act was signed into law in September of 1850, many people in Syracuse were outraged. As news about the Act and its implications became known, concerned people in our community gathered in City Hall with the Mayor even presiding. Several resolutions denouncing the law were passed and protection was promised for anyone who might be affected. Sam May quickly organized a group (including several in our own church) who pledged to help financially anyone arrested for opposing the law. Perhaps most important, a Vigilance Committee was formed (including Sam) and they quickly established a rendezvous location and a signal (church bells ringing – including our own) for whenever action was needed.

About a year later in October, 1851, the clarion call came when William (Jerry) McHenry, a cooper (maker of barrels, tubs, etc.), was detained by slave hunters and some federal marshals. Sam, already seasoned in facing much opposition pertaining to abolitionism, was ready for this incident. He had long preached on the evils of slavery, had faced angry mobs of people in various locations when he talked about such evil, and counseled resistance to the Law. In one of his sermons at our church in late October, 1850, he noted the following:

A law of the land requiring you, as the Fugitive Slave Law does, to disobey the Golden Rule is, indeed, a far more grievous encroachment upon your liberty of conscience than a law prescribing to your faith any creed, or any rites and ceremonies by which you must worship God. . . . I declare that you are, every one of you, under the highest obligation to disobey this law, – nay, oppose to utmost the execution of it. (May, Recollections, 1869)

So typical of Sam, those fiery words with which he challenged our May Memorial ancestors were put to personal action when he was part of the group that helped Jerry escape from jail and eventually arrive safely in Canada through the Underground Railroad. Most readers of this newsletter know the Jerry Rescue story. More about it can be found on our web page. Suffice to say, Sam personified the selfless courage so needed to resist those who practiced injustice. We all need to find ways of embracing such courage in resisting the injustices we still see today.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written March 1, 2008

To begin with, I had a delightful interview with Mr. and Mrs. Charles “Ted” Tracy at the Nottingham recently. Ted turns 97 soon and is the youngest son of James and Florida Tracy. James was church president from 1929-1931 and Florida was involved in maintaining our church history for many years. I have mentioned Florida several times in past articles. Ted had many delightful memories and remembered Rev. Applebee and Rev. Argow quite well. At some future point we will make several of our interviews available so that interested people can also delight in such wonderful recollections. Speaking of past newsletter articles on our history, you can now read them online at http://history.mmuus.org/newsletterarchives.pdf.

Now to that notion of turmoil mentioned above. Sam May was among a few leading Unitarian ministers more than 150 years ago who worked diligently to convince leaders of the American Unitarian Association (AUA) to take a strong and decisive stance in support of abolition, but in vain. In his Recollections book he stated the following: “The Unitarians as a body dealt with the question of slavery in any but an impartial, courageous, and Christian way” (p. 336). Dr. Henry Ingersoll Bowditch, a leading abolitionist of the time, noted that Unitarians as a body were “as rotten as ever” on the topic of slavery (this comes from a paper entitled “Abolitionist Minister: Samuel J. May Opposes the Fugitive Slave Law” written by Rev. Armida Alexander, minister of the Glacier Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Kalispell, Montana). A number of Unitarian ministers actually lost their positions due to their antislavery activities, including our Sam May’s nephew, Rev. Samuel May, Jr.

It was mainly through the efforts of abolitionists like Samuel Joseph May that the AUA was forced to redefine its relationship to all Unitarian ministers. But in Sam’s mind, the change was very slow to come as most Unitarian ministers wanted calm and stability in their churches because, after all, many leading politicians, business owners, and community leaders were often in their pews and they did not want to rock the boat. Sam expected more of his colleagues and in his Recollections he said this about the power and duty of the pulpit to effect change: “The pulpit has no higher function than to expound, assert, and maintain the rights of man” (p. 358). He believed that when the pulpit was “false to its charge,” there were horrible consequences throughout society. He was very disappointed, too, in national leaders like former friend, Daniel Webster, and President Millard Fillmore, a Unitarian, who supported the Fugitive Slave Law.

But Sam, like a few other Unitarian ministers, kept up the fight. After the President of the Syracuse and Utica Railroad heard one of Sam’s antislavery sermons, he ordered his employees that if they ever saw any recaptured fugitive slave on his train they were to stop it, remove the irons, and set the person free. And, of course, the famous Jerry Rescue helped to mobilize people in New York and beyond, beginning a true wave of repulsion against the Fugitive Slave Act. Unfortunately, it wasn’t until 1889 that the AUA began efforts to reconcile the many differences among its members. I’m sure that Sam would have been happy to know it eventually happened.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written February 11, 2008

Rev. Wahlstrom loaned me a brief history of the Fraters of the Wayside Inn after 1971 written by Rev. Charles Howe, former FUUS minister. The Fraters actually began in 1903 as an annual retreat for Universalist ministers in the Boston area to promote spiritual growth, intellectual stimulation, and interpersonal bonding. “Unitarians” were admitted into membership in the late 1970s and female ministers began attending in the late 1980s. Nick Cardell first attended in 1979, even served as Prior (annual organizer) in 1998. Jean Wahlstrom became a member in 2003, and presented papers on more than one occasion, including 2008.

In 1990, Rev. Cardell presented a paper at the Frater’s annual meeting that resides in our archives. It is entitled, The Ministry: What Keeps Us In It and At It? Nick noted that one factor for him was our Flaming Chalice as it symbolized a search for truths, a freedom to be one’s self, a challenge to grow, a welcoming inclusiveness, and a caring community. It is easy to see how the opening words he used each Sunday Service evolved. These are words Jean repeated on a recent Sunday.

Later in the paper, Nick talked about a need to be involved in creative contributions to a civilized and humane world as part of his reasons for remaining in the ministry: “I suspect it is a need, at least similar to that, that leads people into all of the helping professions. But I discovered that there were more specific and personal needs finding expression in my ministry. Emerson once said something to the effect that ‘The preacher deals out his life to the people, life passed through the fires of thoughts.’ To the extent that I have been able to do that, I have learned much about myself. And that must be listed as one of the things that keeps me at it.”

As Rev. Wahlstrom passes through the installation formalities into years of service with us at May Memorial, it is as though through the bonds of Frater comradeship, Nick provides those words above to help guide her efforts. I believe I can speak for all MMUUS members in saying that through love and fellowship we will do all we can, Jean, to keep you “at it” here in Syracuse for many years to come.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written February 3, 2008

It has been a history filled past several weeks. Mariah Dillon and Jennifer Hamlin-Navias provided me with the names of two people who know much about MMUUS’ past and I am in the process of gathering some of those memories. Mariah and Jill Evans gave me photocopies of different items about our history. I also had five wonderful weeks as an RE guide conducting, with the help of other guides, history scavenger hunts around our church. Ask your children who participated about some of the history facts they remember.

Speaking of history facts, it is always fun for me to gather little factoids about our church and past ministers or leaders. Here are a few of them. Many of you know about the Franklin cars and may even have seen Hank Manwell drive to church in his Franklin on some warm day. What you may not know, though, is that John Wilkinson, grandson of the John Wilkinson who came up with the name of Syracuse for our community in 1819 (it had been called Cossit’s Corners until then) designed the first Franklin motor car with an air-cooled engine in 1901. All the Wilkinsons were stalwart members of May Memorial.

That first John, also the first postmaster of Syracuse, was a member of the committee that traveled to Lexington, Massachusetts, to call Sam May to our church. Therefore, it was fitting that when Sam and his family moved to Syracuse, John and his young son, Alfred, met that train. Thus, one of the first people Sam’s only daughter, Charlotte, met when she disembarked was Alfred, her future husband.

Many years later Sam May joined in efforts to establish what became St. Joseph Hospital. A gold headed, ebony cane was to be raffled off and given to the most popular clergyman in Syracuse as one of the fund raising activities. Sam coaxed many in his congregation to buy raffle tickets and vote for his good friend Father O’Hara of St. Mary’s. However, Father O’Hara had a similar idea and convinced many in his much larger congregation to vote for Sam. That cane was one of Sam’s prized possessions for the remainder of his life.

Back to his daughter, Charlotte. After Lucretia died and as his health began to wane, he spent his remaining years living with Charlotte and Alfred. The night before he died on July 1, 1871, Charlotte came into his bedroom and gave him a kiss and good night wishes. That kiss was his last contact with life.

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written January 19, 2008

As was mentioned in the last newsletter, Susan B. Anthony was part of the ceremonies in 1898 at our former church celebrating the 100^th anniversary of Sam May’s birth. Susan had first become acquainted with Sam when she was a youth and Rev. May would occasionally travel to Rochester to exchange pulpits in the Universalist church. Susan and her family, who were Quakers, would travel to hear Sam as Susan’s father believed he was an inspired minister.

Her first involvement with Sam as an adult was at an anti-slavery meeting in 1851. The following year she was part of the Daughters of Temperance delegation in Albany that attempted to participate in the Sons of Temperance meeting. All women were blocked from speaking as the chairman said that women were to look, listen, but not speak. All women then left and found a place to meet by themselves. Soon Sam May came to their meeting to counsel them on how to organize themselves. He was the only man there.

Then in the fall there was a Woman’s Rights Convention in Syracuse. Susan was there, as were other women leaders like Matilda Gage and Lucretia Mott. However, Susan noted that women were still unused to running meetings and speaking in front of a large group. She said that many women would read a paper in voices that were hardly audible even three seats away. At that point Rev. May rose to the occasion and said to all delegates that every person there could make themselves heard if they were asking children who were outside to come in for a meal. He noted “Now what you want to do here, my dear sisters, is to feel and act as you would if you were at the front door of your own home.” He said to fix their eyes on the remotest person in the audience and “your voice will adjust itself to the distance.”

At the 100^th anniversary ceremonies, Susan said, “Was that not beautiful? I shall always remember Mr. May for giving us that lesson as to how to be heard. And that is a sample of the way he helped us women to grow into a knowledge of how to do and how not to do. He would take us by the hand and lift us up.”

Rog Hiemstra, Archivist

Written December 17, 2007