LETTERS OF REV. RICHARD LOCKE AND REV. GEORGE CRAIG, MISSIONARIES IN PENNSYLVANIA OF THE "SOCIETY FOR PROPAGATING THE GOSPEL IN FOREIGN PARTS," LONDON, 1746-1752.

BY BENJAMIN F. OWEN.

[The Rev. Richard Locke, who succeeded the Rev. William Lindsay as missionary of the "S. P. G." in Pennsylvania, resided most of the time at Lancaster. In a letter to the secretary of the society he describes some of his experiences prior to and after his arrival in the province. "I was sent," he writes, "by my La BP of London to Barmudas under a notion of £100. a year-when I came there it was but £50. & perquisites & all about £60. their currency wch is about £40 stg.-they have neither Bread nor Water only Rain Water & we gave 5d p' på for coarse Sea bisquits & every other thing in Proportion. I staid there 8 months and scarce got enough to pay my Passage. By advice of ye Governor, I took my passage to Charle's Town in South Carolina-have a Letter of Encouragement from the Secretary there, a former acquaintance, with a Letter of Recommendation from ye Governor to the Governor of that Province, but the Captain a villain carryed me to Philadelphia-the French Wars breaking out, and my wife being a weak woman, would not be pursuaded to go home-she was born in London, her mother was a Clavering, first cousin to Robert La BP of Peterburough, and had it not been for this most charitable assistance of the Society, we must have been expos'd to great Difficulties, the Jesuits, New Lights, Quakers, Moravians, Covenanters, Dutch and Irish prevail for much here, that an English Clergyman meets with very little Protection & much less Charity. I preached in the Court House in Lancaster every other Sunday for 3 years & have not received £20. & have had neither surplis or Common Prayer Book, but what I carry in my pocket."

In a postscript he states, "I hope it will not be an unacceptable curiosity to you to have an account of the Eclipse of the Moon, that was here the 13th day of February last. I was very exact in the Observation; it began just in the same manner at 10 h. p.m. as it ended at 2 the next morning, that as near as was possible for Observation to be made; the Opposition or full moon was within a minute of 12 a clock, and by the Tables made for ye meridian of London, I find the Opposition or full moon was Feb 14, 26m a .. 4 by 34m in Time =84 30-m for that reckoning is 5 hours 75a that in a strait line Lancaster from London by this eclipse is 2552 miles distant."

The Rev. George Craig, the successor of Mr. Locke, arrived at Philadelphia May 17, 1751, and before taking up his residence at Lancaster, visited the congregation at Trenton, New Jersey, which he found in charge of a "Frenchman from Canada," and preached there June 2d.]

May it please the Society:

I return my humble thanks for the favour you have done me in appointing me one of your Missionary's, whose Letters I received the 21 of July 1746, and as you have been pleased to appoint me Itinerary Missionary of Pensilvania and ye Jerseys I obey the Order of the Society in reading ye Letter, that was sent to me at Trent Town, tho it was 100 miles distant from the place where I lived. I read the Service of the Church of England and preached there the 23 of July, where there had been no Service for 2 years before, nor any Church Wardens, for they have no Church there, in any part of that Mission, since Bristol is taken away, I was informed that a thirds of that Town were Dissenters, they have a Presbyterian Teacher bred in New England, as well as Teachers of all other Dissenters, who have all the Same Power to Marry by ye Governor's License that any regular Clergyman hath for they are directed in General to any Protestant Teacher, tho they have opportunitys of Assistance as they have Clergy very near them; the expenses are so extravagant to a stranger and no offer of assistance, that I am not able at present to settle there, but as the Mission is in general for Pensilvania and the Jerseys, I hope I shall not be thought to disobey y Order of the Society, by residing for some time at Lancaster who have not a Clergyman within 60 or 70 miles of them, before I hear the further pleasure of the Society.

As for the Notitia Parochialis, I shall give the best account I can of the Place where I have resided, for more than two years, it was a new County in Pensilvania called Lancaster, the County Town goes by the same name, of about 15 years standing & 65 miles to y° West from Philadelphia; the Inhabitants are mostly Dutch, reckoned about a thirds, & about 300 houses, which increase to near 20

every year, here are about 30 familys English & Irish, mostly poor, their Subscriptions will amount to £5. a year they have no Church here of any Denomination. I have constantly read Prayers and preached once a fortnight in the Court house they have begun a Church, but by mismanagement y leading men being too much inclined to the new Lights, that they have run the Parish in Debt, for we have 21 Justices in this Country who are either Presbyterians, New Lights or Moravians & but 2 or 3 who profess the Religion of the Church of England the Dutch have two Churches here, a Lutheran and Calvinist besides private Conventicles of Menists and Moravians; here is a Popish Chappel commonly supplyed once a month by a Jesuite, & a great many Papists about the country. I have had nine Communicants at one time, and have baptised abundance brought from y° Country, several whole Families, 8 negros in one Family; but we have no Register. From the Opposition, about 20 miles to the N. E. of this Town I have supplyed once a fortnight, a Congregation of mostly Welsh very regular, & I believe near 100, I have commonly 20 Communicants 3 times a year, but we have neither Church Bible nor Common Prayer Book, and for the number of baptized we have no Register tho I have several times mentioned it, but I believe near 100, there are 50 Acres of Land purchased for the repairing of y Church wch is built of square Logs, and I am informed 100 more hath been left for a Clergyman, their Subscriptions will amount to between £20. & 15. a year, there is another larger Congregation mostly of Irish about 8 miles to the South of the Welsh church or Bangor, & about 20 miles E from Lancaster called Pickquay & I am told by some of y' heads of the Parish that there Subscriptions might arise to about £20 a year, this place may very well be supplyed by the Parson who supplys the Welsh; but Mr. Backhouse supplys it at present tho forty miles distant from them, some times on Week Days.

I had not been long in Lancaster, before there came a

Person from Contwager, about 50 miles to the westward from Lancaster telling me how much they stood in want of a Clergyman, and that they were about 100 miles distant from any, they had made a purchase of 180 Acres of Land for the maintainance of a Clergyman, after some time I consented to go with him, and at the first Sermon, they reckoned about 150, but there were general Dissenters, they count about 100 for some miles round that belong to the Church of England, we choose Church Wardens & settled a vestry, they immediately fell to work to raise a Log house Church & the third time, I administered the Sacrament to 13, having baptized 3 Infants & Adults the first time and several since, they have neither Church Bible or Common Prayer Book & I believe very poor, for they could not raise 20s to bear my expenses for mony is very scarce in those Parts, 10 years ago there was not a whiteman in all those parts, but all Indians, we are all gone back, & tis surprizing to them how the white People have since increased, that there is little or no Land now to be taken up at the first Purchase, there is a publick Popish Chappel supplied by the same Jesuite as supplys Lancaster with abundance of Papists, but as the whole Country is one continued wood, tis impossible to find out the numbers of ym. I went to a place from thence about 25 or 30 miles to the N.E. where are several Church of England People, but the Country is so overrun with Presbyterians, New Lights and Covenanters, that they are very much fallen off from their Principles. I have preached twice there to about 30 or 40 People, and baptized a father and six children besides several others, from thence I went to a place called Paxton about 9 miles further to the E. upon the River Susquehana, where I preached to about 40, but I was told there were about 30 familys of y Church of England, but for want of proper assistance they were much fallen away. I have been at two places besides just over y° great River Susquihana about 14 miles from Lancaster, where we had about 70 or 80 in each place & I baptized 14 in one

place, and 11 in the other, & they are talking of building a Church but they have neither a Church Bible or Common Prayer Book & but young beginners, consequently very poor, here are several places besides where I have been invited to, about 20 or 30 miles distant to y° northward and some 100 miles for tis a very large Country & not a Clergyman within 50 miles of the nearest part & some 150 miles distant, tis a great Pity but that there was an order made to provide for a Clergyman in every County, as it is in Virginia and Maryland, the Country is sufficiently able to bear it, but the Clergy of the Church of England seem to be the only People persecuted here, unless it be those who are supported by the Society, for the first settlers here were those who opposed paying of Tithes & the new comers now are mostly Dutch, Irish Papists or Presbyterians, that a Clergyman hath but a poor chance amongst them.

I shall endeavour to get down the Notitis Parochialis as near as I can, for so large a compass & for the time that I have been here, for the future I shall endeavour to give the account according to the directions of the Society.

N° of Inhts, tis impossible to guess for so large a Compass. N° of Baptiz'd, upwards of 800 in two years time, this half year 20.

N° of Adults, upwards of 20 this half year 6.

N° of Comts, in the several places between 40 & 50.

N° of Pros" between 4 & 500 in the several places.

No of Diss Innumerable of all sorts & abundance of

Papists.

N° of Heathens & Infidels, but few, but I am afraid too many Free thinkers.

N° of Conts I believe about 20 that seem to be better settled in the Principles of Religion.

I am, may it please the Society, your most humble most

obedient & Dutifull

LANCASTER in Pensilvania

Oct. 16, 1746.

Servant

RICHD LOCKE.