B r u t o nPar ish Church

is a unique entityfor many, many

reasons. We could point tothe long and rich history of this

church and how it was intertwined with the very birth ofAmerica. Many of the men and women who shaped thefuture of these United States were here, in this sacredplace. There was great overlap between the College ofWilliam and Mary and the parish. Often, the Rector ofBruton was also the President of the College. The buildingitself was unique, for its time, being built in cruciform.

Bruton Parish is above all a parish church,dedicated to the faith development of her members andthe proclamation of the Gospel. This parish has servedreal people, living real lives in the midst of changing times,for longer than the actual history of these United States.

We are inheritors of this Spiritual legacy. Thisparish church was shaped over time, by those who havemade Bruton a spiritual home. This process is ongoing; ithas no end. People have always occupied and been formedby this church. This church has been molded into theparish it is, by those same people. Bruton is the parishher people have worked to build and support.

We are an active, vital Episcopal Church. Sermonsare preached. Services are conducted. Choirs lead us inchoral worship. Holy Eucharist is celebrated and received.We seek through our formation programs to deepen thefaith of adults and children. We have a very vibrantministry to college students at The College of William andMary. We seek to reach out in this city, state and beyondto offer assistance and support to those in need,remembering that Jesus said in serving others, we servehim.

www.brutonparish.org 757-229-2891 September 2012

Friends of Bruton:Our Worldwide Congregation

A very real part of the reality of Bruton is that weare a public church. While we boast some near twothousand members of the Bruton family, we see hundredsof thousands of visitors every year. Some estimate perhapsover a mill ion people enter this sacred space andcontemplate the mystery of God's redemptive, reconcilingand free love. Many visitors will join us in worship onweekdays or Sundays. Many tell us they come toWilliamsburg every year, and come to Bruton for worshipevery year. These guests are pilgrims, who find somethingspecial in this place.

I feel a certain responsibility to respond to ourmodern-day pilgrims. Given that God has planted andtended Bruton Parish Church, and blessed us with anopportunity to have a more distant reach than mostchurches, I hope we can build community with those ofyou who seek to be part of our extended congregation. Ihope to f ind ways to promote conversat ion andengagement with matters of history and the Spirit. Wehope to develop an event or an annual series of programsthat call members of the extended family together to theplace we love.

This first newsletter is a symbol of our desire toreach out and extend the bonds of relationship. We hopeto develop more pathways to grow and strengthen thesebonds. I hope we are birthing a new way of being church,committed to the old, the tradition, the Gospel, butfinding new ways to share God's love.

Peace, Chris +

The Rev’d Christopher L. Epperson is the 35th rectorof Bruton Parish Church.

Bruton FountThe

Become a Charter MemberA limited number of Charter Memberships in Friends

of Bruton is available for a gift of $100 or more. As anexpression of our appreciation we will be pleased to send youa signed copy of the recently published Bruton Parish Church:An Architectural History by the distinguished historian, Dr.Carl Lounsbury. Marking the three hundredth anniversary ofthis 18th century landmark, the author analyzes for the firsttime the fascinating history of the national shrine and activechurch building we know today.

In a review of the book for the Virginia Gazette, localhistorian and author, Will Molineux, wrote that Dr. Lounsbury'sintention was to "interpret the sequence of the sanctuary'sconstruction, beginning with Gov. Francis Nicholson's [1655-1728] layout for Williamsburg and his involvement in the parishand ending in 1771 with the erection of the bell tower."

Over the past 300 years, the interior of the buildinghas undergone several "restorations." Mr. Molineux concludeshis review by stating that, "Despite uncertainties ofarchitectural details, the1939 restoration ofBruton Church, and forthe past seven decadesthe preservation of thatrestoration, is aremarkable achieve-ment and congre-gational commitmentsaluted by Lounsbury.He is an architecturalhistorian with ColonialWilliamsburg who hasvisited, photographed,and researched docu-mentary accounts ofhundreds of meeting-houses and churchesalong the Easternseaboard. No one couldknow the subject better.Lounsbury presents inlayman's language a richly illustrated history of the sanctuary

in which were inspired the founding fathers ofAmerican democracy and the creators of this museumtown."

We are certain that you will find the completestory of the architectural history of Bruton Parish

Church to be a highly informative well-writtenaccount. It is a book that you will want to readagain and again. As a Charter Member you will be helping

to sustain growth of Our WorldwideCongregation. We look forward to recognizingCharter Members at a future event to beannounced. To assure your place as a Charter Member

of Friends of Bruton, please make yourdonation payable to Bruton Parish Church(noting "Friends of Bruton" in the memo line)and address it to: Bruton Parish Church, P.O.

Box 3520, Williamsburg, Virginia 23187-3520.

Our First eNewsletterBy Jim Morford, ChairFriends of Bruton Committee

Welcome to the first issue of the Friends of Bruton:Our Worldwide Congregation’s eNewsletter – The Bruton Fount.The name was chosen because “fount” suggests source orwellspring, and we hope this eNewsletter will be a continuingsource of spiritual and historical information about BrutonParish Church. Fount, not to be confusedwith “font,” commonly understood todayto refer to style and size of type, is anolder form that also carries the meaningof a baptismal basin. It is appropriatebecause the Baptismal Fount from theJamestown Church, the first AnglicanChurch in the New World, resides atBruton. It came to Jamestown c. 1609and is today at Bruton Parish Church -the successor to the Jamestown Church.

We are beginning our BrutonFount eNewsletter as a quarterlypublication that will be emailed not only to those who join asFriends of Bruton, but also to current members of Bruton ParishChurch (a limited supply will be available in the Parish House).This first issue contains some longer than normal articles, butwe trust you will find them interesting and informative.

In each issue, we plan to offer articles relating to thespiritual life of Bruton as well as articles about the church’srich history. There will be regular articles pertaining to musicand the role it has played in the Church from the days ofPeter Pelham, who in the 1750s was the church’s first organist.We are also looking to offer in future issues items focused onfamily and young people.

Finally, we want to hear from you, our readers! Youare welcome to share with us, so that we may share withothers, your particular connection to Bruton — stories aboutancestors who played a role throughout the history of theParish, experiences while living or visiting Williamsburg, orany other stories that connect you to Bruton Parish Church.We would also be pleased to share old photographs. Just emailyour comments, personal stories and/or photos to us atfriends@brutonparish.org.

We look forward to hearing from many of our Friends.

At the Parish ShopA CD of the Bruton Organ and Harpsichord is availablethrough the Parish Shop. The CD is of a concert performedfor the American Guild of Organists Region III Conventionin 2009 and recorded live. Musicians are Bruton MusicDirector & Organist, Rebecca Davy and Bruton Organist,Dr. JanEl Will. Musical selections are works primarily byBritish and American composers, including HerbertHowells, Charles Ives, and Stephen Paulus, plus theConcerto in C major for two harpsichords by J.S. Bach.The CD sells for $16.00 plus postage and may be orderedby either calling the shop at 757-220-1489 or by emailingbpcshop@brutonparish.org.

In The BeginningBy Sue Godson, Church Historian

In this first eNewsletter of the newly formed Friendsof Bruton: Our Worldwide Congregation, it is fitting to discussthe beginning and development of Bruton Parish itself.

When settlers from Jamestown, searching for arableland, moved onto the peninsula, they soon picked a ridgemidway between the James and York Rivers as the spot foranother new settlement. In 1632, that settlement wasestablished and named Middle Plantation. Ideally located ontwo navigable creeks — Archer’s Hope and Queen’s — MiddlePlantation had access to the two rivers. Settlers soon built adefensive palisade between the creeks to protect their claimsand their livestock from nearby Indians.

Almost immediately these colonists built a woodenchurch bearing the name of the settlement, but no one knowswhere. No creditable archeological evidence has pinpointedthe location, nor do we know the name of the minister.

As settlements in the area, nowdivided into counties, expanded, morechurches sprang up. In upper James CityCounty, Harrop Parish began in 1644, andCharles River (later York) County hadMarston Parish ten years later. Both hadwooden church buildings. Consolidationsand mergers followed. In 1658, Harropand Middle Plantation Parishes combinedto form Middletown Parish and soonanother building appeared. Middletownand Marston Parishes united in 1674, andBruton Parish was born. There are noextant records from these early parishes,so we know little about locations,ministers, or services.

In Middle Plantation, the vestryfor the new parish met on April 18, 1674 and chose BrutonParish as the name for the new entity, perhaps in deferenceto Thomas Ludwell, secretary of the colony, whose birthplacewas Bruton in Somerset, England, and Governor WilliamBerkeley, whose family came from that same area. As originallylaid out, the parish sprawled over ten square miles betweenthe two rivers.

The vestry also named the Rev. Rowland Jones asminister. Born in 1640 at Swimbrook near Burford in OxfordCounty, England, Jones was the son of a clergyman with thesame name. He attended Merton College at Oxford Universityand later became vicar of Wendover Parish, Buckinghamshire,England. He was the great-grandfather of Martha CustisWashington.

In addition to choosing the minister, the vestryauthorized the purchase of glebe lands. A glebe, either tofarm or to rent out, was a usual part of the minister’scompensation, and Bruton’s large glebe stretched alongQueen’s Creek toward Yorktown.

In 1677, the vestry inspected the three dilapidatedwooden churches within the new parish and decided not torepair them but to build a new brick church at Middle Plantationto serve the entire area. The next year, John Page (d. 1692)donated the present land for the church and churchyard andpledged £20 sterling for the new building. Other affluentcolonists each promised £5 sterling for the project, soonestimated at £350 sterling. The first contractor, GeorgeMarable, was replaced in 1681 by Captain Francis Page, whodied in 1692 within a few months of his father John Page.Additional funding would come from a tax of 60 pounds of

good tobacco and a caske for storage levied on each tithablecitizen for three years.

In 1682, the brick church began to rise — itsfoundations are still visible in the churchyard—and was finishedin November 1683. With the customary east-west orientation,the new structure was 64 ½ feet long and 28 ½ feet wide withfive pairs of buttresses supporting the walls and roof. A brickwall with a gate on the north side surrounded the property,and a ring of bells was soon acquired. With the completion ofthe new building, the vestry ordered everyone in the parish toattend divine services at Bruton. Since there was no bishop inthe colonies, the church could not be consecrated. Instead,the minister, Rowland Jones, dedicated it on the Epiphany,January 6, 1684.

Regular services from the Book of Common Prayerand characterized by long sermons became customary, and

Holy Communion was celebrated three orfour times a year. Jones served at Brutonfor fourteen years until his untimely deathin 1688. Initially buried in the churchyardhis tombstone was moved into the presentchurch in 1905. The tombstones of his sonOrlando (1681-1719) and the son’s wifeMartha are nearby.

After Jones’ death, the Rev. SamuelEburne soon became minister and servedfor nine years. During his tenure, greatchanges took place in Middle Plantation thatwould quickly transform Bruton’s role. Anindication of Bruton’s increasing importancecame with the gift of a large silver server(paten) in 1694 from Sir Edmund Andros,governor of the colony. The inscription

around the rim designated this silver for use in the church inJames City. The church still has the server and displays it forthe Garden Week tour each April.

The appointment of the Rev. James Blair ascommissary of the bishop of London in Virginia set in motiona series of events that transformed Middle Plantation. In 1693,he secured the royal charter to establish a college, namedafter the reigning monarchs William and Mary, in the area.Soon a brick building west of the church arose and as studentsarrived, they were required to attend Bruton.

In 1698, fire swept through Jamestown and destroyedthe statehouse, the church, shops, and residences. GovernorFrancis Nicholson and the legislature quickly agreed to movethe capital of the colony to the more central and healthierMiddle Plantation. The next year the town’s name was changedto Williamsburg, and Bruton soon became the “court” churchfor the governor, his council, and the legislature.

These events ushered in a new era for the churchand town. The church’s evolution from a makeshift unknownwooden structure into a magnificent brick cruciform buildingwith a prominent role in colonial history was well underway.It’s always good to take a look at our past as we move intothe future.

Dr. Susan Godson is a Williamsburg native and grew up inBruton Parish Church. After living in various places in the U.S.and overseas, she returned to Williamsburg and Bruton in 1985.She became church historian and archivist in 2000.

Train Up A ChildBy Anne Conkling

Sit quietly in a pew near a window…let your thoughtswander just a bit as you gaze thoughtfully across thechurchyard. In your mind's eye, look for traces of the past.With your heart, listen for the voices of the people whoinhabited this sacred space before we inherited the honor.Imagine being part of the liturgy as it was read…then chantinga familiar psalm tune. Powerful words of comfort and challengeand promise...to the ancient Hebrews and the Virginians. Ifyou look very carefully into the Colonial past, there are allsorts and conditions in the pews, carefully arranged by rankand precedence….the government together, students together,teachers together. In this culture, each listens. In this place,one prays for Divine guidance. Each visual cue carries meaningand offers direction. Wherever human puzzle pieces are placed,the high pulpit is above all… as the word of God is above all.Whether you are facing forward orbackward in the high boxed pews, youdo not miss a word. Part of the beautyof geometric balance is that soundand light are clearly perfect andperfectly clear.

Now refocus and fast-forwardto May 6, 1862, the day after the Battle of Williamsburg. Thepews have gone to feed the cooking fires; Union pickets areposted at all three doors, carefully screening any who seek toenter. Confederate ladies do come in, carrying bandages, orwater, or bits of prized food. In the pockets of their great wideskirts are worn, priceless copies of the Book of Common Prayer.When they finish nursing duties, whispered prayers salve thesouls inside the war-torn bodies….many barely beyondchildhood…lonely on a stone floor in a strange town far fromthe old home place.

As one of the oldest churches in America, Brutonrightly holds a place of honor. Sometimes what we think ofare the bricks and mortar and the fabled times…peopled bythe famous. Far more interesting and important and indeedworth remembering are the ways people throughout the historyof the church have lived the gospel. In our church there havebeen heroines who fed the hungry, clothed the naked, shelteredthe sick of mind and body, and lived out their calling. Heroeswho have prayed first, listened for Divine guidance, and movedon to their place on the stage of life…whether it wasPhiladelphia, or Yorktown, or Gettysburg, the Somme, orNormandy, Hanoi, or Fallujah. Returning heroes thank God inBruton nearly every day.

Today, we serve in ministries beyond our walls all overtown. Members and clergy carry the Sacrament to the homebound and the hospitalized. Teachers, leaders, mentors andvolunteers live out the gospel daily. Our Canterbury studentslead mission trips to Belize, and when disaster strikes, Brutonand her people are always part of the healing process.Hospitality and a sense of community are alive and well. Weaim to grow and nurture and energize the healing body ofChrist in an increasingly wounded world.

Every time we go into the church, we are walking inhistoric footsteps. Whether you remember the feisty,courageous, politically astute James Blair, without whom wemight not have the College or the Church, or you admireGeorge Mason … whose farsighted ideals still influence life allover the globe, you are in the company of the eternal. Part ofBlair's Scottish makeup required the presence of teachers …visible, working and shaping the future.

In his 1724 parochial report to the Lord Bishop ofLondon, Blair clearly stated the status of this parish…size,communicants, his salary, etc. He included information onthe "little schools", where scholars learned to read and write

and do arithmetic. Four of these were within our ten mileparish at that time.

Much, much later an endowed school was funded fromEngland by the Associates of Dr. Bray, and this was specificallyfor a number of African Virginians in this parish. Inspired byBen Franklin, our Bray school was a resounding success, andsome of its students planted spiritual seeds which bear fruitto this day. Franklin suggested the Rev. Dr. Dawson, asPresident of the College and rector of Bruton. Soon VestrymanRobert Carter Nicholas was involved as well. Mrs. Ann Wagerwas the schoolmistress from 1760-1774. She brought theyoung students to Sunday services, and taught them onweekdays.

By contrast, wealthy planter families often hired alocal member of the Anglican clergy as tutor to children of the

better sort, and some kept a tutor atthe plantation for long term work. Manyof the now famous founders wereproducts of this arrangement, eitherfrom a private tutor or as part of anearly form of boarding school. Someboys from nearby tribes were brought

to the College of William and Mary for the school funded bythe estate of Robert Boyle. The Lord's Prayer, the TenCommandments, the Apostle's Creed and the Anglicancatechism figured prominently in all lessons.

An early description of the college calls for "piouslyeducated youth of good letters and manners….and alsopropagate the Christian faith among the Indians". Many suchproperly brought up young gentlemen became leaders of ournew nation, and we live in their legacy daily.

One such promising youth was Richmond nativeChanning Moore Williams. He studied and worshipped in Brutonat a pivotal time. Ordained a Deacon in 1865, he offered himselfto the foreign missionary field in Nagasaki. From there hesuccessfully opened Japan and then China to the AnglicanCommunion, and by 1874, founded Rikkyo University in Tokyo,now known as St. Paul's. He served faithfully for 52 years…andhelped translate the Book of Common Prayer into the languageof the people. The inspiration he found here carried hismessage to a whole new world.

Our churchyard hosts a myriad of God's children fromthe 17th century through today. A little girl in Williamsburgduring the War Between the States, Susan Garrett Nelson,grew up to be one of the early missionaries to the Indiantribes in Idaho, Utah, and Arizona before coming home in1910. She came from a learned family…and some spark ofadventure and inspiration carried her across the country towitness to God's love. Her experiences in Bruton must havebeen powerful.

This blessed work of the Holy Spirit continues to fillBruton. An impressive number of our Canterbury studentsrecognize and act upon a call to ministry while among us.Both men and women are serving as ordained clergy, as theyjoin other members of our parish family who have heard God'sdirection to take holy orders. And our students give heartysupport….they leave Bruton equipped and willing to takeleadership roles in churches all over the world. Seeds fromBruton bear lively, healthy and precious growth wherever theyare planted.

Anne J. Conkling is a Bruton member and has long beenassociated with community activities in Williamsburg. A formerHistorical Interpreter for Colonial Williamsburg, she currentlyis a Lecturer for Learning Odysseys through The College ofWilliam & Mary. She is a trainer of Bruton Guides.

"Train up a child in the way he shouldgo; and when he is old, he will notdepart from it."

Proverbs 22:6

Candlelight ConcertsBy Rebecca Davy, Music Director & Organist& James S. Darling, Choirmaster-Organist Emeritus

Candlelight Concerts at Bruton Parish are animportant part of the church's outreach to both thecommunity and v is i tors to Colonia l Wi l l iamsburg.Approximately, 125 are held each year, and those who haveattended a Candlelight Concert have probably heard aconcert usher explain how they were begun by the church'sfirst organist, Peter Pelham, Jr.

Pelham (1721-1805) became one of Virginia'spremier musicians in the late eighteenth century. He wasborn in England, but around 1830, his family migrated toBoston. His father apprenticed him to an establishedcomposer, organist and harpsichordist. In the 1750s, PeterPelham moved to Virginia where he taught and played music.He was hired in 1756 to install the church's first pipe organ,an instrument of approximately 600 pipes that he playedfor over forty years. He would invite the townspeople tohear him and his students play. The modest compensationhe received as Bruton organist was not sufficient to supporthis large family and was augmented by salaries he earnedas keeper of the jail and at other government jobs. In 1802,Pelham lost his sight and his daughter Elizabeth succeededhim for a brief period as Bruton's organist. Although severalcollections of music by other composers that he compiledstill exist, almost none of his own music survives, exceptfor a short harpsichord minuet.

Peter Pelham's informal recitals represent the firstconcerts in Bruton Parish Church. Occasional concertscontinued to be given by local musicians and visitors afterhis tenure, but it was the restoration of Colonial Williamsburgin the early 20th century that significantly renewed interestin musical performances.

In 1938, work began on a major restoration of theinterior of the church. A new organ console was located inthe chancel, and new pipes, installed in the attic above thealtar, were heard through grillwork in the ceiling. In 1939,Iona Burrows Jones became the first professionally trainedBruton musician in modern times, and she began a seriesof half-hour weekly recitals of 18th-century music.

Although many may think that the current ambitiousschedule of three concerts each week is a recentdevelopment, it was actually established by Walter Hanson,who served as the church organist from 1946 to 1950. Andit was the greatly enlarged and rebuilt organ, financed inthe mid-1950s by John D. Rockefeller,Jr. that served as a catalyst foradditional growth in the musical lifeof the church and further attractedmany talented musicians to performat Bruton. As an expression ofappreciation, the Vestry designatedthat an annual spring performance begiven by the church choir andassembled orchestra in memory ofJohn D. Rockefeller, Jr. To date, fifty-two such concerts have been given.

Candlelight Concerts continue to attract visitingchoirs and instrumental musicians. Countless cards andemails express gratitude for being given the opportunity tobe a part of the series. Musical artists from around thecountry, indeed around theworld, seek the opportunityto perform at BrutonParish. Just this past year,three outstanding careermusicians chose a Candle-light Concert as their finalperformance before retire-ment. Both choral groupsand instrumentalists, all ofwhom perform on a gratisonly basis, often share howthey hold a performancehere as a mountaintopexper ience they wi l lremember for a lifetime.This feeling also is sharedby thousands of visitorswho come to experiencethis gift of music offered ina sacred and historic place.Many return time aftertime, others but once.Some are professional musicians; others have never hearda classical music performance. Still others have neverpreviously been in a church. These concerts provide anextraordinary opportunity to share the mystery of God'sever-constant grace and love.

Soli deo Gloria

Rebecca Davy, who began studying and playing the organat age 10, holds bachelor and master's degrees in organperformance and music history. She has served BrutonParish Church since 2004. As Music Director & Organist sheoversees the music ministry, directs the choirs, managesthe Candlelight Concert series, and plays numerous organand harpsichord concerts throughout the year.

James S. (Jock) Darl ing holdsbachelor and master's degrees fromYale and the University of Michigan.Since his arrival in Williamsburg in1961, he directed an active musicprogram at Bruton Parish Church forall ages for more than forty years.Additionally, he taught organ andharpsichord at the College of William& Mary and served as musicconsultant for Colonial Williamsburg.

Iona Burrow Jones atGreen Organ (1940)

The Link LibraryBy Bryant Cureton

Technology has opened many pathways that help usstay connected. No matter how far away you are, you canalways “visit” Bruton by turning to its website. It’s as easy asclicking here. You can also stop by a special virtual librarythat Bruton makes available to all. The Link Library is a largecollection of internet resources, assembled and indexed foreasy use. Developed by the Parish’s Library Committee tosupplement the excellent collection of books housed in theHennage Library, the Link Library is always open to Friends ofBruton.

It’s easy to get there. On the main page of the Parishwebsite, you will find a list of resources on the left-hand margin.Clicking on “Link Library” will take you to an introductory page,where you click on “Enter the Link Library.” (Right now youcan get there by clicking here.) Clicking on an area thatinterests you will take you to the links and their briefdescriptions.

Here are some of the things you will find:

A section of timely and seasonal items is labeled “Of SpecialInterest This Month.” There’s always something new andinteresting, often tied to the liturgical calendar or things goingon in the life of the Parish.

A rich collection of resources for studying the Bible, learningabout its history, and exploring its meaning.

A great deal of information about the Episcopal Church,including news from the larger Anglican Communion; Episcopalschools, colleges, and seminaries; and websites of the manyorganizations affiliated with or interested in the EpiscopalChurch.

Links to information about some of the great Christiantheologians and especially those of the Anglican tradition.

Sections on the music and art of the church.

A collection of links to all of the Colonial churches in Virginiawith buildings dating before the American Revolution, andanother covering the great cathedrals of England.

A variety of blogs from Episcopal perspectives.

Special sections on the topics and themes to which Brutonis giving particular attention. For example, last spring theLink Library featured a section on the Book of Common Prayerin support of a series of presentations sponsored by the AdultChristian Education & Formation Committee, and it is stillavailable.

The Link Library is updated regularly, so there’s alwayssomething new to explore. We hope you visit often and enjoythis unique way of connecting with Bruton Parish Church.

In 2008, Dr. Cureton retired as President of Elmhurst Collegein Illinois culminating a distinguished career of more than threedecades in higher education.

Across3. Found under the floor of the church6. Gift of King Edward VII of England7. First permanent English settlement in the New World8. Donations for the poor and needy9. Where sermons are delivered10. Found at the altar12. Episcopal priest

Down1. Communion Cup2. Found in the church tower4. Song Book5. Where the congregation sits7. Sat in Governor’s Pew8. Found in the front of the church11. Musical instrument in the church13. Sings hymns and anthems

Puzzle CornerA Crossword Puzzle for Young People

Bruton Parish Church, P.O. Box 3520, Williamsburg, Virginia 23187-3520 757-229-2891 Fax: 757-221-0290

Across3.Graves6.Bible7.Jamestown8.Alms9.Pulpit10.Cross12.Rector

Down1.Chalice2.Bell4.Hymnal5.Pews7.Jefferson8.Altar11.Organ13.Choir