Midland Churches: A History of the Congregations on - General ...

The free school, <strong>of</strong> which <strong>the</strong> minister had always been master, was
originally, and even till 1845, only a small institutioc with 20 free scholars.
but it has since rapidly developed, by <strong>the</strong> increasing value <strong>of</strong> property from
mines and minerals. The large schoolroom was built in 1851 with fur~ds
lent by Thomas Hunt, Esquire, <strong>of</strong> Handsworth, who, at <strong>the</strong> close <strong>of</strong> his
long treasurership, presented his successor -with L400, <strong>the</strong> balance due to
him. Class-rooms were subsequently added, making <strong>the</strong> establishment very
complete for educational or congregational purposes.
No records are known to exist <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> establishment <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Sunday
School. Mrs. Wm. Hunt, <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Brades, whose husband became a trustee
in 1780, was a teacher in it, and one <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> teachers <strong>of</strong> 1816 was living
in 1890. The charitable character <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> early Sunday Schools lingered
long, for up till about 1850 new bonnets, all <strong>of</strong> one pattern, were given to
<strong>the</strong> girls on <strong>the</strong> recurrence <strong>of</strong> each anniversary. Till a still more recent
date <strong>the</strong> Superintendent was a paid <strong>of</strong>ficer.
The first settled minister, after <strong>the</strong> union with <strong>the</strong> Old Meeting,
Birmingham, was over, was John Bradford, a Daventry student, who, says
Belsham*-
left <strong>of</strong>f preaching and became a schoolmaster near Coventry.
His ministry at Oldbury was from 1772 to 1775 ; his name does not appear
in <strong>the</strong> minutes <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Dudley Double Lecture ; whilst <strong>the</strong> Oldbury Lecture
minutes only begin in 1776.
Good ' William Procter came to Oldbury in January, 1776, from Oak-
ham, in Rutlandshire, <strong>the</strong> scene <strong>of</strong> his first ministry, and remained <strong>the</strong>
active minister <strong>of</strong> this society until laid aside by a paralytic stroke on
6 March, 1807. I11 <strong>the</strong> notice <strong>of</strong> his death in <strong>the</strong> minutes <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Monthly
Meeting, <strong>of</strong> which he was <strong>the</strong> first secretary for nearly 30 years, it is
recorded that <strong>the</strong> dktinguishing traits in his cAaracter were a72 artless si~~@lici~,
and kindness <strong>of</strong> defortme?st, and cheerfz~l piety. The registers are witness to
<strong>the</strong> fact that he baptized some 1,010 children during his ministry, his last
entry bearing date <strong>of</strong> S January, 1810. He died at his son's house in
Market Drayton, on Sunday, 3 April, 1814. To his pen we owe <strong>the</strong> many
interesting, and <strong>of</strong>ten quaint notes, to be found in <strong>the</strong> minutes <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Monthly Meeting for <strong>the</strong> first 30 years :-
Stourbridge, 4 March, 1783, prevented meetin,.- 6y <strong>the</strong> zilclenzency <strong>of</strong> tAe season.
Oldbury, 8 Ju&, I 783, co?tgregatiolz unrtsual& small.
Oldbury, 6 ~ljril, 1784, hurling not 20 herz"rers ate met in <strong>the</strong> vestry.
Wolver?ianlpton, 7 March, 1756, <strong>the</strong> extreme severity <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> wea<strong>the</strong>r prezlented my
brelhretz and ?~ysev ~xeetiflg at Jt"olverhanzpton, according to ajjoi7zt11zef1t ; <strong>the</strong>
cotzseqzrence <strong>of</strong> which was Bro. Grzfiths was oblked to preach hi~~zself:
KidLzer~tlinster, 8 Azigzist, I 786, on accoz~~zt <strong>of</strong> Walsnll nzarket 7e,e ijpoi~zted to
meet on Jtfedzesahy, 4 October.
t
CoseZey, g Febrz~ary, 1790, b7~ethren a~zd nzysev agreed at C'oseiey to meet toge<strong>the</strong>r
at ozrr monthly i~zkrz~ie~os % before eZeuen, or forJeeit 6d7 and in case
<strong>of</strong> abse~zce to forfeit one shiZling.
Dz~dley, I o Azrgust, I 790, no public4 service, rz~k <strong>of</strong> g Febrt~nry this day recognized
and conjir111 ed.
14 Jz@, I 79 I, ia <strong>the</strong> evenif~g <strong>the</strong> Old a?zd New Meetings in Bzi.nzi?zgham were
destroyed by a mob, toge<strong>the</strong>r with <strong>the</strong> house <strong>of</strong> Dr. Priesthy, his Goods:
Ajjaratzts, Li6rary and Illnnzrscr@ts; and <strong>the</strong> folloze~ing days <strong>the</strong> Nabitatio:zs
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Zendiug Dissenten were piundered and bztrtzt.
Dr~diey, 7 fGebrz/ag), I 792, 920 pz~blic .seruice. The propriety <strong>of</strong> introd~cirrg Liturgies
bzto P~ibliGk zt~orshz) it 7oas jrojoszd to consider.
Herbert Jenkins is inore fully alluded to in <strong>the</strong> account <strong>of</strong> Stourbridge
Chapel. Procter being unable to perform his public duties, it was-
a happy and auspicious circumstance, under this afflicting event, that <strong>the</strong>
Rev. Herbert Jenkins, having some months since dissolved his pastoral
connexion at Stourbridge, had been prevailed on to accept an unanimous
invitation to <strong>of</strong>ficiate at Oldbury, limiting indeed, for <strong>the</strong> present, his services
to <strong>the</strong> tern1 <strong>of</strong> one year."
His first entry in <strong>the</strong>. regis'rei- was on 30 August, 1807, his last on 26
June, 1808.
James Fordyce supplied in <strong>the</strong> interval which elapsed before <strong>the</strong> settle-
ment <strong>of</strong> Samuel Griffiths. His first entry in <strong>the</strong> register is under date <strong>of</strong>
17 July, 1808, his last, on 14 November, 1809, though judging from <strong>the</strong>
writing he <strong>of</strong>ficiated again, on 2 August, 1812, probably as supply after
Griffiths left.