Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/607

 Whitworth.

Many are curious to know who these first ten members were. There is no accessible record giving this information, but Mrs. W. P. Abrams and Dr. Whit- worth have recalled the names of eight, viz: Mrs. Sarah H. Thomson, Mrs. Mary Eliza Whitworth, (Dr. Whitworth's wife) Miss Sarah Jane Thomson, Miss Mary Joanna Thomson (now Mrs. Mary J. Beaty), W. P. Abrams, Mrs. W. P. Abrams, James McKeown and Archibald H. Bell. Mrs. Sarah H. Thom- son was the mother of Mrs. Whitworth and the Misses Thomson were the grand- daughters of Mrs. Sarah H. Thomson. Of the above but two are alive today, i.e., Mrs. M. J. Beaty, who resides near Olympia, Wash., and Mrs. W. P. Abrams living in Portland.

The first elders were : W. P. Abrams and James McKeown.

And they had a choir for the church in 1854; and excellent music was fur- nished. A few of these early singers are alive whilst others have "passed beyond" and are now members of the "choir invisible." Of the old choir John C. Car- son and Captain W. S. Powell are the only survivors. Captain Powell still en- joys singing and is now a member of the noted "Veteran Quartette."

The church was re-organized August 4, i860, and after such reorganization the first pastor was Rev. P. S. Caffrey.

The first members received at this re-organization were: S. M. Hensill, Israel Mitchell, Mrs. Mary Robertson, Mrs. Margaret Smith, Mrs. Eliza Ains- worth, Mrs. M. Jane Hensill, Mrs. Frances Sophia Law, Mrs. Sarah J. Mead, Miss Lenora Blossom, James McKeown, Mrs. Elizabeth L. Blossom, A. H. Bell, Mrs. Jerusha Hedges, Mrs. Caroline Couch, Mrs. C. A. Ladd, Mrs. Polono Clark, and Mrs. Agnes Grooms.

THE WORK OF DR. A. L. LINDSLEY.

Passing over the intermediate period of the history of the Presbyterians, if is found that the first decisive impulse given to the propaganda of this religious denomination at this point, came in with the advent of Rev. Aaron Ladner Lind- sley. By the usual routine of church business, Dr. Lindsley, who had been preaching to a congregation at South Salem in the state of New York, was called to the First Presbyterian church of this city in July, 1868. The same time he was offered the pastorate of churches at San Francisco and other inviting positions, but concluded to accept the call to Portland as a field that would give a great opportunity to his ambition to do missionary work. Dr. Lindsley seemed to be providentially selected for this great field of religious and intellectual effort. It appealed to him in every way. Here had come Lee, Whitman, Blanchet, and De Smet, all of them heroes and devoted soldiers of the cross. Here around about the outskirts of civilization was a vast population of native children of the forest, appealing by their very weakness to- the sympathies of the large hearted apostles of Christianity. And here too were the reckless innocent, the inexperi- enced youth, and the vicious from all lands, to be restrained, to be taught, to be warned and to be saved from their thoughtlessness, their excesses and their vices. The position demanded a leader with courage, force and talent. No knight of the cross ever entered the lists in the service of His master with keener zest to work and conquer. He came to Portland at the age of fifty-one years, and found a church with 87 members. And after eighteen years' service he parted with his congregation to take the chair of practical theology in the San Francisco The- ological seminary, leaving a united and vigorous church, to which 745 new mem- bers had been added during his pastorate.

But his work and influence was not limited to his own congregation. As a pulpit orator he was without a peer on the Pacific coast, and his services were in demand over a wide field. For twelve years he was chairman of an executive committee to which was committed the superintendence of missions in the north- west. He himself organized twenty-one churches, and dedicated twenty-two. The amount of traveling, correspondence, care and labor involved in this work