_Development and Conclusion of the Bishop's Work_
In the first decade of his episcopate Bishop Cheshire laid the
foundation for almost all of his future work. The remainder of his life
was devoted to expansion and improvement. This program demanded all of
his thought and energy and, as it progressed, became almost more than
one man could administer. The Bishop never complained of being
overworked, but when he realized he was no longer physically able to
meet the demands of his office, he did not hesitate to ask for
assistance.
A pleasant and interesting interlude in the routine of the Bishop's busy
life was a trip to England in the summer of 1908. The object of the trip
was to attend the Pan-Anglican Congress and the Lambeth Conference. The
Bishop and Mrs. Cheshire sailed from New York and landed at Liverpool on
May 28. Since the Pan-Anglican Congress was not to open for about two
weeks, they spent the intervening time sightseeing and visiting friends.
Among the many interesting places they visited was the old Abbey of
Valle Crucis in Wales for which Bishop Ives had named his mission school
in the mountains of North Carolina. The Bishop observed that here,
however, there was no natural cruciform arrangement of valleys and
streams which so distinguished his Valle Crucis mission.
The Pan-Anglican Congress was opened on June 15 by an impressive service
held in Westminster Abbey. The Congress was composed of bishops,
clergymen, laymen, and laywomen representing the Anglican communion from
all parts of the world. There were six thousand delegates present, but
they were divided into a number of sections for the discussion of every
phase of church work. Bishop Cheshire attended the sessions of one of
these sections every day, but he did not have time to enter in his
journal much about the proceedings. On one occasion, when the topic for
discussion was the church's work among the Negroes of North America, he
was one of the speakers. He later remarked that he had scarcely warmed
to his subject before his allotted time was gone.
On another occasion the Bishop was invited to a breakfast given by the
Church Temperance Society. At the breakfast he was seated next to the
Bishop of London, who was to preside over a meeting of the Society
following the meal. In the course of conversation Bishop Cheshire
remarked to the Bishop of London that "in America at least as far as
concerned my part of it, drinking was unknown among women." The English
prelate seemed to be greatly impressed by this statement. After the
breakfast there were several scheduled speakers who talked on the
problem of intemperance. They all agreed that the use of intoxicants in
England as a whole had improved, but that the discouraging feature of
the situation was the increased use of them by women. The Bishop of
London announced that the meeting would like to hear from the United
States, and he would, therefore, call upon Bishop Cheshire for a few
words. As he rose to speak, the Bishop of London said to him, "Tell them
what you have been telling me." After commenting on the work of the
Church Temperance Society, he complied with the request and added: "I
believe it to be true of all parts of the United States that among the
descendants of the original English, Scotch, and Scotch-Irish settlers
of America, intemperance or the use of intoxicating drinks among the
women is unknown, or so extremely rare as to amount to nothing in
looking at the situation in its general aspect."[54] His audience
displayed a keen interest in his views.
The Pan-Anglican Congress closed on June 24 with a service in St. Paul's
Cathedral. Bishop Cheshire thought that the Congress was "the most
remarkable religious gathering of recent times." He was particularly
impressed by the deep interest the British public and press took in the
proceedings of the Congress. The capacity of the great Albert Hall was
taxed to hold the average daily attendance of twelve thousand persons.
The Lambeth Conference, which opened on July 5, did not attract as much
attention as usual, since it followed so closely upon the Pan-Anglican
Congress. Its work, however, was none the less significant in the life
of the church. Bishop Cheshire considered its proceedings more
interesting than those of 1897. He noted that the younger bishops took a
more active part than they had in the previous Conference. He served as
a member of the Committee on Foreign Missions.
Bishop Cheshire returned to England in the summer of 1920 to attend his
third and final Lambeth Conference. He was then seventy years old but in
good health and still capable of doing a full day's work. He regularly
attended the sessions of the Conference, and manifested as much interest
as ever in its work.
The Bishop was made a member of the Committee on Christianity and
International Relations, which was to deal in particular with the League
of Nations. He found the work of the committee very interesting, but
later remarked that the American bishops on the committee found
themselves in an embarrassing position, since the League of Nations had
been made a political issue in the presidential campaign of that
year.[55] Bishop Cheshire felt that this Lambeth Conference surpassed
the two previous ones in the importance of the work accomplished and in
the probable results. The Conference took much "wider and freer views"
of the questions discussed. The Bishop observed that some of the
speeches which were received with decided approval were strongly opposed
to all that had been the traditional policy of the church.
Upon the close of the Conference Bishop and Mrs. Cheshire, accompanied
by their friends, Dr. and Mrs. A. B. Hunter, spent a few weeks traveling
on the Continent. The Bishop particularly enjoyed his visit to
Switzerland, whose mountain scenery greatly impressed him. He always
thought, however, that his North Carolina mountains were more beautiful
and appealing than the more spectacular Alps. On one Sunday which the
Cheshires and Hunters spent at Gletsch, Switzerland, the Bishop took his
little party out into the country. In the presence of the great Rhône
glacier with his "congregation" sitting on rocks about him, he read the
Morning Prayer, omitting not one part of it.
In addition to his three visits to Europe, Bishop Cheshire made one
other trip beyond the borders of the United States. In 1910 the
Archbishop of the West Indies invited a number of American bishops to
Jamaica to assist in the consecration of the churches which had been
rebuilt on the island after the disastrous earthquake of 1907. Bishop
Cheshire accepted the invitation and, as it turned out, was the sole
representative of the American Episcopal Church. The consecration
ceremonies took place in January, 1911. During his stay of about two
weeks the Bishop participated in the consecration of five or six
churches. Describing the ecclesiastical procession at one of the
ceremonies, the _Daily News_ of Kingston, Jamaica, commented: "There was
then the stern Prelate of North Carolina just south of Mason and Dixon's
line; Prelate of a vast domain many, many times the size of this island,
and with a problem something like ours." This exaggerated description
amused the Bishop a great deal. He enjoyed his visit, particularly
riding about the island observing the customs and manners of the
natives. He always took a keen pleasure in learning about new places and
their people.
Turning now to diocesan affairs, we find Bishop Cheshire preparing to
begin a long campaign to free St. Mary's School from its burdensome debt
and to raise an adequate endowment for the institution. When he
addressed the convention of 1912 he reminded the members that on October
15, 1913, he would complete twenty years as bishop of the Diocese of
North Carolina. In his opinion, the most important work accomplished in
this period was the establishment of St. Mary's as a diocesan school.
The Bishop declared that he would like to celebrate his twentieth
anniversary by paying off the debt on St. Mary's and by raising one
hundred thousand dollars towards a permanent endowment. He wished,
therefore, to devote much of his time for the next eighteen months to
this end, and asked for the convention's support. The convention
indorsed his suggestion and promised its co-operation.
At the convention of 1913 a special committee on an endowment for St.
Mary's was appointed to work with the Bishop. Notwithstanding the
efforts of Bishop Cheshire and the committee, very little money was
raised by the anniversary of his consecration. Thus, the matter stood
until 1916, when Bishop Cheshire proposed an exceedingly ambitious
program. The plan called for raising fifty thousand dollars to retire
the school's funded debt and to meet certain necessary expenses, one
hundred thousand dollars as an endowment, and another hundred thousand
for additions and improvements. It was further suggested that the
dioceses of East Carolina, South Carolina, and the Jurisdiction of
Asheville should be asked to co-operate in this endeavor. The convention
adopted the plan, and the quota for Bishop Cheshire's Diocese was set at
seventy-five thousand dollars.
The Bishop was untiring in his efforts to interest his people in the
needs and promising future of St. Mary's. The program for raising the
endowment was progressing well when the war disrupted its work, but the
campaign was by no means abandoned. By the end of 1921 more than one
hundred and forty-six thousand dollars had been pledged. Two years later
the Bishop reported that St. Mary's School was free of all debt. The
generous gifts to the school by Mr. Lawrence Holt and Mr. William A.
Erwin, which followed shortly afterwards, gave the Bishop much pleasure
and made him feel that the work which he considered the most important
of his episcopate was now permanently established.
When America entered the World War in 1917, Bishop Cheshire felt that
President Wilson was fully justified in asking Congress for a
declaration of war. Of the conflict he observed that, while America as a
nation had committed errors and evils in the past, he believed that as
far as the present war was concerned, "we know that we have no selfish
purpose or desires." The Bishop was upholding a cause which was brought
close home to him, for he had two sons who volunteered and later saw
service in France. He had very definite ideas on duty to one's country,
and little patience with those pacifists who held that a Christian could
not go to war. In his opinion, such an argument was no more valid than
it would be to say that one should not protect one's home and family
against thieves and murderers. "We owe everything that we are—" declared
the Bishop, "all that we have to our Country. We owe her ourselves."[56]
In the course of the war he gave voice to these views in many of his
sermons.
When the Bishop heard that a camp for training soldiers was to be
established in Charlotte, he called together the Episcopal clergy of
that city for a discussion of the problem of caring for the needs of
thirty or forty thousand soldiers who were expected there. They devised
plans for keeping open the parish houses of the several churches for the
use of the soldiers, and the best means of caring for their religious
life. The Bishop addressed a letter to the people of the Diocese asking
them to give every possible assistance to their friends in Charlotte in
this great responsibility.
* * * * *
As Bishop Cheshire was about to complete a quarter of a century as head
of the Diocese of North Carolina, it was planned to celebrate the
occasion with a special service in Calvary Church, Tarboro, on October
15, 1918. But when the time came for the celebration, it had to be
postponed because of the influenza epidemic. It was finally held in
Raleigh at the closing session of the convention of 1919. The Bishop
delivered an address in which he traced the history of the Diocese
during his episcopate. The convention then by a unanimous rising vote
adopted the following resolution introduced by Dr. R. D. W. Connor:
"That gratefully acknowledging our obligations to Almighty God for the
many evidences of His Divine guidance in the affairs of His Church
throughout this period of its history, we are especially grateful to
Him for the love and care with which He has preserved the physical
strength, the mental vigor and power, and the spiritual grace and
consecration of our beloved Bishop. Resolved further, that this
Diocese is greatly indebted to Bishop Cheshire for the sympathetic
spirit, the unflagging zeal and never-failing wisdom and the
statesmanlike vision with which, under God, he has directed its
affairs, shaped its policies, and guided its growth and development;
that we hope and pray he may long be spared to lead us in full
strength and vigor of body, mind, and spirit; and that we take this
opportunity of pledging to him our unswerving loyalty and undivided
support in the prosecution of his labors for the spread of the Kingdom
of God on earth."[57]
Dr. A. Burtis Hunter, for the clergy, and Governor Thomas Bickett, for
the laity, brought to the Bishop messages of loyalty and affection. Mr.
William A. Erwin presented the Bishop with a purse of gold from the
people of the Diocese as a token of their love and esteem. Bishop
Cheshire was deeply moved by these expressions from his clergy and
laity. It would be difficult to find in any diocese a more sympathetic
relationship between bishop and people.
As Bishop Cheshire advanced in years, changes were taking place in the
church as in almost every other institution. Some of these he advocated,
while others he accepted with regret. When the diocesan convention of
1919 met, a plan was introduced placing the administration of the
affairs of the Diocese in the hands of the bishop and an executive
council. Of the proposed plan Bishop Cheshire said that he thought it
had "some advantages," but he earnestly hoped that the administration of
the diocesan missions by the archdeacons would not in any way be
changed. The archdeacons were a great assistance to the bishop in
carrying on missionary work, and were invaluable in overseeing vacant
parishes and missions. He referred to them as "the eyes of the Bishop in
all matters of practical work," and stated that he wished to take this
occasion to express his appreciation for the relief they had afforded
him. In his opinion, whatever shortcomings could be ascribed to the
present system of convocations under archdeacons were largely due to the
lack of co-operation by the laity.
After considering several proposals, the convention adopted a plan of
diocesan organization which provided for an executive committee to be
elected by the convention. It was to be composed of the bishop as
ex-officio chairman, three clergymen, three laymen, and three laywomen.
The executive committee was to act as a co-ordinating and co-operating
agent in diocesan work. The convention also provided the bishop with a
secretary who should likewise serve as secretary of the executive
committee. The functions of the archdeacons were not at this time
altered. Several years later, however, the personnel of the executive
committee and the scope of its influence were enlarged. Also, a field
secretary, who was to oversee missionary work, was employed. These
innovations made the old system of convocations and archdeacons
unnecessary, and it was accordingly abolished.
The Bishop observed with regret the abolition of the office of
archdeacon but acquiesced in it, since the majority of the clergy and
laity preferred the new system of administration. In his annual address
of 1929 he paid a final tribute to his archdeacons. He asserted that the
missionary work had never been so well looked after as under their
supervision, and that he would not have been able to advance this phase
of his work without their invaluable assistance.
When Bishop Cheshire was entering upon his seventieth year, he felt
little impairment of his physical strength and had no desire to diminish
his episcopal duties. He realized, however, that others might feel he
was growing too old to carry on the work alone. Placing the affairs of
the church above any personal considerations, he asked the convention of
1919 whether he should continue to administer the Diocese without
assistance or adopt some other course. The Bishop then retired, and the
convention sitting as a committee of the whole considered its reply. Dr.
Richard H. Lewis introduced a resolution which was unanimously adopted.
It declared that the affairs of the Diocese had in no way been
neglected; that there was no evidence of failure of the Bishop's
physical or mental faculties; and that the convention was confident that
he would ask for assistance when he felt it was necessary. The
confidence his people placed in him, as expressed in this resolution,
gave Bishop Cheshire much pleasure and encouragement.
In the spring of 1922 the Bishop informed the Standing Committee of the
Diocese that he had been urged by several physicians and laymen to
curtail his work and to request the convention for assistance. The
Standing Committee promptly advised him to propose the election of a
bishop coadjutor. Accordingly, on April 21, he addressed a letter to the
clergy in which he announced his intention to ask the approaching
diocesan convention to consider the question of electing a bishop
coadjutor. The Bishop felt the clergy and laity should be informed of
his purpose in order that they might give this important subject
thoughtful consideration before the meeting of the convention.
On May 16, at the Church of the Good Shepherd, Raleigh, the convention
met and immediately took up the question of giving the Bishop assistance
in his work. After consideration it resolved that a bishop coadjutor
should be elected. Bishop Cheshire then gave his consent to the
election, and assigned to whoever should hold the new office the
episcopal oversight of the Convocation of Charlotte and the personal
supervision of all postulants and candidates for Holy Orders of the
Diocese.
The nominations for bishop coadjutor took place on the evening of the
second day. After six ballots were taken, the Rev. Edwin Anderson
Penick, Rector of St. Peter's Church, Charlotte, was elected. He
received thirty-two clerical votes and twenty-four from the laity. The
choice of the convention met with general satisfaction throughout the
Diocese. Concerning the election, Bishop Cheshire declared: "We believe
that the Spirit of God effectuates with His presence, His guidance, His
blessing, the solemn functions of the Body of Christ. And never, I make
bold to say, did we feel more sure of the Divine presence, guidance and
blessing, than in the solemn hour of the choosing of our Bishop
Coadjutor. Among the many happy and helpful experiences of my
Episcopate, and of my life, I remember that as one of the best."[58]
On October 15, 1922, the twenty-ninth anniversary of Bishop Cheshire's
consecration, Rev. Edwin A. Penick, D.D., was consecrated bishop
coadjutor in St. Peter's Church, Charlotte. He entered upon the duties
of his office almost immediately thereafter. From that time until the
death of Bishop Cheshire the two men worked together in perfect harmony.
Although they did not always agree on diocesan policy, they never
allowed a difference of opinion to mar their affectionate relationship.
Bishop Cheshire gradually placed more responsibility on Bishop Penick as
he became better acquainted with the work of the Diocese. A
characteristic act of Bishop Cheshire's, and one which claimed the
admiration of his people, was the turning over of the work at Chapel
Hill to Bishop Penick's supervision. The Chapel of the Cross at Chapel
Hill had been the Bishop's first parish and he had always retained for
it a deep affection. Therefore, it was a personal sacrifice for him to
relinquish it to another. He felt that, due to the peculiar nature of
the work at Chapel Hill, it should be under the guidance of a younger
man.
As Bishop Cheshire grew older he began to plan how best he could provide
for his wife and daughter when they would no longer be able to live at
Ravenscroft, the Bishop's house. He decided to build a small apartment
house in Raleigh, which would produce an income as well as provide a
home for them. When the house was completed he advertised the apartments
for rent only to families with children. He thought the frequent
practice of denying apartments to persons with children was most unfair
and, therefore, determined to make his house an exception. This was
typical of the Bishop, who loved children and large families.
In building his apartment house Bishop Cheshire had to borrow a part of
the cost of its construction. Speaking of this to Bishop Penick, he
remarked he hoped to live four years longer since by that time his loan
would be retired. Recalling this observation Bishop Penick decided to
raise a sum of money from among the people of the Diocese to relieve the
Bishop of this care. The money was raised by the time the diocesan
convention met in the spring of 1924 at Winston-Salem. It was a fitting
time and place for the presentation of the gift, since it was at
Winston-Salem thirty years before that Bishop Cheshire presided over his
first convention. The gift, which amounted to $4,273, was presented to
the Bishop from the people of the Diocese by Dr. Richard H. Lewis, who
said in part: "My dear Bishop: By your strong and vigorous intellect,
your wide and accurate learning, your public spirit, your unspotted
character, and a personality of unaffected friendship, you have come to
be—in the words of another—'one of the best known and best loved men in
our State.'" Referring to this generous expression of affection, Bishop
Cheshire remarked that he could never "cease to feel grateful to him
whose generosity conceived the idea, and to the many kind friends who
responded to his suggestion, and transmuted his thoughts into act."
At this convention the Bishop delivered an address in which he briefly
reviewed the high points in the thirty years of his episcopate. He
declared he wished to repeat a major point he had made in his first
episcopal address in 1894, namely, the importance of realizing the
"common bond of union in the Diocese by becoming interested in common
Diocesan work." During the past three decades Bishop Cheshire had
accomplished more than any of his predecessors in breaking down
parochialism by arousing in his people a lively interest in diocesan
enterprises. The Bishop concluded the review of his work by saying that
the past thirty years had been happy ones, "years in which I have
received much love, consideration, and kindness from all our people,
clerical and lay."
The unusual and praiseworthy feature of the general esteem in which
Bishop Cheshire was held in North Carolina was the demonstration of that
esteem during his lifetime. The churchmen did not wait until his death
to eulogize him and to erect memorials in his honor. On many occasions
and in many different ways he was made to realize the high place which
he held in the hearts of his people.
After completing thirty-five years as bishop of the Diocese of North
Carolina, a longer period than any of his predecessors, Bishop Cheshire
felt that he must give up the greater part of his work. He therefore
informed the convention of 1929 that he was turning over to Bishop
Penick the general administration of the entire Diocese. He thought that
the ever-increasing and more complicated work of the church required a
younger and more vigorous man, one, as he expressed it, "more adaptable
and more in sympathy with changing conditions and methods." Of Bishop
Penick he said: "We have one whom we all believe to be eminently fitted
to carry on the Diocese with success and with the confidence, sympathy
and affection of all." Bishop Cheshire did not intend, however, to
relinquish all of his duties. He retained for himself the episcopal
oversight of about one-third of the parishes and missions, the keeping
of the diocesan register, and the requisite business before the Standing
Committee. The parishes which he reserved for his own visitations were
all located within a convenient distance from Raleigh.
Bishop Cheshire was not present at the convention of 1929 because of the
serious illness of Mrs. Cheshire. Bishop Penick read his address. It was
the first diocesan convention that he had failed to attend since 1876
when he had been present as a lay delegate. Mrs. Cheshire died before
the convention adjourned. Accordingly, resolutions of sympathy for the
Bishop were adopted, and a committee was appointed to represent the
convention at Mrs. Cheshire's funeral. The death of his wife was a great
loss to the Bishop; their life of thirty years together had been happy
and congenial. Mrs. Cheshire had been a generous mother to his small
children, and a helpful and devoted wife.
Although his strength was gradually failing, Bishop Cheshire displayed
during the next three years a remarkable activity. For one of his years
he preserved an unusually tolerant attitude towards the many religious,
social, and political changes of the day. When, on his eightieth
birthday, he was asked what he thought of the youth of today, the Bishop
replied: "The world is a much better place than it was when I was a
young man.... Young people today have more personal religion than they
did then."[59] While he disapproved of much that was done by the youth
of today, he thought that his parents must have had much of the same
sort of disapproval of his own generation. "When people talk," said the
Bishop, "of the degeneration of the morals and manners of the present,
and praise the good old times and old time religion, as being so much
superior to the present, they do not know what the old times were, and
in my opinion, they are often speaking nonsense. That is my very serious
opinion."[60] In making this observation he did not mean to depreciate
the religion of his forefathers, for no one had a greater respect and
veneration for the past.
During the last year of his life Bishop Cheshire filled almost all of
his regular visitations in the eastern part of the Diocese. In addition,
he spent ten days, in the month of July, visiting the country churches
in the counties of Rowan, Mecklenburg, Davie, and Iredell. In the course
of these visitations he called on forty families in the several parishes
and missions. Such activity in midsummer would have taxed the strength
of a far younger man, but it did not appear to trouble the Bishop. At
the time, he wrote his son that although the heat was very severe, he
noticed it no more than if he had been doing nothing. In June of 1932
the Bishop went to Hartford, Connecticut, to assist in the consecration
of a new chapel at his alma mater, Trinity College. He enjoyed the trip
thoroughly, renewing some of his old friendships and making new ones.
By the fall of 1932 Bishop Cheshire's health was greatly impaired, but
he continued his visitations through December 11. On that day he
performed his last service. He confirmed a class of fifteen persons in
the Church of the Good Shepherd, Raleigh, but was not able to preach the
sermon. A few days later he went to Charlotte for treatment by a
specialist. Shortly after entering the hospital, however, he became
gradually worse. On December 27, at six-thirty in the evening, the
Diocese of North Carolina lost its beloved Bishop.
It was unusually difficult for the people of the Diocese to realize that
Bishop Cheshire would no longer be with them. He had possessed such a
lovable and dynamic personality, had so largely molded the character of
the Diocese, and had been its Bishop for so long that his people found
it hard to associate the idea of death with him. He had baptized,
confirmed, or married many of them, had entered sympathetically into the
pleasures and problems of their secular as well as their spiritual
lives, and thus endeared himself to them to an extent far beyond the
capacity of most men. In the words of the Presiding Bishop, James DeWolf
Perry: "It is impossible to foresee a time when his influence will not
be felt, his penetrating mind will not be esteemed or when his name will
cease to be held in grateful and loving remembrance."
[Illustration: THE CHAPEL OF THE CROSS, CHAPEL HILL
_From a drawing by Mary de B. Graves_]
_Notes_
CHAPTER I. YOUTH AND MANHOOD
1. Joseph Blount Cheshire, "Some Account of My Life for My Children,"
_Carolina Churchman_, March, 1934. Hereafter, this work is cited simply
as "Some Account of My Life."
2. This manuscript was written on February 12, 1866. It is owned by Mr.
J. B. Cheshire, Jr., of Raleigh.
3. Cheshire, "Some Account of My Life," _Carolina Churchman_, May, 1934.
4. _Ibid._, December, 1934.
5. _Ibid._
6. _Ibid._, February, 1935.
7. _Ibid._
CHAPTER II. DEACON AND PRIEST
8. Cheshire, "Some Account of My Life," _Carolina Churchman_, May, 1935.
9. _Ibid._, April, 1935.
10. The first child was born in March, 1878, but died only a few days
after birth.
11. _Church Messenger_, August 4, 1881.
12. Joseph B. Cheshire, "Autobiography," pp. 229-230, a manuscript work
owned by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr.
13. _Ibid._, p. 230.
14. _Ibid._, pp. 231-232.
15. _Ibid._, p. 256.
CHAPTER III. SAINT PETER'S PARISH
16. Cheshire to his wife, November 23, 1905, Cheshire Manuscripts, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
17. Cheshire, "Autobiography," p. 315.
18. _Ibid._, p. 322.
19. _Ibid._, p. 345.
20. Cheshire to Bishop Lyman, April 6, 1886, Joseph Blount Cheshire
Papers, University of North Carolina Library.
21. Bishop Lyman to Cheshire, October 17, 1888, Joseph Blount Cheshire
Papers, University of North Carolina Library.
22. A. W. Dodge to Cheshire, July 6, 1891, Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire
Papers, North Carolina Historical Commission.
23. Cheshire, "Autobiography," p. 382.
CHAPTER IV. ELECTION TO THE EPISCOPATE
24. Cheshire to Nannie C. Hoke, February 16, 1891, Bishop Joseph
Blount Cheshire Papers, North Carolina Historical Commission.
25. Rev. Robert B. Owens to L. F. London, July 8, 1938. Mr. Owens
was a member of the adjourned convention of 1893. This letter contains
a description of the proceedings of that convention.
26. Dr. Stephen B. Weeks was the friend Cheshire referred to. The
wedding took place in Randolph County.
27. Cheshire to Dr. Joseph B. Cheshire, Sr., June 29, 1893, Bishop
Joseph Blount Cheshire Papers, North Carolina Historical Commission.
28. Cheshire to Sallie Badger Hoke, July 3, 1893, Bishop Joseph
Blount Cheshire Papers, North Carolina Historical Commission.
29. Rev. Francis J. Murdoch in an open letter to Rev. E. A. Osborne,
1893, Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire Papers, North Carolina Historical
Commission.
CHAPTER V. FIRST YEARS IN THE EPISCOPACY
30. _Journal of the Convention of the Diocese of North Carolina_
(1894), p. 64.
31. Joseph B. Cheshire, _Milnor Jones, Deacon and Missionary_, p. 28.
32. _Ibid._, p. 53.
33. _Journal of the Convention of the Missionary Jurisdiction of
Asheville_ (1896), p. 51.
34. _Ibid._, pp. 50-51.
35. Cheshire to his wife, October 2, 1901, Cheshire Manuscripts, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
36. Joseph B. Cheshire, _Fifty Years of Church Life in North Carolina_,
p. 6.
37. Joseph B. Cheshire, Journal of 1897, p. 96, a manuscript account of
his visit to England and the Continent in the summer of 1897, owned by
Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
38. Nicholas Collin Hughes, "Some Memories of Bishop Cheshire." This
manuscript was written for L. F. London and is in his possession.
39. _Journal of the Convention of the Diocese of North Carolina_ (1896),
pp. 61-62.
40. Cheshire to his wife, November 7, 1899, Cheshire Manuscripts, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
41. The Raleigh _News and Observer_, October 15, 1903.
CHAPTER VI. MAN AND BISHOP
42. _Carolina Churchman_, April, 1931.
CHAPTER VII. HISTORIAN
43. Cheshire, "Some Account of My Life," _Carolina Churchman_, January,
1935.
44. Walter Clark to Cheshire, May 24, 1893, Bishop Joseph Blount
Cheshire Papers, North Carolina Historical Commission.
45. Cheshire, "Autobiography," p. 360.
46. _Ibid._, pp. 414-418.
47. For a complete list of the Bishop's published writings, see pp.
131-133.
48. The Raleigh _News and Observer_, December 4, 1931.
CHAPTER VIII. WORK AMONG THE COLORED PEOPLE
49. Cheshire to his wife, August 25, 1905, Cheshire Manuscripts, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
50. _Journal of the Convention of the Diocese of North Carolina_ (1907),
p. 72.
51. Bishop Cheshire to Bishop Guerry, May 17, 1918, Joseph Blount
Cheshire Papers, University of North Carolina Library.
52. Joseph B. Cheshire, Manuscript Address, Cheshire Manuscripts, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
53. _Carolina Churchman_, May, 1929.
CHAPTER IX. DEVELOPMENT AND CONCLUSION OF THE BISHOP'S WORK
54. Joseph B. Cheshire, "Our Summer, 1908," a journal of his visit to
England for the Pan-Anglican Congress and the Lambeth Conference, owned
by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
55. Joseph B. Cheshire, "England, 1920," a journal of his trip to
England for the Lambeth Conference and of his visit to France and
Switzerland, owned by Mr. J. B. Cheshire, Jr., Raleigh.
56. Sermon on Patriotism and the War, Joseph Blount Cheshire Papers,
University of North Carolina Library.
57. _Journal of the Convention of the Diocese of North Carolina_ (1919),
p. 51.
58. _Ibid._ (1923), p. 84.
59. The Raleigh _News and Observer_, March 28, 1930.
60. _Carolina Churchman_, April, 1930.
_Published Writings of Joseph Blount Cheshire_
_Address of the Right Rev. Joseph Blount Cheshire, Bishop of North
Carolina, on the Occasion of the Dedication of the Memorial Vestibule in
Christ Church, Raleigh, to the Glory of God and in the Memory of Richard
Henry Lewis, December 18, 1927._ Charlottesville, Va., n.d.
"Baptism of Virginia Dare," anniversary address, delivered on Roanoke
Island by Rt. Rev. Joseph Blount Cheshire, D.D., August 18, 1910, _North
Carolina Booklet_, Vol. X, no. 4.
_Bishop Atkinson and the Church in the Confederacy._ Raleigh, 1909.
"The Bishops of North Carolina—When the State Was One Diocese," _The
Carolina Churchman_, November, 1910-February, 1911.
_The Church in the Confederate States: A History of the Protestant
Episcopal Church in the Confederate States._ New York: Longmans, Green
and Co., 1912.
"The Church in the Province of North Carolina," in _Sketches of Church
History in North Carolina_, edited by Bishop Cheshire.
"Decay and Revival, 1800-1830," in _Sketches of Church History in North
Carolina_, edited by Bishop Cheshire.
"Dr. Richard H. Lewis; An Intimate Sketch by a Life-long Friend," _The
Carolina Churchman_, October, 1926.
_The Early Conventions: held at Tarborough Anno Domini 1790, 1793 and
1794. The first effort to organize the Church in North Carolina.
Collected from original sources and now first published. With
introduction and brief notes_, Raleigh, 1882.
"The Early Rectors of Christ Church," _Centennial Ceremonies held in
Christ Church Parish, Raleigh, North Carolina, A.D. 1921. Including
Historical Addresses._ Raleigh, 1922.
"Entries in an Old Bible which was Formerly in the Possession of Miss
Chloe Coward," _North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register_,
July, 1903.
_Fifty Years of Church Life in North Carolina_, an Address by the Rt.
Rev. Joseph Blount Cheshire, D.D., Bishop of North Carolina, on the
Fiftieth Anniversary of the Rev. Robert B. Drane, D.D., as Rector of St.
Paul's Church, Edenton, N. C. All Saints' Day, 1926. Edenton, n.d.
"First Settlers in North Carolina Not Religious Refugees: A Study in
Origins," _North Carolina Booklet_, Vol. V, no. 4.
_Fragments of Colonial Church History: 1. Public Libraries._ n.p., 1886.
"The Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, and Religious Liberty in the
Province of North Carolina," _Historical Magazine of the Protestant
Episcopal Church_, Vol. I, no. 4.
_An Historical Address Delivered in Saint Matthew's Church, Hillsboro,
N. C., on Sunday, August 24, 1924. Being the One Hundredth Anniversary
of the Parish._ Durham, 1925.
"An Historical Sketch of the Church in Edgecombe County, North
Carolina," _Church Messenger_, August 17-September 21, 1880.
"How Our Church Came to North Carolina," _The Spirit of Missions_, May,
1918.
_Milnor Jones, Deacon and Missionary._ Raleigh, 1920.
_Nonnulla: Memories, Stories, and Traditions, More or Less Authentic,
About North Carolina._ Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina
Press, 1930.
"The Office of Solicitor General of North Carolina," _University of
North Carolina Magazine_, May, 1894.
"The Personnel of the North Carolina Convention of 1788," _Publications
of the Southern History Association_, Vol. III, 1899.
_A Priest to the Temple or, The Country Parson, His Character and Rule
of Holy Life_, by George Herbert, with an Introduction and brief notes
by the Bishop of North Carolina. New York: Thomas Whittaker, Inc., 1908.
_Public Worship in the Church._ A Charge to the Clergy of the Diocese of
North Carolina delivered at the meeting of the Convocations of Raleigh
and Charlotte, in October, 1912. Also a Pastoral Letter to the Clergy
and Laity of the Diocese, n.p., n.d.
_Saint Peter's Church, Charlotte, North Carolina—Thirty Years of its
Life and Work, 1863-1893._ Charlotte, 1921.
"A Sermon; Preached in St. John's Church, Fayetteville, the Sunday next
before Advent, November 24, 1889, at the Centennial of the Fayetteville
Convention of 1789," _University of North Carolina Magazine_, Vol. XI,
no. 4.
_Sketches of Church History in North Carolina, Addresses and Papers by
the Clergymen and Laymen of the Dioceses of North and East Carolina._
Wilmington, 1892.
"Some Account of My Life for My Children," _Carolina Churchman_,
January, 1934-May, 1935.
"White Haven Church and the Rev. Robert Johnston Miller," in _Sketches
of Church History in North Carolina_, edited by Bishop Cheshire.
"Why Judge Haywood Left North Carolina," _University of North Carolina
Magazine_, January, 1895.
"Wilmington, the Free Town of the Cape Fear," in _Historic Towns of the
Southern States_, by Lyman P. Powell. New York: The Knickerbocker Press,
1900.
_Index_
A
Abbey of Valle Crucis, 109
Adams, Rev. Samuel F., 59
"A. H. W.," poem, 17
Albemarle section, 2, 89
Alpha Delta Phi, 11
Alston, Rev. Primus P., 31, 76, 104
Alumnae Association of St. Mary's School, 64
American Church Institute for Negroes, Cheshire elected to, 105
"Annals of the Church in the Province of North Carolina,"
MS by Cheshire, 91
Archdeacons, Cheshire's estimate of, 117-118
Ashe County, 57-58
Atkinson, Bishop Thomas, 18-19, 21;
on division of Diocese, 35;
sketch of by Cheshire, 94-95
B
Bakersville, N. C., 58
Baltimore, 13;
practices law in, 14-15
Barber, Rev. M. A., 103
Barrett, Rev. Robert S., 47, 48
Barrows, Rev. W. S., 49
Baskerville, Rev. Erasmus L., 103
Battle, President Kemp P., 19, 22, 39
Battle, Richard H., 75
Beach Cliff Schoolhouse, 34
Beaver Creek, 58-59
Bickett, Gov. Thomas, 116
Bishop of Georgia, Cheshire considered for, 41
Bishop Payne Divinity School, 105
Bixby, Robert F., 10
Blount, Elizabeth, 2
Blount, Joseph, 2
Bridgers, Cheshire, and Bridgers, firm of, 15
Bridgers, Col. John L., 15
Bridgers, John L., Jr., 15
Bronson, Rev. Benjamin S., institutional work in Charlotte, 28-29
Burlington, N. C., Cheshire is called to church at, 25
Buxton, Rev. Jarvis, 40, 91
C
Calvary Church, Tarboro, 2, 3, 35;
Cheshire receives call to, 41;
Cheshire consecrated in, 52-53
Canterbury, Archbishop of, 67
Capers, Bishop Ellison, 53, 66
Chapel Hill, 19-20;
Cheshire gives work in to Bishop Penick, 120
Chapel of the Cross, Cheshire becomes rector of, 19-20
Charlotte, Cheshire begins work in, 27
Cheshire, Annie, 44
Cheshire, Annie Gray, Bishop's sister, 4
Cheshire, Annie Webb (Mrs. Joseph Blount), 17, 22, 44;
death of, 67
Cheshire, Elizabeth Mitchell (Mrs. Joseph Blount), 69;
death of, 123
Cheshire, Elizabeth Toole, 23, 44
Cheshire, Godfrey, 44
Cheshire, James Webb, 44
Cheshire, John, the Bishop's grandfather, 2
Cheshire, Dr. Joseph Blount, Sr., 2, 3, 4, 7, 10
Cheshire, Bishop Joseph Blount, birth, 4;
early education, 4-6;
practices law, 14-17;
marries Annie Webb, 17;
ordained deacon, 19;
rector, Chapel of the Cross, 19-26;
ordained priest, 25;
rector, St. Peter's, Charlotte, 27 ff.;
Negro work in Charlotte, 30-31;
in diocesan conventions, 34-39;
views on episcopate, 47;
elected assistant bishop, 50;
on Missionary Jurisdiction of Asheville, 60-63;
St. Mary's School, 63-66;
death of Annie Webb Cheshire, 67;
marries Elizabeth Mitchell, 69;
in the General Convention, 69-70;
on public worship, 71-72;
on fishing and hunting, 77-79;
on divorce question, 81-84;
on national prohibition, 84-85;
as a father, 86-87;
on racial episcopate, 101-104;
asks for assistance, 119;
death of Elizabeth Mitchell Cheshire, 123;
on youth of today, 123-124;
death of, 125
Cheshire, Joseph Blount, Jr., 44, 77
Cheshire, Katherine Drane, 4
Cheshire, Sarah, 44, 79
Cheshire, Theophilus Parker, 4
Cheshire Building, St. Augustine's, 107
Christ Church, Raleigh, 48
_Church in the Confederate States_, discussion of, 94-96
_Churchman, The_, 95
_Church Messenger_, 23, 25, 90
Church of the Good Shepherd, Raleigh, 75, 119;
Cheshire's last service, 124
Church Temperance Society, of England, 110-111
_Church Times_, 95
Clark, Gov. Henry, 88
Clark, Judge Walter, 89
_Colonial Records of North Carolina_, 89, 91
Connor, R. D. W., resolution on the Bishop, 116
Convocation for Colored Work, 74
Convocation of Charlotte, 74, 119
Convocation of Raleigh, 74
Curtis, Dr. M. Ashley, 3, 53
D
Davidson College, 33
Deerfield, Mass., 10
Delany, Rev. Henry B., 76;
elected suffragan bishop, 103-104
Devereaux, Thomas P., 2
Division of the Diocese, 35-36
Dodge, Rev. A. W., 42
Drane, Dr. Robert B., on Cheshire's sermons, 80-81
Dudley, Bishop T. U., 53
Durham, N. C., 20;
Cheshire organizes church in, 23-25
E
Edenton, N. C., home of Cheshire's ancestors, 2
Edenton Academy, 2
Edgecombe County, 19-20;
history of church in, 88-89
Eliot, George, quotation from, 100
Ellicott City, 1, 12
Episcopal School for Boys, Raleigh, 2
Erwin, William A., 114, 116
Executive council, formed, 117-118
F
France, Cheshire visits, 68
Fundamental Constitutions, Cheshire discusses, 97
G
General Convention, Cheshire elected deputy to, 40;
on racial episcopate, 102
George, Rev. T. M. N., nominated assistant bishop, 48
Glenn, Gov. Robert B., 83
Gletsch, Switzerland, 112
Good Samaritan Hospital, 42-43, 99
Graves, Professor Ralph, 22
Graves' school, Granville County, 7
Guerry, Bishop William A., 103, 104
Guild of St. Martin, 32
H
Halifax, 3
Harding, Rev. Nathaniel H., nominated assistant bishop, 48
Hartford, Conn., 8, 10
Herbert, George, 93, 94
Hillsboro, N. C., 20;
Cheshire studies law in, 13-14
Historiographer, Cheshire elected, 90
Holler, Bill, 77-78
Holmes, Rev. Lucian, 29
Holt, Lawrence, 114
Honesty, Cheshire writes essay on, 7
Honorary degrees, given Cheshire, 93
Hooper, George G., Cheshire's law partner, 14-15
Hooper, Professor J. de Berniere, 22
Hooper and Cheshire, firm of, 15
Horner, Bishop Junius Moore, consecrated bishop, 63
Howard, Judge George, 14
Howard and Perry, firm of, 14
Hunter, Dr. A. B., 108, 112, 116
I
Iredell County, 42
Ireland, Cheshire visits, 68
Ives, Bishop Levi Silliman, 2, 3;
work at Valle Crucis, 56, 59;
sketch of by Cheshire, 94
J
Jackson, Bishop Henry M., 47
Jamaica, Cheshire visits, 113
Johns, Bishop John, advice to young clergymen, 21
Johnston, William H., 5
Joint convention of 1890, 91-92
Jones, Hamilton C., 28
Jones, Rev. Milnor, mission work in the mountains, 56-59;
Cheshire's estimate of, 60;
life of by Cheshire, 96
Jones, Sam, 43-44
Jurisdiction of Asheville, formation of, 61-63
K
Kerfoot, President of Trinity College, 9
L
Lambeth Conference, Cheshire attends, 67-68, 109, 111-112
Lenten services, Cheshire on, 73
Lewis, Nell Battle, tribute to the Bishop, 86
Lewis, Dr. Richard H., 5, 7, 13, 118;
Cheshire's best man, 17;
tribute to Cheshire, 121
Lloyd, Rev. Arthur S., nominated assistant bishop, 49
Long Creek Township, 33-34
Louisburg, N. C., 5
Louisburg Academy, Cheshire attends, 6
Lucas, Rev. Henry, 41
Lyman, Bishop Theodore Benedict, 21, 24, 25, 34, 53;
on division of Diocese, 35;
estimate of Cheshire's work in Charlotte, 41;
asks for assistance, 46, 48;
death of, 54;
sketch of by Cheshire, 94
M
McCoy, Columbus W., 33
Mallett, Dr. William P., 22
Marshall, Dr. Matthias M., 19, 35;
nominated assistant bishop, 48
Maryland, 9, 12
Mecklenburg County, missions in, 42
Meredith, Rev. Reuben, 79
Methodist Church Conference, 83
Missionary bishops for Negro work, 101-102
Mitchell, Elizabeth Lansdale,
marries Bishop Cheshire, 69;
death of, 123
Mitchell, Rev. Walter A., 69
Mitchell County, 57-58
Monreath, summer home of the Bishop's father, 5, 12
Monroe, N. C., Cheshire organizes church in, 32
Mooresville, N. C., 33
Murdoch, Dr. Francis J., Cheshire's estimate of, 47;
nominated assistant bishop, 48;
nominates Cheshire, 48;
on Cheshire's election as bishop, 51
Murray, Bishop John Gardner, estimate of Cheshire, 107
Music in the church, Cheshire on, 73
N
Negro, religion of the, 106
Newsome, A. R., estimate of Cheshire as an historian, 98
Niles, Professor William W., 9
_Nonnulla_, vii, 79;
discussion of, 97
O
Orkneys, Cheshire visits, 68
Osborne, Rev. Edwin A.,
takes work at Monroe and Long Creek, 32, 34;
founds Thompson Orphanage, 42
_Outlook_, 95
P
Palmer, Professor George H., 94
Pamlico Banking and Insurance Company, 15, 19
Pan-Anglican Congress, 109-111
Parker, Elizabeth Toole, 4
Parker, Mary Toole, 4
Parker, Theophilus, 4
Pastoral Letter, by Cheshire, 72-73
Penick, Bishop Edwin A., elected bishop coadjutor, 119;
proposes gift for Cheshire, 121, 122
Perry, Bishop James DeWolf, tribute to Cheshire, 125
Phi Kappa, Cheshire's fraternity, 11
Pittsboro, N. C., 19
Polk County, 57
Portrait of the Bishop, 108
Presbyterian Synod, 83
Pynchon, Professor at Trinity, 10
Q
Quaker settlements in North Carolina, 89
Quin, Rev. Charles C., 30-32
Quintard, Bishop Charles T., 53
R
Racial episcopate, 103
Ravenscroft, Bishop John Stark, 47;
sketch of by Cheshire, 94
Ravenscroft, Raleigh, home of the Bishop, 120
Roanoke River swamp, Bishop hunts in, 78
Rockingham, N. C., 33
Ruffin, Chief Justice Thomas, 13
Ruffin, William K., Cheshire studies law under, 13-14, 16
S
St. Ambrose Church, Raleigh, 76
St. Augustine's School, 105, 107-108
St. Clement's Hall, Cheshire teaches at, 1, 12-13, 16
St. Luke's Church, Tarboro, Cheshire holds first service
as bishop in, 53
St. Mark's Church, Mecklenburg County, 25;
organized, 34
St. Martin's Church, Charlotte, organized, 31
St. Mary's School, founded, 63-64;
Cheshire's opinion of, 64;
established as a church school, 64-66;
Cheshire's daughters attend, 87;
debt on, 113-114;
endowment for, 114
St. Matthew's Church, Hillsboro, Cheshire married in, 17;
Cheshire is called to, 25
St. Michael and All Angels, Charlotte, organized, 30, 31, 99
St. Michael's Industrial School, Charlotte, 104-105
St. Paul's Church, Edenton, 2, 80
St. Paul's Church, Macon, Ga., Cheshire receives call to, 41
St. Paul's Church, Winston-Salem, 25, 55
St. Peter's Church, Charlotte, 28, 36;
Cheshire is called to, 26
St. Peter's Home and Hospital, organized, 29, 30
St. Philip's Church, Durham, 24-25
Saluda conference, 66
Saunders, Col. William L., 89-90
Scotland, Cheshire visits, 68
Scotland Neck, 3
Sermons, Cheshire discusses, 21-22
Sessums, Bishop Davis, 53
Shepherd, John Avery, 12
Smedes, Dr. Aldert, 63
Smedes, Dr. Bennett, 63, 64, 66
Smedes, Rev. John E. C., 19, 25;
verses to Cheshire, 51-52
Society of the Cincinnati, Cheshire becomes member of, 93
State Literary and Historical Association, Cheshire elected
president of, 97
Strange, Rev. Robert B., 92
Suffragan bishops, for Negro work, 101-104
Sutton, Rev. Robert B., 19, 20
Switzerland, Cheshire visits, 68, 112
T
Tarboro, N. C., 14-15, 17;
description of, 2
Tarboro Building and Loan Association, 15-16
Tarboro Male Academy, Cheshire attends, 5, 7, 13
Thompson Orphanage, Charlotte, 42
Trinity Church, Scotland Neck, 3
Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., Cheshire enters, 8-9;
graduates from, 11-12;
confers degree on Cheshire, 93;
Cheshire visits, 124
Tryon, N. C., 56
"Tuttle Prize," Cheshire wins, 11
U
University of North Carolina, 5, 6, 8, 19, 87;
confers degree on Cheshire, 93
University of the South, Cheshire made trustee of, 39-40;
Cheshire's son attends, 87;
confers degree on Cheshire, 93
V
Valle Crucis, Cheshire revives work at, 56-57, 59
W
Watauga County, missions in, 57-58
Watauga River, 56, 77
Watson, Bishop Alfred A., 25, 53
Webb, Annie Huske, Cheshire meets, 16;
marries Cheshire, 17;
death of, 67
Weed, Bishop Edwin G., 53
Weeks, Stephen B., 49 n.
West Indies, Archbishop of, 113
Wetmore, Rev. George B., 34
Whipple, Bishop Henry B., 47
Wilkes, John, 27-28, 32
Wilkes, Mrs. John, 42-43
Wilkinson, Frank S., 5, 7-8
Williams, Bishop John, 10-11
Wilson, President Woodrow, 115
Winchester, Rev. J. R., 47
Windsor, N. C., 3
Winston, Professor George T., 22
Y
York, Archbishop of, Cheshire visits, 68