Churches

The Freewill Baptist Church was organized in 1800, at the house of Lieutenant Thomas Lyford, by Elders Benjamin Page and Aaron Buel of Strafford, Vt. There were eighteen members. Rev. Benjamin Page was ordained pastor. He was the first settled minister in town, so he had clear title to minister's lot ( lots 62 & 63), which he received. He left Cabot almost as soon as got his farm in condition to sell The Freewill Baptist meeting house, on West Hill, was built in 1829. About 1850, the church lost its organization.

Deacon Joseph Blanchard and his wife Phebe Abbott, from Plainfield, NH, settled in Cabot about 1797, on a farm that James Marsh owned later. Joseph Blanchard was a soldier in the Revolutionary War and in the War of 1812. He was one of the first deacons of the Freewill Baptist Church. He was selectman in 1808-09. Late in life, Deacon Blanchard received a military pension.
Deacon Benjamin Hoyt was born in Deerfield, NH, in 1791. He was converted early in life and served as deacon in the church at Cabot, Vt. He came to Honey Creek, Wis., in 1837.
Tristam C. Hoyt was from New Hampshire. He united with the church in Cabot, Vt. and helped build its house of worship. In 1834, he moved to Indiana and in 1837, to Rochester, Wis. He united with the Honey Creek church at its organization. He was an active member until his death on Aug. 5, 1872, when nearly 79 years old.
HONEY CREEK, Wisconsin is a village in Spring Prairie, Walworth County. On February 6, 1841, the first settlers, Benjamin Hoyt, Susan Hoyt, Benjamin Fowler, Nancy Fowler, Ann Hopkins, Mary Heath, and Benjamin Augir met, in the home of Benjamin Hoyt, to organize a Free Will Baptist Church.

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1824 – (Cabot) The religious denominations are Congregationalists and Methodists, each of which has a meetinghouse. (The Congregational and Methodist buildings are described in Historic Buildings.) These two churches united in 1928 and hold services in the Congregational building. The Rev. J. Moses Ingalls settled over the Congregational church. The Congregational church in Cabot, consisting of 15 members, was organized Oct. 25, 1801. Though it was destitute of a pastor for about twenty-two years, it was favored with missionary and some other ministerial labor. A deacon preserved a list of 38 missionaries, most from Connecticut, who lodged at his house while in Cabot. The deacons watched over interests of the church. The church was favored with seasons of some revival. A considerable number were gathered in 1826, when it was again without a pastor. After a season of great decline and alienation, a remarkable season of revival was enjoyed which resulted in addition of 92 members. There was some revival again, in 1831, which a dded members, bringing the membership to 160. Mr. Ingalls and Mr. Jones both went into the State of New York, after leaving Cabot.

1825 - Promotion or revivals - The New Hampshire Repository states that previous to the commencement of the present revival in Cabot, Vt., about twenty persons agreed to set apart a certain portion of time every day to pray for a revival of religion. It was not long before they realized an answer to their united petitions.

1826 - In Vermont, there is said to be a prospect of something like a general revival of religion. Besides Burlington, Rutland, Middlebury, and eight or ten other towns in the vicinity of the last place, awakenings are said to prevail in the towns of Northfield, Roxbury, Braintree, Worcester, Cabot, and Strafford.

1826 - In Cabot, Vt. - By a private letter addressed to a friend in this town, it appears that a powerful revival has recently commenced in Cabot, Caladonia County, Vt. Nearly one hundred, it is said, are already rejoicing in hope and many others are under deep and pungent conviction. - New England Observer

The Congregational Church of Cabot is located in the village of Cabot. It was organized October 25, 1801, at the old schoolhouse at the center of town, by Rev. Mr. Ransom, of Rochester, and Rev. Mr. Hallock, a missionary from Connecticut, with thirteen members. They were:Clement Coburn, Gershom Beardsley, Stephen Clark, Oliver Walbridge, Elias Hitchcock, Lene Orcutt, Hepzebah Osgood, Ruth Beardsley, Miriam Clark, Elizabeth Walbridge, Peggy Hitchcock, Anna Church, and Lucy Osgood Clement. Coburn, who had been a deacon in Massachusetts, was first deacon and moderator. They held meetings at the Center schoolhouse, at a nearby dwelling, and in Esquire Mercer's and Oliver Walbridge's barns, until about 1810, when their first house of worship was completed. In 1824, it was removed to the village. In 1849, it was taken down and the present edifice was built on the same site, at a cost of $3,500. The church is built of wood and will comfortably seat 275. It was without a settled pastor, until October 27, 1823, when Rev. Moses Ingalls was ordained and installed.

Henry Jones, son of Ezra Jones, half-brother of early Waitsfield, Vt. settlers, was bom in Claremont, N. H.,

January 8, 1788. He joined the Congregational Church of Waitsfield, VT Feb. 1, 1818.

In 1826, Rev. Jones, who was a Mason in Waitsfield, wrote a pamphlet, "An Exposure of Free-Masonry" and

"Letters on Masonry." They argued that Masonry was unchristian.

In Cabot, Jan. 3, 1827, Rev. Henry Jones was ordained and installed pastor of the Congregational church, to preach

three-quarters of the time, at a salary of $225, one-half payable in grain, and one-half in money. He was dismissed

May 28, 1832. Until 1839, Cabot had no settled pastor.

Henry Jones, abolitionist, life member of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society; he was banned from speaking

in some churches for voicing abolitionist opinions. He lectured on temperance throughout the North. Jones founded

Cabot's first temperance society in 1826. In 1834, Jones published a pamphlet, "The Seven Churches of Asia" on

the coming Millennium. Jones later identified with the new Adventist denomination and moved to New York City.

Deacon Matthias Stone was an early settler of Claremont, N.H. His son, John Stone, with three brothers, went from

Claremont in 1794 to northern Vermont. Among the first settlers in Cabot, they cleared farms and reared large

families there. John Stone married Betsey Huntoon of Unity, N.H. and reared seven sons and three daughters.

Four sons became Congregational ministers. The Rev Levi H Stone, John Stone's second son , was born

December 10, 1806. As a minister of the gospel, he had a long and successful career. Though not liberally educated,

he was an eloquent pulpit orator and a very popular and prominent preacher. He held several pastorates, his first of ten years being in Cabot and his last in Pawlet, Vt. While in charge of the church at Northfield, he was

chaplain of the Vermont Senate at two sessions of the legislature. At the start of the Civil War, he made effective

addresses at many war meetings. Later he served as chaplain of the First Regiment of Vermont Volunteers.

For several years after he closed his last pastorate, he was agent of the Vermont State Temperance Society. He died at Castleton January 25 1892 aged eighty five

19th century Vermonters were divided about alcohol. Anti-alcohol groups called their movement “temperance”; at first, they opposed drunkenness, not drinking. Later, many wanted prohibition. Heavy drinking was common in Vermont from its earliest days. Any gathering was an excuse to drink – weddings, funerals, house-raisings, militia training . One Vermonter commented the militia’s cavalry understood only three commands: “Mount! Drink! Fall off!”

The Methodist Episcopal Church of Cabot was organized in 1811 and consisted of eight members. Judge J. W. Dana, Daniel Smith, and Dr. Scott joined soon after The first Methodist sermon in town was preached by Rev. Thomas Branch, in 1807 or 1808. The first pastor was Rev. Stearns. The first presiding elder, who officiated on the circuit including Cabot, was Rev. Eleazer Wells. The first house of worship was erected of wood in 1822 or 1823. The land and timber were given by Judge Dana. By his influence and liberality, the church was built. Until then, meetings were in houses and barns, and in the summer of 1816, in the tannery. Their church was completed in 1853.The society is indebted to the late Joseph Lance; by his liberality and efforts its completion was secured.

The First Day Advent Christian Church in Cabot was organized February 16, 1858, with forty members. Nathan Wheeler and Erasmus L. Burnap, deacons and M. P. Wallace, scribe. Samuel W. Thurber was the first pastor. Their meetinghouse was built in 1857, mainly through the efforts of Dr. M. P. Wallace. It was in Lower Cabot and was similar in appearance to the Methodist Church in the upper village. It was dedicated in June 1858. Then followed a powerful revival. The Sunday school was organized before the church and had the largest library in town. The church suffered severely by deaths and removals. It lost members and eventually closed. An attempt was made to organize a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Lower Cabot in 1881. Construction began, but the church closed after about two years. Cabot churches