100 YEAR HISTORY 1891 TO 1991

Published by Wesley Memorial United Church
Moncton, N. B. 1991

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EARLY HISTORY OF METHODISM  CHURCH BUILDINGS

The First Building  The Present Church  The Church Hall

MINISTERS  YOUTH PROGRAMS  Sunday School  ADULT PROGRAMS 

 WOMEN'S PROGRAMS  MEN'S PROGRAMS  CHURCH MUSIC 

HERMAN NORTHROP FRYE  CREDITS

EARLY HISTORY OF METHODISM

The Methodist Church was founded by Rev. John Wesley in 1739, and while he never intended to found a new denomination, but rather to reform the existing church, the Methodist Church became independent of the Church of England in 1748. The record of Methodists in Canada shows that they were not long in coming to this Country. It is said that the first Societies were formed in Newfoundland but it is significant to note that among the earliest Societies was the one formed by the Yorkshire immigrants to Point de Bute, N. B. , who settled there in 1772 and were joined by others between 1772 and 1775. This group became organized into a Society in 1779 and are now a part of the Chignecto Presbytery of the United Church, in which Wesley Memorial shares membership.

One of the leaders of the Methodist Church in the Tantramar area was William Black, who was considered to be the father of Methodism in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. He corresponded directly and regularly with Rev. John Wesley, so we see that Methodism in this area was not far removed from the founder.

In Moncton it is true to say that Methodism grew with the city. William Black made his first trip to the Upper Petitcodiac Valley in 1781, and the area was apart of the Cumberland Circuit in 1786 and continued as such until 1822. In that year Albert DesBrisay was settled on the newly established Petitcodiac Circuit. DesBrisay later became the first Governor and Chaplain of Mount Allison Academy.

At that time the history of Methodism in Moncton became closely associated with The Free Meeting House which still stands at the head of Steadman Street. The land for this building was deeded by William Steadman in 1821 to Ichabod Lewis and Solomon Trites so that the residents of The Bend could erect a House of Worship to be known as The Free Meeting House. Here the Methodists worshipped for many years.

During those years there was a note of friendly competition between The Bend (Moncton) and Coverdale for dominance in the Circuit. In 1838 the people of Coverdale built a parsonage and preacher Wesley Beals moved into it, the first Methodist preacher to have a home of his own on the Circuit. The arrangement appeared not to work well for the Moncton people decided in 1841 to seek out land for a church and parsonage. Purchase of land did not occur until 1844 when five acres were obtained on Main Street at the corner of Wesley Street. A church and parsonage were completed on the two lots adjacent to :.~ Main Street in 1847. The remainder of the land was subsequently sold to help pay for the new buildings.

In 1874 Moncton became a self supporting Circuit. The first church of 1847 had been twice enlarged. It became too small during the pastorate of T. J. Deinstadt 1874 to 1877. At that time the site of the present Central United Church was obtained and a church was dedicated in 1877. This church was extended in 1886 and in 1889 was once again found too small. Relief at this time was found by establishing anew church to be known as Wesley Memorial.

Thus did the Methodists of Moncton arrive at the time 100 years ago when they felt it was necessary to move to the westerly extremities of the Town. Moncton was declared a City in 1890, the year after the decision was taken to found Wesley Memorial and a year before Wesley Memorial was dedicated in 1891. City and Church in essence the same age.

CHURCH BUILDINGS

The First Building

There is little record available of the planning that went into the first church building on this site. The need was recognized in Central Methodist Church, later Central United Church, and the decision to build a new church was made easy by the great generosity of Mr. George R. Sangster, who donated the land and provided the money to build the first Wesley Memorial Church. The Architect and Builder are not known but fortunately a good photograph of both the exterior and interior still exist and are included in this history. The dominant feature of the exterior is the main entrance tower which was located right at the corner of St. George and Cameron Streets. The entrance was surmounted by a domed roof. In a recent article by Mr. J. E. Belliveau he credits Northrop Frye's mother as having said that the dome was painted blue and made the structure look, "like that of an extreme Pentecostal sect".

The church plan was square. As you entered the main door, the choir loft with its pipe organ was diagonally opposite. The seating was arranged in line with the other diagonal. The pipe organ, it would seem, was not new when installed in this church as there seems to have been frequent repairs required. The organ had a manual bellows and the minutes record that annual budgets included an amount of $20.00 for the organ boy. The church contained a basement for Sunday School activities and other group meetings. The congregation made use of other facilities outside of the church as well for various group meetings.

On June 16, 1891 at half past two o'clock in the afternoon, the corner stone of the church was laid by the then Grand Master of Free and Accepted Masons of New Brunswick, Dr. Thomas Walker of Saint John, and his Grand Lodge Officers. On November 4, 1990 at the beginning of our 100th year as a congregation, Mr. Charles N. Hollett the present Grand Master and his Grand Lodge; Officers, .accompanied by other members the Fraternity, re-enacted this ceremony, as part of our Anniversary service.

The first worship service for the new congregation was held in September 1891 as an open air service. Rev. T.J. Deinstadt, the first minister of Wesley Memorial Church, stood on the steps of the new church which was still under construction and the congregation gathered around standing or sitting on temporary benches of planks, to hear the first sermon preached at Wesley Memorial Church. On the following Sunday the services moved into the basement and were held there until the building was completed.

On Sunday November 8, 1891 the first service was held in the Sanctuary, when Rev. D. Hamilton of the Peoples Church of Boston, Mass. was the preacher. On Sunday November 15, 1891 the building was dedicated with Rev. George M. Campbell being the preacher.

Ninety-nine members of Central Methodist Church transferred to the new Wesley Memorial Church. A manse was provided next to the church facing Cameron Street and was in use until our present hall was constructed.

On August 11, 1891 a meeting had been held at the home of Mr. George R. Sangster to organize the first Quarterly Board of Wesley Memorial Church. Those present were Rev. T.J. Deinstadt, G.R. Sangster, Treasurer, A. McShaw, Thomas Fleetwood, J.S. Rayworth, Recording Steward, W.L. Rand, W.T. Sands. A copy of the minutes of this first meeting can be found in the church archives.

The Present Church

The first wood frame church served for 36 years but from its early history was considered to be too small to serve the growing congregation properly. While the pressure was mainly for an improved Sunday School, the Sanctuary itself felt the pressure of growth early in the life of this congregation. There was a discussion at the Quarterly Board on April 18, 1907 which highlights this growth and calls our attention to one of the early customs the Methodist Church, which was to charge a fee for "sittings" in the church pews. By 1907 requests were being received for sittings which were not available and it was therefore suggested that all seats be made free. After a survey of the current pew holders, found that they favoured the change and furthermore would maintain contributions at the current level, the decision was made at a special meeting on April 20, 1907 that seats would be free as of May 31, 1907.

As early as April 1912 there was a discussion of the Sunday School facilities. A committee of two men was established to interview the owners of land west of the church and attempt to purchase the land for $1,500.00. The purchase was authorized at a meeting on April 18, 1912 so that space would be available to enlarge the facilities. There may have been a secondary reason, since the City had wanted to build a fire station on St. George Street west of the church, which proposal had been objected to by the church. In 1916 land at the rear of the church was used to provide a tennis court for young ladies of the church.

In 1919, under Rev. H. Johnson, enlarged accommodation was again discussed. Committees were appointed including a large finance committee charged with obtaining subscriptions payable over three years. Mr. Mott, a Saint John architect, was consulted and .he met with the church board, but no concrete action flowed from this effort. One would assume that the necessary financial support could not be developed at the time. There were some discussions held at this time with St. John's Presbyterian Church concerning a proposal to build a union church in the west end of the City, but nothing developed further in this regard.

The idea of a new church for Wesley Memorial was still active through 1920 and 1921. At one point it was reported that pledges had been obtained for just under $10,000.00. Mr. Mott was still being consulted and had estimated a cost of $28,000.00. In January of 1921 plans and specifications were presented and approved but still the project languished in the committee stage. The Quarterly Board received a report in June of 1923 showing various small amounts of money held by various groups totaling $1,869.20, so obviously there had not been any serious attempt to follow through on the previous financial campaign.

Not until Rev. Harold Tomkinson came to Wesley did any concrete action take place. At his first meeting with the Quarterly Board on September 8, 1926 he re-opened discussion of a new church. By this time church union had taken place and Wesley Memorial like all other Methodist Churches, had entered The United Church of Canada without a local approval being necessary. On October 6th, 1926 Rev. Harold Tomkinson brought forward several alternatives for the future but stressed that a new church with a new pipe organ should be given careful consideration. He preferred this solution as being the best long term answer. Rev. Tomkinson felt that the new United Church of Canada was behind them and that success was quite possible.

New committees were struck and in October of 1926 a recommendation to build a new church was approved by the Board at an estimated cost of $50,000.00. In February of 1927 Mr. R.N. Wyse, Treasurer, reported the Financial Campaign was within $3,000.00 of its objective of $30,000.00.

By this time Mr. C.A. Fowler of Halifax, NS had been retained as Architect, and his commission was to complete plans and specifications for the first unit, which is the church as it now exists, and which was estimated to cost $60,000.00. Mr. Fowler was also to complete plans for the second stage which he did, but that building was never built. When the time came that additional space could be built that plan no longer suited the situation.

The Board approved placing a mortgage of $40,000.00 and in due course Ambrose Wheeler Limited was engaged as builder. The first building, which was wood frame, was moved onto the lot west of the church, which was owned by the church, and was used for services while the new building was constructed. In August of 1927 the foundation was in place and a ceremony to lay the corner stone was held on August 15th. The service was presided over by Rev. Harold Tomkinson. Mrs. Emma Gay, granddaughter of     Mr. George R. Sangster, founder of Wesley Memorial Church, presented silver trowels to Mr. R.N. Wyse and Senator C.W. Robinson who laid the corner stone and memorial stones respectively. The address was given by Dr. J.H. Philips, Chairman of Moncton Presbyters of the United Church of Canada.

At the corner stone ceremony, boys and girls of the Sunday School, who had contributed to the building fund, each laid a brick in the church wall. Those laying bricks were: Northrop Frye, Dorothy Mitton, Evelyn Rogers, Harold Harvey, Ross Jarvis, Edward Coleman, Jim Gibson George Gillis, Reginald Harvey, Georgie Coleman, Stewart Gillis, Eileen Mitton, Ross Caldwell, Richard Titus, John McNairn, Betty Wyse, Margaret Williams, Marjorie McEwen, Alice Carson, Jean Archibald, Dorothy Archibald, Constance Archibald, Christine Carson, Constance Tomkinson, Joan Tomkinson, Jean Gregg, William Kirby, Fred Kirby, Anna Smith, Arthur Bullen & Margaret Carson.

The church was dedicated on Sunday February 26, 1928. Rev. Harold Tomkinson conducted the service with Dr. T. Albert Moore, Secretary of the General Council preaching at the morning and evening services. An afternoon service was held in the new Sunday School quarters and was addressed by Rev. A.K. Herman, Minister of Highfield Baptist Church. Special services were held on the two following Sundays. The preacher on March 4 was Dr. A.D. Reid of Sydney, NS, and on March 11 was a former minister of Wesley Memorial, Rev. Hammond Johnson.

The church and furnishings cost $94,000.00 and the debt at the time of completion was approximately $60,000.00. The hard times of the depression of the twenties was soon on the country. Instead of retiring the loan principal as had been planned, the church found it difficult to pay the interest on the debt. This condition persisted through the 1930's.

World War II marked a change in the financial position of members of the congregation and once again substantial payments on the loan were possible. Soon after World War II, on March 2, 1949, success was finally achieved when the mortgage was burned at a public service in the Church. Those taking part on the platform were: Dr. J.H. Freestone, Richard G. Jefferson, R. N. Wyse, Harry 0. Arthur, Willard Harvey, Harry Titus, Gaius Avard, Paul Kingston, William Rogers.

The Church Hall

The hope to provide enlarged facilities for Christian Education, fellowship, and recreation had long been in the minds of this congregation before it became a reality in the early 50's. The plan for the present church had actually included detailed drawings for an expansion of the building using the St. George, Street lot. This was never built and by 1953 was not considered to be suitable for the needs of that time.

With the mortgage on the church paid off in 1949 thoughts soon turned to raising funds to build a Church Hall. During the pastorate of Rev. J. C. Johnson 1950 to 1955, a decision was taken to proceed with a financial campaign with an objective of $120,000.00 for the purpose of building a Religious Education building. The Wells Organization was retained to lead us in this fund raising project and an active committee was appointed to work with them. The Committee included the following: Gaius Avard, Chairman William Kirby, Wesley Dempsey, Campaign Chairman Jack Davies, Roland Dinney, Ronald Dixon, Don Mitton, Cecil Darrah, James Gibson, and Neil MacLellan.

The campaign was well organized and the needs were explained clearly to the congregation with sincerity. The campaign was launched with a loyalty dinner held in the Canadian Legion Hall, which was crowded to capacity. The fund raising went on to a successful conclusion with sufficient funds pledged over a three year period to allow the Official Board to make a further decision to proceed immediately with construction. To this end a Building Committee was appointed which met for the first time on February 23, 1953 and elected officers. The Building Committee consisted of the following: Donald Mitton, Chairman J.B. Fraser, Geoffrey Hogan, Vice Chairman Paul Kingston, R.M. Wickwire, Secretary Earl MacPherson, Vic Armes, Barry Miller, H. Atkinson, Stan Pierce, Taylor Coates, Ron Stevens, Cecil Darrah, Lloyd Sterling, J.R. Davies, Don Storey, W.J. Dempsey, H. Touchie, Roland Dinney and Ron Dixon.

The early meetings dealt with the important issue of which site to choose, St. George Street which is now a parking lot, or on the corner of Cameron and Dufferin Streets, where the manse was then located. Authority was received on March 26, 1953 to retain an Architect and at the meeting on April 2, 1953 the Committee selected Mr. John L. Darby of Bedford, Nova Scotia. Preliminary plans were developed for a building on the Dufferin Street site and were presented to the Official Board during the - week of April 19, 1953 and approved. The way was then clear to develop construction drawings and call for tenders.

During that period when plans and specifications were being finalized, the Official Board had to deal with obtaining a new manse. This turned out to be a very sensitive question and became a choice between an older house close to the church or a newer house in the west end of the city. When the motion finally came to a vote at nearly midnight the Official Board voted unanimously in favour of a manse at 61 Greenwood Drive. The manse was sold in May of 2006.

At a meeting of the Building Committee on June 23, 1953 a letter was read from the Town Planning Commission giving approval to the plans as submitted to them by the Architect which provided the empty lot on St. George Street be designated as a parking area. The parking lot question was referred to the Official Board and approved by them on November l0, 1953.

On February 19th, 1954, the Building Committee authorized the calling of tenders with the closing date set for 5:00 p.m. Monday, March 29, 1954. A committee meeting was held on that date to review the tenders. Five tenders were received ranging from $160,000.00 to $129,000.00. The lowest was from M.F. Schurman Co. Ltd. of Summerside, Prince Edward Island. At a further meeting on March 31, 1954, the Schurman tender was approved for recommendation to the Official Board. A meeting of the Congregation was held on April 8th, 1954 and approval was given to proceed with construction with the work to be performed by M.F. Schurman Co. Ltd.

A sod turning ceremony was held on Monday May 3, 1954 and excavation of the basement was started on May 4, 1954. Mr. Paul S. Kingston, Clerk of Session turned the first sod. The building was completed and was dedicated on January 17, 1955, when Rev. C.M. Nicholson was our special guest. At a meeting of the Building Committee with the Contractor on Monday January 18, 1955 the building was officially taken over from the Contractor. In February of 1956 the Building Committee was dissolved by the Official Board with thanks for completing their job.

With the new hall complete there still remained a need to change the layout of the church basement so that it would complement the new facilities. In the same year the men of the congregation undertook to make the necessary partition changes. Vic Armes prepared a plan which was approved. Mr. Roland Dinney undertook the job of supervising the work and ordering material. Good size work gangs were on hand for many evenings and Saturdays and soon the work was completed.

MINISTERS

In its first one hundred years this church has been served by nineteen Ministers, one Assistant, and one Deaconess.

In the thirty-four years from 1891 -1925, as a Methodist Congregation, there were ten ministers. It was a custom of the Methodist Church in those days that a Minister served a Congregation for approximately three years, then move on to another church.

This custom was discontinued when the Methodist Church became part of the United Church of Canada at the time of Church Union in 1925. During the next sixty-six years from 1925-1991 there have been nine Ministers at Wesley Memorial United Church.

Methodist Ministers 1891 - 1925

• Rev. T.J. Deinstadt 1891-1894
• Rev. John Reid 1894-1896
• Rev. Robert Crisp 1896-1901
• Rev. William Penna 1901-1905
• Rev. Herbert Thomas 1905-1907
• Rev. John J. Pinkerton 1907-1911
• Rev. William A. Lane 1911-1914
• Rev. Percy A. Fitzpatrick 1914-1918
• Rev. Hammond Johnson 1918-1922
• Rev. G.W.F. Glendenning 1922-1926

United Church Ministers 1925 - Present

• Rev. Harold Tompkinson 1926-1931
• Rev. W.R. Seeley 1931-1935
• Rev. A.I. Higgins 1935-1941
• Rev. J.H. Freestone 1941-1950
• Rev. J.B. Strothart 1948-1950 (Assistant)
• Rev. J.C. Johnson 1950-1955
• Rev. D.F. Hoddinott 1955-1962
• Rev. D.C. Boothroyd 1963-1974
• Laura Fielder Richardson 1964-1969 (Deaconess)
• Rev. K.W. Fraser 1974-1987
• Rev. G. Paul Cumming 1987-1999
• Rev. Lloyd A. Bruce 1999-2005
• Rev. Dr. Philip G.A. Griffin-Allwood 2006-present

YOUTH PROGRAMS

SCOUTS - The first record of a program for youth is in 1933 when a "Boys' Work Committee" was appointed. This led to Wesley Memorial receiving their first Charter from Boy Scouts of Canada. The first troop became known as 2^nd Moncton Scout Troop. In 1966 mention is made of the Wesley Memorial Rover Crew with Mr. D. Brenton as leader. Cubs continued until 2008 when they joined with the Mount Royal United Church Cub Group.

CGIT (Canadian Girls In Training) operated at Wesley Memorial from 1925 until 1974. The purpose of the CGIT reads as follows: " As A Canadian Girl In Training, under the leadership of Jesus, it is my purpose to cherish health, seek truth, know God, and serve others, and thus, with His help, become the girl God would have me be." The purpose is based on Luke 2:52, "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and man." CGIT continued as a thriving group, shaping and influencing the lives of many young women until 1974 when CGIT was terminated after Christmas due to the small membership.

EXPLORERS had its beginnings at Wesley as an attempt to present a well balanced program of religious education to girls ages 9 - 11 years old, emphasizing features which could not be well be carried out in Sunday sessions, such as playgroup, activities, social times and handcraft. At its peak, the Explorer program had fifty-five girls enrolled in four groups! The Explorers group at Wesley ran from 1943 until 1973.

MESSENGERS ran from 1962 until 1970 and was a replacement for the Mission Band. Membership over the years ranged from five to forty boys and girls ages 6 - 8 years of age.

GUIDES at Wesley began in 1971 with sixteen members. PATHFINDERS began in 1979. Over the eighteen years of the Guide and Pathfinders at Wesley, girls were nurtured in faith and social responsibility. There were teas, presentations, campfires, badge programs and so on and so on… never was there a dull moment!

BROWNIES had its beginnings as the 10^th Moncton Brownie Unit. This group continued from 1975 until 1983.

HI-C was first organized at Wesley Memorial in 1957 for girls and boys ages 15-17. The group continued until 1977.

Sunday School

The Methodist Church formed the first Sunday School with the idea of teaching children to read. These children had to work, unable to attend school (if there were schools at the time), so in this way the Church felt they could bring the Scriptures to the children and into the homes.

Wesley Memorial United Church Sunday School was founded in 1891 with Mr. Harvey Atkinson as Superintendent. The following have been superintendents over the years:

W.T. Sands, J.S. Rayworth, J. Newton Harvey, J.E. Barss, J.S. Magee (Mayor of the city at one time), F.G. Williams, G.H. Gorbell (a brother of Mary Bernard's grandfather), A.P. Gorbell, P.S. Kingston, W.J. Dempsey, H.B. Miller, J.M. Gibson [Jim's association with the Sunday School began in the Nursery Department in the basement of the original wooden church building, it continued until he became Gen. Superintendent in 1957, after the opening of the new Religious Education building. His wife Helen (MacKay) was the pianist for the Sunday School at that time], Lloyd R. Carson, G.C. Wright, Heather Mitton, John & Ella Parkin, Craig Dickson, Gary Lewis, Margaret Atkinson, Don McGowan, Donna Siddal and Ronald Caines.

As the Church grew, so did the Sunday School. The need for more space to carry on the work was noted and a lot of land on St. George Street adjacent to the church was purchased for the purpose of erecting a building for the Sunday School and Young Peoples' activities. This lot was purchased while Rev. W.G. Lane as pastor and because of change of plans it is now used for a church parking lot.

Mrs. Frye, mother of Rev. Northrop Frye, taught the Ladies Bible Class in the 1920's. Attendance averaged in the 1920's was over 200 and Nellie (Mrs. Jack Trites) was Superintendent of Beginners Department.

Plans were made in 1927 to erect a new church with building attached for Sunday School and Young Peoples work, but the cost was so great it was decided to build a new church with increased space for Sunday School in the basement, looking forward to the time when a Sunday School building could be erected. Rev. Harold Tomkinson gave great leadership in this endeavour.

The corner stone of the new church was laid on August 15, 1927. At this ceremony boys and girls of the Sunday School, who had contributed to the building fund, each laid a brick in the church wall. Those laying bricks have been listed above under "present building".

On Sunday February 26, 1928 a service was held in the new Sunday School area. The speaker at this service was Rev. A.K. Herman, Minister of Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton, N.B.

A letter was written in 1932 to the Children's Home inquiring why the protestant children were not attending Sunday School. The reply received said the majority of the children were six years or younger and in their opinion too young to attend Sunday School. Sunday School closed during the months of July and August in 1932 because of low attendance and promotion Sunday was changed from October to June. During this year students were encouraged to participate in a Temperance Course with tests being written on completion of the course.

At a meeting of the Sunday School Board on January 3, 1937 it was decided to ask one of the Ladies Groups to cater to a supper meeting charging 25 cents to 35 cents per person in hopes of a better attendance of officers and teachers at the Annual Meeting.

February 7, 1037 Rev. J.H. Freestone conducted "Encouragement Services". About this time it was decided to purchase two dozen primary Catechisms and six shorter ones and the magazine "International Journal of Religious Education". This magazine would be of great benefit to the Superintendents. The Rev. Mr. Grant was guest speaker on April 18, 1937; his subject was "Home and the Sunday School". The Junior Choir sang at the morning service and the Young People attended in a group at the front of the church with four young men taking up the offering.

The Cub and Scout committees showed their concern at a meeting in January 1940 that the church was not supporting them enough and was assured that their concerns would be given immediate action to rectify the situation. A matter of tuning the piano was brought up. After a discussion period, it was decided the expense should be a joint effort of the Young People, Prayer Meeting and Sunday School because it was used by all these groups. The Sunday School's share would be 75 cents.

By 1940 some of the young men of our church were involved in World War Two and the congregation decided to send boxes to Laurie Grant, Leon Rice and Herman Newcomb. A letter of thanks was sent to Mr. W.A. Walker for his donations of cakes etc. for use in the boxes for the boys overseas from Wesley Memorial Church. A letter of thanks was also sent to Mr. George Stewart for a gift of books for the Library.

Pamphlets were ordered in October 1941 to encourage more memory work in the Sunday School. The Protestant Sunday Schools in the city were taking part in a campaign to take a census of the Protestant children and adults in the City of Moncton who do not belong to any Sunday School or Church and in May 1943 it was decided that our Sunday School would participate.

A special offering in the Sunday School in May 1944 was taken for the destitute children in Europe.

March 3, 1949 saw the mortgage on the church burned and soon after the people in the church began seriously to think of erecting a building for the Sunday School and Young Peoples activities which resulted in a campaign to raise $120,000.00 for a Religious Education Building during the pastorate of Rev. J.C. Johnson. The building was officially opened and dedicated on January 19, 1955 with Rev. C.M. Nicholson D.D., Principal of Pine Hill Divinity College giving the address.

Duplex envelopes for Intermediate and Senior Departments were introduced for the year 1953. At a board meeting February 26, 1954 it was decided a Christian Education Committee should be appointed to assist and advise in the Sunday School and boys & girls work. The committee would not include the Sunday School Superintendents. The committee appointed by the session were W.J. Dempsey, F.N. Smith and C.W. Read. Concern was shown about too few teachers for the Sunday School as there were between 400 and 500 pupils and only 55-60 teachers. In 1960 the enrolment was 456 with an average attendance of 319 - this seems to be the peak of enrolment. In 1963 there were 350 enrolled with 29 teachers and six spare ones. We continued to show a decline each year and in 1972 we had 155 enrolled with average attendance of 85 and a staff of 22.

The year of 1964 had several events happen. The retirement of Mrs. Margaret MacFarlane, after 26 years of service as Superintendent of the Kindergarten and Nursery Departments. The introduction of the "New Curriculum" and Miss Laura Fielder, who arrived on August 1, as Deaconess of Wesley Memorial United Church. She was inducted on September 17, 1964. Miss Marguerite Emminghouse conducted a workshop on the "New Curriculum" which was attended by the teachers and group leaders. Some also attended a workshop at Tatamagouche. A Vacation Church School was held in the summer of 1966 with 60 pupils ranging from Nursery to Junior Departments attending. It was with great regret that Mr. Lloyd Carson resigned as Senior Class teacher with 45 years of teaching. A gift of 25 volumes of "Laymen's Bible Commentary" was received in memory of Mrs. Della Devereau from her husband R.C. Devereau and son John. It is an ideal reference and resource material to have in our Library.

The study for 1967 was "God and His Purpose". Concern was shown for the irregular attendance at Sunday School. After five years of service as Deaconess, Miss Laura Fielder resigned. Training events were held in 1979 for teachers and we had five pupils with perfect attendance (no Sundays missed).

In 1980 we celebrated the 200th anniversary of the first Methodist Sunday School. The Sunday School took part in the church service followed by a birthday part in the Religious Education building with the cake being cut by Mr. Paul Kingston who was 91 years young and Ian McCabe who was 2 years old.

We started collecting newspapers and sold them for recycling. this was proven to be very worthwhile financially for our Sunday School. A new curriculum "The Whole People of God" was introduced to the Sunday School and Ron Caines, Superintendent, attended a study session at the Atlantic Christian Training Centre in Tatamagouche. A TV and VCR equipment was bought for the use in the Sunday School and other groups in the church. A stand for this was donated and a video membership taken at La Bonne Nouvelle Book Store. The Sunday School carried on with the study "The Whole People of God" during the late 1980s, as it was thought to be very satisfactory. Some of the children wrote letters and sent small packets of cards, pictures to senior shut-ins. The Sunday School also sponsored a "stone soup" luncheon on World Food Sunday with proceeds going to the "Karing Kitchen" in our city, who provide hot meals to the needy in our city.

Christmas is always a special time for the Sunday School children who take part in the White Gift Service and other activities in the church like Christmas musicals, a special one was put on in 1988. The Senior Class was using the study "pathway through the Scriptures" that year.

Our Sunday School is still active to this day with nursery, children and adult programs.

THE ALDRAN R. BENNETT MEMORIAL LIBRARY

The church library is named after Aldran R. Bennett. Many books were donated by his sister, Marjorie Bennett.

ADULT PROGRAMS

EPWORTH LEAGUE had as its basis a pledge that went as follows: "Trusting in the help of the Holy Spirit, I promise that I will follow the example of my Saviour and Lord, and make an honest effort daily, in all things, to do the will of God my Heavenly Father." There were some who glared and said, that these things (Epworth League and Young People's Union) were but "glorified courting societies". Romance still blooms in the sing songs, the dish washing after the party, the wiener roasts and the summer camps -- and then what better place could it bloom than in the wholesome activities about the Church. The Epworth League which began in 1891 continued until 1951 when it became the Young Peoples Union.

YOUNG PEOPLES UNION began in 1951 and continued until 1960. In 1956 the United Church Observe wrote that the Y.P.U. of the United Church was said to be the largest and most vigorous organization in the country in the 18-24 age group. A reunion was held at Wesley memorial in August 1988 which was a huge success with 95 people attending.

WOMEN'S PROGRAMS

Wesley Methodist Church was opened in 1891, the first organist and choir leader was Miss Mary McCarthy. During the following years we have had a least two young ladies grow up in the Church to become organists and choir leaders - namely - Miss Marion Murray and Mrs. Queenie (Dempsey) MacKeigan.

The Epworth League was formed in 1891 with both men and women as members. This group put on plays and had various projects to raise funds for Church purposes.

The time of the Great Civil War in the United States, women were organized for relief work among the wounded soldiers. When they were no longer needed they found another sphere in the organization of the Women's Missionary Society.

The Women of the Canadian Methodist Church obeyed the call to service with Hamilton, Ontario having the honour of being the birthplace of the W.M.S. of the Methodist Church in Canada. In 1883 there were only twenty groups in all of Canada, three of these groups being in the Maritimes, two in Halifax and one in St. Stephen, New Brunswick. Our W.M.S. was organized about 1980-91 when Miss Frances Palmer of Saint John, New Brunswick came to the city and on the platform of Wesley Methodist Church presented the claims of the society she represented. Mrs. R.D. MacLean was one of the Charter Members.

Mr.s F.J. Deinstadt, wife of the first minister to the newly formed church, formed in 1893 a mission band called "Help a Little". The leaders were Mrs. Frances MacNairn & Mrs. Ralph Noble Sr. In 1925 we gained an affiliated society known as CGIT their leaders were Mrs. MacGregor & Mrs. Jackson.

Mrs. R.N. Wyse became chairman of "The Community Friendship Committee" which filled a vital need in the church. In the early years of the W.M.S., Miss Edith Prince was secretary of Temperance.

In 1906 a group called "The Circle" was formed with Mrs. H.E. Thomas as leader. The "Ladies Aid" raised $123.24 for the year and received permission to raise money to buy caps and gowns for the choir. In 1922 they decided to raise funds to install water and sewer into the room used as a kitchen and were informed that the board was already thinking of installing water in the building. This group's name was changed later to "The Gertrude Lumsden Evening Auxiliary". Miss Marion Smith was President of this group when we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the United Church of Canada. The following is a list of officers of the W.M.S. after the church union in 1925:

Auxiliary President - Mrs. H.H. Warman

Corresponding Secretary - Mrs. Hattie Colpitts

Treasurer & Strangers Secy - Mrs. W.P. Kirby (grandmother of Mrs. Kathryn White)

Mission Circle President - Mrs. A.N. Kelly (daughter of Mrs. R.D. MacLean)

Cor. Secretary - Miss Greta Rogers

Treasurer - Miss Annie Stewart

Mrs. W.A. Church was President of the Moncton Presbyterial in 1945 and attended as a delegate to the Dominion Board meeting at Emmanuel Collect in May 1946.

Two young ladies, Janet Mason (Mrs. Harold Randall) and Annabel Worrell (Mrs. Richard Wilson) worked in Japan under the J-3 Program sponsored by W.M.S.

In the early 1920's two more groups of ladies were formed, one was called "The Calendar Club", the other "The Social Club". Both were formed to assist in raising funds for church purposes. The Calendar Club met once a month. They visited homes where the people of congregation wished to help by putting .03 cents a day in a box and would bring these donations to the meetings. These funds would bring in about 30-50 dollars a month and they would be turned into the church treasurer. The Social Club was a much larger group with some members belonging to the W.M.S. as well. Their meetings included a program of music, both piano and vocal, and the planning of projects concluding with the singing of the National Anthem. It is interesting to note that the total receipts for a Tea and Sale in November 1929 was $176.25 - the chicken for this tea cost $12.50. Other projects were Bean Suppers, Rummage Sales, Parcel Post Sale, and sale of home made doughnuts.

In May 1030 a letter of protest was sent to the New Brunswick Senator re: The Federal Government allowing water of Lake Minnewanka to be used for Industrial purposes, so "thinking of the environment" was on peoples minds quite a few years ago. In 1931 the club raised $870.22 for the year and gave $650.00 to the church. One custom in the club was to give a member who was leaving a silver thimble.

During the war years 1939-45, we had a group in the church known as the "Red Cross Unit". They met on Tuesday afternoons to sew garments which were later turned into the Main Red Cross rooms and in turn shipped overseas to the men of the armed forces and needy children. Some of the things made were pajamas, nighties, sleepers, overalls, sheet & pillow cases. Several ladies who could not attend these sessions did a lot of knitting - mitts & socks etc for the men in the armed forces.

In 1962 the United Church Women (UCW) of the whole United Church was formed by amalgamating ALL Women's Groups in the church. Our first President was Mrs. Anne Waldron. The meetings combined both Mission Study and events for Mission & Service funds and other church purposes at home.

BETTY JENNINGS GROUP - One of the young ladies of our congregation Betty (Blakney) Jennings and her husband Rev. Douglas Jennings became missionaries to India. In 1981 our minister's wife, Mrs. Hilary Fraser, felt there was a real need in the congregation for more fellowship among the young mothers and young ladies, so after a few meetings a group was formed and given the name "The Betty Jennings Group" in memory of Betty (Blakney) Jennings. Betty died of cancer at a very young age. This group has prospered over the years. On September 15, 1991 The Betty Jennings Group marked their tenth anniversary with a special service honouring the late Betty Jennings. Special speaker for the service was the Rev. Douglas Jennings.

MEN'S PROGRAMS

Records of the Session (November 1931-December 1940) show that a Men's Association was formed at Wesley Memorial United Church in October 1931. This was during the ministry of Rev. W.R. Seeley and at the time of the Great Depression.

Each Sunday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. upwards of one hundred men met for a spirited sing song and to hear inspiring and challenging addresses by the minister and for spirited discussions of same. No minutes or records of this Association are available and it apparently ceased to function soon after the departure of Rev. Seeley from Wesley Memorial in 1935.

Available records show that a Men's Association was again formed at a dinner meeting held on February 25, 1942, during the ministry of Rev. J.H. Freestone and during the time of the Second World War.

The first officers of this Association were:

Hon. President - Rev. J.H. Freestone

President - J.A. Matthews

Vice President - F.M. Hoar

Treasurer - W.J. Kirby

Secretary - W.H. Colpitts

Program Chairman - C.E. Jarvis

Refreshments - H.W. MacLeod

Membership - J.N. Lutes

Meetings of this Association were held on Monday evening and the members proceeded to get involved in many activities of the church, such as ushering, greeting, visiting servicemen and directing them to the social gathers held each Sunday evening after church.

This Association remained very active during the ministry of Rev. J.H. Freestone and many visitations were carried out with the Men's Associations in other churches in the area.

Some members of this association carried out preaching services at the Pearl Street Mission on a regular basis for quite a period of time and also led church services at many of the smaller congregations in the surrounding areas who found themselves without full time ministers.

At a Session meeting on October 25, 1950, it was moved by William Rogers, seconded by R.H. Johnston that the Men's Association sponsor the erection of the Second World War Memorial Plaque. Motion carried. Folllowing committee to look after same was appointed: Messrs. Brent Skidmore, R.H. Johnston and W.J. Dalziel.

During the years 1952-53, the Men's Association was very active in collecting funds and procuring the 1939-45 War Memorial Plaque which was unveiled at the Remembrance Day Service on November 8, 1953. The financial drive for this plaque was headed by Don Mitton and R.H. Johnston.

This Men's Association carried on through the fifties and in the spring of 1957, after completion of the Christian Education Building, they were authorized to carry out renovations on the church basement and were given $2,000.00 by the Official Board to do same.

At the meeting of the Men's Association on February 20, 1957, the following committees were formed with Roland Dinney as general chairman to carry out these renovations. Plans and material - Roland Dinney, Vic Armes, Bob Wickwire, Jim Gibson and Rev. Mr. Hoddinott. Work Party Committee - Paul Kingston, Chairman, Cecil Darrah, Herman Newcomb and Stan Pierce.

This work was completed by the summer of 1957, with the men of the Association supplying all the labour. This added a great deal to the church facilities with the completion of the new Chapel, eight additional Sunday School rooms, and the new church offices. Following this period of great activity, the Men's Association continued until October 1959, when records ceased to exist.

Session records show that in 1963 the Men's Association was again reorganized with Mr. J.A. Saunders as its President, but no records are available for this reorganization or how long it lasted.

The present Men's Association was organized in 1980 during the ministry of Rev. K.W. Fraser. The purpose of this new organization was set out as follows: 1. Fellowship - Getting to know and appreciate the men of our church. 2. Growth - Learning more about programs of the church at all levels and the problems and challenges involved. 3. Service - Financial and time to assist our local church to an even wider ministry.

In addition, financial donations have been made to other projects in the church, namely Furnace Fund, Organ Fund and many painting projects have been carried out with the Men's Association supplying labour and financing same.

The original Men's Association back in the thirties, before television, met on Sunday afternoons then on various evenings during the week. Presently they meet at 8:00 a.m. the second Sunday of each month, September to June, with a very good attendance and interesting programs.

CHURCH MUSIC

There is evidence that from the very beginnings of Wesley Memorial Church, music was an important part of worship and of the fellowship in the church. The first church had a good size pipe organ, which of course had a manual bellows operated by an organ boy who, it would appear, received about 50 cents per Sunday for this work.

When the church opened in 1891, the first Organist and Choir Director was Miss Mary McCarthy. The first choir members included Mrs. Shaw, Mrs. Deinstadt, Mrs. Charles McCarthy, Mrs. M. Lodge, Mrs. H.J. Brown, Mrs. G. Fairweather, Miss A. Fleetwood, Miss Grace Gorbell, Miss Annie Simmons, J.B. Sangster, U. Mitchell, William Duncan, Thomas Taylor, J.D. Steeves and Dr. G.T. Smith.

Until more recent years the choirs did not organize with a President and Secretary so there is little record of choir activities. It is evident, however, that all the choirs through the years have faithfully provided leadership in hymn singing and by providing anthems for each worship service, and special music for Christmas, Easter and Anniversaries.

A review of the minutes of the quarterly Board Meetings does indicate the various people who have been Organists or Choir Directors over the years and some other facts about music in the church. Below is a chronological list of this information:

1892 - Estimates for salaries included Organ Boy at $20.80.

1894 - Miss Baird was asked if she would consider being re-engaged as organist.

1896 - Miss Crisp became organist. She was the daughter of Rev. Robert Crisp who came to Wesley in 1896.

1901 - J.B. Sangster, H.A. Carson, J.S. Marnie, J.E. Barss were appointed as the Music Committee to attend to all matters concerning the choir and organist. The committee reported that they engaged Mrs. J.A. Killam as organist for three months at $10.00 per month. Mrs. Palmer had acted for one month. Mr. F. Smith became the regular Organist and Choir Director early in 1902. At this time Mr. Rayworth, Mr. Marnie and the Pastor became the music committee. Later in 1902 Nip Bishop became Organist and Choir Director at $100.00 per year.

1904 - Mrs. Bishop resigned as Organist and applications were received from Mrs. B.C. Peters, Miss Jermie Dodge, Miss Lynch, and a letter was also received from Lulu Marion Murray saying she was unable to apply for the position at that time but would like to be considered when a future vacancy occurred. The choir petitioned for the hiring of Miss Peters and she was engaged at $125.00 per year. In 1915 Mr. F.G. Gorbell resigned as Choir leader, and Mr. McAllister was appointed Organist and stayed until 1917. Mr. Malcolm and Miss Ruth Wyse filled in until December of 1918 when Mr. McCall was appointed at $30.00 per month. In 1915 Miss Emma Sangster (Gay) was invited to join the choir and she remained in the choir as a faithful member for many years.

In 1920 the church was again seeking an organist but when no applications were received, Mrs. Titus was engaged as choir leader for $300.00 per year. She stayed until December of that year when Mrs. George Gay took on the leadership without salary. In March of 1921 the Board expressed sincere and hearty thanks to Mrs. Gay for her work with the choir. During this period Miss Ruth Wyse was acting as Organist and later Mrs. Sudbury became Organist.

In 1924 Rev. G.W.F. Glendenning wished to activate a Junior Choir and as a result the Board asked Mrs. Titus to arrange for and train a Junior Choir.

In 1927 the Music Committee included Mr. Charles Jarvis, Mr. McEwen, Mr. Creed, and Mr. Wyse. At a Quarterly Official Board meeting on September 9th, 1927, Mr. Jarvis moved that Miss Marion Murray be appointed Organist and Choir Leader and Mrs. Gay as soloist. The motion was carried and there began a long and happy association between Wesley Memorial United Church and Marion Murray. Marion became ill in 1933 and Mrs. Titus and Miss Jennie Trites (Cochrane) filled in for her during her absence. By 1922 the choir was organized with Mr. William J. Dalziel as president. During Marion Murray's time the choir took part in the Moncton Music Festival, the Annual Carol Festival. They also appeared on the New Moncton Television Station, presenting a half-hour program of music.

Miss Murray finished her career with Wesley Memorial in 1963. The Church purchased a memorial stained glass window in her honour and also to remember her family Mr. & Mrs. William Murray, Lloyd and Jane.

Mr. Don Cooke a post-graduate student and part time teacher at Mount Allison and Mr. Brown acted as temporary Organists during the search for  Miss Murray's replacement. Mr. Fred Steeves came to Wesley Memorial at that time and served us well until 1976.

Miss Shelley Barnes and Isabel Vilim served as Organist until 1981 when Miss Vilim resigned.

Mrs. Queenie (Dempsey) MacKeigan was hired in 1981 and retired in 2006.

Mr. Mike Day was hired in 2006 and is the present music director of the church.

The present organ was purchased from Casavant Freres in 1928, the year after the new church was dedicated. It has a two manual console, and the organ has been well maintained over the years. It was revoiced at least twice over the years. In 1988 a decision was taken to do a major upgrading of the organ as a 100th Anniversary Project. The work proceeded in 1988 and the Financial Campaign was designed to have the cost paid in full by our 100th Anniversary. We still have the original key to the console and the stop list of the original organ of 1928. True to the faith of the Wesley Memorial Congregation the final cheque to retire the loan was present at our anniversary service and the organ was rededicated in memory of our "Fallen Heroes".

The work on the organ saw all pipes removed and cleaned. Some pipes were returned to the factory for restoration. Tonal changes were also made to the organ to give it a more contemporary sound. We are proud of our organ and it ranks as one of the best in this area.

The choir now has an active organization for looking after social events and remembrances for members sick or bereaved. An annual dinner with entertainment was a feature at Wesley for many years.

One final item regarding music at Wesley is the Male Choir. For many years under Marion Murray a large male choir was active meeting for practice each Monday evening. They would usually sing for one worship per month in our church. Their main contribution to furthering the work of God was they many trips to rural churches to celebrate Anniversaries or other special occasions. Mr. Walter Ferguson should be mentioned as a driving force in the Male Choir. They also did very well in competitions at the Moncton Music Festival.

HERMAN NORTHROP FRYE

Northrop Frye (1912-1991) was born July 14th, 1912, at Sherbrooke, Quebec, son of Herman and Catherine Howard Frye.

In 1920 at the age of eight, he moved with his family to Moncton, NB and entered school for the first time, having previously been taught at home by his mother. She describes his first school, Victoria, as a grimy old building dating back to 1980.

The School Inspector, after examination, approved Northrop for grade three, but his reading ability proved to be so advanced in class, that he was quickly advanced to grade four. Thus at eight, he was one to three years younger than the rest of the  class and this unfavourable age discrepancy would stay with him right through University. He continued his schooling at Edith Cavell, then, Aberdeen High School from which he graduated at the age of fifteen.

Northrop Frye continued his studies in Toronto at Victoria College and Emmanuel Collect. Upon graduation from Emmanuel he was ordained as a Minister of the United Church of Canada, much to his mother's pleasure.

He continued to further his education at Oxford University, England from which he graduated in 1939, before returning to Victoria Collect as a member of its permanent staff. Throughout his life, while teaching at Victoria, he continued to study and lecture at many of the World's great Universities thus becoming recognized as a famous Canadian Thinker, Literary Critic, Author and Educator.

Northrop Frye returned to Moncton in November, 1990, its Centennial year, to deliver the annual Pascal Poirier Lecture at  the University of Moncton. While in the city, he met with friends who had attended Aberdeen High School with him years before. He also paid a visit to his old church, Wesley Memorial United, which he attended while living in Moncton as a youth.

Northrop Frye died at Toronto, Ontario, In January 1991, approximately two months after his visit to Moncton.

One week after his death. a Memorial Service was held in Wesley Memorial United Church, hosted by Rev. G. Paul Cumming and co-sponsored by the Northrop Frye Society at Atlantic Baptist Collect and Wesley Memorial United Church. Tributes were rendered by English and Religious Studies Professors and Pastors from the Moncton area.

The University of Moncton, Mount Allison University, Atlantic Baptist College and several Moncton Churches were represented at the service.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS