United Church of Christ
Way Back When
by Margaret Morabito, Church Historian
A Call to War Continued
A company of 54 men, under the leadership of Captain Nathan Hale, convened on the Rindge Common across from the Meeting House, ready with muskets for whatever might come. Reverend Seth Dean delivered comments about freedom from oppression and encouraged the men. Quickly assembled and quickly departing, they marched to Cambridge, Massachusetts, arriving there on April 21. There is actually a list of these 54 men in Stearn’s History of Rindge, including what they were paid by the town for their service. Remember that there was no state, no country, no federal government, no national army from which payment was made. The town was responsible for this.
It all happened so fast, and yet these families knew in advance of what might come and so were prepared when at last it happened. On Sunday, the 16th, the families were together attending church. By Wednesday night, their routine had been torn apart; and the next day, husbands, fathers, and sons were gone.
It is interesting to remember that our church is so old that it was already well-established before the North American colonies even took their first steps to becoming an independent nation. (Click here to see list of Revoluntionary War Soldiers buried in the Meetinghouse Cemetary
(Sources consulted are Stearn’s History of Rindge, New Hampshire 1736-1874; USHistory.org; and the Rindge Historical Society.)
First Congregational Church
6 PAYSON HILL ROAD
RINDGE, NH 03461
603-899-5722