The year is 1833. America is being transformed, exploding beyond its earlier boundaries, into the Mississippi Valley, to Missouri, Louisiana, Texas and beyond! The exhausted and cramped little farms of Massachusetts and Connecticut are being abandoned for the rich prairie land of Illinois and Minnesota. New cities like Cincinnati, St. Louis and Detroit spread out across land that was until recently unexplored wilderness.

In Washington, Andrew Jackson is President. His administration reflects the exuberance and contradictions of the era, on one hand celebrating the ideals of democracy and the common man, on the other hand participating in increasingly cynical levels of acquisitiveness and political patronage.

Rhode Island is changing from a maritime trading center to one of the nation's first and most important industrial centers. During the last decade of the eighteenth century and in the first three decades of the nineteenth century, the population density of the state is moving from south to north. Providence is at last larger than Newport. Settlements develop along the Blackstone River between Pawtucket and the Massachusetts border although between the new villages the land retains its woodland and agricultural features....

New mill villages are becoming the most frequent type of community in the state.  Developed by the owners of the new textile mills as a way of luring stable factory workers & their families.  Self-contained villages centered around large textile factories complete with a library, bank, store, gathering hall, community farm and sometimes, even a church.

New villages....like Lonsdale!

The village of Lonsdale was built in 1829 by the Lonsdale Company.  As the company prospered, the village grew.  By 1832, the village included 3 mills, a school house, a village center and a company farm.   In 1833, the Episcopal Church expanded into Lonsdale.  The Lonsdale Company supplied a room in one of the mill buildings and Christ Church was born.  In 1834, the church was incorporated. By the end of 1834, there were 97 students and 14 teachers, 20 adult baptisms, 2 marriages and 6 funerals.  The church was growing.

In 1835, plans were drawn up for a church building, a total of $3,000 was donated by friends of the pastor and the Lonsdale Company, and another $3,000 was gathered by the parishioners and by year's end, the building was dedicated. 

The fortunes of Christ Church waxed and waned with the local economy, the fortunes of the Lonsdale Company and the Civil War. After the war, the Lonsdale Company's and Christ Church saw a strong increase. An influx of immigrants from northern England into the area also increased the strength of the church.

Disaster struck in January, 1883. The church burned due to a faulty furnace. Rebuilding began immediately, largely due to the generosity of the Lonsdale Company.  We were fortunate to have three stained glass windows created by John LaFarge (see Madonna & Child). The new church building was consecrated in June, 1884; the parish continued to grow and prosper. In 1895, the parish house was built and became a center for a wide range of community activities....bowling, billiards, gymnastics, plays, dinners and more.

Left: 1884 Church (front) Above: Church (rear)

 

In the early 1900's, unions, workers' rights and the labor movement affected the fortunes of Christ Church (whose buildings were owned by the Lonsdale Company). Strikes and labor costs caused the loss of many jobs. In 1922, a strike was held against the Lonsdale Company, which severely impacted the local population.  Company-owned  tenements were torn down and the company farm closed.  The era of the Lonsdale Company ~ Christ Church partnership was coming to a close. 

 

The second blow to Christ Church soon followed: The Great Depression.  Life in Lonsdale Village began to suffer, through economic decline and social changes.  People moved away in search of jobs.  Financial backing from the Lonsdale Company withered away.  In 1938, the Company deeded the church property to the parish. Financially, we were in dire straits -- leaking roofs, peeling paint, a smaller congregation, shrinking monetary resources.  Spiritually, however, we were at a high point.  Our parish organizations flourished, we had a strong lay leadership, and people flocked to hear our Rector's preaching.

 

The third blow, World War II and its accompanying social changes, saw us falter.  Most churches in America saw a decline, and we were no exception.  Attendance declined by two-thirds and over 140 of our young people went off to war.  We had seen more changes in twenty years than in the previous one-hundred.  These changes also had their good points.  The war years were a time of introspection, and soul-searching.  Through God's graces, we pulled through stronger and more spiritually fit than ever. 

 

After the war, both Lonsdale and Christ Church were changing.  Lonsdale was no longer a mill village surrounded by farmland; it was suburbia with rows of new houses and shopping areas.  The population became more mobile and more diverse.  Christ Church was no longer the center of village life, but we grew along with Lonsdale.  More of our parishioners came nearby Cumberland, Pawtucket, Central Falls and surrounding communities.  Our parish grew.  The number of Sunday services increased.  The church school outgrew the Parish House.  It was a time of expansion of the Parish House and improvement to our Church Building. 

 

Today, we stand on the edge of yet another leap forward.  This year, our parish is renewing our financial commitment to our spiritual lives.  We have started a campaign to raise funds to bring our church through the twenty-first century.  Among our goals: to make our facilities  more handicapped accessible, to provide an area dedicated to the use of our youth group and to bring in additional clergy so that we may continue our growth.   To see more, go to Looking Ahead.