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Planting 'daughter' churches2004
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Historical Time Line for Middle Sackville United Baptist ChurchApril 1763 13 Baptists from Swansea, Massachusetts arrive in Tantamar to establish a Baptist Church and settle near Silver Lake in Middle Sackville.
1771 A church of 60 members has been established; however most of the original group of 13 return to their homes in Massachusetts. Church continues to meet in members' homes.
1781 The "New Light Movement" evangelist Henry Alline visited Middle Sackville and stirred many hearts towards God.
1798 Church was rejuvenated. Elder Joseph Crandall was the first Baptist minister to be ordained in New Brunswick.
1809 A meeting house was built. (Some think that a log cabin preceded this.)
1839 A parsonage (a residence for the pastor) was built. The question of whether to record the deed in the pastor's name ruptures the church congregation.
1839 Bethel Chapel, also referred to as the "Second Church", was organized by the members who left the "First Church".
1842 Bethel Chapel opened
1844 The "First Church" opens Beulah meeting house at "Four Corners."
1849 To serve the increasing number of Baptists who lived closer to the developing economic center of Sackville, the Bethel Chapel congregation supported the construction of the Salem Chapel.
1850 Members sent out from the Beulah Chapel to form the Point de Bute Church.
1859 Members sent out from the Beulah Chapel to form the Midgic Church.
1861 Congregations of Bethel and Beulah Chapels called one pastor to serve both congregations. This pastor served for almost 12 years. Since 1846 at least four pastors had served both congregations at the same time although for shorter periods of time.
1871 Sustained attempts were made to reunite Beulah and Bethel Chapels.
1883-1885 The reunion process of the two congregations was successful.
1890 Main Street Baptist Church built to accommodate the exploding population of Sackville.
1902 Congregations realign geographical perimeters to officially identify two separate fields of ministry forming the Main Street and Middle Sackville Baptist Churches.
1905 Both churches join with other churches from New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island to form the denomination called "The United Baptist Convention". It is currently known as the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches.
1905 The current Middle Sackville United Baptist Church building is constructed.
1963 200th Anniversary celebrations include a major drama presentation "Through the Years – A Beacon Light"
1995 Congregation approves a long term major repair, renovation and expansion project (est. $670,000).
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1963 – On the 200th anniversary of their founding, members of the Middle Sackville Baptist Church staged a pageant entitled "Through the Years, A Beacon Light" –a re-enactment of the founding of the Baptist work in Canada.4
Baptists from Massachusetts began the Baptist work in Canada.1963
Point de Bute, New Brunswick, Canada
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The Landing of the Swansea 13The inspiration to establish the Middle Sackville United Baptist Church (1763) had its roots in the Second Church of Swansea (also Swansey), Massachusetts which in turn resulted from the work of Roger Williams. In 1637 Roger Williams, pastor of the Salem Puritan congregation, was expelled from the church and the colony of Massachusetts for preaching a "different doctrine". All residents of Massachusetts were expected to worship only in the state sponsored church, to educate their children in its doctrine, and to pay their tithes to the state church, regardless of their personal church membership. This was enforced by the legal authorities with stiff punishment for violators.
Roger Williams, along with some members from the Salem Church, moved to Providence where he established a church that differed from most of the old-line churches. He held to the principle that "Everyone should have liberty to worship God according to the light of their conscience." This new teaching spread throughout what is now Rhode Island, Connecticut and beyond. During this time Roger Williams identified himself with the Baptists (a group of dissenters from the Church of England). The Baptists rejected the idea that membership in the state sponsored church was required of every citizen in order to participate in government. In 1639 Roger Williams organized the first Baptist church in North America – at Providence, Rhode Island.
On April 2, 1763 a group of thirteen Baptists from the Second Swansey Church, Massachusetts and Rehoboth and Providence, Rhode Island churches decided to form a church planting team and travel to Tantramar in the British settled area of Nova Scotia (now Middle Sackville, New Brunswick). This appears to be a unique situation in early British North American history where a group was organized as a church with its own pastor outside the provinces and sent in for the express purpose of establishing a new church. The members of this group of pioneers were: Rev. Nathan Mason and his wife, Oliver Mason and his wife, Experience Baker, Benjamin Mason and his wife, Charles Seaman and his wife, Thomas Lewis and his wife and Gilbert Seaman and his wife.
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200th Anniversary Celebration. Newspaper clipping part 1.1963
Middle Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada
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200th Anniversary Celebration. Newspaper clipping part 2.1963
Middle Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada
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Slacks Cove.2003
Slack's Cove, New Brunswick, Canada
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Slacks Cove 2003 picturePossible landing site for the Swansea Baptists
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Monument to Swansea Group Landing at Slack's Cove.20 September 2004
Slack's Cove, New Brunswick, Canada
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Monument to Swansea Group Landing at Slack's CoveThe cairn located at Slack's Cove, Rockport and bearing the names of thirteen settlers traditionally marks the area where these men and women came ashore. Although located in a rather remote area, the cairn is visited by many people each year. It was erected in 1973 by men of Main Street and Wood Point Churches.
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'Through The Years, A Beacon Light'1963
Middle Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada
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"Through The Years, A Beacon Light" - Pagent performed April 1963The group of 13 Baptists from Swansea (USA) establish a Baptist Church in Middle Sackvlle
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Most of the 'church planters' return home.1963
Middle Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada
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