Originally published on July 30, 2020.
St. Paul’s “Firsts”
Sarah Ann Parker was the first infant baptized at the newly consecrated St. Paul’s Church in Boston. Born on June 23, 1820, Sarah Ann was baptized on Sunday, September 10, 1820 by the Rev. Dr. Samuel Farmar Jarvis, Rector of St. Paul’s. Sponsors included her parents Matthew Stanley and Ann Quincy Parker, and Matthew’s first cousin, Sarah Williams Parker, daughter of the second Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, Samuel Parker. Bishop Parker was consecrated Bishop at Trinity Church in New York on September 14, 1804, but was prevented from serving in the role due to his untimely death from gout less than three months later (December 6, 1804). The Bishop’s grand niece Sarah Ann lived in Boston her entire life, marrying Samuel Andrews and raising a family in Roxbury. She died on the 8th of May 1904 in Boston, at the age of 83, and is buried in Hingham.
Asides: Matthew Stanley Parker, the baby Sarah’s father, was a cashier at the newly opened Suffolk Bank in Boston, and one of the founders of the Handel and Haydn Society whose goal was "cultivating and improving a correct taste in the performance of Sacred Music, and also to introduce into more general practice, the works of Handel , Haydn , and other eminent composers."
Also, Sarah Williams Parker, daughter of Bishop Parker, was married to Samuel Hale Parker, Matthew’s brother and thus the bride’s first cousin. In his personal notes regarding parish sacraments, Rev. Jarvis noted both distinctions: “daughter of Bishop P” and “Wife of Samuel Hale Parker.”
The marble font in the picture to the left is from 1851 and is not the one used for Sarah's baptism. It has been a witness to countless baptism here at the Cathedral. The font, now located in Lower Sproat Hall, was designed by Richard Upjohn, whose family moved from England to Boston in 1829. The font was carved by J. Carew.
-Myra Anderson
Photos saved on Flickr.com.
