Elder Nathan Wright and his wife Mary A. Wright prior to 1866 were members of the Butler and Savannah Baptist Church, where Elder Wright was the Pastor. Elder Wright was invited to preach in Manlius on May 13, 1866, by the Search Committee with a view to his becoming pastor of the Manlius Church. The Church apparently was undecided and asked Elder Wright to preach again on the next Sabbath, May 20, 1866. He was engaged to supply the pulpit through the summer. After what appeared to be a two and a half month trial period, the Search Committee was instructed by the Congregation to engage Elder Wright as Pastor for the sum of $600.00 a year with the Church and Society to "stand pledged for the same." The Pompey and Manlius Baptist Church letter to the Onondaga Baptist Association Meeting reported that the Church had "settled Elder Nathan Wright as its Pastor and believed and prayed his coming among us may be for good." On October 6, 1866, Elder Nathan Wright and wife Mary A. presented their letters from the Butler and Savannah Baptist Church and they were accepted as members.
Times were changing and the Trustees were using coal instead of wood to heat the Church. Brothers Lamb and Williams were appointed a Committee to equalize the amount due for coal and a pump upon the Church Members.
Interest in the need for remodeling the Church must have been growing. At some time in the spring or summer of 1867, plans were being made for the changes and for raising money to pay for them. On July 9, 1867, in the evening at Smith Hall the ladies of the Church were to entertain the public with a strawberry and ice cream festival. The object was to raise money for furnishing the Church, when the remodeling was completed. They hoped the citizens of Manlius would turn out "en masse."
In August 1867, the Manlius correspondent for The Weekly Recorder (he signed his articles as Phoenix) wrote about an unusual wedding that happened in Pompey in the summer of 1867, "one which seldom happens even in Pompey." It was a golden wedding celebration for Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Newton Loomis (better known as the I. N. Loomises.) All of their children and grandchildren were there (with one exception.) Among those present were son I. N. Loomis, Jr. and Yettie Loomis, both also to live to ripe old ages and to be very prominent and involved members of the Baptist Church and Society in Manlius.
The Onondaga Baptist Association minutes of the 1867 Fall meeting showed concern with reuniting the nation at the end of the Civil War. Brother John Smitzer (Manlius Elder 1849-1854), now Secretary of the State Convention, resolved we invoke the blessings of God and the wisdom of the state in the great work of reconstruction and that we await the progress of events, meanwhile, performing our civil duties in the fear of God looking for the acknowledgement of universal manhood. The Pompey and Manlius Baptist Church reported that " a spirit of worldliness has greatly retarded our Christian progress....our pastor (Nathan Wright) held a series of meetings in an out-station (Eagle Village) which were signally blessed of God, where some thirty were hopefully converted. Thirteen were baptized into the Church while about a like number joined themselves to the various religious societies in the neighborhood." The Church also reported having a good Sunday School and supporting two prosperous mission schools.
Starting in the fall of 1867, "the old church" according to Mary Avery Woodworth was "thoroughly repaired. Dr. T.A.Moore, a Trustee, assisted greatly in the undertaking, sparing neither time nor money. From start to finish his patience and courage never failed. All gave with a will."
The Manlius and Pompey Fair was one of the biggest events in the village of Manlius. In 1867 the Fair was held on Thursday and Friday, September 26 and 27. The ladies of the Baptist Church and Society planned to erect a large and commodious tent on the Fairgrounds from which they would sell provisions and all the delicacies of the season as a great convenience and comfort to the multitudes (over 10,000 people attended the Fair on Friday, September 27) and to raise money to aid in buying furnishings for the newly remodeled church.
Phoenix, in the November 2, 1867, edition of The Weekly Recorder reported that the work on the outside of the Baptist Church was nearly completed. Among other things the vestibule was remodeled, having rounded sides. On December 2, 1867, he reported that "the bell had been put up in the Baptist church (and a nice sounding one it is, too); and they have put up the bell upon the top of the steeple and removed their scaffolds and the steeple now makes an imposing sight."
On the inside the galleries facing the pulpit were removed, the pulpit was moved to the north side of the sanctuary, the pews were necessarily reversed. A central chandelier took the place of the scattered lamps and a furnace in the cellar replaced the two wood stoves. As to the cost and the ability of the congregation to meet the new obligations, the September 1867 Onondaga Baptist Association Meeting notes report, "We are repairing our house at an expense of $4000.00 (total cost of Church in 1828, $2730.00). We shall complete it about January 1, 1868. We hold our meetings in the Town Hall."
Early in January, 1868, the young ladies of the Baptist Society continued their efforts to adorn and beautify and make comfortable their church. They held a festival of oysters and ice cream and earned over $100.00.
In February of 1868, the hardworking ladies of the Baptist Society presented for the Church and friends in the village an entertainment from which they collected $250.00 for Reverend Wright. (This was becoming a common practice among Churches to help pay for their Pastor's salary.)
The completed Baptist Church edifice was dedicated to the worship of God at the end of March, 1868, and the Society now held regular services in the Church. Phoenix reported that "the Elder, the Ladies more particularly, deserve much praise in the earnestness and zeal in which they have engaged in furnishing the house and it is now as fine a church as there is in town."
Manlius historian Henry C. Van Shaack, who wrote a rather disparaging account of the Church when it was built, now was pleased with what he saw. "Now you are fully apprised how much this edifice has been lately improved in all the respects I have mentioned. Our Baptist brethren have now the satisfaction of feeling they have risen much higher in the world, and knowing that they have, in the belfry of their nice little steeple (the steeple was Byzantine in style, supposedly an odd choice for 1868 Baptists; Rev. McPherson referred to the building as the "church of the golden acorn,") the clearest sounding bell in our village to proclaim their faith and their progress. Although I do not think their steeple is quite as high from the ground as the Methodist steeple, yet as their building is farther up the hill, I think their steeple reaches a trifle nearer to the sky than does the Methodist steeple; and I confidently expect, that when our Baptist friends repair again, that they will make a sure thing of it by adding another story to their steeple, for I know of no good reason why they have not just as good a right to use a little more wood than our Methodist brethren, as they have to use a little more water. (The Episcopal steeple reaches nearer to heaven than any of our churches which is all right enough, because it is the oldest.)"
Professor W.W. Clayton in his history of Onondaga County reported that "the remodeled church is a neat and commodious edifice, with a fine steeple and bell and everything about it is in good taste and modern style." Because of the unusual round shape of part of the steeple, Reverend Macpherson referred to the building as the Church of the Golden Onion.
On April 2, 1868, a Church Meeting was called to order at 3 o'clock for the purpose of renting seats to raise some money for the remodeling of the church, and also to vote "to see if we give Reverend Nathan Wright a call for another year." This was very late for this decision to be made. Nothing was recorded on renting the pews but a motion by S. Nixon amended by Hiram Smith would change the next ministerial year from May 1 to April 1 less one month pay and reduce the time for Elder Nathan Wright's next term to eleven months. This motion passed. A second motion was made and seconded that we give Elder Nathan Wright a call for one year, his third. The vote was 35 for, 15 against. This was a rather large negative vote and a harbinger of unpleasant things to come for Elder Wright and especially puzzling when just two months before the Church was very generous in raising money for Rev. Wright. Perhaps there was a gender gap in attitude towards Rev. Wright. The women raised the money, while some of the men were dissatisfied with his performance as Pastor.
In September of 1868, the Onondaga Baptist Association Meeting was held in
Manlius. "We bid the Association Christian welcome, praying that your meeting with us may by the blessing of God, be the means of inciting us to more activity. We have finished repairing our house of worship, having received sufficient contributions in money and pledges to pay the entire cost of repairs."
On Sunday, January 31, 1869, Elder Wright requested the members to tarry after church to attend to business. At the meeting the clerk offered a resolution that a special meeting be held Tuesday next at 2:00 p.m. to consider the subject of supplying the pulpit for the ensuing year and to take such actions as may be deemed necessary. In that meeting on February 2, 1869, with Dr. Harvey as chairman, a resolution was offered: "Resolved, that we deem it inexpedient to engage Mr. Elder Nathan Wright to continue his services as Pastor of this church after the First Sabbath in May next, at which time his engagement with us expires. H. Smith Church Clerk." Discussion was followed by a ballot taken of male members present. Forty-eight approved the resolution, two were against. The Deacons were to form a Committee to inform Elder Wright of the result.
A copy of the resolution made and adopted in the Church Meeting of February 2, 1869, was entered into the Church Record (minute book for annual meetings, etc.). Also entered was a record of a duly notified meeting of the Trustees of the Baptist Church and Society of Manlius. The Trustees present were A.P. Lamb, Deacon F. H. Dewey, Dr. T. A. Moore and G. J. Champlin. (G. L. Adsit was absent.) George Cole was the Clerk. They met at the H. Smith Shoe Shop. ( The Trustees often met in local stores for their evening meetings. The stores were heated and fuel was saved by not having to heat up part of the Church.) The purpose of the meeting was to ratify the proceedings of February 2, 1869, Church Meeting and to adopt the following resolutions: "Whereas resolved that we concur (A. P. Lamb, F. H. Dewey, G. J. Champlin) in this action of the Church and we hereby notify Reverend Wright that his official relations with us together with his salary as minister and his acceptance of the Parsonage will cease on the first Sabbath of May next." Geo. Cole, Clerk. Dr. T. A. Moore did not concur nor would have G. L. Adsit had he been present. Both Dr. Moore and Mr. and Mrs. Adsit left the Church as a result of the treatment of Elder Wright. We have no inkling of why the Church wanted to get rid of Elder Wright, but as stated previously, a large number voted (men only) and the vote was overwhelmingly against Elder Wright.
This lack of approval must have hurt Elder Wright rather badly, since at the March 6, 1869, Covenant Meeting, having been given the bad news, he said that feeling as he did, he should not administer Communion on the morrow (it being our regular Communion season) and so on March 7, 1869, there was no Communion. On May 2, 1869, after what must have been two very difficult months for both the Pastor and the Church, elder Wright preached his farewell sermon, but did not administer the Lord's Supper. Elder Wright wished to join the Delphi Baptist Church, but there was a problem in the method of transfer of membership. The Manlius Church gave Elder Wright a letter of commendation and based on that letter Delphi received Elder Wright as a member. According to the rule, however, a letter of commendation is not the same as a letter of
dismissal, which had not as yet been asked for by Elder Wright or the Delphi Church. How the problem was resolved was not recorded, although it was at approximately this time that Elder Wright became Pastor of the Pompey Baptist Church. (Reverend Wright was Pastor of the Pompey Baptist Church for approximately two years. In the Delphi news column in the Weekly Inquirer for January 20, 1870, it was reported that a donation for Rev. Wright was a very successful one and certainly well bestowed. It is possible Reverend Wright become the Pastor of the Delphi Baptist Church.)
In September of 1869, much of the good feeling in the Church was gone, along with Elder Nathan Wright and his wife. The Church reported in the Fall 1869 Onondaga Baptist Association Meeting that "during the past year we have had many joys and sorrows. We have passed through trials and difficulties. We have been without a Pastor since May last. Have somewhat weakened, financially and spiritually by a want of harmony between the Church and some individuals in the Society."
Although only two men voted against dismissing Elder Wright, some other members apparently were upset with the treatment of Elder Wright and there were repercussions as late as February, 1873. Dr. Moore, largely involved in the remodeling of the Church, felt he had been misused in the matter of dismissing Elder Wright and had withdrawn his support of the Church. Mrs. Moore related that she could not come to Church either if she could not contribute to expenses. Brother Adsit and his wife thought the Church did wrong in dismissing Elder Wright without advising with the Society, but the large vote at 2:00 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon must have meant most of the Congregation was aware of the proceedings.
From May until September 1869 the pulpit was filled many Sabbaths by the Pastors of sister Churches, by Rev. Dr. Harvey and others. (Letter to Onondaga Baptist Association Meeting September 1869.)
