To celebrate our 125th anniversary, William F. Quigley, Jr., author of Pure Heart: The Faith of a Father and Son in the War for a More Perfect Union presents an intriguing history of a Salisbury native and benefactor of St. James Episcopal Church. Reverend Benjamin Dorr, Rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia during the Civil War, is revered as one of the most important clergymen of the era. This event honors the warm and enduring friendship between St. James and Reverend Benjamin Dorr during the late nineteenth century.

Mr. Quigley is a history teacher and Director of the Writing Center at The Governor’s Academy in Byfield, MA. He will present an intriguing history of Salisbury native Reverend Benjamin Dorr who played a pivotal role as Rector of Christ Church, Philadelphia during the Civil War. An excerpt from the cover description captures the essence of William F. Quigley’s book, which “presents a narrative that remarkably encapsulates much of the North’s experience of the war.” The conflict is examined through the lens of “one of the most important clergymen of the era, Reverend Benjamin Dorr, who strived to hold his warring parishioners intact.” The congregation of Christ Church, also known as The Nation’s Church, “was torn apart from within” by factions of communicants of Christ Church embattled in cultural discord and divisive politics over slavery. Reverend Dorr’s efforts to preserve his church can be viewed as a microcosm of a country at war during the presidency of Abraham Lincoln. Reverend Dorr’s actions “paralleled Lincoln’s far greater but comparable challenge to preserve the Union”.

Reverend Dorr and St. James Episcopal Church, Amesbury: The Reverend Benjamin Dorr, D.D. was born in Salisbury, Massachusetts on March 22, 1796. He died in 1869 following a thirty two-year tenure as rector of Christ Church in Philadelphia. His body was returned to Massachusetts and interred at Salisbury Point Burial Ground in Amesbury. Reverend Dorr was both a friend and benefactor of St. James Episcopal Church in Amesbury, where his family were communicants. As an expression of gratitude and affection between the Parish of St. James and Reverend Dorr, a memorial plaque was dedicated in his honor in the early 1920s, and remains in our sanctuary today. As a gift to St. James, in 1856 Reverend Dorr and his wife Esther donated a set of silver communion vessels memorializing his father, Edward. These vessels are used to this day in celebration of the Eucharist. On November 19, 1865, Reverend Dorr preached at St. James his sermon entitled “The Sareptan Widow” based on the verse Luke iv. 25-26. In a final act of friendship, St. James Vestrymen traveled to Philadelphia to participate in the funeral service for Reverend Dorr. This weekend, September 28 and 29, 2024, St. James will celebrate the 125th anniversary of the laying of our cornerstone, and will honor Reverend Dorr’s role in American history, emanating from his steadfast dedication to church and country.