REV. JOSEPH CRANDALL’S VISITS BETWEEN 1805 AND 1808.
After Edward Manning, came Rev. Joseph Crandall in the power and spirit of the Gospel. His ministry was the means of doing much good. Captain William Harding and his wife, William Stenning, and others were baptized by him. These early baptisms occasioned much excitement in the city. The people flocked in large numbers to witness them. Some went to pray and others to mock and blaspheme; but on the part of others this administration of the ordinance in its primitive form led to the prayerful examination of the Word of God, and the general result was a conversion to Baptist sentiments and practice. In the absence of a stated ministry and house of worship the converts met in each other’s houses for mutual exhortation and prayer. These meetings were attended with a rich blessing. All were of one heart and mind, striving together for the faith of the Gospel, and as a result, the Word of God grew and multiplied greatly in the community.