Thomas Lewis Memoir Part 2b

Previously to his settlement at Ryeford in 1802 Mr Thomas had been preaching for about five years. During that time he kept no minute count of his sermons nor of the places in which he preached but from the third of October 1802 to the end of his life he kept a correct record of the places, times and texts from which he discoursed. His preparation for the pulpit was always exact, elaborate and fastidious perhaps to a fault. He wrote sermons with the greatest possible care and that generally at full length and finished them as neatly and correctly as if all learned eyes in creation were to examine them. Several of his manuscripts have been given to friends who wished to possess them as mementos of one they sincerely loved when emigrating to America, Australia or India. A vast number nevertheless is still left behind and the writer counted about 1580 sermons exclusive of 14 copies full of addresses, lectures and sermons for special occasions !!

In the following table which I compiled from Mr Thomas's manuscripts it is shown how many times he preached at and from home every year, how many he baptised during his life and there will be appended a few notes that may prove useful and interesting to many

The order is Year, Home, Away from home, Baptisms

1802 14 16 -

1803 54 60 -

1804 42 67

1805 46 66

1806 44 48 -

1807 95 20 5

1808 66 28 16

1809 68 25 9

1810 75 34 5

1811 47 34 1

1812 59 31 5

1813 54 38 4

1814 54 34 16

1815 58 29 13

1816 69 25 24

1817 77 25 8

1818 87 55 1

1819 105 43 18

1820 78 77 -

1821 91 28 6

1822 85 25 4

1823 82 18 3

1824 99 32 6

1825 111 16 7

1826 98 17 7

1827 104 13 13

1828 96 13 5

1829 85 6 5

1830 85 14 3

1831 88 6 3

1832 93 10 1

1833 82 8 10

1834 91 10 2

1835 80 17 -

1836 95 6 7

1837 108 7 -

1838 101 8 3

1839 114 6 10

1840 91 5 -

1841 82 3 30

1842 106 5 22

1843 120 4 32

1844 119 2 7

1845 91 - 4

1846 110 4 2

1847 110 4 11

1848 110 5 3

1849 103 2 12

1850 86 2 8

1851 109 1 3

1852 111 2 2

1853 88 2 10

Notes to the preceding table

1803 During the years Mr Thomas was at Ryeford he frequently preached at the following places – Hoarwithy, Gorsley, Coleford, Ross, Ruardean and Mitcheldean. In the same years also he preached at Leominster, Bridgenorth, Llanwenarth, Usk, Caerleon, Abergavenny, Blaenavon, Penygarn, Trosnant, Bristol and Hereford

1804 This year the Baptist Chapel at Ryeford, was repaired. It was re-opened Oct 17 when Mr Bowland of Pershore and Mr Symmons of Wootton under Edge preached. The former from Isaiah 4:5 and the latter from Isaiah 66:14.

1805 This year we find Mr Thomas preaching at Bradford, Bath, Broseley, Shrewsbury, Cosley, Pershore and Evesham.

1806 This year he preached at Caerphilly, Peterstone, Cardiff, Cadoxton and Worcester. In this year we meet with the first account of his being baptising. He baptised 27 persons at Ryeford so it is stated in the letter to Mrs Mack.

1807 January the fourth was the last day of preaching for Mr Thomas at Ryeford. The next day he left for Abergavenny and Mr Jonathan Davies from Llanthony brought over his furniture. This Jonathan Davies was a member at Llanwenarth and a very respectable man. Truly pious. his children are now ministers at Llanthony and they are now sons and deacons there. The said JD and Mr John Williams of Tresaison were the originators of the Baptist interest at Llanthony about 60 years ago. Their descendants are still there and have been much blessed.

June 3rd Mr Thomas preached at Llysfaen from Acts 19:2.

June 21 Mr Miles Edwards, Pontypool, baptised for Mr Thomas. His text in the morning was Revelation 18:18, that in the evening John 10:20.

July 12 Mr John Harris was baptised at Abergavenny by Rev James Lewis when Mr Thomas preached at the water from Matthew 3:15. This Mr Harris was one of if not the most respectable man in the country and he was greatly respected. He was the father of Mrs Edmunds of Caerphilly and the father of Mr Thomas's second wife. Mr Thomas married Miss Rachel Harris, July 2nd, 1830.

Later notes are found in summary form elsewhere on this blog

Thomas Lewis on the early years

Ryeford Baptist Chapel

We have already established that Thomas was born in 1778 in Whitson, Monmouthshire and some time later his parents moved (c 1782-1792) from New Inn to Llangibby. He was schooled in Tredunnock then Trosnant, Pontypool(c 1792-1799) . Aged 17 (1795) he was baptised and joined Pen-y-garn Baptist church, beginnin to preach aged 18 (1796). In December 1800 (22) he began at Bristol Baptist Academy, In 1801 he preached his first sermon at Ryeford, Herefordshire, on Christmas Day (on Luke 19:10). In 1802 (24) he was voted £5 by the London Particular Baptist Itinerating Society to itinerate in Herefordshire and on 19 September of that year he was ordained in Ryeford.Thomas Lewis preserves these notes on the years 1803-1807, the Ryeford years.

1803. According to a table Thomas preached at home 54 times and away from home 60 times. During the years that Mr Thomas was in Ryeford he often preached in the following nearby places: Hoarwithy, Gansley, Coleford, Ross, Tainton (Tintern?), Ruardean and Mitcheldean. In the same year he also preached in Leominster (Llanllieni), Bridgnorth, Llanwenarth, Blaenavon, Penygarn, Trosnant, Bristol and Hereford.

1804. According to a table Thomas preached at home 42 times and away from home 67 times. In this year the old building in Ryeford was repaired. It was re-opened on the 17th of October when the preachers were Mr [John] Rowland of Pershore [who preached when Micah Thomas was ordained] and Mr [Thomas] Symmons of Wotton-under-Edge. Their texts were Isaiah 4:3 and 66:14. [It was some time around 1804 that Thomas married his first wife Sophia Wall of Ross, 23 years his senior!]

1805. According to a table Thomas preached at home 46 times and away from home 66 times. This year Mr Thomas preached in Bradford [on Avon], Bath, Bromley Shrewsbury, Coseley, Pershore and Evesham.

1806. According to a table Thomas preached at home 44 times and away from home 48 times. This year he preached in Cardiff, Peterstone, Caerphilly, Cadoxton and Worcester. This was the first year of stirrings about baptism. He baptised 27 all told in Ryeford.

1807. According to a table Thomas preached at home 95 times and away from home 90 times. January 4th was Mr Thomas's last Sabbath in Ryeford. The following Monday he went to Abergavenny and one Mr Jonathan Davies from Llanddewi Rhydderch moved his furniture. Jonathan Davies was a member in Llanwenarth and a reliable and godly man. His children are now members in Llanddewi, and two of his sons are deacons there. This J D ... John Williams from Tresaeson ... the men who started the cause in Llanddewi about 60 years ago. It is their disciples who are there to this day and they are blessed. ...

Ryeford Baptist

More pictures here and here.

Footnote on Sophia Wall

An obscure website here appears to show that Sophia Wall (1755-1829) was born Sophia Pritchard and first married Levi Wall (1754-1800) in 1778. He died in 1800. The first marriage appears to have produced two girls, Mary and Ann.

Ryeford

Plaque to John Skinner 1870

Old Chapel

To the manse

The manse

I made a trip today with my father-in-law to check out Ryeford, the village where Micah Thomas's first pastorate was. There is an older chapel with a manse at the back, no doubt where Thomas lived in his time. A more recent and large nineteenth century building exists in front of the older building. Inside the newer building are three plaques, two commemorating ministers after Micah Thomas and one commemorating the founding minister John Skinner. Neither are used as chapels today but are currently occupied by a firm that makes blinds. A little way up a lane from the chapels is a little graveyard with graves in various states of repair from the 1770s to the 1970s.

The preaching notebook

The Gwent Archive in Ebbw Vale holds what is listed as a diary of Micah Thomas. It is in fact a notebook chiefly containing the record of his preaching (date, text, time, venue) from 1805-1853. A small calf skin (?) covered notebook, it contains c 93 pages, 27 of which are completely blank and 65 have writing on. To summarise, we have

1. Side with 2 notes [1]

2. Diary entries regarding students at the Academy Jan 14 1807-Sep 26 1835 [20 pages]

3. Blank pages [7]

4. 4 sides on the plague 1665 [2]

5. Blank pages [4]

6. Blank side backed with some sort of note [1] then a page ripped out

9. Sermon record 1801-1853 with notes on baptisms & new members [40 pages]. Two pages cut after 17.

10. Blank pages [13]

11. Miserable attempt on one side at a chart of Bible books covered [1]

12. Blank pages [3]

13. Brief quotation from Edwards' Miscellanies [1]

The diary reveals that in the Ryeford period (1801-1806) he preached regularly at Ryeford and Ross but also at Bury Hill, Coleford, Gosley, Hoarwithy, Mitcheldean, Ruardean, Staveley, Tetbury and Tainton, as well as Bridgnorth, Broad Oak, Broseley, Coseley, Evesham, Leominster, Shrewsbury, Worcester; Bath, Bradford and Bristol and in Wales, Abergavenny, Cadoxton, Caerleon, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Dyffryn, Llangibby, Penygarn, Peterstone, Pontypool, Trosnant and Usk.

When at Abergavenny (1807-1853) he preached at various places in England and Wales, including on tour to  places such as London and the Midlands.

He was ill at least one Sunday in Ryeford but at Abergavenny there were three big periods of lay off from preaching due to illness - six weeks in 1812, five weeks in 1828 (having a knee operation in London) and 15 weeks in 1845.

He did not preach every Sunday he could but there must be a record of something like 2,500 texts preached on.

We will try and say something about texts another time. He certainly repeated sermons in different places.

Ordination 1802

At the time of his ordination in 1802 brief reports appeared in the Christian press such as this one:

SEPT 19 the Rev Micah Thomas (late a student in the Academy at Bristol) was appointed pastor of the Baptist church at Ryeford, near Ross, Herefordshire, when the following Brethren engaged in the service Mr. Watkins, of Capel-y-ffin, began by reading* and prayer; Mr. Williams of Cheltenham, delivered a short introductory discourse;** Dr. Ryland prayed, and addressed Mr. Thomas, from John xii. 26;^ Mr. Rowland of Pershore preached to the church from Deuter. i. 38.;^^ Mr. Bradley, of Coleford, concluded in prayer. There was a service in the evening at Mr. George's meeting; at Ross, where Mr. King of Ledbury prayed, and Dr. Ryland preached from Psalm lxxxix. 15. — The Baptist church at Ryeford is of long standing, having been first gathered by Mr. John Skinner, one of the ejected ministers in 1662, who was before minister of the parish of Weston.

(George Watkins was pastor of Capel y Ffin; H H Williams was pastor in Cheltenham; John Rowland was pastor in Pershore; William Bradley was pastor of Coleford. John Ryland was principal of the Bristol Baptist College. We are not sure who Mr George and Mr King were.)

* 1 Timothy 3 according to a note in a notebook of Thomas's held in the Gwent Archive, Ebbw Vale.
** He also received the confession of faith (same source as above).
^ A sketch of this charge was subsequently published
^^ "Encourage him" Thomas adds
MT also adds that the hymns were given out by Mr Horlick of Ruardean.