Newspaper Page Text
April, 1947
JAMES HABERSHAM
LIVING CORNER-STONE OF EARLY
BETHESDA
(This is the second of a series of hap¬
penings and historical facts concerning
Bethesda).
By O. W. Burroughs
In the chancel of the Whitefield
Memorial Chapel at Bethesda is a beau¬
tiful window appropriately designed to
attract and interest children. Its cen¬
tral figure is Christ blessing little chil¬
dren, with the caption: “Suffer little
children to come unto me and forbid
them not, for s-uch is the kingdom of
heaven. " Underneath the picture is
another Bible verse, and below that,
completing the scroll, is the head of
a cherub.
Still lower are the foxes and the
grapes—“the little foxes that spoil the
vines,” or, with the birds in the upper
window, it may allude to the passage:
4 4 The foxes have holes and the birds of
the air have nests, but the Son of Man
hath not where to lay his head,” suggest¬
ing Bethesda’s care for the homeless.
The vines and fruits show the agricul¬
tural aspects of the home. The bees
and the butterflies catch the child-eye
and are in tune with rural life.
Atop the whole is the burning bush
of scripture, so aptly used by White
field. Contemplating the difficulties of
the early days, he said: “The orphan
house, like the burning bush, has flour¬
ished unconsumed amidst the fiery
trials by which it was enveloped. God
willing, I intend to carry on my design
until I see the colony sink or swim.”
The window was a gift from two de¬
scendants of James Habersham, Mrs.
Pearce Crisfield and Mrs. Clarence An¬
derson. It bears the legend: “In Mem¬
ory of James Habersham, 1712-1705,
First President of Bethesda. »>
This man more than any other ex¬
cept Whitefield himself gave perma¬
nence and security to the home in its
difficult beginnings. Born in York¬
shire, England, and near Whitefield’s
age he fell under the spell of the ardent
young evangelist and came to America
with him when Whitefield was sent as
a missionary of the Church of Eng¬
land to the Georgia colony. Whitefield
refers to him as “my dear fellow trav¬
eler who, relinquishing the kind offers
of friends in England, and in opposi¬
tion to the views of his uncle and guar¬
dian, resolved to cast his lot with *'
me.
The pair arrived in Savannah on May
7, 1738. They decided that L bersham
should at once open a school for chil¬
dren eligible for admission to the or¬
phanage, bringing them under a regu¬
lar course of tuition and discipline,
while Whitefield went on a tour to col¬
lect funds to carry out the plan.
On January 11, 1740, Whitefield re¬
turned from England with 1,000 pounds
sterling he had collected. He then
made a trip to Philadelphia and other
points north, returning with 700 pounds
sterling. Shortly afterward he left
for England again, affairs of the or¬
phanage devolving on Habersham. Such
was the energy of the latter that on
November 3, 1741, the buildings were
so far completed that he was able to
BETHESDA NEWS
remove the children to their new home,
though the finish of the work on the
main building was delayed when the
Spaniards captured a sloop carrying
brick and other materials intended for
Bethesda.
Whitefield did not return from Eng¬
land for three years, or until 1744, and
during this interim the work was car¬
ried on by Habersham. At one time
danger of invasion of the colony by the
Spaniards from the south was such that
Habersham fled with the children to a
Mr. Bryan’s in South Carolina. The
danger of the invasion over, new diffi¬
culties arose. The depressed state of
the colony, wars and rumors of wars,
the contention of the magistrates and
the opposition many of them showed
X
r.' -
?V(?
M
»j
-y
E
.
* •
\ si
4 ¥
■ ;
4 t
:
4 ' ■
:: Mn
5 *
W m 4*4 k
m *
i 1 \
Mb -4 -■4 : Jr4
5 * Q &
-
X 4 *' - W 1 $ fi
' *<? ji'l
m3 «*.. ~Juj
/ V \>
ft .
Window in Whitefield Chapel
“Photo by Foltz”
to the institution made its condition dif¬
ficult. Through all this in Whitefield’s
absence Habersham bore the “heat and
burden of the day.
Whitefield having returned from his
long absence abroad and being ready to
assume responsibility, it was not long
afterward that Habersham severed his
connection with the home, though his
interest and substantial support con¬
tinued throughout his life. There is
evidence of this in his letters of the
time and later, in his will Whitefield
left the Bethesda property to Lady
Huntingdon in England. She had been
one of his chief supporters. The cor¬
respondence shows that Habersham
had to do with the transfer of title. He
criticises somewhat the wording of the
will not with any wish to deprive the
countess but in fear for its effect upon
the title. One cannot accuse Haber-
Page Three
sham of lacking heart but it is evident
that he had more head for practical af¬
fairs than Whitefield and so was a
source of strength and assurance for
him through their long a?sociation.
On resigning from Bethesda Haber¬
sham went into business with Francis
Harris, forming one of the first com¬
mercial enterprises in Georgia. They
grew into a large import-export busi¬
ness with northern cities, the West In¬
dies and London.
In 1750 Habersham was appointed to
advance the culture of silk in the col¬
ony. Later he became secretary of the
province by appointment from the king,
and was made president of the upper
house of the assembly. During Gover¬
nor Wright’s absence he was acting
governor of Georgia.
As the Revolution approached and
relations between the colonies and Eng¬
land became strained, Habersham was
torn between two loves. He had large
interests in Georgia, was a big rice
planter, owning Beverly and Silk Hope
plantations on the Ogeeehee, as well as
managing plantations for Governor
Wright and others temporarily absent.
His character was such however, as not
to be governed by material considera¬
tions alone. He had a deep and abiding
interest in the great American adven¬
ture and sympathized deeply with the
colonists. Over against this was h*s
loyalty to the king, and the years 1770
to his death in 1775 were bitter years.
Suffering physically from ill health
and mentally from distractions of the
times, he went north in the hope of
recuperation but died in New Bruns¬
wick, New Jersey in the late summer
of 1775. Thus he was saved the hor
iois of war he foresaw. He is buried
in the Habersham vault in the Colonial
Cemetery with other members of ihe
family.
His home in Savannah was on the
site of Telfair Academy. It was sold
to the Telfairs who built the present
tabby house. The fine old colonial
house removed to make room for f he
city auditorium was the home of Rob¬
ert Habersham, grandson of James.
It is interesting to note that White
field, gathering children from every¬
where, returning from one of his north¬
ern trips, brought two little girls from
Philadelphia, Mary and Rebecca Bol¬
ton. Mary later became the wife of
James Habersham. Their descendants
have played an important part in the
life of the Savannah community.
When You Make Your Will
REMEMBER
BETHESDA
THE HOUSE OF MERCY
HOME FOR ORPHAN BOYS