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REV. BETHUEL THOMAS (B.T.) VINCENT PASTOR AT GOLDEN'S METHODIST CHURCH 1868 - 1869, 1904 - 1908. |
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| Early Years... Bethuel Thomas Vincent was born in Alabama on August 9, 1834.1 Early Ministries... Rev. B.T. Vincent came to Colorado via Pennsylvania and Illinois. Vincent was a graduate of the Garrett Biblical Institute in Evanston, Illinois. He was a member of the Rock River Conference of the Methodist-Episcopal Church, which encompassed northern Illinois.2 Rev. B.T. transferred to the Rocky Mountain Conference in 1863 2 and was assigned to Central City's St. James Church.3 |
 Rev. Bethuel Thomas Vincent |
| In 1864, the Rocky Mountain Conference became the Colorado Conference. Rev. Vincent began editing and publishing a Sunday School magazine called "The Rocky Mountain Sunday School Casket". It was the first periodical of any kind to be published in Colorado.3 |
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Right: The 1865 Colorado Conference. L-R, Standing: C. H. Kirkbridge, George Richardson, William Antes, W. W. Baldwin, Bethuel T. (B.T.) Vincent, John Gilliland, and O. P. McMains. Seated: O. A. Willard, John L. Dyer, Bishop Calvin Kingsley, and Charles King. 4 Vincent, Willard, and King all served as pastors to the Golden Methodist-Episcopal Church. |
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Golden Ministries
Rev. B. T. Vincent holds a unique distinction among Golden pastors in
that he is the only minister to serve Golden's Methodist Church twice!
Vincent initially served in 1868 - 1869, and then again some 35 years
later. Rev B. T.'s second stint, from 1904 through 1908, was also the
longest era of service of any pastor at that time!
In 1868, Rev. Vincent was the equivalent is is now a District
Superintendent. Church records show
"In July 1868, The Reverend B. T. Vincent was appointed as the Presiding Elder of the District, with understanding that he live in Golden and also act as pastor. On November 1, 1868, the present church edifice was begun and on January 17, 1869, it was dedicated by Brother Vincent with The Reverend J. L. Peck preaching the dedication sermon and The Reverend G. H. Adams preaching again at night." 5The appointment year of 1868-1869 was an exciting time in Golden Methodism: |
| "Golden City's liberal people have put up a chapel for Methodism - furnished and paid for it. It was begun in November and dedicated in January....The building is a plain one outside, having been built as a part of an ultimate building of greater pretentions, but its interior furnishing is attractive and comfortable, holding from 150 to 200 persons." 5 |
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| Above: The first brick-and-mortar home of Golden Methodism! | |
| Rev. Vincent was re-appointed as Presiding Elder for the church year of 1869-1870, but he did not fill the Golden pulpit. 6 |
| Other Ministries Rev. Bethuel T. Vincent served the Colorado and Rocky Mountain Conference during two distinct periods in his life. Vincent initially ministered in Colorado from 1863 through 1875. During this time, B.T. pastored churches in Central City, Golden, Denver's Lawrence Street (twice), and Colorado Springs. He was also a Presiding Elder for three years.2,7 In adition, in 1872 Rev. Vincent represented the Colorado Conference at the quadrennial General Conference.7 Rev. Vincent moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in either 1875 or 1876.2,7 He returned to ministry in Colorado in 1889.2 Vincent pastored at Greeley and Pueblo before again being appointed as a Presiding Elder on a district-level. B.T. was given charge of the Denver District of the Rocky Mountain Conference from 1892 through 1898.2 During this six year period, Vincent helped organize eight churches 2 (five within the Denver city limits) as well as numerous missions.8 Following this district work, Rev. Vincent was given a second appointment to the Methodist-Episcopal Church in Greeley. Then, in 1904, B.T received his second appointment to Golden!2 Although B.T. retired in 1908, he was often called on to preach. In fact, during his 85th year (1919-1920), Rev. Vincent was called to Central City. He died on July 30, 1920 -- ten days before he would have been 86.8 Interestingly, it is worth noting that in this day and age it is rather rare for a United Methodist pastor to serve the same church on more than one occasion. Even in Vincent's era, with fewer churches and fewer pastors, it was also somewhat of an anomaly that a minister would receive an appointment to a church that he had previously served. That Rev. B.T. Vincent would officially serve three churches (Lawrence Street, Greeley, and Golden) twice and unofficially four (Central City) -- must be a record that is unparalled in the storied history of United Methodism! |
Chautauqua
Rev. B.T. Vincent loved Colorado -- he would spend the majority of his
adult years here, and he would eventually die here -- but his Christian
ministry was national in terms of influence.
Camp meetings were a tradition in the nineteenth-century Methodist
Episcopal Church, but in the last half of that century the scale of the
camp meeting changed with the development of what would become a kind
of 'super' camp assembly.
Des Plaines, Illinois, was the site of one of the largest of these
annual events. 11
The first Des Plaines Camp Meeting was held in 1860 and attracted
some 20,000 participants! The Children's Meeting, believed to be the
first separate meeting for children held at an American camp meeting,
was led by Rev. B. T. Vincent. These children's meetings were a huge
success, for by 1863, three daily children's meetings were being held!
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Rev. B. T. Vincent would participate in these meetings over the course
of two decades:
The face of Rev. B. T. Vincent in these pages will emphasize the fact that Des Plaines has from the beginning taken the child and, like the Master, set it in the midst. It was Mr. Vincent's vision that not only inaugurated the work but gave it a wide scope throughout the country. Mr. Vincent is living in Colorado but makes a yearly pilgrimage to Chautauqua, where for twenty years he led in children's and young people's Bible study classes. 12 |
| Additional Information Rev. Bethuel T. Vincent is credited with starting Golden's first public library! 5 Vincent was also involved at one time as the head of the fledgling Colorado Seminary, which would eventually become the University of Denver. 7 It is also worth noting that Rev Bethuel T. (B.T.) Vincent was the brother of Rev. John Heyl (J. H.) Vincent. 11 Rev. J. H. Vincent was one of the most influential Methodist ministers of the time. In 1860, Rev. J. H. Vincent was pastor to General U. S. Grant at the Galena Methodist Church. In 1874, Vincent and Lewis Miller, Thomas Edison's father-in-law, collaborated in establishment of the "Chautauqua Institute", a training center for Sunday school teachers based in New York. Rev J. H. Vincent also become a Methodist Bishop in Europe, and he was the namesake of another great American - Dr. Norman Vincent Peale! 11 Clearly, both Vincent brothers -- Rev J. H. and Rev B. T. -- greatly influenced the course of American Methodism. Rev. Bethuel T. (B.T.) Vincent died in Colorado on July 30, 1920. 1 |
| Bibliography | ||
| 1 | Journal of the Rocky Mountain Conference | |
| Memoirs, 2001. | ||
| 2 | The Methodist, Evangelical, and United Brethren Churches in the Rockies: 1850-1976 | |
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J. Allen Templin, Allen D. Breck, and Martin Rist, Editors Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church. 1977. p 136. |
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| 3 | ibid, p 28, 29. | |
| 4 | Echoes from Peak and Plain | |
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Rev. Isaac H. Beardsley Curts and Jennings, Cincinnati 1898. p. 277. |
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| 5 | Before Organization to 1880 | |
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Rev. Vern L. Klingman Archives, Golden First United Methodist Church September 18, 1949. see 1868-1869. |
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| 6 | ibid, see 1869-1870. | |
| 7 | The Methodist, Evangelical, and United Brethren Churches in the Rockies: 1850-1976 | |
| p. 58. | ||
| 8 | ibid, p 143. | |
| 11 | The Des Plaines Methodist Camp Ground, 125 Years of Methodist History | |
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Daniel R. Sailor Chicago District Camp Ground Association (CDCGA) June, 1984. |
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| 12 | Des Plaines Camp Meeting Jubilee | |
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Rev. W. B. Norton, PhD. Northwestern Christian Advocate August 11, 1909. |
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