May 1, 1848, Mr. Miner was called to the pastorate of the School-street
church, Boston. Having the entire confidence of his renowned senior, the
Rev. Hosea Ballou, he rapidly worked disaffection out of the parish,
thoroughly organized it, got the more than confidence of its leading
members; and he has carried it forward to the present day with a degree
of high success seldom paralleled in any denomination. In the early part
of the year 1851 his people decided to enlarge the edifice. The closing
of services while the reconstruction was in progress gave Mr. Miner an
opportunity to recruit his wasted strength by European travel. In June,
1852, Rev. Hosea Ballou died full of honors. Another call upon his
administrative ability as president of Tufts College led to the
settlement of associate pastors. But, apart from these interludes, Dr.
Miner has been the sole pastor since the death of Mr. Ballou.
In the movement to found Tufts College, of the very small number of
devoted friends, Dr. Miner has not occupied a second place. Subscribing
himself liberally, a few of his parishioners felt the contagion of
example and made generous pledges. The Rev. Otis A. Skinner, D. D., was
the first agent for collecting funds, and with heroic perseverance in
this pioneer work he raised the larger part of $100,000,--the minimum
upon which the work could begin. This, however, was but a beginning. The
assets to-day are not far from one million dollars. The influence of Dr.
Miner in reaching this result has been pre-eminent. The corner-stone was
laid in 1853. Mr. Miner giving the address. On the death of its first
president, Rev. Hosea Ballou, 2d, D. D., Mr. Miner was constrained to
accept the presidency. He was inaugurated, July 9, 1862. Previous to
this, the principal trust, he had served the college as trustee,
secretary, and treasurer. It was largely by his devices that the money
was raised to meet the current expenses during the infancy and the
poverty of the institution.
In 1863 Harvard College conferred upon him the honorary S. T. D. He had
received the honorary A. M. from Tufts in 1861; and that of LL. D. was
conferred by Tufts in 1875. His presidency continued till 1875, at which
date he acceded to the urgent call of his parish, and resigned the
presidency of the college and took the sole pastorate of his church,
which, in 1872, had dedicated the large and costly temple at the corner
of Columbus avenue and Clarendon street, in which it has worshiped from
that date to the present. Again his labor was effective. Out of the
pulpit as well as in it, giving his heart and energy to its interests,
the old parish entered upon a new era of prosperity. A pastor does well
who holds to himself one generation. Dr. Miner now has under his
influence a third generation, and the "spell" is not weakened. In the
period of his pastorates, he has conducted more than one thousand eight
hundred funeral services, and solemnized more than two thousand five
hundred weddings.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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