“A few figures will show the remarkable growth of the parish, noticeable even among the thriving country parishes of Connecticut. A hundred years ago, already a century after the first settlement, there were seventy-four communicants in the cure of New Milford, New Preston, and Roxbury; fifty years ago, St. John’s Church, New Milford, reported one hundred and twenty-five communicants and one hundred Sunday scholars; in 1885, not quite thirty years later, the number of communicants had increased to two hundred and eighty-nine, and the number of Sunday scholars was one hundred sixty-four. In the last named year, the new congregation of All Saints’ Memorial Church was canonically organized, its beautiful place of worship being consecrated in a subsequent year, and a rectory being added some twelve years ago. The result of this increase of the provision for the worship of the Church and for its varied ministrations in this town has been a growth, under all the circumstances, more remarkable than that of former times; in twenty-one years the number of communicants has increased from two hundred eighty-nine to five hundred forty-nine--four hundred five in the older parish and one hundred forty-four in the younger; and where there were one hundred sixty-four scholars in one Sunday school, there are now two hundred fifty-eight in two schools, of which the mother parish has two hundred nine....” BY REV. S. D. WOODS IN THE BAPTIST CHURCH AT NORTHVILLE “Our best authority tells us that while Baptists were not very numerous in the early days of the town’s history, yet a decade or more before the close of its first century there was a sufficient number to warrant the carrying on of services at varying places--Bridgewater, Warren, and Gaylord’s Bridge. These were kept up for twenty-five years, when, on Jan. 7, 1814, a meeting was held at the residence of Asahel Baldwin, at which time it was voted: ‘1st, To organize ourselves into a society to be known as the “New Milford Baptist Church.” 2d, To invite a council from sister churches to meet with us on Feb. 9, to consider the propriety of recognizing us as a regular Baptist Church.’ This council met as planned, and after a proper examination of ‘their Articles of Faith and their Covenant,’ voted, unanimously, ‘to recognize them as a sister church in the Lord.’ “By this act twenty-two believers became a recognized body of worshipers, who, ten days later, voted to license Eleazer Beecher as pastor. He was ordained Sept. 15, 1814, at the residence of Abel Canfield on Long Mountain. The services were conducted in the open air.