In our last account of the life of Dr. Thomas (#25 — Dec ’97) we left him on his way to Great Britain in May, 1869. He returned to the United States in June, 1870, fully intending to wrap up his affairs in this country and then settle in the house he was building in Olton, about five miles from Birmingham. Clearly the warmth of his reception, and the sheer number of Christadelphians in England, Wales, and Scotland were of great satisfaction to him. They were basically all united behind Robert Roberts, so the prospect of living among a large group of fellow believers, without the constant struggle he faced in North America, was very attractive. He prepared his house in New Jersey for sale, painted the picket fence, and set off for one last preaching journey in North America in October, 1870. He fell ill in Worcester, Massachusetts, and had to return home, but he seemed to recover somewhat and carried on his writing and correspondence. However, at the end of February, 1871, his illness returned, and after eight days in agony he died at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, March 5, 1871. Thus passed away, in our common hope of the resurrection, one who surely did more than any other in his century to rediscover those truths we hold so dear. All that is left for me to do is give an account of the last endeavors of Dr. John Thomas, and relate how his funeral wishes, at first unwittingly ignored, were finally carried out according to his will.
The will of Dr. Thomas
John Thomas made his “holographic” will (one made in his own hand) on the eve of his departure from Britain for the United States, May 4, 1870 It was written apparently partially because of the annoying persistence of a certain unnamed brother.
(As an interesting aside, someone whom Dr Thomas trusted betrayed him during this time One James Martin accompanied Dr Thomas to the States in 1870 and was m charge of the Doctor’s house in his absence that summer He violated his trust, was expelled from the house, and was subsequently disfellowshipped by Robert Roberts for being a “mischief-worker”)
The will named two executors Bre Robert Roberts and Thomas Bosher The former was not a surprising choice, the latter was chosen presumably for his deep pockets as well as his spiritual strengths Bro Bosher, a small man, was a merchant from London, a little dynamo for the Truth He was Robert Roberts assistant “officer” for The Christadelphian magazine at this time Sadly, he split with Bro Roberts in the 1880’s, a troubled soul We still often sing his spiritually thoughtful words as found m hymn 54 “Jehovah dwells alone ” The choice of two English executors only confirms Dr Thomas’ expectation he would live out the rest of his life in Great Britain, even the address on the will was of his new house “John Thomas of the Parish of Bickenhill in the County of Warwick “
Four purposes of the will
The purposes of Dr Thomas’ will were
- To ensure that he, Dr Thomas, was buried man unconsecrated area, (most cemeteries in those days were associated with churches of the apostasy), and to lay down directions for the burial service “I order that being dead I myself be not deposited m so-called ‘consecrated ground’ but in some portion of our common mother undefiled by the Episcopal or Presbyterian mummery of the Harlot daughters of Rome on either side of the Tweed nor is any minister ordained or unordained to be permitted to officiate in committing me myself to my temporary resting or sleeping in the ground But I will that a Brother of Christ of good standing among Christadelphians read on the occasion Job 1925-29, Ro 14 7-12,11 Cor 5 10,1 Cor 15 2,11 Tim 4 7,8 to be read in the order quoted then cover up without sorrowing and leave me to a brief repose until I hear ‘The Voice of the Archangel and the trump of God’ “
- To make provision for the support of his wife and daughter, both ma poor state of health at the time, although his daughter, Eusebia, was to survive until 1921
- To establish a strong foundation for the publishing efforts of Robert Roberts by transferring to him all the spare funds and literary properties of Dr Thomas “The fund which shall become the nucleus of a publication society to be styled The Christadelphian Society the object of which is the promotion of the Truth as preached by the Apostles and the emancipation of Society from the unhallowed and demoralizing and God-dishonoring traditions of the Romish and Protestant Apostasy”
- By creating this society, the will precluded others from using the name “Christadelphian” for “magazines for their own crotchets,” and, as Robert Roberts wrote 25 years later in his autobiography, was “necessary to save the Doctor’s work from suppression”
Dr. Thomas’ work in America, 1870-71
From the time of his arrival back in the United States, on May 16, 1870, until the onset of his illness in October, 1870, Dr. Thomas appeared to have been occupied in his normal fashion of travel and correspondence. He was invited to revive his Herald of the Kingdom, suspended because of the Civil War at the end of 1861, but replied, “… they who are Christadelphians in the true sense of the word, and not such as those who assume the name to promote their own craftiness, may henceforth consider the Herald of the Kingdom is revived in The Christadelphian.”
He set forth on what one might consider his standard journey, to Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, then into rural Virginia, and returning by way of Philadelphia. Only a few of his former colleagues were still with him, but from their small nucleus all the ecclesias seemed to be growing. At Philadelphia he met Bro. Ennis, who will appear later in this account, as will Bro. Packie from Baltimore.
In Zion, King William County, he met Albert Anderson, his “Ancient Friend,” who spoke to the meeting in the afternoon. This was the same individual whose baptism in 1834, 36 years before, had started the rift between Dr. Thomas and the Campbellites: he was now in his 70s, and having retired from farming, listed his occupation in both the 1860 and 1870 census as “Thomasite Minister.”
Dr. Thomas returned home on August 2, after having been absent for five weeks. He appears to have been in reasonably good health during this period, having endured the grueling schedule in Great Britain without any major ill effects, although he could well have suffered a bout of peritonitis, from the descriptions of his ailments.
He set out again in October for a visit to the northern States and Canada, but only got to Worcester, Massachusetts before he experienced a severe bout of the same illness. He never left his home state, New Jersey, again; and, although he appeared to have recovered from the episode, undoubtedly his strength was now dwindling. He carried on his correspondence to the end, however. The last letter, never finished, was addressed to Bro. Abraham Coffman, at whose house Dr. Thomas had decided on the name “Christadelphian” some seven years before. It was entitled “What is Flesh?” and concerned the topic of God manifestation. This was a major concern, not only of Bro. Coffman, but also of Dr. Thomas at the time, for his last work was an elaborate chart called “Pictorial Illustration of the Deity Manifested in the Flesh.”
The death of Dr. Thomas
The account of his death, contained in a letter from his daughter, Sis. Eusebia Lasius, to Robert Roberts, makes sad reading. His final illness “lasted eight days: days of excruciating agony, night and day. The attack was similar to the one he had in Worcester last fall, only more aggravated… We wanted to send for a doctor, but he strongly objected, saying he knew how to introduce the catheter himself, and that was all that could be done… on the sixth day, he began to fail… Mother and I.. .decided to send for a doctor.. .the doctor gave no hope.. .the power of resistance gradually grew less and less, until, at half-an-hour past midnight on the Saturday, he quietly sank to rest without a struggle at last.”
And so, at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, March 5, 1871, Dr. Thomas breathed his last, one month short of his 66th birthday. His was surrounded not only by his immediate family after the flesh, but also by some of his spiritual family, Brethren Latimer and Johnson being present.
It seems, looking back, that Dr. Thomas suffered from a benign tumor of the prostate gland, perhaps neglected too long by Dr. Thomas himself, and apparently beyond successful management by the doctor called in late in the case by his family.
The news of his death reached England via a letter to Robert Roberts on Saturday, March 18. The memorial service at Birmingham the next day was, to all accounts, “a very sad meeting. Brother Roberts intended to give some particulars, but.. .his grief was too fresh to be restrained. He sat down to weep, and we all wept with him… This painful scene continued a few moments, when Bro. Turner calmly and solemnly invited us to join with him in prayer.”
The burials of Dr. Thomas
The body of Dr. Thomas was first laid to rest in a temporary vault in Jersey City, New Jersey, Cemetery, “until the advance of the spring shall dry the earth’s surface sufficiently to dig down into it without water.” The funeral took place on Monday, March 6, conducted by Bro. Ennis from Philadelphia, a former member of the Doctor’s ecclesia. “The words were appropriate to the life and the hope of the departed. He spoke of the faith which had animated and directed his course through life — the one hope — the hope of Israel.”
Brethren Roberts and Bosher took ship to the United States as soon as they could, arriving Thursday, April 20. It took several days to arrange for the final interment of Dr. Thomas, the Greenwood Cemetery on Long Island, New York, being selected as suitable. Bro. Roberts took the opportunity to view and touch the body of this “wonderful man,” to use his words. Through ignorance of the Doctor’s wishes, the instructions in his will for his burial service had not been carried out, so Bro. Roberts took the opportunity at the re-interment of carrying them out.
This took place on Sunday, April 30, eight weeks after his death. The horse-drawn hearse took two hours to make the journey from Jersey City to Greenwood Cemetery, where 40 to 50 brothers and sisters were present. Brethren from all over North America were there: we know only some of the names, but Bro. Donaldson from Detroit is mentioned. Bro. Packie arrived from Baltimore, after having traveled overnight, just too late for the funeral — he was friend and financial backer of Dr. Thomas of almost 40 years’ standing.
Those gathered for the funeral concluded the day with a Breaking of Bread service — an occasion which, though sad, was made less so by the shared belief they all had in his hope of resurrection.
And his grave is still to be found in good condition to this day — Dr. Thomas’ pinkish marble monument flanked by the smaller black ones of Robert Roberts, and those of his wife and daughter.
Conclusion
As I look back over the life and times of Dr. Thomas in America, several aspects of his life stand out: his early prominence among the society of his day, the eminence of his friends, and the way he deliberately abandoned self advancement for the sake of the Truth. A surgeon, he tried fanning and newspaper publishing before he found he could put his trust in the Lord — and in his friends. His real legacy is to be found in the Christadelphian body to which he gave intellectual birth – and to which Robert Roberts gave both a formal set of beliefs and an organizational structure.
Postscript
This is the last installment of my series. I much appreciate the help and assistance of many brothers and sisters in the several fellowships that exist on this continent and elsewhere. Space prevents mention of them all, but I cannot close without acknowledging the special help of Sis. Jean Wilson, and the understanding of my family, who have seen so little of me the last year or so!
One day, I might like to pick up the story of the Truth in North America again. If anyone has access to sets of such North American Christadelphian magazines as The Truth, The Christadelphian Herald, Christadelpia Newsletter, etc., and any ecclesial histories, I would appreciate knowledge of such copies. My address is: 3079W. Kilbum Rd. Rochester Hills, MI, 48036. Tel (248) 373-4791.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One