JOSEPH NOYES was born in Stonington, Connecticut, October 16, 1688. He was the fourth, and youngest surviving, son of the Rev. James Noyes, Jr. (Harv. Coll. 1659), senior member of the original board of Trustees of Yale College, and for over fifty years the minister of Stonington; his mother was Dorothy, daughter of Thomas Stanton, of Stonington, the famous Indian interpreter.
He studied theology, probably with his father, and was licensed to preach by the New London Association, May 2, 1710. In September, 1710, he entered on a tutorship in College, which office he held for the five following years. His reputation at this time is indicated by an extract from President Stiles, given in the sketch of Phineas Fiske (see above, p. 20). In November, 1714, the pastor of New Haven, the Rev. James Pierpont, was removed by death, and while the church was delaying the choice of a successor, Mr. Noyes received a call from Stonington, given in town meeting, April 14, 1715, to become colleague-pastor with his father (now over 75 years of age), on a salary of £70. The call included a proposition that one of the joint pastors should preach statedly in the outskirts of the town “to the people living remote from the meeting-house,” and perhaps on this account, perhaps because he had reason to expect another and more attractive call, he declined this.
Meantime the New Haven people had sent a request (March 22, 1715) to the Mathers and other Boston ministers to suggest candidates to them; but when the Society met, July 1, 1715, “to nominate a man to carry on the work of the ministry on probation,” Mr. Noyes received 86 votes, and Samuel Cooke (Y. C. 1705) received 45. An annual salary, of £120, was offered him in September, but with the deliberation which was customary at that period, his ordination did not take place until July 4, 1716, almost a year after he had entered on his pastoral labors. He preached his own ordination sermon, from Jeremiah i, 7.
In the first year of his ministry he was largely instrumental in promoting the removal of the College to New Haven, by his exertions in raising subscriptions (himself offering £20); and when the College was actually settled here, he further aided it in its need by hearing for two years nearly all the recitations of the Senior class.
For twenty years, his ministry seems to have been entirely acceptable and prosperous; but with the “Great Revival,” which began to be felt here as early as 1735, came a spirit of dissatisfaction with the methods of his preaching.
The rising discontent was fanned by the interference of the Rev. James Davenport (Y. C. 1732), who came to New Haven in September, 1741, as an itinerant imitator of Whitefield, and publicly denounced Mr. Noyes as an unconverted man and a hypocrite. Three months later, a proposition was made for a division of the church and society, on the ground that “we, the subscribers, have, by long and sorrowful experience, found, that the preaching and conduct of the Rev. Mr. Noyes has been in great measure unprofitable to us, and that we have also reason to think that he differs from us in some points of faith.” This request being refused, a separate church (now merged in the United Church) was formed in May, 1742, to the great annoyance of the old society, but as under the existing law of the Colony the members of this dissenting society were still taxable for Mr. Noyes's support, the bitterness of feeling by no means ended. Meantime, the old church had tried to prevent the division by voting to settle a colleague-pastor, a step which was naturally mortifying to Mr. Noyes, as yet only in his 54th year. The latter attempt was not carried into effect until 1758, after the new church had settled a pastor of its own, and was thriving under what was felt to be persecution. The Rev. Dr. Trumbull, who was in College from 1755 to 1759, and whose sympathies were all with the “New Lights,” tells at length the story of these troubles, and gives a perhaps not very unfair account of the cause of the disaffection to Mr. Noyes, as follows:–
“Though he had the gift of prayer, and was edifying in that part of worship, yet he was unanimating and unpopular in his preaching. His language was vulgar, and his zealous calvinistic hearers did not consider him as so plainly and faithfully preaching the doctrines of human depravity, of regeneration by the super natural influences of the divine Spirit, and of its absolute necessity that men might be saved, of effectual calling and justification by faith only, as a minister of the gospel ought by all means to do. From his manner of preaching, especially on sacramental occasions, suspicions arose that he did not hold the real divinity of the Saviour. Besides, he appeared wholly unfriendly to the religious awakening and concern in the country.”
The unpopularity of Mr. Noyes as a preacher naturally increased, as with increasing age he grew more dull and dry and non-committal. President Clap, who had at first been his earnest supporter, was conquered by the prevalent prejudice against him in the minds of many patrons of the College; and although the students had from the first removal to New Haven attended public worship at Mr. Noyes's meeting, in 1753 a church was set up in the College itself, and the students required to attend service there. In 1755 a Professor of Divinity was appointed, whose duties included the work of preacher and pastor, and in 1756 an unsuccessful attempt was made by Mr. Noyes's Society to win back the College congregation by offering to make the new Professor a colleague-pastor of the First Church. President Clap went on, in the face of active opposition from Mr. Noyes and others (a minority of the College Corporation), to organize the College Church (June, 1757), and also tried, unsuccessfully, to effect the removal of Mr. Noyes for lack of orthodoxy from his seat in the Corporation, which he had held since September, 1735, and which he retained till his death.
In March, 1758, the Rev. Chauncey Whittelsey (Y.C. 1738) was settled as colleague pastor of the First Church — not until Mr. Noyes's adherents had so dwindled in numbers that they were actually outvoted in town-meeting by the seceders, so that the old pastor was forced to apply to the courts for the collection of his salary. With the settlement of an acceptable colleague, however (a step which it was believed Mr. Noyes had always been inclined to thwart), peace came to the distracted community. His last years were almost entirely withdrawn from public labors, and he died in New Haven, June 14, 1761, in his 73d year.
His colleague has left on record this delineation of his character —
“Mr. Noyes was a gentleman of good natural powers; and as he resided at the College several years after he received the honors of it, he made himself very much master of the learning taught at College in that day. He was naturally observing, judicious, and prudent; and these very useful and important qualities he from time to time improved by experience, and thence was an excellent economist in the management of the affairs both of his family and of the public. His conversation was very entertaining and useful. . . In public prayers he was equalled by few in justness of sentiment, and in readiness, variety, and aptness of expression. . . In his public discourses . . he, upon principle, aimed rather to be plain, familiar, and instructive, than learned, critical, ornamental, or moving.”
He married, November 6, 1716, Abigail, the only child of his predecessor, the Rev. James Pierpont (Harv. Coll. 1681), by his second wife, Sarah, daughter of the Rev. Joseph Haynes (Harv. Coll. 1658), of Hartford. She was born in New Haven, September 19, 1696, and died while on a visit in Wethersfield, Connecticut, October 10, 1768. A Sermon by her husband's colleague and successor, was published, which describes her beautiful and universally honored character. They had five daughters and four sons; the only son surviving childhood, the Rev. John Noyes, graduated at this College in 1753; of the daughters, only two survived their father, one of whom was the wife of the Hon. John Chester, of Wethersfield, and the other the wife of Judge Thomas Darling (Y. C. 1740), of New Haven.
Mr. Noyes's estate was valued at upwards of £36oo, the most of it in land; it included however, four negro servants, and £25 worth of books. His wife had inherited a large fortune from her mother.
He published nothing: the only thing purporting to be of his composition that I have seen is the argument in reply to President Clap's impeachment of him before the Corporation, which is preserved in President Stiles's manuscripts, and which has been thought to be written by his son-in-law, Judge Darling, It is quoted in W. L. Kingsley’s “Yale College,” i, 177.
The record on his tombstone, under the present First Church, is as follows:–
“Revd. Joseph Noyes, a Man of God, eminent for Prudence, catholic in Sentiments, given to Hospitality, patient in Tribulation, and abundant in Labours; having serv'd his Generation by the Will of God, 5 years a Tutor, and 26 a Fellow, of Y. College, and 45 Pastor of ye 1st Church in N. Haven, died June 14, 1761, Aetat. 73.
Mrs. Abigail Noyes, Relict of the Revd Joseph Noyes, died at Weathersfield, ye 10th of Octr, 1768, Ae. 73, and was Buried in that place. A Gentlewoman of a sweet and delicate Temper, and of Female Virtue an Example, she greatly excelled in ye knowledge of ye Scriptures, and they were ye Guide of her Youth, and ye Comfort and Support of her Age; she was a Loving dutiful Wife, a kind instructive Parent, to ye Poor Charitable, to ye Faulty a faithful Reprover, to the Cause of Truth a Friend. Her Life was diligent and useful : Her Heaven began on Earth. She saw through a Glass darkly, but now Face to Face. O Grave where is thy Victory !”
His portrait is in possession of his descendants.
AUTHORITIES.
Bacon. Historical Discourses, 199.
Conn. Gazette, New Haven, June 20, 1761, 9.
Dana, Discourse on Completion of 18th Century, 47, 48.
Dutton, Hist. of the North Church, New Haven, passim.
Fisher, Discourse on the Church in Yale College, 8, 45.
W. L. Aingsley, Yale College, i, 176.
R. D Smyth, College Courant, Aug. 15, 1868, 99.
Pres. Stiles MS. Itinerary, ii, 17, 18; iii, 4, 20, 46, 55, 59, 60, 72; and MS. Miscellanea, 69; and MS. unbound Letters, V. 5.
Trumbull, Hist. of Conn., ii, 340.
R. A. Wheeler, Hist. of 1st Church in Stonington, 46.
