The history of three of Lawrence’s oldest cities is rooted in the epic clash between those who wanted Kansas to be a slave state and those who were “free staters.”

The founders of Plymouth Congregational Church, 925 Vt., came to Kansas to help swell the ranks of settlers who opposed slavery.

The Rev. Peter Luckey, the 20th pastor in the church’s history, tells the story.

“The original settlers to Lawrence were funded by the New England Emigrant Aid Society, and this organization out of Massachusetts supported a group of New Englanders, most of them Congregationalists, to settle in Lawrence, Kan., with the goal of supporting the free state cause,” he says.

“They were abolitionists, and they came to Lawrence in 1854. Lawrence was a frontier town, and the only place where they could meet was a building made out of hay, with a thatched roof. That’s where the church started.”

Plymouth was founded Oct. 15, 1854. The church will celebrate its sesquicentennial in 2004.

Plymouth’s historic sanctuary, designed by noted Kansas architect John G. Haskell, was built in 1870 — only seven years after William Quantrill’s Aug. 21, 1863 raid on Lawrence.

“The pastor at the time was Richard Cordley (the church’s second pastor, who came in 1857), and he was a very strong, abolitionist preacher. It can be argued that part of what brought Quantrill to Lawrence is they were intent on getting him. They actually came to his house,” Luckey says.

Plymouth’s history is a source of pride for Luckey.

“I find it one of the most exciting parts of serving this church, feeling that I am part of a great legacy,” Luckey says.

“It’s a tremendous source of strength to realize this congregation began with people who had tremendous courage and were willing to put their lives on the line for their convictions — principally that slavery was an evil in the sight of God and needed to be abolished.”

Humbling and exciting

First Baptist Church, 1330 Kasold Drive, is a year younger than Plymouth — it was founded in June 1855 and will celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2005 — and also traces its roots back to the conflict between pro-slavery and abolitionist forces.

“We had seven founding members in 1855. One of them was actually murdered in Quantrill’s raid, though the (original) church at Eighth and Kentucky wasn’t harmed,” says the Rev. Marcus McFaul, First Baptist’s senior pastor, and the 30th full-time pastor in the church’s history.

“Lawrence, Kan., and the Christian experience in this town in many ways does reflect what I would call classic, liberal Christianity. Our founders really did embrace the dignity and worth of all people. That’s a pretty significant thing in 1855 on the frontier, when everybody thought Kansas was going to be like Missouri, a slave state.”

First Baptist’s original sponsoring denominational group came from Boston, home to many abolitionists, and this influenced the course the congregation was to take.

“Since the founding of the church, we’ve always had a posture that was open and receptive to new people, ideas, challenges and opportunities. Our church has reflected the idea of freedom, and our polity is a spiritual democracy,” McFaul says.

Like Luckey, McFaul is conscious of his church’s history and legacy.

“It’s almost overwhelming, because you’re made very much aware that you stand on the shoulders of all of those pastors who went before you,” he says.

“You’re continuing that tradition of an open, liberal Christian Gospel, and you are proclaiming the same eternal truths and principles that founded a church. It’s quite humbling and exciting.”

‘Much larger than myself’

Another Lawrence congregation that was directly affected by the battle over slavery is Trinity Episcopal Church, 1011 Vt., founded in 1857.

“All of our parish records were burned in Quantrill’s raid. Everything was burned. We lost all the documents, baptism certificates, marriage certificates, all of that was burned. They had to start again,” says the Rev. Jonathon Jensen, who is the 19th rector in the church’s history.

Trinity Episcopal has been in downtown Lawrence nearly as long as the city itself (founded in 1854) has existed. The church was formed, and the present lot of Vermont Street was purchased, in 1857.

The church’s first building was consecrated and opened for service July 29, 1859. The present building in the Gothic Revival style was begun in 1870 and completed in 1873.

The inside of the sanctuary was gutted by fire in 1955.

“The only things that survived were a couple windows and a large, brass eagle lectern. It got so hot it fell through the floor and survived,” Jensen says.

The sanctuary’s interior had to be fully rebuilt.

Jensen is proud of Trinity Episcopal’s long history, and he often reflects on the church’s founders and past rectors.

“I feel a connection with all those who’ve gone before us, and it reminds me of all of those who will come after us. It feels much larger than myself,” he says.