Ezra Ripley, Concord Minister and Westford Academy Trustee. (1792-1803)
By James VanBever (March 2021)
The original Westford Academy Trustees were a group of men who were visionary, generous, and dedicated to the education of young people in Westford and the surrounding area. One of them was a well-known minister from Concord, Massachusetts. His name was Reverend Ezra Ripley.
Ripley was born in Woodstock, Connecticut on May 1, 1751. He was the son of Noah and Lydia Ripley and was the fifth of nineteen children. Ripley grew up on
a farm that was owned by his father and at first aspired to follow in his father’s footsteps. But Ezra’s father wished better for his son and wanted him to leave the farm and become a grammar school teacher.
Ezra Ripley did in fact become a schoolteacher, but always eager for more education, he was not happy with his new vocation. The young Ripley wanted to continue his education so that he could become a member of the clergy. Since he was a young boy, Ezra had always been interested in becoming a minister.
To pursue his dream of entering the clergy, Ripley entered Harvard University in 1772 to study theology. The Revolutionary War did interrupt his education, but Ezra did graduate in 1776. After finishing his degree at Harvard, Ezra Ripley was ordained a minister on November 7, 1778 and became the pastor of the First Parish Church in Concord where he would preach for 63 years.
In November of 1780, Ezra married Phoebe (Bliss) Emerson. Phoebe was a 39-year-old widow with five children. Her first husband had been Reverend William Emerson who had lost his life during the American War for Independence. Ezra and his new family would reside in the “Old Manse” in Concord. The “Old Manse” had been built for William Emerson and Ripley would be the second minister to reside in the historic building.
It must be noted that Phoebe and William Emerson were the grandparents of the famous transcendentalist writer Ralph Waldo Emerson who was born in Concord in 1803. Ralph Waldo Emerson who celebrated nature and the individual in his writings is probably best known for his essay “Self-Reliance”.
As a minister, Ripley preached understanding and acceptance in religious thought. This philosophy was unlike many of his contemporaries who criticized or even condemned any differences in religious dogma. In an 1809 sermon, Reverend Ripley noted “that God had created a world with so much natural variety that he must also see a benefit to spiritual variety” as well. The Reverend went on to say that “we must all agree in this, that charity is essential for without charity we are nothing.”
Ripley is also famous for a pamphlet he wrote entitled “A History of the Fight in Concord” which is an article about the morning of April 19, 1775. For 50 years after the Revolutionary War there was a dispute between the towns of Concord and Lexington on where the first shot was fired at the British. In Ripley’s pamphlet, he maintained that although the English had fired first at the Patriots in Lexington on April 19th, the first American to fire at the King’s troops occurred later that morning at North Bridge in Concord.
In his writings, Reverend Ripley also praised the Westford Minutemen and particularly Colonel John Robinson in the Battle of Concord Bridge, Ripley wrote: “A company from Westford had just entered the bounds of Concord when the fight took place. But individuals from that town were present and engaged in the battle, among whom was the brave Colonel Robinson”.
Reverend Ezra Ripley was a very generous man with his wealth and with his time. The Reverend gave the land in Concord on which the monument at North Bridge was built. The monument was built with Westford granite. And in 1792, Ripley donated his time and expertise to become one of the original Westford Academy Trustees, a position he held until 1803.
The minister from Concord lived a long and productive life. He preached his last sermon the day after his 90th birthday. Westford Academy will always be grateful for the time he spent as one of its original trustees and founders. Reverend Ezra Ripley was important to the formation of Westford Academy and will always have a special place of honor in the history of Westford’s historic school.
Information for this article was gleaned from:
1, Ezra Ripley-Wikipedia
2, Ezra Ripley D, D.- “The Complete Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson”.
3, Westford Eagle, “Distinguished Citizens First Academy Trustees”, by Gordon B. Seavey, October 21, 1976.
4, Edwin R. Hodgman, “History of Westford”. Page 105.