ETCHED IN STONE
God’s Acre offers a spiritual solace
WORCESTER — In 1844, a group of Worcester residents woke up on the morning of Oct. 23 to find the world had not ended, the rapture had not in fact happened and Christ had not arrived.
To say they were disappointed would be an understatement. In fact, what followed in the months to come would come to be known as the Great Disappointment.
The group identified as Millerites, followers of Pittsfield native William Miller, who had been preaching in New York at the time and believed the world would end on Oct. 22, 1844.
In Worcester, they were led by Solomon Parsons Jr., grandson of a local reverend. Leading up to the “end times,”
Parsons bought a parcel of land and spent $125 — about $5,200 in today’s dollars — to have a permanent deed engraved in one of the stone boulders, dedicating and gifting the land to God.
Deed Rock remains somewhat hidden in the property now known as God’s Acre and Rattlesnake Hill, now in the care of the Greater Worcester Land Trust.
The rock, complete with spelling errors, reads as follows: “Know all men by these presents that I William G. Hall of Worcester in the County of Worcster and Commonwealth of Mass in consideration of 125 dols. paid by the hand of Solomon Parsons of the same Worcester the receipt of which I hearby acknowledge, do hereby grant sell and convey unto God, through the laws of Jesus Christ, which are made know to man by the reckord of the New Tesstament recorded by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John the evangelist, this land to be governed by the above mentioned laws and together with the spirit of God.”
In a 1940s Evening Gazette article, Parsons was described as wanting to create a “primitive temple” and to help “warn the world” that its end was drawing near. The article said he had planned to use the land for survivors of the rapture.
Of course, everyone survived after that day in October, and around the country those who had once believed in the Millerite movement sought out other groups like the Quakers and the Shakers, while others branched off and formed their own religions, such as the modern-day Seventh-day Adventists.
Unlike many who chose to give up religion altogether, Parsons continued to use the land as a prayer space for him and several others up until his death in 1893.
Meantime, in the woods of God’s Acre remains a remnant of the era. The large stone slab sits silently on the forest floor, that silence only broken by a bird call or a plane departing from nearby Worcester Airport.
Aside from being in the flight path, it’s easy to see how one might have a religious experience in these woods. The smells of nature engulf visitors, as the hustle and bustle of the busy city fall away with each step deeper into the foliage.
Old stone-house foundations pop up here and there, but the land remains mostly untouched. Vernal pools, dozens of wild turkeys and natural maidenhair ferns, blood-root, and white baneberry dot the forest, surrounded by paper birches and mountain laurel. The trails are not well marked, and parts of the path are overgrown, making it easy to get lost in the small neck of Worcester. Deed Rock itself is not far from the road, perhaps 32 feet or so, at the base of Rattlesnake Hill, but finding the path to the rock proved quite difficult.
Gone are the ruins of the temple, but the spirituality that this place was built upon remains, at least until the next rapture.
T&G engagement editor Sarah Barnacle is getting to know Central Mass. by exploring some of the best places to go and things to do in Worcester County.