Charles E. Mason (1853-1937)
&
Mary Marissa Files (1851-1901)/Eleanor Sheddon(1872-1948)
Charles Edward Mason was born in Monroe, Maine on December 1, 1853, the son of
Broadstreet Mason and Betsy Libby. His
parents were very religious people, and Charles was apparently impacted at a very
early age. According to the Free Baptist Cyclopedia 1886-1889, Charles
became a Christian at the tender age of only eight years old. Charles graduated
from the Maine Central Institute in 1877. The 1880 census shows
him as a student at age 27. Two years later graduated from Bates College and then
from Bates Theological Seminary in 1885. He was ordained as a minister on August
26, 1885. At that point, Charles took his first ministry, in the tiny town of Milton,
New Hampshire.
He only spent two years in Milton, but it was apparently well spent. Membership in
the church rose, the church itself was repaired and improvements made, and a parsonage
was built. Charles was also a member of the executive committee of the state Y.M.C.A.
during this time. It was also during this time, on August 31, 1886, that Charles
married Mary Marissa Files who was living in Unity, Maine.
This is Mary Marissa Files:
In 1888, Charles accepted the call for a church in Bangor, Maine. Their first son,
Edward Files Mason, had been born in Milton, NH. Now
in Bangor, the young family started to face challenges. Two children died in infancy.
And Mary apparently suffered from tuberculosis. In 1895, they had a daughter, Edith.
By way of summary, here are the children of Charles and Mary:
Edward Files Mason, born January 3, 1888, died September 21, 1967
Bertram Fullerton Mason, born March 5, 1890, died October 12, 1890
Everett Basil Mason, born November 25, 1891, died October 16, 1892
Edith Palmer Mason, born September 14, 1896, died in November, 1985
It was not uncommon
in those days for folks with tuberculosis to be encouraged to head west, where the air was cleaner.
There were no antibiotics. Hence, the thinking was that the cleaner air would do them good.
So, they packed up their young family and headed west......WAY west. All the way to Mountain
Home, Idaho. Charles, Mary and their children arrived there in 1897. By his recollections, the
area was "decidedly in the pioneer stage." His church was a simple wood structure, put
together for temporary use. A small parsonage had been built prior to their arrival, but
was unpainted, and unpapered. The yard was nothing more than a pile of dirt. But, despite
what must have been a bit of a culture shock, it was home now. Charles' faith was strong.
He started to do what he felt he had to to grow his church. He was also what was known
as a 'sky pilot', or minister on horseback. The pressure of it all must have been
enormous! No family except his wife and two small children, 3000 miles from his nearest
relatives in what was truly the wild, wild west!
And then, sadly, in 1901, Mary passed away from tuberculosis. Their son, Edward Files Mason,
wrote in his diary of visiting her grave in Idaho.
Yet, seven years after his arrival, in 1904, Charles had a banner year! Membership had grown to
over 100, he built a new Congregational Church building and married Eleanor Sheddon, a local school teacher.
Eleanor Sheddon
Charles
had done wonders with his children and his church, but now that there was a maternal presence
in the house, things settled down. Eleanor did a good job raising
her two step-children, but never had any children of her own. Charles' church flourished and grew. The community
grew to love and respect him. Here is a picture of Charles, taken in 1907, on the
10th anniversary of his ministry:
Charles became a cornerstone of the community. He preached in Mountain Home for 35 years,
retiring on September 30, 1932. At the time of his retirement, he wrote, "Idaho being a
state where rain is scarce, the prosperity of both church and community has depended in
considerable degree upon the supply of water which was available to the farmers in
our community....At the beginning of 1932, my wife and I decided that if the water situation and
the spiritual condition improved that we would close our work in Mountain Home."
A minister can not stay in one place for as long as Charles did, without occasional highs
and lows in his ministry. But in the fall of 1932, Charles said, "we are departing on the
crest of a wave."
At his passing five years later, in 1937, the memorial program at the church read in part,
One of God's noblemen has been in our midst.
He has blessed us with his gracious spirit.
He has helped us rise above our baser selves
by being himself so far above the base.
We thank Thee, Father, for this man. Only
heaven can know how much good he has done.
We who are lonely today are keenly aware of
how good he has been. 'He was a good man'
was said 1900 years ago of one chosen to
serve the Lord. From that day to this, it
was never said with more fitness --
'He was a good man.'
Charles Edward Mason died on May 25, 1937, in Boise, Idaho. The church he worked
so hard to build and grow continues to flourish. The seeds he planted so far from
his native New England bear fruit to this day.
His second wife, Eleanor Sheddon, passed in 1948.
Charles E. Mason (1853-1937)
&
Mary Marissa Files (1851-1901)/Eleanor Sheddon(1872-1948)
Charles Edward Mason was born in Monroe, Maine on December 1, 1853, the son of
Broadstreet Mason and Betsy Libby. His
parents were very religious people, and Charles was apparently impacted at a very
early age. According to the Free Baptist Cyclopedia 1886-1889, Charles
became a Christian at the tender age of only eight years old. Charles graduated
from the Maine Central Institute in 1877. The 1880 census shows
him as a student at age 27. Two years later graduated from Bates College and then
from Bates Theological Seminary in 1885. He was ordained as a minister on August
26, 1885. At that point, Charles took his first ministry, in the tiny town of Milton,
New Hampshire.
He only spent two years in Milton, but it was apparently well spent. Membership in
the church rose, the church itself was repaired and improvements made, and a parsonage
was built. Charles was also a member of the executive committee of the state Y.M.C.A.
during this time. It was also during this time, on August 31, 1886, that Charles
married Mary Marissa Files who was living in Unity, Maine.
This is Mary Marissa Files:
In 1888, Charles accepted the call for a church in Bangor, Maine. Their first son,
Edward Files Mason, had been born in Milton, NH. Now
in Bangor, the young family started to face challenges. Two children died in infancy.
And Mary apparently suffered from tuberculosis. In 1895, they had a daughter, Edith.
By way of summary, here are the children of Charles and Mary:
Edward Files Mason, born January 3, 1888, died September 21, 1967
Bertram Fullerton Mason, born March 5, 1890, died October 12, 1890
Everett Basil Mason, born November 25, 1891, died October 16, 1892
Edith Palmer Mason, born September 14, 1896, died in November, 1985
It was not uncommon
in those days for folks with tuberculosis to be encouraged to head west, where the air was cleaner.
There were no antibiotics. Hence, the thinking was that the cleaner air would do them good.
So, they packed up their young family and headed west......WAY west. All the way to Mountain
Home, Idaho. Charles, Mary and their children arrived there in 1897. By his recollections, the
area was "decidedly in the pioneer stage." His church was a simple wood structure, put
together for temporary use. A small parsonage had been built prior to their arrival, but
was unpainted, and unpapered. The yard was nothing more than a pile of dirt. But, despite
what must have been a bit of a culture shock, it was home now. Charles' faith was strong.
He started to do what he felt he had to to grow his church. He was also what was known
as a 'sky pilot', or minister on horseback. The pressure of it all must have been
enormous! No family except his wife and two small children, 3000 miles from his nearest
relatives in what was truly the wild, wild west!
And then, sadly, in 1901, Mary passed away from tuberculosis. Their son, Edward Files Mason,
wrote in his diary of visiting her grave in Idaho.
Yet, seven years after his arrival, in 1904, Charles had a banner year! Membership had grown to
over 100, he built a new Congregational Church building and married Eleanor Sheddon, a local school teacher.
Charles
had done wonders with his children and his church, but now that there was a maternal presence
in the house, things settled down. Eleanor did a good job raising
her two step-children, but never had any children of her own. Charles' church flourished and grew. The community
grew to love and respect him. Here is a picture of Charles, taken in 1907, on the
10th anniversary of his ministry:
Charles became a cornerstone of the community. He preached in Mountain Home for 35 years,
retiring on September 30, 1932. At the time of his retirement, he wrote, "Idaho being a
state where rain is scarce, the prosperity of both church and community has depended in
considerable degree upon the supply of water which was available to the farmers in
our community....At the beginning of 1932, my wife and I decided that if the water situation and
the spiritual condition improved that we would close our work in Mountain Home."
A minister can not stay in one place for as long as Charles did, without occasional highs
and lows in his ministry. But in the fall of 1932, Charles said, "we are departing on the
crest of a wave."
At his passing five years later, in 1937, the memorial program at the church read in part,
One of God's noblemen has been in our midst.
We thank Thee, Father, for this man. Only
Charles Edward Mason died on May 25, 1937, in Boise, Idaho. The church he worked
so hard to build and grow continues to flourish. The seeds he planted so far from
his native New England bear fruit to this day.
His second wife, Eleanor Sheddon, passed in 1948.
Eleanor Sheddon
He has blessed us with his gracious spirit.
He has helped us rise above our baser selves
by being himself so far above the base.
heaven can know how much good he has done.
We who are lonely today are keenly aware of
how good he has been. 'He was a good man'
was said 1900 years ago of one chosen to
serve the Lord. From that day to this, it
was never said with more fitness --
'He was a good man.'
