Thank You, Julia Humiston!

by Alan Bisbort

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church has been blessed to have generous parishioners, people for whom the church has been a lifelong anchor. Most recently, St. Peter’s was blessed with a contribution from the Julia A. Humiston Trust in the amount of 10% of the construction costs for the project that is currently underway along Main Street. In the letter accompanying news of the contribution, the trust stated,

“On behalf of the trustees of the Julia Humiston Trust we are absolutely honored to participate in this most worthy improvement to your historic church property on Main St. We think this is precisely what Julia Humiston would have expected.”

One of Cheshire’s most noteworthy philanthropists, Julia Humiston (1822-1912) was also a longtime St. Peter’s parishioner. She was passionate about the “general public good” of town residents. More specifically, she devoted her energies and funds toward “beautifying the town center” (defined in her lifetime as South Main Street, Main Street, and West Main Street). To that end, she donated the funds for the town clock (1890), which sits on the First Congregational Church steeple, and for Humiston School (1912), named in her honor of her father, Daniel Humiston. To continue that noble mission after she was gone, the Julia Humiston Trust was established, by the wording in her will, in 1912.

The remarkable Julia Humiston was born in Cheshire and died in Cheshire at the age of 89, and she is buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery. For those who love symmetry, when the present-day front renovations are completed, they will fold seamlessly into our historic cemetery, connecting the spirit and memory of Julia Humiston with her good and lasting works.