Culver Family History

Henry S. Culver is a very interesting character in the early history of the Bahá'í Faith. He learned about the faith from Esther Annie Magee while he was filling the position of U.S. Consul for London, Ontario. He and his wife, Mary Diana (Sprague), became Bahá'ís in New York in 1906.

Henry Stark Culver was born on the 19th of April 1854 in Sunbury, Delaware County, Ohio. His parents were Sydney Culver and Jane Carpenter. He married Mary Diana Sprague on the 10th of August 1876 in Delaware Ohio. She was the daughter of Franklin Burnet Sprague and Joanna R. Leeds. She was born on the 20th of May 1856. They had seven children although the first died at one year of age and the second only lived to be eleven. All five remaining children were with them when they came to London, Ontario. The 1901 census shows that Henry was 46 years old and his wife was 44. The children were Edward Stanley (20), Mary Louise (16), Dorothy (10), Sidney Franklin (8), and Laurence Rosecrans (2).

Before London Henry was a prosecuting attorney and served two terms as Mayor of the City Delaware, 1890-1894. He was appointed to Consul at London on October 16th, 1897 with the recommendations of two senators, eleven members of the House of Representatives from Ohio, and others. The 1998-99 London Directory shows that his residence and office was at 209 Queen's Avenue. This was in a newly constructed building that was on a lot previously occupied by a Methodist Church. The building included 205 -213 Queen's as well as 439 -445 Park (Now Clarence). The office building at 201 Queens now occupies this space.

In 1902 his office and residence moved to 464 King Street, a building that was previously known as Frazer House and more recently was occupied by a restaurant and apparently now houses the Growing Chefs Headquarters. There is a little confusion as the number on this building is 460 and not 464, so I checked the insurance maps from before and after the date of residence and 464 King Street never existed. There was a small structure at 462 King were the parking lot for 460 is now and a book with the history of London shows the building that Henry Culver lived in, which closely resembles 460 King, so I do believe that this is were his residence and office was from 1902 - 1906.

During his stay in London, Henry S. Culver invented new and useful improvements to a document filing system. His invention would file and bind cheques and other papers for a permanent record and a convenient reference when the file had become filled. A patent was applied for on May 24th, 1900 and granted on January 29th, 1901. He also appears as a witness to a patent for a spray nozzle invented by W. H. Heard. The application was filed on February 7th, 1906 and the patent granted on January 14, 1908.

When Dorothy Cress, the Culver's daughter, was asked how she became a Bahá'í she answered;

Well, of course, through my father and mother, I guess. Yes, I guess so, that must have been it. I'll tell you how my mother became a Bahá'í. We lived in Canada, in London, Ontario, a little town. . . and a friend of ours - a Mrs. Magee, she had two daughters - Edith and Harriet. . . . One time. . . my mother said. "Well I think Mrs. Magee has gone crazy." And why she'd gone crazy was because she'd heard that Christ had come back - Christ had come back to earth. Of course, it was 'Abdu'l-Bahá (sic) and then, so from then on, Mrs. Magee, they became more and more interested and... all became Bahá'ís, then my mother did too. (Cress, 1982)

During those early days many of the new believers would refer to 'Abdu'l-Bahá as the return of Christ. In 1934 a clarification was printed in the "Star of the West." 'Abdu'l-Bahá is quoted as saying, "My name is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my identity is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my qualification is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my reality is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my praise is 'Abdu'l-Bahá ..." The name, 'Abdu'l-Bahá is Persian for "the Servant of Glory." A more complete quote is in Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Bahá.

My name is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my identity is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my qualification is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my reality is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, my praise is 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Thraldom to the Blessed Perfection is my glorious refulgent diadem; and servitude to all the human race is my perpetual religion. Through the bounty and favor of the Blessed Perfection, 'Abdu'l-Bahá is the Ensign of the Most-Great-Peace, which is waving from the Supreme Apex; and through the gift of the Greatest Name, he is the Lamp of Universal Salvation, which is shining with the light of the love of God. The Herald of the Kingdom is he, so that he may awaken the people of the East and of the West. The Voice of Friendship, Uprightness, Truth and Reconciliation is he, so as to cause acceleration throughout all regions. No name, no title, no mention, no commendation hath he nor will ever have except 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This is my longing. This is my supreme apex. This is my greatest yearning. This is my eternal life. This is my everlasting glory! Express ye the same thing which is issued from my pen. This is the duty of all. Consequently, the friends of God must assist and help 'Abdu'l-Bahá in the adoration of the True One; in the servitude to the human race; in the well-being of the human world and in divine love and kindness.

('Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablets of 'Abdu'l-Bahá v2, p. 429)

Edward Stanley Culver, the eldest son, worked as a stenographer for Canada Life for a few years, but joined his father as a US consulate in 1903. There is no word of him after the family moved to Ireland. Henry Culver was appointed as Consul for Cork, Ireland in 1906. He moved there with his wife and his three youngest children. Mary Louise Culver is reported to have gone to Paris, France, to pursue an education. Her sister, Dorothy, would join her a year later.

The Culvers lived in Queenstown (now Cobh), near Cork, from 1906 to 1910. They were connected to wider Bahá'í circles through Charles Mason Remey who corresponded with them and sent them literature. He also sent their address to Arthur Cuthbert who wrote to them. There is no news of Bahá'í activity during this time. It appears that Henry spent of his spare time writing poetry about Ireland and taking pictures. He would publish a book, "The Emerald Isle, in Poetry and Pictures," in 1920. It was published by Christopher Publishing House in Boston, Massachusetts. It has been reprinted by Forgotten Books in the USA and Scholar Select in the UK. Click here for a free PDF version of the book.

In 1910 Henry S. Culver was again transferred to a new office. He would be stationed back in Canada at St. John, New Brunswick. His wife and daughters had become well acquainted with the Bahá'ís in Paris where the two young ladies attended school, and it seems a fire had been enkindled in their hearts. They were about to set St. John ablaze with the love for the Abhá Beauty.

In 1911 Mary Louise Culver would join her parents in St. John. Eventually, she and another Bahá'í, Mary Robinson Warner, established the "Sign O' the Lantern Tea Rooms." William Humphrey, also a Bahá'í, was a coffee and tea merchant in the town. A prominent American Bahá'í, Roy Wilhelm, was an importer of coffee and set much of his coffee fortune aside to promote the Bahá'í Faith. It seems that the tearoom business had a lot of support in St. John.

Between 1917 and 1921 there were from seven to twelve Bahá'ís in St. John and it had become the second largest organized Bahá'í group in Canada, second only to Montreal. It became a favourite spot for travel teachers to visit, and much activity was apparent. May Maxwell was one of those visitors and she said that she felt privileged to have met such an intelligent, broad-minded and altruistic group. Martha Root also visited the community. Her biographer, Mabel Garis, adds the following comment.

Of the entire adventure (in Canada) Martha felt that the visit to Saint John was the greatest miracle, with the power of the Holy Spirit strongly present. She felt they were like days in heaven; it was the love extended from the people at Saint John . . . that made it seem like paradise.

Click here if you would like to purchase the biography.

In 1922 Dorothy Culver moved to Green Acre at Eliot Maine. Two years later, Henry Culver retired from his duties as US consul and also moved to Eliot. The Family had already met 'Abdu'l-Bahá there in 1912 and have been known to be visitors to Esther Annie Magee's summer home at Green Acre. There were back in touch with the same family that had introduced them to the Bahá'í faith in London, Ontario during the early years of the 20th century.