Text:
In memoriam Josephi Battell qui die XVII Apr. A.D. MDCCCVI
natus mortuus est VIII Jul. A.D. MDCCCLXXIV
Eum et reverenter coluisse deum et alienis utilitatibus
penitus studuisse semper sit documento hæc aedes
sacra
Neque minus in memoria est tenenda dilecta illius soror
Irene Larned Guilielmi Augusti Larned uxor quae
vitam suam suavissimis quasi morum harmoniis et
fide plenam ad exitum perduxit die V Maii A.D. MDCCCLXXVII
annos nata LXV
Translation:
In memory of Joseph Battell, who was born on the 17th day of April in the year of our Lord 1806, and who died on the 8th day of July in the year of our Lord 1874.
May this holy chapel always serve as proof that he both worshiped God reverently and dedicated himself deeply to the common good.
And no less must his dear sister Irene Larned be held in memory, wife of William Augustus Larned, who conducted her life as if full of faith and sweetest harmonies of character, until its end on the 5th day of May in the year of our Lord 1877; she lived for 65 years.
Location: Battell Chapel, 400 College Street
Commentary:
Battell Chapel was constructed between the years 1874-1876. It was named after Joseph Battell (1774-1841) by his son Joseph Battell (1806-1874); it is the latter Joseph Battell who is named in this dedicatory inscription. An enthusiast of sacred music, Joseph Battell the younger first gifted $5,000 to the support of sacred music at Yale, and later gifted another $35,000. Having passed away in 1874, he left $50,000 in his will for the construction of the chapel.
Irene Larned (née Battell) was the sister of Joseph Battell and the husband of William Augustus Larned, a theologian and professor of rhetoric and English literature at Yale. After moving to New Haven, Irene Larned helped found two organizations dedicated to the performance of music in New Haven, the New Haven County Musical Association and the Mendelssohn Society of New Haven. Larned was herself a musician and sang soprano solos in the oratorios performed by these musical organizations. She also donated to Yale’s 1854 sacred music fund, and in particular supported the acquisition of music books and the maintenance of the Battell Chapel organ.
The church has its own website with translations of all inscriptions found in the building, including this one. The website is linked here.
Sources:
Yale Chaplain’s Office: History of Battell Chapel
Dexter, Frederick Bowditch. 1892. A Catalogue, with Descriptive Notices, of the Portraits, Busts, Etc., Belonging to Yale University. New Haven: Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor. pp. 6–7.
Lotto, Adrienne. 2019. “Irene Battell Larned, Champion of Music at Yale.”
Editor: Ava Dadvand, December 10, 2023