USA > New York > New York City > Inventory of the church archives of New York city > Part 1
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11
COLUMBIA LIBRARIES OFFSITE AVERY FINE ARTS RESTRICTED
AR01498754
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014
https://archive.org/details/inventoryofchurc00hist 4
1 27 mElXL
Ex Libris
SEYMOUR DURST
t' Fort nieiw Amsterdam op de Manhatans
FORT NEW AMSTERDAM.
(NEW YORK ), 1651.
When you leave, please leave this book Because it has been said "Ever'thing comes t' him who waits Except a loaned book."
AVERY ARCHITECTURAL AND FINE ARTS LIBRARY GIFT OF SEYMOUR B. DURST OLD YORK LIBRARY
INVENTORY OF THE CHURCH ARCHIVES OF NEW YORK CITY
Prepared by The Historical Records Survey Division of Professional and Service Projects Work Projects Administration
REFORMED CHURCH IN AMERICA
New York City, N. Y. The Historical Records Survey August 1939
1
offSITE CO 3409 · NS RY
The Historical Records Survey
Luther H. Evans, National Director George J. Miller, Director
Division of Professional and Service Projects
Florence Kerr, Assistant Commissioner Agnes S. Cronin, Chief Regional Supervisor
WORK PROJECTS ADMINISTRATION
F.C. Harrington, Commissioner Paul Edwards, Administrative Officer
PREFACE
This inventory of the Reformed Dutch Church archives in New York City is part of a nation-wide survey of church records of every denom- ination. The objective is to compile inventories of church records which would prove valuable to writers, historians, social workers, genealogists, and students of religious history. To supplement the inventory and, at times to clarify the records a brief historical sketch of each congregation is included. The survey was conducted by the Historical Records Survey, of which Luther H. Evans is the national director, and was undertaken for the purpose of providing useful work for needy unemployed. In this group, which range in age from 18 to 65 years, were included a teacher, a lawyer, a rabbi, a clergyman, a pharmacist, a social worker, and a radio tele- grapher.
The present work is the first of a series, which, when completed, will include all denominations in New York City. In this volume the Project has listed every congregation of the Reformed Church in America which has existed in the five boroughs of Greater New York. In the course of preparing the inventory, some records, assumed to have been lost, and others long misplaced, were located. Records, which heretofore have been scattered among church officials in various locations have been centralized, and in some cases, records found to be in poor condition have since been reconditioned by their custodians. The Project has impressed upon many custodians the historical and social value of church records, as well as their usefulness in supplementing available vital statistics. It is hoped that publication of this and subsequent inventories will result in locating and preserving many church record books now believed lost.
The aid of ministers, church officials, and members was a prime factor in completing this inventory. Their patience and cooperation are gratefully acknowledged. Special mention is made of the Rev, John A. Ingham, D. D., Stated Clerk of the General Synod, and the Rev. John Gilmore Addy, Stated Clerk of the South Classis of Long Island, for their friendly and expert assistance. The New Jersey Historical Records Survey furnished the information regarding the records located in the Gardner Sage Library of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary .
The work of collecting, verifying, and editing the information has been done under the supervision of Harry E. Greene: field and research work by Jessie M. Preston, Lillian Parkor, Evelyn Revesz, and Miguel Casillas; writing of entries, by Melvin Sachs, Wallace W. Hooker, and Joseph Portal; editing, by Lillian Andrews, Rose Rackoff, and William Fisher; compilation of bibliography, by Bradley D. Cutler; historical sketch by Harold R. Livingston and Sadie Milstein; indexing, by Marie E. McKevitt; reproduction, under the direction of May Nathan; typing, by Betty Josephson and Sally Lewis; proofreading, by John Reardon; mimeo- graphing, by Harold Presser.
The Project will appreciate suggestions, criticisms, and correction of the material included herein.
August 19, 1939
George J. Miller Regional Director Historical Records Survey
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Explanatory Notes
Crganization Dates
vi
Form of Entry
vii
Organization
viii
Record System
viii
Abbreviations
ix
Fistorical Sketch of the Peformed Church in America 1
General Synod 13
Widows Fund 15
Board of Education 15
Board of Domestic Missions 16
Board of Foreign Missions 17
Sabbath School Union
17
Board of Publications and Bible School Work 18
Disabled Ministers' Fund 18
Woman's Board of Foreign Mission 19
Woman's Board of Domestic Mission 19
Minister's Fund 20
Church Entries 21
Classis of New York 39
Particular Synod of New York 40
Classis of Long Island 42
South Classis of New York 45
North Classis of Long Island 51
South Classis of Long Island 51
Bibliography
79
Index
Minister 87
Alphabetical 90
Chronological
93
vi
ORGANIZATION DATES
Explanatory Notes
The problem of establishing a date of organization has been somewhat difficult due to the unions, mergers, consolidations, and dissolutions of churches, and comparatively frequent population shifts. As a general rule, the date claimed by the church, the records of the classis, or synod, and corporato certificates, have been the ruling factors.
The entries arc arranged in chronological order, the date of organiza- tion being that of the establishment of a worshipping group into an indepen- dent congregation. During the period that a congregation was a station, mission, chapel, or branch of another church, they are treated as a part of that church, usually in the form of a sub-entry (see entry 1-E). Mention of a congregation's earlier existence is made, or suitable cross reference is given to clarify the question of the actual establishment of a church.
In the case of consolidations where the congregations concerned in the merger lose their identity, each church is treated in a separate entry, and the congregation which is the outcome of the merger is listed in its chrono- logical order (soe entries 101,108,152). Congregations which retain their identity, continue their original organization date, regardless of the organ- ization date of the absorbed church.
Congregations of a different denomination are taken up chronologically as of the date they are accepted as members of the Roformed Church in America (see entry 101).
FORM OF ENTRY
The entries follow a uniform style and are divided into four parts as follows :
1. Hoading: Includes number, popular name, followed by corporate title (in full) where known, organization date followed by two hyphens indicate a living church, date of demise (if defunct), street address, and borough. In Richmond and Queens geographic locations are included, however, these location names do not always coincide with the post office address, (a location in Queens may be served by a Brooklyn Post Office - etc. ).
2. Text: Includes a brief sketch of the church, confined chiefly to origin, change of names, locations, and mergers. Dedication and incorporation dates are given when known. Cross references are given for convenience of the reader, and do not necessarily indicate that further information may be found there. Citations of original source material is given. Names of congregations other than Reformed in- cludo their denomination, and for information regarding them, seo forthcoming inventories for the denomination concerned. Names of first and present clergymen, their tenure and educational background are given. Where the educational background of a clergyman is omitted, it does not signify lack of such background, but that the information was withheld, or was not known to the Survey, Degrees of living clorgymen have been omitted in all entries.
vii
3. Bibliography: Items pertaining to the particular church. Unless otherwise stated, their location is the church. Symbols (see list of abbreviations) in- dicate library where item is located.
4. Records: In some instances the records were not actually checked by the Survey. However, the infor- mation was given by authorized officials of the church and may be considered accurate. Where gaps in the records occur it indicates the records were not located; or information was withheld. In en- tries where no mention of records is made, records could not be located.
Unless otherwise stated, all records prior to 1784 are written in Dutch; since that year they are re- corded in English; if not noted the records are in good condition.
The minister is the technical custodian of all church records, The records are not open to the general public, inquiries regarding a specific record should be directed to the minister. When a record is not located in the church or adjoin- ing buildings, the location of the record, with name and address of custodian is noted, excepting in such instances, as when the Survey was asked not to publish such information. A symbol (see list of abbreviations) is given to designate a public depository of records. For published records see bibliography.
ORGANIZATION
Each Reformed Dutch Church is governed by a minister, elders, and deacons, who collectively are known as the Consistory. A consistory may embrace more than one church, in which case, the organization is spoken of as collegiate. Deacons care for the financial interest of the church, while the minister and elders are concerned solely with its spiritual interests.
The classis, a unit of church government which corresponds closely with the presbytory, is composed of all ministers and one older from each church within a given district. Additional representation is allowed to collegiate churches. A larger unit of church government, usually embracing one or more states, is the Particular Synod. It is composed of four ministers and four elders from each church within its geographical area. This body acts as a general appellate and supervisory agent for the churches and classis within it.
The highest governmental body is the General Synod, composed of two minis- ters and two elders from every classis with three thousand or less communicants. Additional representation is allowed for larger classes.
RECORD SYSTEM
viii
The minister, elders, and deacons are required to submit definite data, at periodic intervals, to the classis and synod. This material is later compiled and published in the minutes of the General Synod. The information is taken from the records recorded by the minister and other officials of the church, and are described as follows:
Minutes of the Consistory cover strictly the business of the church.
Minutes of elders and deacons include the spiritual work, benevolences, and names of members received and dismissed.
Baptism records include name of child, date of birth, date baptized, names of parents and sponsors.
Marriage records include date of marriage, name of contracting parties, parents name and names of witnesses.
Membership Register includes name. of member, date received, date of dismissions of death. Also names of ministers, elders, and deacons, with tenure.
Burial records include: name of deceased, date of death, place interred.
ix
ABBREVIATIONS
Few abbreviations have been used, and only those in common usage; for location of records and bibliography in public or semi-public depositories symbols approved by the Union Catalog are used as follows :
NB Brooklyn Public Library 197 Montague Stroet, Brooklyn - 1 Hanson Place
NBLİHİ
Long Island Historical Society Library 130 Fiarropont Stroct, Brooklyn
NHi
New York Historical Society Library
NjNbS Gardner Sage Library of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary New Brunswick, New Jersey
NN The New York Public Library 5th Avenue & 42nd Street, New York City
NNG
General Theological Seminary Library 175 Ninth Avenue, New York City
NNNG New York Gencalogical and Biographical Society Library 124 East 58th Street, New York City
NNQ
Queens Borough Public Library 89-14 Parsons Boulevard, Queens
NNSII Staten Island Institute of Arts and Sciences Library Stuyvesant Place, Richmond
NNUT
Union Theological Seminary Library Broadway & 120th Street, New York City
accts. - accounts
no .
number
anniv. - anniversary
n.p.
no place
col. - college
pub.
- publication
comp. - compiler
rec. record
cop.
copyist
rel.
religious
ecc.
- ecclesiastical
Rev.
- Reverend
ed.
- editor; education
secy ,
secretary
inc.
- incorporated
sem .
- seminary
loc.
located
tr. - translator
ms .
- manuscript
treas.
treasurer
n.d.
- no date
univ. - university
- 1
HISTORICAL SKETCH
The Dutch Period
Probably the first Christian religious services in New Netherland were conducted by comforters of the sick (Krankenbezoekers ), who were sent and supported by the Dutch West India Company. - So far as is known, the earliest of these comforters was Bastien Jansen Krol, who arrived with the first colonists under Cornelius May and founded the first Dutch Reformed Church in North America at Fort Orange (Albany ) in 1624.2 After a few months at Fort Orange, Comforter Krol returned to Holland to obtain a minister for New Neth- erland. However, the settlement was not considered large enough to warrant a minister, and Bastien Krol returned to New Netherland with power to baptize and marry, provided he used the liturgy of the church in his services.º When Deacon Peter Minuit arrived in 1626 to take charge of the colony, he ordered that the settlement should center about the southern portion of Manhattan Island. Soon after Peter Minuit's order, Comforter Krol left Fort Orange to become the first comforter at New Amsterdam. He was joined in July 1626, by Jan Huygens, who had been commissioned as a "Ziekentrooster", or a seeker out of the sick.
The comforters of the sick were required to read prayers every morning and evening, as well as before and after meals, to instruct and comfort the sick, exhort those who required or requested exhortation, and to read chapters from the Bible and sermons of an ordained minister. £ The comforters were em- powered to baptize and marry, but could not administer Holy Communion. º A special form of service was prepared for them to read.º At a horse mill built by Francis Molemaecker in 1626, the settlers attended divine services in a room especially constructed to accommodate the congregation. "
In 1628, the Dutch West India Company sent the Reverend Jonas Michaelius as the first ordained minister to New Netherland. Domine Michaelius was com- missioned by the Classis of Enkhuysen, but shortly after his commission, the supervision of ecclesiastical affairs in the colonies of the Dutch West India
1. New York State, Ecclesiastical Records, Albany, 1901, (hereafter cited Ecclesiastical Records ), I, p. 46.
2. Isaac N. P. Stokes, Iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909, Now York, 1915-1918, IV, 54.
3. Ibid., p. 40.
4. Ibid., p. 66.
5. Ibid., p. 54.
6. For c. complete description of the comforter's service, see Ecclesiastical Records, I, 47.
7. J. Franklin Jameson, (ed. ), Narratives of New Netherland, 1609-1664, New York, 1909, pp. 83-84.
-
- 2 -
Historical Sketch
Company passed to the Classis of Amsterdam. 8 The formation of the Reformed Dutch Church on Manhattan Island is described in a letter from Domine Michael- ius, in which he declared that "from the beginning we established the form of a church", the government of which consisted of Michaelius as pastor, Peter Minuit as eldor, and Jan Huygens as deacon. 9 This first consistory, or local church government in Manhattan, was responsible to and under the control of the Classis of Amsterdam.
Domine Michaclius had a three year contract with the Dutch West India Company and upon his return to the Netherlands, he was succeeded by Domine Everardus Bogardus, who arrived with Director Van Twiller in 1633. Shortly after his arrival, the meeting place above the horse mill was replaced by a frame building with a gambril roof, but without a spire or belfry.10 The dissatisfaction of the people of the colony with this building, combined with the fact that Director Kieft, the successor of Van Twiller, desired to leave a monument to himself, led to the building of a new church in 1647. This was the famous church-in-the-fort built partly by subscriptions and partly from pledges raised during the wedding feast of the daughter of Domine Bogardus . 11
In 1647 Director Kieft and Domine Bogardus resigned their posts in New Netherland. In the same year, Reverend Johannes Backerus stopped at New Netherland, on his way to Holland. He was persuaded to stay and supply the church in the fort, until 1649, when Domine Johannes Megapolensis was called from Rensselaerwyck (Albany) to assume charge at Manhattan. This zealous preacher gave the rest of his life to the development of the Reformed Dutch Church in New York City. 12
The post left vacant by Director Kieft in 1647 was filled by Peter Stuyvesant. From him the Reformed Dutch Church, which was the state church in New Netherland, received great aid. Under his rule, laws previously en- acted to compel Sunday observance were rigorously enforced. 15 In addition, Stuyvesant and his council enacted new laws in the interest of the church. In 1647 a law was passed restricting the sale of liquor and the frequenting
8. Charles E. Corwin, A Manual of the Reformed Church in America, 5th ed., New York, 1922, p. 2. Horeafter cited as Corwin, Manual. The classis, which had immediate supervision of the churches and the ministry, con- sisted of all the ministers and an elder from each consistory within the district covered by the classis. Collegiate Churches were entitled to an elder from each worshipping assembly. The classis within whose bounds the commercial company had its offices was declared to be in charge of the Company's ecclesiastical matters. The Dutch West India Company's main offices were in Amsterdam.
9. Jameson, op. cit., pp. 125-26 and Ecclesiastical Records, I, 48-68. This letter was discovered in 1858, until which time, no record of Rev. Michaelius was available. The original is now in the New York Public Library.
10. William L. Brower and Henry P. Miller, Collegiate Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of the City of New York, New York, 1928, p. 12.
11. New York State Historical Association, History of the State of New York, edited by Alexander C. Flick, New York, 1933-1937 (hereafter cited as Flick), I, 346.
12. Ibid., II, 7.
13. Edmund B. O'Callaghan, (ed.), Laws and Ordinances of New Netherland, 1638-1674, Albany, 1868, p. 25.
- 7 -
Historical Sketch
of taverns on the Lord's Day. 14 In 1657 a law prohibiting all labor on the Sabbath was enacted.15 A law of 1664 required schoolmasters to catechize their children every Wednesday in the presence of the elders and ministers of the church.16
Stuyvesant was disturbed by the question of religious freedom. The Directors of the Dutch West India Company had ruled in 1640 that "no other religion shall be publicly admitted in Now Netherland oxcopt the Reformed, " and Peter Stuyvesant was eager to carry out this ruling. 17 English settlers, adhering to Presbyterian doctrinos, had been given religious freedom by Director Kioft in 1644.18 The continued increase in their numbers caused Stuyvesant and Domino Megapolensis to request that the Classis of Amsterdam send over a minister to preach in English to those settlers.19 In response, the Reverend Samuel Drisius, formerly pastor of the Dutch Church in London, (Austin Friars), and capable of preaching in Dutch, English, French and German, was sent to Now Amsterdam to become the colleague of Domino Megapol- ensis.20 The collegiate system, whereby two or more congregations are con- trolled by & single consistory, was thus inaugurated in the Dutch Roformed Church in New York City, and is still in existenco.
Although the English Calvinists did not trouble Stuyvesant, the coming of the Quakers, Jews and Lutherans did. Stuyvesant and his council enacted severe laws against them, which, if effectively onforced, would have destroyed their freedom of worship. The Lutherons carried a protest to the Dutch West India Company. The directors of that body rebuked the fiery Stuyvesant for his undue severity and ordered him not to enforce the laws prohibiting worship by Lutherans and other sects.21
Under Peter Stuyvesant the services of the Roformed Church on the Sabbath were highly ceremonial. All labor was required to coase, and the family groups, clad in their finest raiment, journeyed from all parts of the settlement to the church services. Both the schout of the town and the town crier made their rounds to preserve the peace and to enforce the liquor laws. The ser- vice was preceded by a parade of dignitarios, led by the marshal of the coun- cil who marched down the aisle before Governor General Poter Stuyvesant. The governor was followed by the provincial secretary, the burgomasters and schop- ens, all of whom sat on the velvet cushions carried, by the town marshal, from the State House to the place of worship.22
The service was in the Dutch language. A "foro singer" or clerk sat in a desk under the pulpit, or in a deacon's pow, and began the service by ad- monishing the people to, "Hoar with reveronce the Word of the Lord". Ho thon
14. Ibid., p. 61. 15. Ibid., pp. 258, 416.
16. Ibid., p. 461. 17. Flick, II, 12. 18. Ibid., pp. 42-43, 49, 51. 19. Ecclesiastical Records, I, 302.
20. Ibid., p. 303-304; Brower and Millor, op. cit., p. 13. There is no documentary evidence that Drisius preached in the English language.
21. O' Callaghan, op. cit., p. 211-213.
22. JJomes W. Gerard, The Old Streets of New York under the Dutch, New York, 1874, pp. 40-44; Willard D. Brown, A History of The Reformed Church in Amoricc., New York, 1928, pp. 34-37.
- 4 -
Historical Sketch
read the commandments, and announced the psalm to be sung. During the psalm, the minister entored the church, knolt in prayer, and ascended the high pul- pit. From this elevation he preached a sermon, usually lasting three hours. If he exceeded this length of time he would be admonished by three raps of the clerk's cane on the floor. At the end of the service, the clerk inserted in his staff the notices to be road and handed them to the minister. After these were road, the pastor admonished tho congregation to be of help to the poor. The doacons then collected the offerings in leather bags which hung at the end of long poles; a hymn was sung, and the congregation then filed out.23
Meanwhile, the Reformed Church in New York City continued to grow. Branches of the Reformed Church developed in Flatbush, New Amersfort, Brooklyn, Long Island, and Harlem. Reverend Johannes Thadeus Polhemus was the first pastor of the three congregations on Long Island, but ho was soon replaced by the Reverend Henricus Selyns, who became pastor at Brooklyn in 1660, and also minister at the chapel in Stuyvesant's bowery, now the site of St. Mark's Episcopal Church. The congregations on Long Island were also becoming stronger.24 The minister to the three churches was assisted by a "voorleser" or clork, who, besides being assistant minister (reading sermons), taught school, dug graves, rang the church bell, led the singing, and was also to serve as messenger to the consistory. This individual was an important figure in the early Reformed Churches of New York, as most of the churches could not support : minister themselves, and were supplied by one or two ministers serving a group of churches. 25
Under the English
The seizure of New Netherland in 1664, by the English fleet under Gover- nor Nicholls arrested the development of the Roformed Dutch Church in Now York. Since fewer Dutch immigrants came to New York, the increase of commun- icants in the Church was seriously curtailed. The gravest problom facing the Reformed Church was that of supporting the three ministers, and maintain- ing the churches, since financial support by the Dutch West India Company had been cut off.
Another problem created by the English seizure of New Netherland was the question of ecclesiastical sovereignty. Although the communicants of the Reformed Dutch Church in New York were now English subjects, the church
23. A Brief Account of An Historic Church, New York, 1904, pp. 12-13. Pre- sumably this was the type of service used in the carly eighteenth con- tury. In some of the Reformed Churches, consistery pews were installed with Bible-rests, where the consistory kept notice of the dominos' in- terpretations of the Scripturo. An example of such a pew may be seen today in the Marble Collegiate Church in New York City.
24. J. Frederic Berg, The Collegiate Churches of Kings County, in Tercon- tonary Studies, New York, 1928, p. 35. Soe invertory for dates of the various church organizations.
25. Ibid., pp. 37-38; Edgar Tilton, The Reformed Low Dutch Church of Harlem, New York, 1910, ch. 1. The churches of Richmond and Queens Counties were also served by this office.
- 5 -
Historical Sketch
still acknowledged allegiance to the Classis of Amsterdam. It was more than a century before a solution was found for this problem.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.