Cold Spring Presbyterian Church

Cold Spring Presbyterian Church
Location Cold Spring, New Jersey
Coordinates 38°58′35.26″N 74°54′59.11″W / 38.9764611°N 74.9164194°W / 38.9764611; -74.9164194Coordinates: 38°58′35.26″N 74°54′59.11″W / 38.9764611°N 74.9164194°W / 38.9764611; -74.9164194
Built 1823
Architect Thomas Hurst Hughes
Architectural style Federal
NRHP Reference # 91000785 [1]
Added to NRHP June 14, 1991

The Cold Spring Presbyterian Church, located on Seashore Road in the Cold Spring section of Cape May, in Cape May County, New Jersey, United States, is a historic two-story church on the National Register of Historic Places. The current church building, known as "Old Brick", was constructed in 1823[2] by Thomas H. Hughes, who was also the architect of Congress Hall in Cape May, New Jersey. This red brick building replaced a frame and shingle church erected in 1764, which itself replaced a 1714 log meetinghouse.[3] The church's cemetery is the site of a 1742 grave (that of Sarah Eldridge Spicer) and of the most Mayflower descendants anywhere outside Massachusetts.

History

The congregation was founded in 1714, following the settlement of the area by Connecticut Presbyterians. The first regular pastor was the Rev. John Bradner, who served from 1715 until 1721, when he moved to Goshen in Orange County, New York. The Rev. Hughston Hughes served as pastor for one year, starting in 1726, before being dismissed for "his too free use of intoxicating drinks."[3]

The Rev. Samuel Finley served as pastor for several years. Finley, who was a graduate of the Log College, later became president of the College of New Jersey, the predecessor of Princeton University. Another Log College graduate, the Rev. Daniel Lawrence, served as pastor from 1752 until his death in 1766. His tombstone in the adjacent graveyard was inscribed

In yonder sacred house I spent my breath,
Now, silent, mouldering here I lie in death,
Those silent lips shall wake and yet declare,
A dread amen to truths they publish there[3]

The two hundredth anniversary of the church was celebrated on August 16, 1914. John Wanamaker, who attended when a child, contributed generously to the endowment fund. President Woodrow Wilson sent a congratulatory letter.[4]

Burials in the cemetery

See also

References

  1. ↑ National Park Service (2007-01-23). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. ↑ "Old Brick; About Us". Cold Spring Presbyterian Church.
  3. 1 2 3 "Famous Old New Jersey Church, A Presbyterian Congregation Formed 182 Years Ago". New York Times. May 3, 1896. , reprinted in "The First Resort," Ben Miller, Exit Zero Publishing, 2009, Cape May, New Jersey.
  4. ↑ "Church 200 Years Old". The New York Times. August 17, 1914. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  5. ↑ Find A Grave memorial for Memucan Hughes, II, 1810-1857
  6. ↑ Thomas Millet Hand, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed August 16, 2007.
  7. ↑ Jacob Thompson, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed August 16, 2007.
  8. ↑ Thomas Hurst Hughes, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed August 16, 2007.
  9. ↑ Charles William Sandman, Jr., Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed August 16, 2007.
  10. ↑ "Revolutionary War Sites in Cape May, New Jersey".
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