OMG!: Churches and Synagogues of Greenwich Village – First Presbyterian Church

As First Presbyterian Church begins celebration of its 300th anniversary – and 170 years in the Village – join church archivist and historian David Pultz for a presentation of the long and colorful history of this venerable Village institution.

With humble beginnings as a Presbyterian Meeting House on Wall Street in 1719, First Presbyterian steadily grew during the Colonial period. Known as the “Church of the Patriots,” the congregation supported the America Revolution, as did its most famous pastor of the period, Rev. John Rodgers. In the post-colonial period Rodgers supported progressive causes and organizations such as the anti-slavery Manumission Society.

As Wall Street became increasingly commercialized in the early 19th century, the church moved north in 1846 to newly developed property along Fifth Avenue between 11th and 12th streets. The decades that followed firmly established the church as an important voice within the neighborhood, featuring many talented, erudite and often controversial preachers such as the progressive and immensely popular Harry Emerson Fosdick.

Drawing upon a vast repository of the church’s archival holdings, Mr. Pultz will present a narrative in rich visuals of the long and prominent place it holds within the history of New York City.