Cold Spring Presbyterian Church - History

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."

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

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.

Read more about this topic:  Cold Spring Presbyterian Church

Famous quotes containing the word history:

    At present cats have more purchasing power and influence than the poor of this planet. Accidents of geography and colonial history should no longer determine who gets the fish.
    Derek Wall (b. 1965)

    I feel as tall as you.
    Ellis Meredith, U.S. suffragist. As quoted in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 4, ch. 14, by Susan B. Anthony and Ida Husted Harper (1902)

    The best history is but like the art of Rembrandt; it casts a vivid light on certain selected causes, on those which were best and greatest; it leaves all the rest in shadow and unseen.
    Walter Bagehot (1826–1877)