[The following history of the New Hamburg Presbyterian Church appeared in The Sunday Courier, Poughkeepsie, N.Y. sometime in 1941?]
Officially, the First Presbyterian church at New Hamburg exists no longer. It was disbanded a year ago; the building is at the disposal of the North River Presbytery; the Sunday school now meets at the Methodist church; only the Missionary society has maintained its organization without change.
Yet, although the 132-year-old church has come to the close of its history, owing to the inroads made by removals and deaths upon the congregation, former parishioners find it hard to accept "the end of the chapter." Especially do they regret the silence of the Millard bell--"the prettiest sounding church bell I ever heard," on parish member said.
It is in keeping with the character of this little Presbyterian church that the Missionary society should cling to its separate identity. (The society plans to petition the Presbytery for permission to continue working directly under the district authority, rather than affiliate with some other church.) Mission endeavor has long been emphasized by the Presbyterians at New Hamburg.
Among those associated with the new Hamburg church who have entered the mission field have been James Walter Lowrie, famed for his work in Peking, China; Miss Fannie E. Wight and her brother, the Rev. Calvin Wight, both of whom died of pneumonia at Chiynan-Fu, China; Sigrid Petersen Gould, now a missionary in India; the Rev. R. J. Diven and Mrs. Diven, who were sent by the New Hamburg congregation to do mission work in the Western United States.
Miss Jessie Kingsbury Wight, New Hamburg, is a sister of Miss Fannie Wight and the Rev. Calvin Wight. Their father, the Rev. Joseph Kingsbury Wight, was formerly a missionary at Shanghai, under the Presbyterian board of foreign missions; and in later years conducted services at the Lenox family chapel near New Hamburg [ed.-Ellessdie Chapel, formerly on Sheafe Road at Delavergne, now at the entrance to Bowdoin Park]. He was a supply pastor of the new Hamburg church in 1877-78. (Another of his sons is the Rev. Dr. Edward Van Dyke Wight of Princeton, N. J., pastor emeritus of Webb Horton Memorial Presbyterian church at Middletown, and former president of Hastings college, Hastings, Neb.)
The history of the New Hamburg church has not been written since 1887, when the story of the first 78 years was compiled for a circular published by the women of the congregation. A copy of this circular, lent by Miss Jessie Wight, is the chief source of information regarding the early history of the church. Other data was supplied by Miss Wight, Mrs. Evadne Alice Jones, Mrs. P. I. Hogan and Mr. Hogan, former clerk of session and only elder of the church now living.
George W. Clinton, only son of Governor George Clinton, was among the subscribers to a church building fund, collected in the New Hamburg community between September 27, 1803, and May 8, 1809. When this fund had reached $1,200, the subscribers met at the house of Samuel Bogardus, and named Clinton chairman of the committee to choose the church site.
The committee reported in favor of "the top of the hill above the house of Captain Abram Bogardus." This land was owned by John W. Drake Jr., who promptly gave an acre, upon which, on June 26, construction was begun.
Trustees had been elected May 29: George W. Clinton, president; Abram Bogardus, Samuel Bogardus, James Phillips and John Pinckney. Articles of incorporation were issued June 1, and the First Presbyterian church was dedicated December 1.
From 1809 to 1811, the Presbytery of Hudson supplied pastors. The first regular minister, the Rev. Eliphalet Price, of Elizabethtown, N. J., was called by the congregation January 24, 1811, and assumed the charge April 28.
Until this time the church had had only a civil organization. Now it was necessary to form the congregation into a church, with formal acceptance of members by public profession of faith. The first covenanters were four women: Susan Brewer, Zeruah Carpenter, Mary Underhill and Maria Vanderbilt, who professed faith on July 14, 1811. They, with the pastor, constituted the first Presbyterian church in the vicinity.
Nearest Presbyterian churches then were the one at Rombout, near Fishkill, organized in 1746, which served as a hospital during the Revolution, and burned in 1866; and the one at Poughkeepsie, organized about 1750, and reorganized in 1826.
The New Hamburg church was connected with the Hudson Presbytery until 1819, when the Presbytery on the North River was formed. During its first half century, the New Hamburg church had but two regular pastors: Mr. Price, and the Rev. Fenwick T. Williams.
The Rev. Eliphalet Price was not only a pastor, but a school teacher. He taught his classes in a schoolroom attached to his house at Hughsonville--one of three which he owned, the other two located in New Hamburg.
During the 32 years of Mr. Price's ministry, 273 persons united with the New Hamburg church. One of the first of these was John Drake Jr., donor of the hilltop site. Mr. Drake was elected one of the first ruling elders of the church in 1812, together with Thomas W. Jaycox and Peter P. Lawson.
Mr. Price married 296 couples: the first, William Jaycox and Hester Mosure, June 15, 1811; the second, Henry Bogardus and Hirtrudt Dearin, a week later.
In 1843, Mr. Price relinquished his ministry, at the age of 61. There was a brief interval during which the Presbytery supplied pastors; then in 1844, Mr. Williams, of Princeton, N. J., accepted the call.
During Mr. Williams' pastorate (1844-1862), the church was moved from the hill to its subsequent position, and was remodeled, while a right-of-way was granted the Hudson River railroad across the hill road. The church was rededicated October 10, 1849. Among the 92 persons received into church membership by Mr. Williams was the Rev. Dr. Howard Crosby, later pastor of the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian church in New York city.
The Hughsonville Presbyterian church, built in 1843, was served by Mr. Williams, who also preached monthly at a schoolhouse in Franklindale (Wappingers Falls), until the Presbyterian church of Wappingers Falls was organized in 1846.
Mr. Williams was the last of the long-term ministers. After his pastorate, there was a year of supply clergy; then the Rev. John H. Scofield served from 1863 to 1868. During this time, Walter Millard offered to present a bell to the church, if the congregation would erect a suitable tower. Funds for the tower were raised by the women of the church, aided by the pastor; but the tower was not completed until 1874, some time after Mr. Scofield had been forced to resign from the New Hamburg pulpit owing to ill health.
Subsequent pastors included the Rev. George M. McEckron (1868); the Rev. Edward Wall (supply, 1869-70); the Rev. W. E. Westervelt (1870-76); the Rev. J. K. Wight (supply, 1877); the Rev. Joshua Collins and Mr. Wight (supply, 1878); the Rev. J. F. Harris (supply, 1879-81); Union Theological Seminary students (supply, 1881-84).
In 1884, the church had not been represented in Presbytery for seven years. It obtained re-admission, and extended a call to the Rev. James G. Rogers to become regular pastor. Mr. Rogers served from 1884 to 1885, when he was succeeded by the Rev. James A. Norris.
There were 58 resident members when Mr. Norris came to the New Hamburg church. He increased the number to 84, resident and non-resident, in two years.
Pastors in later years have included the following: the Rev. T. D. Elder, the Rev. Andrew Brown, the Rev. Daniel G. Lawson, the Rev. R. J. Diven, the Rev. A. D. Ganz, the Rev. W. L. Ritter, and the Rev. William H. MacKay, last to occupy the manse. The Rev. Berthold Seeholzer supplied for a few years; and then the late Rev. William Shaver of New York, who was the last supply pastor. Occasional services were held for two or three years; and then the church was closed except for Sunday school, Christian Endeavor and Missionary meetings, until its disbanding in 1940. Formerly children of the Methodist congregation attended the Presbyterian Sunday school, which now is conducted at the Methodist church.
The Missionary society has about 30 active and associate members, and is itself more than a half-century old. Mrs. John Klump is president. The group hopes to continue its activity as a unit, and will consider assuming the Sunday school's former project of educating Chinese girls.
Members of the New Hamburg church at the time of disbanding included the following (a number had affiliated elsewhere a short time before):
Miss Eleanor Albertson, Robert L Albertson, Mrs. Lizzie Cornell, Mrs. Gertrude Cottam, Mrs. Clara Coon, Eugene Coon, Mrs. Frank Drake, Mrs. Rose Fleming, Blanche Hague, Isabel D. Hyatt, Percival I. Hogan. E. Rubetta Hogan, Evadne Alice Jones, Mrs. Caroline Kerr, Clarence W. Kerr, Mary Leroy, Jacob L. Millard, Katharine Millard (superintendent of the Sunday school), Ida A. Morey, Russell C. Morey, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence E. Miller, James H. Reed, Mrs. W. Scardefield, Mrs. Edith Stevenson, Alton Weber, Barbara M. Weber, Elizabeth M. Weber, Harold Weber, Miss Jessie K. Wight, Anna G. Wood, Edgar D. Wood, John M. Wood, Mrs. William Workman.