John Street United Methodist Church | |
![]() (2013) | |
Location | 44 John Street Manhattan,New York City |
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Coordinates | 40°42′32.55″N74°0′28.8″W / 40.7090417°N 74.008000°W /40.7090417; -74.008000 |
Built | 1841[2] |
Architect | Philip Embury[3] |
Architectural style | Georgian |
NRHP reference No. | 73001219[1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | June 4, 1973 |
Designated NYCL | December 21, 1965 |
TheJohn Street United Methodist Church – also known asOld John Street Methodist Episcopal Church – located at 44John Street betweenNassau andWilliam Streets in theFinancial District ofManhattan,New York City was built in 1841 in theGeorgian style, with the design attributed to William Hurry and/orPhilip Embury.[4][3][5] The congregation is the oldestMethodist congregation inNorth America, founded on October 12, 1766 as the Wesleyan Society in America.[3][6]
The Society built its first church, a blue stucco barn called the Wesley Chapel, on this site in 1768;[7] its design was attributed toBarbara Heck.[3][5] Timber from the Chapel was later used in building the Bowery Village Methodist Church and the Park Avenue United Methodist Church.[5] The second church on this site was built in 1817-18, and the extravagance of the building provoked a secession from the congregation by Rev. William Stillwell. The third church, the current one, was necessitated by the widening of John Street.[5]
The church was designated aNew York City Landmark in 1965 and added to theNational Register of Historic Places in 1973. In 1984, the church sold its air rights to 33 Maiden Lane.[5]
HymnistFanny Crosby was a member of the church congregation for many years.
Below the sanctuary, the Wesley Chapel Museum displays many artifacts from eighteenth- and nineteenth-century American Methodist history. These include church record books, the Wesley Clock (a gift ofJohn Wesley, 1769), love feast cups, class meeting circular benches, the original 1785 altar rail, the original 1767 pulpit made by Philip Embury, and Embury's signed Bible.[6]