Congregational churches of Brooklyn collection
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Abstract
The Congregational churches of Brooklyn collection spans the years 1847 to 1961 and measures 0.83 linear feet. Material in the collection includes annual reports, bylaws, church bulletins and newsletters, constitutions, manuals, church histories, programs from church services, anniversary publications, yearbooks, membership rolls, and congregation directories. Church manuals contain a church's articles of faith, covenant, and often a list of members and addresses; member names and addresses can also be found in church yearbooks, member rolls, and directories in the collection.
Historical note
The practice of Congregationalism in the United States began in the 17th century when Pilgrim settlers from England founded the Plymouth Colony in the southeastern portion of modern-day Massachusetts. Congregationalism slowly spread to New York as the Pilgrims migrated. Church of the Pilgrims, located in Brooklyn Heights, was the first Congregational church established in the city of Brooklyn in 1844. The neighboring Plymouth Church was founded in 1847, and was home to the famed Reverend Henry Ward Beecher. While Congregationalism flourished throughout the 19th century, membership in these Brooklyn churches declined in the mid-20th century. Plymouth Church and the Church of the Pilgrims consolidated in 1934, becoming Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims, and many Congregational churches joined the United Church of Christ in the late 1950s.
Sources
- Lindner, Eileen W. "Congregationalists." In The Encyclopedia of New York City, ed. Kenneth T. Jackson, 275. New Haven: Yale University Press; New York: New-York Historical Society, 1995.
- Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims. "Our History." Accessed December 3, 2010. http://www.plymouthchurch.org/our_history.php
Scope and Contents note
The Congregational churches of Brooklyn collection spans the years 1847 to 1961 and measures 0.83 linear feet. Material in the collection includes annual reports, bylaws, church bulletins and newsletters, constitutions, manuals, church histories, programs from church services, anniversary publications, yearbooks, membership rolls, and congregation directories. Church manuals contain a church's articles of faith, covenant, and often a list of members and addresses; member names and addresses can also be found in church yearbooks, member rolls, and directories in the collection.
Churches represented in the collection include Central Congregational Church, Church of the Covenant, Christ Congregational Church, Church of the Evangel, Clinton Avenue Congregational Church, First Free Congregational Church, Elm Place Congregational Church, East Brooklyn Congregational Church, Flatbush Congregational Church, Flatbush-Tompkins Congregational Church, Kings Highway Congregational Church, Rochester Avenue Congregational Church, State Street Congregational Church, and United Congregational Church.
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Conditions Governing Access
Open to researchers without restriction.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Congregational churches of Brooklyn collection, 1986.017, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was formally accessioned in 1986; source and date of the accession are unknown.
About this Guide
Processing Information note
Minimally processed to the collection level.
Material found in repository added to collection by Lena Evers-Hillstrom in October 2018.
