German Reformed Sanctity Church Parsonage facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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German Reformed Sanctity Church Parsonage
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South (front) facade, 2013
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | Germantown, New York |
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| Area | 1.3 acres (5,300 m2) |
| Built | c. 1746 |
| NRHP reference No. | 76001209 |
| Added to NRHP | January 30, 1976 |
The German Reformed Sanctity Church Parsonage is a very old house in Germantown, New York. People also call it the First Reformed Church Parsonage. It was built a long time ago, in the mid-1700s, and is the oldest building in the town. In 1976, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which means it's a special historic landmark.
When the house was built, the area was called East Camp. Many German Palatine people lived there. These people were refugees who had left Germany. They came to England during a war and then moved to the Hudson Valley in New York. The church was started soon after these first German settlers arrived. The parsonage, which is a house for the church's pastor, was built in the 1740s. It was made bigger about 20 years later.
The church sold the house in the early 1800s. But its pastors still lived there for another 25 years. For most of the 1800s and 1900s, different local families lived in the house. Many of these families were African American. By the 1940s, the house needed a lot of repairs and updates to add modern things.
Today, the town of Germantown owns the parsonage. It is now home to the town's history department. An archaeological dig (a careful search for old things in the ground) happened nearby. A professor from Bard College led the dig. They found many old items, and some are now on display inside the house. You can find more information about the dig online at the Germantown Exhibits portal.
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Exploring the Historic Parsonage Building
The parsonage sits on a 1.3-acre (5,300 m2) piece of land. It is on the north side of Maple Avenue in central Germantown. The area around it feels like the countryside. There are farms to the west and other houses on similar-sized lots to the east. To the north is a large woodlot, which is a wooded area.
In front of the building, there is a low stone wall. This wall is a memorial to the first settlers. There is also a modern sign that tells about the building. The parsonage is a one-and-a-half-story house. It has two main parts. One part is made of stone, and the other is made of wood. Both parts have a roof that slopes down on the sides. Brick chimneys stick out of the roof at each end. The house is built on a slope, which means you can see the basement on the east side.
The walls of the eastern part of the house are very thick, about three feet (1 meter). They are made of stone blocks covered with stucco. The western part of the house is made of wood with bricks inside the walls. All the windows are set back into the walls.
The main entrance has a modern glass door in front of an older wooden door. This door opens into a central hallway. There are two rooms to the east and one room to the west. The floors throughout the house are made of original wide pine planks. Many rooms still have their original pine woodwork. The cellar is different; it has its original pressed clay floor. It also has a large fireplace with an oven. Upstairs, the attic is divided into three small rooms.
Between 2010 and 2014, students from Bard Archaeology's Field School worked at the parsonage. They were led by Dr. Christopher Lindner. They dug up an old well from the 1700s. They also rebuilt the outer wall of the well using rocks that had filled it. You can see a slideshow of their work online at Bard College's Archeology site.
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Plaque from Bard 2017 Parsonage Archaeohistory Project;
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Well with reconstructed wall
A Look Back: History of the Parsonage
German Settlers in New York
In 1709, many refugees from Germany traveled to England. They were escaping the War of the Spanish Succession. These people became known as Palatines. The British government decided to move them to the Hudson Valley in New York. The plan was for them to collect pine tar for the British navy. This would replace supplies that used to come from other parts of Europe. Their presence also helped protect the northern border of Province of New York from the French.
Early Days of the Germantown Settlement
The plan to make pine tar did not work out. So, many settlers left for other parts of New York. But 63 Palatine families stayed in the "East Camp" area. They found the land similar to their home in Germany. They started farms, and by 1726, they officially owned the land.
The German Reformed Sanctity Church was started by the Palatines soon after they settled. By the 1720s, a church building was built nearby. Records show the church owned the land for the parsonage by 1741. The parsonage was likely built by 1746. That's when Casper Ludwig Schnoor became the church's first pastor.
At first, the house was only its current western section. The entrance was originally a window in the cellar. The second story and attic might have been added later. The house looks similar to other buildings made by Palatines in the Germantown area.
Changes Over the Years
Johannes Casparus Rubel became the pastor in 1751. He stayed longer than the first pastor. The parsonage was made bigger in 1767 when the eastern part was built. In 1805, the church sold the building to a woman named Maria Delamater. The pastors continued to live there until 1829. Then, a local doctor named Wessel Ten Broeck Van Orden bought it.
Van Orden lived in the house for 20 years. After him, several local families owned the house. Many of these families were African American. By 1944, the Ekert family bought the house. By this time, 200 years after it was built, the house was in very bad shape.
The Ekert family started a big restoration project. They mainly focused on fixing the house's structure. They replaced old wooden parts with new ones made from local oak. They also added steel supports to make the house stronger. The chimneys were repaired, and the cellar door was changed into a window for safety. Inside, the kitchen was updated, and electricity, plumbing, and heating were added. They tried to make these modern changes without changing the house's historic look too much.
In 1990, the Ekerts gave the house to the town. The town now uses it as the headquarters for its historian. In the late 2000s, Christopher Lindner, an archaeologist from Bard College, started leading digs near the parsonage. They found pieces of old pottery, like china. These pieces date back to the early years of the parsonage. This suggests that the pastors back then lived like wealthy people. Some of these discoveries are on display in the house. The house is open to visitors on Saturdays. There is also evidence that another building once stood in the yard to the west.
See also
