Reformed Church of Newtown facts for kids
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Reformed Church of Newtown Complex
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Reformed Church of Newtown
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 Location in New York
Location in the United States
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| Location | 85-15 Broadway, Queens, New York |
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| Area | 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) |
| Built | 1832 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival, Vernacular Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 80002751 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | April 23, 1980 |
The Reformed Church of Newtown (simplified Chinese: 新城归正教会; traditional Chinese: 新城歸正教會) is a very old and important church in the Elmhurst area of Queens, New York City. It's a "Reformed" church, which is a type of Protestant Christian church.
Dutch people who moved to America started this church in 1731. The neighborhood itself was first set up by the Dutch in 1652. They called it Middenburgh. Later, when the English took over in 1664, the village was renamed New Town, then just Newtown. Even though the area became Elmhurst in the 1890s, the church kept its original name. You can still see the name Newtown on the local high school and a subway station.
The Reformed Church of Newtown is part of a larger group called the Reformed Church in America (RCA). This group was founded in 1628 and is the oldest Protestant Christian church group in the United States.
The Church Building's History
The first church building was finished in 1735. It was built in a style called Federal-Greek Revival. This building survived many tough times, including the American Revolutionary War. During the war, the British army even used it as a place to store weapons!
In 1832, the original building was replaced by the church you see today. This current building is considered a special landmark by New York City. The whole church area, called the Reformed Church of Newtown Complex, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. This means it's recognized as an important historical site.
You can still see a piece of the first building! Its original cornerstone is part of the foundation of the current church. The church building and its nearby fellowship hall are special because they are "one of the few all wood church groups remaining in the City." This was noted by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. In 1989, some parts of the church, like the small towers on the roof (called cupolas), were fixed after a storm damaged them.
The Church Community
Over the years, the church and its community changed. More people were hired to help, and the building was improved. The church services also changed from being in Dutch to English.
In 1956, the church celebrated its 225th birthday. President Dwight D. Eisenhower even visited for the occasion! A minister named Reverend A. Nelson Doak wrote a short history of the church for this event. He also praised how many different kinds of people lived in Elmhurst.
By 1980, the Elmhurst neighborhood was becoming even more diverse. Reverend David Boyce, who took over from Rev. Doak, saw that the community's needs were changing. He started new church services for people from Taiwan and later for people from India who spoke Tamil. So, this church, which started with Dutch people, now had services in English, Taiwanese, and Tamil.
The Tamil services eventually stopped, but some Tamil members joined the English service. The Taiwanese services, led by Reverend Bill H.C. Lee, grew very quickly. The number of members more than doubled between 1981 and 1982! The Taiwanese members became a big part of the church. They could vote and soon joined the church's leadership group, called the consistory. Even though there's usually only one main pastor, Pastor Boyce made Reverend Lee an equal "co-pastor" because of the special situation.
In 1995, Reverend David K.T. Su started a third service in Mandarin Chinese. Because of these efforts, the church now has Taiwanese, Mandarin, and English services every Sunday. People from Asia, Latin America, and white Americans all attend. In December 2017, Rev. Su retired after almost 30 years of helping the church. After that, Reverend Dr. Tien-Heng Chiu became the new Senior Pastor.
The Reformed Church of Newtown has also helped train several ministers for the Reformed Church in America. These include Reverend I. Douglas Estella, who became a minister in 1986, and Reverend Ben Lin, who became a minister in 1997. Both of them grew up in the Newtown Church.
See also
