St. James Church (Queens) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St. James Church
Old St. James Church
Seen in July 2020
Religion
Affiliation	Episcopal Church
Ownership	Episcopal Diocese of Long Island
Status	Used as community center only
Location
Location	86-02 Broadway, Elmhurst, Queens
State	New York
Country	United States
Architecture
Architect(s)	James Moore
Architectural style	Colonial, Post-medieval English
Date established	1704
Groundbreaking	1735
Completed	1736
Specifications
Direction of façade	East
Length	58 feet (18 m) (main structure) 25 feet (7.6 m) (annex)
Width	30 feet (9.1 m) (main structure) 15 feet (4.6 m) (annex)
Materials	Wood
St. James Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	86-02 Broadway, Elmhurst, New York
Area	less than one acre
Built	1735–1736
Architect	Moore, James, of Newton
Architectural style	Colonial, Post-medieval English
NRHP reference No.	99001331
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	November 12, 1999

St. James Church is a very old and important building in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens, New York City. It is also known as the Old St. James Church to tell it apart from a newer church nearby. This building is the oldest surviving Anglican church in New York City. It was built as a mission church for the Church of England.

The town of Elmhurst was started in 1652. It was first called Middleburgh. People from different religions lived there. The Church of England became the official religion in New York in 1693. The Mission Church at Newtowne, which is now St. James Church, began in 1704. It was part of a larger church in Jamaica, Queens.

The church building we see today was built between 1735 and 1736. The church group used this building until 1848. Then, they moved to a new church nearby. The old building became a community hall. It was repaired and made bigger many times over the years. A big change happened in 1883.

The old church building was used for Sunday school until 1941. After that, different community groups used it. The building was fixed up in 2004. St. James Church is built in the English Colonial style. It has an original main part and a newer back section. The inside has beautiful wood carvings. The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. It was also named a New York City landmark in 2017.

History of St. James Church

Early Days in Elmhurst

Elmhurst started as a Dutch town called Middleburgh in 1652. The town wanted people of all religions to live there. An early town building was used for both community meetings and religious services. Different groups shared it, like the Church of England and others.

In 1665, the English took control and renamed the town "Newtown." Later, Newtown became part of Queens County. A new church building for all these groups was built in 1669.

How the Church Began

The Church of England became the official religion in New York in 1693. This meant the church in Jamaica also covered Newtown. The "Mission Church at Newtowne" started in 1704. It was a mission of the Jamaica church.

Ministers would hold services in Jamaica one week, then in Flushing, and then in Newtown. Over time, these missions grew into separate churches. The one in Newtown became St. James Church.

Building the Church

Seen from Broadway

More people joined the Mission Church at Newtown in the 1730s. The town gave them land for a church in 1733. It took some time to raise money for building.

Construction started in early 1735 and finished in 1736. Joseph Moore was the builder, and James Renne Jr. was the carpenter. The church added pews, which are long benches, in 1740.

The church building looked like a simple box. It had wood shingles and round-arched windows. There was a tower with a steeple and a weather vane on the west side. The main door was on the south side. Inside, there were boxed pews that could be locked. Important people sat in the pews closest to the minister. People like indentured servants and enslaved people sat in the upper part of the tower.

In 1761, the church grew enough to become its own parish. It was called the Church of England Parish of Saint James. They also got more land for a cemetery behind the church. The church building was changed. The south entrance was closed, and two new doors were added on the east side. The room in the western tower became a meeting room for the church leaders. The building was made longer to the west in 1772.

Changes Over Time

The church continued through the American Revolutionary War. The minister at the time was loyal to the British. After the war, St. James Parish became part of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States. Its name was changed in 1793.

St. James Parish separated from the Jamaica church in 1797. The church gave land for a school across the street. In 1803, St. James and St. George's churches joined again for a short time. The church also received a large gift of land in Manhattan in 1809. The church building was fixed up again around 1816. A new organ was added in 1843.

Later Uses of the Building

Closeup of the Broadway facade, seen in 2019

On July 16, 1848, the church held its last service in the old building. The church group moved to a new building nearby. The old church's graveyard was used until 1851. Most of the bodies were moved to the new church's cemetery.

The old St. James Church building then became a parish hall. The pulpit was removed in 1861, and it became a Sunday school. In the 1880s, the steeple was taken down. A new section was built at the back of the church. The outside of the building was also changed to a Gothic Revival style. The old pews were replaced with benches.

In the late 1890s, Newtown was renamed Elmhurst. It became part of New York City. After a fire in 1924, electricity was put in, and a restroom and kitchen were added. The land around the church became smaller in the 1920s because streets were built and widened.

The church building was used as a parish hall and Sunday school until 1941. After that, a new parish hall was built. The old building was used by groups like the Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts for many years.

In the late 1900s, the old St. James Church was used by different community groups. By the 1990s, the building was getting old and needed repairs. Money was raised to fix it up and make it look like it did originally. The restoration was finished in 2004, which was 300 years after the church started. Today, the rebuilt church is used as a community center.

How St. James Church Looks

St. James Church is located at the corner of 51st Avenue and Broadway in Elmhurst. The area around it has apartments, houses, and stores.

The church is built in the English Colonial style. It has a main part built in 1735–1736. There is also a back section added in 1883. This back section replaced an older tower. The eastern part of the church was made longer in 1771.

Outside the Church

Seen from 51st Avenue

The main part of the church is about 58 feet long and 30 feet wide. Its longest side runs along 51st Avenue. The outside walls are covered with cement asbestos shingles over wood shingles. The north and south sides each have three round-arched windows. The east side has two round-arched windows.

The front door is on the east side, facing Broadway. It has double doors under a round window. The roof is a gable roof, which means it has two sloping sides. It has overhanging edges supported by brackets. A brick chimney is on the western part of the roof.

The back section, called the annex, is about 25 feet long and 15 feet wide. It also has a gable roof. It has two windows on its north, west, and south sides. There is also a half-circle window on the west side. The materials used for the outside of the annex are a bit different. The annex is where the church's old tower used to be.

Inside the Church

The main part of the church has a barrel vaulted ceiling, which was built around 1816. Many of the old wooden decorations from the 1700s are still there. This includes wood panels on the walls. There is also an eastern gallery with wooden decorations. The original pine floor was covered over time.

When the building was used as a church, it had an entrance on the south side. The pulpit, where the minister spoke, was across from this entrance. There was also a choir gallery on the east side.

The old tower used to have a room where indentured servants, apprentices, enslaved people, and Native Americans would sit during services. This room was at the same level as the pulpit and had a window looking into the main church area.

Becoming a Landmark

The old St. James Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. This means it is recognized as an important historical site in the United States.

People then asked the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to make the building a city landmark. At first, the commission said no. They thought too much of the original building had been changed. However, the church leaders supported the idea.

In September 2017, the church at 86-02 Broadway was officially named a New York City landmark. The commission said the church was very important. It is the second-oldest church still standing in New York City. It is also the oldest surviving Anglican building and Church of England mission church.

Images for kids

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  Seen in July 2020

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  Seen from Broadway

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  Closeup of the Broadway facade, seen in 2019

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  Seen from 51st Avenue