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To Do:

Operation Sussex (WWII)

Bishop Luke Wadding

Otto P. Kelland ("Let me fish off Cape St. Mary's")

Camp Wikoff

Suffolk County Almshouse

The Walking Dunes

New York State Board of Commissioners of Emigration

General Quarantine Act of 1863

Dr. Thomas Addis Emmet (https://nyirishhistory.us/article/achieving-great-praise-in-the-land-where-they-would-die/)

Mariners' Church (Rev. Henry Chase)

Andrew Carrigan, Irish-American real estate magnate

https://www.nyhistory.org/blogs/henry-chase-marriage-records

https://nycago.org/venues/manhattan-mariners-church-miscellaneous-lower-manhattan/

The Mariner's Church was a non-denominational Christian church located in Manhattan, New York City.[1][2] Organized by the Society for Promoting the Gospel among Seamen in the Port of New York, later known as the New York Port Society, the Mariner's Church predominantly ministered to merchant mariners, immigrants, and others who were transient through the Port of New York.[1] The church operated between 1820 and 1914 at two locations, first at 73 Roosevelt Street then at 46 Catherine Street. Neither edifice is longer extant.

The Mariner's Church of Manhattan was the first purpose-built shore-based church for seafarers in the world.[3][4][5] The church held regular religious meetings, published books, and sponsored temperance houses and savings banks for sailors.[1] One of the church's most notable clergymen was the Rev. Henry Chase, a pastor in the Methodist Episcopal Church.[1][2][6] Chase's detailed baptismal and marriage registers from the Mariner's Church are now part of the collections of the New York Public Library and the New-York Historical Society, and are considered to be important historical and genealogical sources.[1][2]

Background

In the nineteenth century, a number of religious organizations were established throughout the world to minister specifically to the needs of merchant seamen.[3][7][8] In the United States, such organizations arose as part of the Second Great Awakening, an evangelical reform movement.[3][7][8] Religious reformers began to view as important the social and moral welfare of seamen, as the vices of the waterfront were viewed as a threat to the general moral order.[7] This led to the establishment of a number of voluntary organizations to serve sailors, which were self-consciously evangelical and non-denominational.[3][8] Established churches also began maritime ministries as well.[9] Examples of such organizations include the Seamen's Church Institute, founded in 1834. These organizations established many churches and chapels, such as the Mariner's Temple and the Norwegian Seamen's Church in New York City, the Seamen's Bethel in Boston, the Mariners' Church in Detroit, and the Mariner's Church in Portland, Maine. The Mariner's Church in New York City, established by the New York Port Society, was the first example of this trend.[5]

New York City had become the largest port city in the United States by the early nineteenth century.[1][7] Its geography, including its eventual connection to inland waterways through the Erie Canal, made New York a central location for maritime trade.[1][10] Regular departures on transatlantic shipping and transport lines began after 1818.[10] Abundant labor attracted industrial and mercantile firms, making the city the commercial powerhouse of the nation.[1] The maritime trade, as well as the mariners who practiced it, were thus an important feature of nineteenth century New York.

The need for a New York church specifically for seamen was first suggested in 1816, after members of the Brick Presbyterian Church began holding prayer meetings on Water Street, which were attended by large numbers of sailors.[7][11] In 1818, the Society for Promoting the Gospel Among Seamen in the Port of New York (New York Port Society) was founded to meet this need.[12] Under the leadership of Rev. Ward Stafford, a Presbyterian[13] clergyman, the Society resolved to build such a church.[5] While funds were raised to this end, in December 1818 the Society rented a hall on Cherry Street which could hold 400 people.[3][10] This outreach proved popular: on Sunday evenings some had to be turned away from lack of space, the Society distributed 600 Bibles and 5,000 religious tracts within the first year, and shipmasters and owners noted reduced absenteeism and improvement in morals.[3] The Society had also raised $5,000 for the construction of their church, but this was likely not enough even to buy the land on which to build it.[3][8]

History

On February 17, 1819 the New York Port Society purchased a suitable site for their church on Roosevelt Street, near the East River wharves.[14] By October 1819, construction began on the church with the ceremonial laying of the foundation.[3][8][14] To purchase the land and build the church structure, the Society had to borrow money leaving it in heavy debt.[3][8] Such debt was considered acceptable because, unlike previous sailor's benevolence associations, the New York Port Society's mission was moral and religious rather than financial.[3][8] Construction of the church took eight months.[14]

On June 4, 1820 the new Mariner's Church was officially dedicated.[3][8][14] The church structure was built of brick "in a plain chaste style", measured 59 by 58 feet, contained galleries, and could accommodate 1,000 people.[14] The basement contained space for a lecture hall or school room.[14] At the dedication, the presider was a Presbyterian minister, while sermons were also delivered by Protestant Episcopal, Reformed Dutch, and Methodist Episcopal clergymen.[14] The assembly was segregated by gender, with female members of sailors' families confined to the galleries.[14] The establishment of this church represented "the first shore-based mariners' church in history."[4] It inaugurated a missionary model which would be adopted throughout the United States and which met with approval from reformers in the United Kingdom.[3][4] Satisfied with this start, in November 1820 Rev. Stafford resigned his position with the Society to pursue a ministry to the poor of the Bowery.[4]

Regular attendance at the Mariner's Church, however, initially proved unsatisfactory.[5][15] The church's construction had also saddled the New York Port Society with a great deal of debt.[3][16] The Society owed $7,000 in mortgages, but had less than a dozen annual subscribers and the church's weekly collection proved insufficient to cover even normal operating expenses.[3][16] Following the departure of Rev. Stafford, the church was staffed by a rotation of volunteers from different denominations.[16] However, this proved inadequate for the church's ministry, so in March 1821 the Society hired Rev. Henry Chase, a Methodist minister, on a part time basis.[16] In January 1822, the Society also appointed Rev. John Truair, a Presbyterian minister, as full-time pastor and soliciting agent for the church.[16] To raise funds for the church, Rev. Truair was immediately dispatched on a tour of the New England states, where he delivered 61 sermons and 30 addresses, raising $681.[3] The following year, 1823, he toured the interior of New York State, just as the Erie Canal was nearing completion.[3] During this time, the Mariner's Church also allied itself with the nascent Bethel Movement in order to increase church attendance among mariners.[5][17] This movement, originating in Britain, was lay-oriented and sought to bring sailors to the gospel through prayer meetings aboard their vessels.[3][18] On June 3, 1821 the Bethel flag was flown from the Mariner's Church, an occasion marked by morning, afternoon, and evening services conducted respectively by a Baptist, a Dutch Reformed, and a Presbyterian minister.[17] The following day, the New-York Bethel Union was founded to support and stimulate the New York Port Society and its church.[5][19] Both ministers of the Mariner's Church, Rev. Chase and Rev. Truair, became enthusiastic participants in these Bethel meetings.[20] Coordination between the New-York Bethel Union and the New York Port Society soon led to increased attendance at the Mariner's Church, and by the mid-1820s the Bethel Union was dissolved with its mission having been fulfilled.[5][21]

In 1826, Rev. Truair resigned as pastor of the Mariner's Church in order to help establish a national mariners' missionary society. This became the American Seamen's Friend Society, which remained active until 1980. Rev. Chase, who had left the Mariner's Church in 1824, returned to replace Truair.[22] Under Rev. Chase, the church "became a veritable beacon-light of sustained evangelistic endeavor".[22] In 1832, the Female Bethel Association of New-York began meeting in the lecture room of the church.[23] This organization was founded to "afford relief to the distressed families of seamen"; later, it became the Mariners' Family Industrial Society of the Port of New York and outgrew the church, opening facilities on Staten Island.[24] In 1833, Rev. Chase help found the Marine Temperance Society of the Port of New-York at the church, subsequently becoming secretary of the organization.[25] Rev. Chase remained pastor of the Mariner's Church until his death in 1853.[22]

After his death, Rev. Chase was succeeded by Rev. Charles J. Jones, a Presbyterian minister.[22] In 1855, the Mariner's Church moved to a new location on the corner of Madison Street and Catherine Street, considered more desirable.[22] The church occupied a building built in 1836 as the Fourth Free Presbyterian Church.[26][27] In 1856, the Mariner's Church reorganized as an independent communion, providing for sailors' membership within the church itself rather than in a specific denomination.[28] Under Rev. Jones, the church became part of a religious revival, the Third Great Awakening.[22] Rev. Jones became especially involved in the revival aboard U.S. Navy ships, such as the USS North Carolina, a receiving ship then moored in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.[29] As a result, many sailors were received into membership of the Mariner's Church.[29] Scandinavian sailors became particularly attracted to the church, under the influence of assistant pastor Rev. Ola Helland, a Methodist minister.[22] Rev. Jones remained pastor until 1863.[22]

Following the departure of Rev. Jones, the pastorate of the Mariner's Church was briefly held by Rev. Alexander McGlashan, a Presbyterian minister; however, in 1864 he departed for the newly founded Presbyterian Church of the Sea and Land.[30][31][32] Rev. McGlashan was succeeded by Rev. Elijah D. Murphy, a Presbyterian minister.[33][34] In 1865 a mission of the Mariner's Church was established at 27 Greenwich Street, which was later relocated to 275 West Street in 1870.[35] In 1875, Rev. Murphy inaugurated a ladies' missionary ministry at the church, associated with the Bethany Institute of New York City.[36] Rev. Murphy held the position of pastor of the Mariner's Church until his retirement in 1888, whereupon he was succeeded by Rev. Samuel Boult.[34][37]

Rev. Henry Chase

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Modero, Gina (June 7, 2023). "Where Sailors Got Hitched: Henry Chase and the Mariner's Church". nyhistory.org. The New York Historical. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "Marriage and baptismal registers of Rev. Henry Chase, minister of Mariner's Church, New York City : transcripts". archives.nypl.org. The New York Public Library. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Park, Steven H. (April 1995). "The Seafarer as the 'Worthy Poor'". History Conference Papers. 1. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  4. ^ a b c d Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 427.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Kverndal, Roald (2007). The Way of the Sea: The Changing Shape of Mission in the Seafaring World. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library.
  6. ^ Sprague, William B., ed. (1861). "Henry Chase". Annals of the American Methodist Pulpit (PDF). New York: Robert Carter & Brothers. pp. 475–478.
  7. ^ a b c d e "AMERICAN SEAMEN'S FRIEND SOCIETY SAILORS' HOME and INSTITUTE" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. November 28, 2000. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h Park, Steven H. (October 1995). "Rough Waters: Life at Sea in the 19th Century". History Conference Papers. 3. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  9. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 481.
  10. ^ a b c Kvendal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 425.
  11. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. pp. 420–422.
  12. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 423.
  13. ^ "Guide to the Stafford-Ward Family Papers 1811-1957". jerseyhistory.org. The New Jersey Historical Society. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 426.
  15. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 431.
  16. ^ a b c d e Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 428.
  17. ^ a b Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 430.
  18. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. pp. 430–433.
  19. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. pp. 430–431.
  20. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 432.
  21. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 433.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 482.
  23. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 519.
  24. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. pp. 519–520.
  25. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 514.
  26. ^ Dunlap, David W. (2004). From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 140.
  27. ^ "The Migration of Churches". New-York Daily Tribune. No. 5047. June 23, 1857. p. 6.
  28. ^ Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 488.
  29. ^ a b Kverndal, Roald (1986). Seamen's Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth. Pasadena, California: William Carey Library. p. 531.
  30. ^ "Domestic: Presbyterian". New-York Observer. No. 2097. July 16, 1863. p. 3.
  31. ^ Bruckbauer, Frederick (1919). The Kirk on Rutgers Street. New York: Fleming H Revell Company. p. 50.
  32. ^ Wilson, Joseph M. (1868). The Presbyterian Almanac, Volume 10 (PDF). Philadelphia: Joseph M. Wilson. p. 130.
  33. ^ "Domestic: Congregational". The New-York Observer. No. 2160. September 29, 1864. p. 3.
  34. ^ a b "The Rev. E. D. Murphy Dead". New-York Tribune. No. 15979. August 15, 1890. p. 7.
  35. ^ "Mariners' Church: The New York Port Society - Anniversary Sermon by the Rev. E. D. Murphy". The New York Herald. No. 12447. September 19, 1870. p. 5.
  36. ^ "May Anniversaries: The New York Port Society". The New York Herald. No. 16332. May 10, 1881. p. 4.
  37. ^ "The Rev. Dr. Elijah D. Murphy". New-York Tribune. No. 15980. August 16, 1890. p. 7.

Further reading

  • Paul A. Gilje, Liberty on the Waterfront: American Maritime Culture in the Age of Revolution. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004.
  • Charles J. Jones, From the Forecastle to the Pulpit: Fifty Years Among Sailors. New York: American Tract Society, 1884.
  • Charles J. Jones, The Sea and the Church: Their Mutual Relations and Dependance. New York: Thomas Holman, 1858.
  • Kyle B. Roberts, Evangelical Gotham: Religion and the Making of New York City, 1783-1860. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2016.
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