Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church
Standing at 154 Village Road West is one of West Windsor's most historically-significant buildings, and the structure around which the historic community of Dutch Neck is centered. Having served the spiritual needs of congregants for centuries, the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church - a member of West Windsor's "100 Club" - is an icon to generations of local heritage.
Historical Overview
In the mid-1700s, there was no known formal congregation within present-day West Windsor's boundaries. Thus, the religious (virtually everyone at that time) had to attend houses of worship in neighboring townships. However, in 1732, the Presbytery of New Brunswick was formed as part of the synod of Philadelphia. It is possible (but unconfirmed) that their missionary - James McCrea, who lectured across a 130-mile circuit, including Allentown and Cranbury - ministered to people on the outskirts of Dutch Neck.[1]
In 1762, Thomas Smith became second regular pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Cranbury and began preaching every sixth Sabbath in the neighborhood of "Cornelius Vorrise" (Cornelius Voorhees, owner of the Schenck Farmstead) - i.e., the broader "Dutch Neck" area. Several pastors are said to have served the people of Dutch Neck before a house of worship was erected here.[2] The oldest known gravestone in the surrounding graveyard is for David Couwenhoven, who died in 1771, aged 14 or 15. The graveyard is host to over 1,200 burials memorializing many of the town's early families.[3] The cemetery has since expanded significantly over time, with two new sections being added in the 1900s.[4],[5] Those buried there were farmers, craftspeople, soldiers, doctors, teachers, and more; and many were significant members of their communities, long remembered by the generations that came after them. |
The Dutch Neck congregation grew over time, warranting the construction of its own Presbyterian house of worship. Thus, the "Neck Meeting House" - supposedly a log structure - was erected here by 1784 (if not earlier).[6] This building, like many churches in early America, likely served both spiritual and civic purposes, uniting parishioners together under one roof for common religious and social activities. However, it, too, would be replaced in the early 19th century, when the Dutch Neck Presbyterian community formally split off into its own congregation.
Early church minutes document this movement, when John R. Covenhoven and Peter Hooper were chosen to represent the community at an October 1816 meeting of the Presbytery of New Brunswick at Cranbury. There, they asked permission for Dutch Neck to become organized as an independent congregation. Their request was granted, and within the next few weeks, the church's first four elders were chosen: William Post (whose house still stands at 18 North Post Road), John R. Covenhoven, Peter Hooper, and Levi Updike. On November 10, the first twenty-five members of the church were received. And by this point, their first pastor, David Comfort - then the ordained pastor of Kingston Presbyterian Church - was appointed.[7] |
Also in 1816, the Neck Meeting House was replaced by the current frame building.[8] at the time, the property - including the church and cemetery - was part of the Slayback family homestead farm, but Abel Slayback sold the land to the congregation in 1818.[9]
At first, this new structure was smaller than it is today, but it would be expanded over the decades as the community grew. In 1860 - roughly around the time the congregation purchased its "Manse 138 South Mill Road" for use as a parsonage[10] - the front part of the church was built. It is speculated that this may have also been when the steeple (which originally featured a weather vane) was added. In 1885 - three years after the church built its chapel across the street - , the back part of the church was enlarged. Both additions were placed over graves which had surrounded the original portion of the building, so their gravestones were moved elsewhere. It's also said that the original church entrance was on the south side.[11] |
A pamphlet published in 1966 for the church's 150th anniversary - a year after its cinderblock Christan Education Building was constructed - describes the memories of the congregation's older attendees:
"In approaching the building, one saw a white structure with green shutters which were at times closed. Terra cotta chimneys jutted from the roof. Before entering, one saw large maple trees, which had been planted in 1876, and two large coal boxes. A brick pavement extended a little farther out than the present cement one because the road has been widened somewhat in recent years. Across the road in the center green was a hay scale around which the village boys often played. A few years ago, a young man ... suggested ... that flood lighting of the steeple at night would make a fine impression ... it has proved an inspiration to many people."[12] Apparently, the church also had narrow side galleries extending the length of the church on either side, which were taken down in 1913. Many other interior renovations have since taken place, but the building retains much of its traditional architecture.[13] In the generations since it first formed, the First Presbyterian Church of Dutch Neck has been a place of significant importance to many hundreds - if not thousands - of congregants. It has been the nucleus of spiritual and social life in Dutch Neck, and remains so to this day. |
Bibliography
- Sesquicentennial History: 1816-1966. West Windsor, New Jersey: First Presbyterian Church of Dutch Neck, 1966.
- Ibid.
- Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church. (n.d.). Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church graveyard. West Windsor. Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church graveyard gravestones, which often list birth dates, death dates, and ages of those buried there - including those of many of West Windsor's oldest families.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Cook, Elisha. Ms. Tavern License Request. West Windsor, 1784. Request to the Court of Quarter Sessions - April session - that Elisha Cook “may obtain license for keeping tavern at the Neck Meeting House in the Township of Windsor County of Middlesex - March 15, 1784.”
- Sesquicentennial History: 1816-1966. West Windsor, New Jersey: First Presbyterian Church of Dutch Neck, 1966.
- Ibid.
- Covenhoven, George, Covenhoven, John R., Fisher, John S., Hooper, Peter, Slayback, Abel, Updike, Levi. “Indenture.” West Windsor, 1818. Deed from Abel Slayback to the Trustees of the First Presbyterian Church of Dutch Neck for the property now containing the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Chuch and the old part of its graveyard at 154 South Mill Road. Located in the New Jersey State Archives, Middlesex County Deed Book 15 Page 290.
- Cornell, Aaron, Robbins, James D., Rossell, Isaac, Updike, Mary-Ann, Updike, William, Wiley, William. “Indenture.” West Windsor, 1857. Deed from William and Mary-Ann Updike to the Trustees of the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church for the property now now called the "Manse" at 138 South Mill Road. Located in the New Jersey State Archives, Mercer County Deed Book 39 Page 419.
- Sesquicentennial History: 1816-1966. West Windsor, New Jersey: First Presbyterian Church of Dutch Neck, 1966.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.