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"The Town Clock Church" History of the First Reformed Church New Brunswick, NJ "The Town Clock Church" History of the First Reformed Church New Brunswick, NJ by the Rev. Dr. J David Muyskens published by the Consistory 1991 FOREWORD The last time someone compiled a history of First Reformed Church was when Dr. Richard H. Steele presented his Historical Discourse Delivered at the Celebration of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the First Reformed Dutch Church, New Brunswick, N.J. That was on October 1, 1867. The discourse was published by the Consistory. There are still a few copies in existence of that volume. But it seems time for an update. My work on writing the history of First Church began with a series of Wednesday evening lectures during lent some years ago. My research continued since then as I read consistory minutes, old newsletters, and talked to some of the older members of the congregation compiling the story that follows on these pages. It is a story in which the hand of God is evident. It is the story of dedicated people who gave much in the service of Christ. It is the story of a church which has played a central role in the life of its community. For a time it was known as ''the Town Clock Church' as its tower has housed the town clock of the city of New Brunswick for one hundred and sixty years. Its earliest names reflected the fact that it was a church organized to serve its community. The names expressed the geographic location of its congregation. Its earliest minutes still in existence, from April 19, 1717, identify the people in the area of Lawrence Brook and the Raritan River as belonging to the congregation which came to be called the Three Mile Run Church, the Three Mile Run being another brook that identified the parish. After New Brunswick was chartered the church became known as "the congregation of New Brunswick'' and was also called "The Dutch Church." Later it was called the Dutch Reformed Church distinguishing it from the Presbyterian, Episcopal and Baptist churches that were organized. When the need for more Reformed Churches became apparent it became known as the "First Reformed Church" and "First Church" for short. It is my hope that telling the story of First Church will make us better informed and equipped for the future. While the names of the church reflect a central role that it had in the community, it no longer enjoys such a role. Once next to the market and city hall, one of a few churches serving the greater New Brunswick area, today there are many other churches and the secular attitudes of the times place the church on the periphery. It could become no more than an antique. This history is written with the hope that we may follow the new directions of the Spirit for our time in the ministry of Jesus Christ. Being reminded of the dedication and faith which is our heritage we may be inspired to be engaged it the mission of the church of Jesus Christ. And seeing the weaknesses of our spiritual forbearers, their paternalism, prejudices and mistakes, can teach us lessons from history and help us find the wisdom we need for our ministry. May the Holy Spirit guide us in the task of drawing people's attention to God, bringing hope and joy to the people of our community, not to put the church in a place of prominence or to bring back the past, but so that people may find the renewal of spirit that is so much needed. There are many people who helped in the preparation of this book. Rev. Robert Dickson and Rev. Glenn Van Oort made helpful suggestions for the chapters dealing with the time they were ministers of the church. Betty Gram and Dorothy Van Nostrand read portions of the manuscript and offered their suggestions. Bruce Baier compiled the list of officers since the time of Steel's work. Our church Secretary, Merrijane Gottshall, contributed her expertise to the final editing. My wife, Donna, did proof-reading and offered valuable suggestions. Many thanks to them and to all who answered questions and contributed with their knowledge and interest. J.D.M. Three Mile Run Church Sketch by George Moore, Pastor of The Six Mile Run Reformed Church, 1940-1952 The Town Clock Church THE FOUNDERS The congregation now known as the First Reformed Church in New Brunswick, New Jersey, was originally called the Three Mile Run Church. It was organized by settlers of the area surrounding the point where the main road from New York to Virginia crossed the Three Mile Run. The road followed a trail which had been used for years by Native Americans. The path ran from the place where Elizabeth is now located southwest to the falls on the Delaware at Trenton. It crossed the rivers and streams at their most shallow points. The Raritan River was crossed at Inians Ferry where New Brunswick is now located. Going southwest from the Raritan there were crossings at the Mile Run, Three Mile Run, Six Mile Run and Ten Mile Run each so many miles from the Raritan. Much of the land was covered with native forest. But to the north along the Raritan there were meadows which the Indians used to raise corn, beans, and pumpkins. In 1650 Cornelius Van Tienhoven, Secretary of New Netherlands, described the area: "The district inhabited by a nation called Raritangs is situated on a fresh water river, that flows through the centre of a lowland which the Indians cultivated. This vacant territory lies between two high mountains far distant from the other. This is the handsomest and pleasantest country that man can behold. It furnished the Indians with abundance of maise, beans, pumpkins, and other fruits. This district was abandoned by the natives for two reasons: The first and principal is that, finding themselves unable to resist the southern Indians, they migrated further inland. The second, because this country was flooded every spring. ..frequently spoiling and destroying their supply of maize, stored in holes under ground. Through this valley pass large numbers of all sorts of tribes on their way north or east. This land is, therefore, not only adapted for raising grain and rearing all descriptions of cattle, but also very convenient for trade with the Indians." 1 With such encouraging words Van Tienhoven was trying to entice people to come and settle in the area. By the 1680s people came from New York and Long Island. On November 10, 1681, John Inians, a New York merchant, purchased a tract of land where the city of New Brunswick was later built. At the crossing of the Raritan River he established a ferry. Some of the people who came to create farms in the vicinity of Three Mile Run were Roelef Sebring, Hendrik Bries, Roelef Lucas Van Voorhees, Aart Artsen, Isaac Van Dyke, Johannes Folkersen, Jan Aten, Laurens Williams, Jacob 1 Abraham Messier, D.D. Eiaht Memorial Sermons. with Notes for a History of the Reformed Dutch Churches in Somerset County, N.J. (New York: A. Lloyd, No. 729 Broadway, 1873) p. 159. 2 The Town Clock Church Ouk.e, Roelef Nevius, Charles Fonteyn, Hans Stoothoff, and Thomas I3owman.2 From Long Island there came a Dutch colony which settled in the area. They were attracted to the greater freedom to be enjoyed under the proprietors of East Jersey, Wm. Penn, President. They were unhappy with the arbitrary conduct of the English governors of New York and Long Island. Among the purchasers were Peter Cortelyou, Stoffel Probasco, Theodore Polhemus, Hendrik Lott, Hendrik Hendriks, Jacques Cortelyou, Dennis Tunis, and Cornelius Wyckoff. They acquired ten thousand acres of land lying in the central part of Franklin Township. 3 These people were of the Reformed faith. They were Dutch Reformed and French Huguenots. Sometime before 1717 Abraham Bennet built a church building in which they could gather for worship. Tradition says it was a stone structure with a pyramid shaped roof, similar to many country churches in Europe. Its location is uncertain. It has been thought that it was located on or near the site where the Three Mile Run Cemetery was later located. Writing in 1873, Abraham Messier said the church was located on what later became the cemetery lot. In 1867, Richard Steele said, in his history of First Reformed Church, that the church was not on the cemetery lot but next to it. (Near the intersection of How Lane and Route 27.) In 1710 the Rev. Paulus Van Vlecq organized the Six Mile Run Church. He had been ordained irregularly by Rev. Bemardus Freeman of Long Island in 1709. In 1710 he organized several churches in Pennslyvania and November 15, 1710, he organized twenty-three members with two elders, Adriaen Bennet and Charles Fonteyn, and two deacons, Baerent de Wit and Abraham Bennet, in a congregation at Six Mile Run. Van Vlecq baptized Abraham and Jannetje Bennet's daughter Sarah on October 23, 1711. They had ten children altogether. In 1717 the family joined those who formed the congregation in the vicinity of the river and Lawrence Brook. The baptisms of their last four sons, Johannes, Volkert, Petrus and Benjamin, born in 1718, 1720, 1724, and 1728, were registered at the church which later became known as the congregation in New Brunswick. The Reformed believers in the area were given spiritual guidance by the Rev. Guiliam Berthalf. Rev. Berth°If and his family came to America from Holland around the year 1683_ They settled at Hackensack and he became a Voorlezer and Comforter of the Sick in the churches at Hackensack and Acquackanonk.

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