 Greenwich foundedc.1686, built 1771 Ye Great Street In many areas the schism in the Quaker ranks left the Hicksites in control of the meetinghouse, but in Greenwich, the Orthodox Friends were in the majority so they retained possession of this brick building dating to 1771. It is little changed, inside or out, since that date (although an additional 16 feet was added to the south end of the building. Folding desks used by the clerks and most of the free benches are intact, and steps, platforms and benches used by the overseers and elders are still in place. An early deed book records that "Whereas Mark Reeve, of Caesarea River, yeoman, by a deed of Dec. 4, 1686, sold to said Joseph Browne 16 acres in Greenwich, now he sells to Charles Bagley a lot 50 feet on the street and 55 feet deep, for the only use, service & purpose of a Meeting-House & graveyard for those people in scorn called Quakers... ." The original meetinghouse, built of logs, stood on this site. The river is just a few yards from the rear of the building, and the meetinghouse was sited there, it is said, for the convenience of the Fairfield Township Friends just across the river. National Register, HABS Derry, I, 107  Othello founded 1707, built 1835 Ye Greate Road ( a little west of Greenwich) Greenwich, the oldest community in the county, was planned and laid out by John Fenwick in the 1680s. The original settlers came from Connecticut and named the town for their first home. Situated at the mouth of the Cohansey River, Greenwich was a leading port in Colonial times. The major street in town is Ye Greate Street, which was laid out in 1684. The entire town, where residents burned a shipment of tea in 1774, is on the National Register of Historic Places. enlarged in 1860. Whitefield preached here in 1740, then the next day in Pilesgrove and then on to Salem  near Othelo (also referred to as Springtown) founded 1816, built 1841 Route 650 & Route 620 Springtown is said to have been settled by persons who were aided by Greenwich Quakers, via the Underground Railroad, to escape the bonds of slavery. The church was founded in 1816 by free blacks and its first name was the African Society of Methodists. The African Methodist Episcopal Church was organized in Philadelphia in 18__, and this congregation affiliated with that church by 18__. It is the congregation’s second church, and is built of stucco over brick. The land was purchsed for $5 in 1838, and this building erected by 1841. In 2004-5 it received a grant from the state/historical preservation to aid in preserving the structure, which is one of the oldest black churches in the state. may be National Register Greenwich Baptist Church Greenwich founded c.1843, built 1844 # Baptists in Greenwich, however, continued to hold weekly prayer meetings, and the pastor of Cohansey Baptist conducted preaching services in the town school-house and private homes. # Evangelistic meetings in 1843 increased the Greenwich Baptist ranks. A collection was taken to finance the construction of a new building. # This building (present auditorium) was dedicated on Nov. 9, 1844 and from that time services were held every Sunday evening. # On Dec.1, 1849, Cohansey Baptist released 49 members in order to organized themselves into a newly formed Baptist Church on Dec. 19. # The congregation adopted a strong Biblical church covenant and articles of faith (The New Hampshire Confession of Faith), consistent with historic Christianity and Baptist witness, and these same Biblical principles are the doctrinal convictions of the congregation of the present day.  Greenwich founded 1827, built 1857 [current use] When the Hicksite faction found themselves in the minority, they eventually withdrew and built this small meetinghouse a few miles away. They did not do so immediately, however, as the schism occured about 1836 (it had been simmering for a while), twenty years before this meetinghouse was built in 1857. Curiously, the brick masonry on the rear of the building is older than that on the front. Clearly in the Quaker meetinghouse idiom, its diminutive size makes the shuttered windows and pent roofs disproportionately large. HABS  Othello, Greenwich Township founded 1___, built c.1880 Shepard’s Mill Road apparently unoccupied - I understand it has now (February 2009) been demolished This is a small wooden-frame church, three bays deep, that is deteriorating but still sound. There was an electrical connection when I visited, but no other sign of recent activity. There are at least a dozen grave markers, on all three sides of the church as I recall. There was no sign or identification of any sort. The only clue I have is from this note on the placenames of Cumberland County: "Head of Greenwich (Othello) was a crossroads about a mile and a half from the center of Greenwich, where a Presbyterian Church and graveyard still stand. The community was named by the local literary society for Shakespeare's Moorish prince." Possible additional information on this church: LEVENGOOD, James Charles, Othello, N.J.—Born, Honeybrook, Pa., Jan. 9, 1866; York Inst., Pa., '86; Aub. T. S., N. Y., '89; Prin. T. S., '90; Lie. April 10, '88, Pby. of Chester; Ord. May 7, '91, Pby. of Philadelphia, North; P. Lower Merion, Gladwyn, Pa., '90-92; P. G. U. of Giessen and Berlin, Ger., '92-93; P. Greenwich Ch., Othello, N. J., Feb., '93—. Taken from page 358, THE Ministerial Directory of the Ministers In "the Presbyterian Church In The United States", (southern), And In "the Presbyterian Church In The United States Of America" (northern), Together With A StateMent OF THE WORK OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES AND BOARDS OF THE TWO CHURCHES, WITH THE NAMES AND LOCATION OF THEIR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND CHURCH PAPERS. . . EDITED BY . . Edgar Suttom Robihsom, D. D. Pastor of the 1st Presbyterian Church of Oxford, Ohio. VOLUME I. 1898. volume available on Google Books, public domain. also, I have a picture of one gravestone:  Text of which reads: Jacob Wise Co. H. 39 Regt U.S. Col. Tro. Died Dec 1 1893 Aged 50 years |
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Greenwich Township |