Primitive Baptist Church of Brookfield
Encyclopedia
The Primitive Baptist
Church of Brookfield, also known as the Old School Baptist Meeting House, is located along US 6
in Slate Hill
, New York
, USA, a hamlet of the Town of Wawayanda
in Orange County
. It was built in 1792, when the settlement was known as Brookfield. It is one of the oldest extant church buildings in the county, and one of the earliest buildings in the settlement that became Slate Hill.
In 1976 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
due to its age and architectural interest as a late example of vernacular
building techniques much more common in the early 18th century. Although there were no members of the congregation from 1933 until 2004, local preservationists continued holding an annual service presided over by an Old School Baptist pastor from North Carolina, and in recent years the membership has been repopulated.
at the center of the hamlet, the church is a tall white two-story clapboard
gable
-roofed structure. A four-story tower with belfry
and spire
, added later, stands at the front. The north (rear) and west sides are two bays
apiece and still have most of the original sashing
on their windows. The east side has three bays, reflecting its onetime status as the church's main entrance, and it still has the classically detailed doorway with sidelights. The cornice
's original dentil
s are still present but difficult to see.
Inside there are box pews typical of the era with raised and fielded panels, a late medieval touch. A hexagonal raised pulpit
is mounted against the west wall. A three-sided gallery fills the building's second story; it can be reached via the tower stairs. The entire interior is done in unpainted white pine
.
A cemetery with gravestones dating to the era of the church's founding is located to the east. The only outbuilding is a non-historic outhouse because there is no plumbing in the building.
, the home of member Richard Wood, an early local settler. Eight years later, in 1791, the church was formally incorporated
and the following year another member, Joseph Hallock, gave land for the church to be built. It took the Brookfield name from the growing settlement.
In 1828 the tower was added, with the stairs inside allowing more seating capacity within. Five years later, the church broke with mainstream Baptists and affiliated itself instead with the Primitive Baptist
movement, which the year before had rejected the evangelical
directions the denomination was taking in the Second Great Awakening
. Believing that eschewing foreign missions and Sunday school
s was more in line with early Calvinism
, they were also sometimes called the Old School Meetinghouse of Brookfield. They kept Brookfield in their name even after the postal service forced the hamlet to change its name to Slate Hill to avoid confusion with New York's other Brookfield
, in Madison County
.
After the Civil War
stoves provided the building's first heat. Over the next few decades, the congregation began dwindling until its last member died in 1933. But trustees continued to hold the required annual meeting and maintain the building. In 2004, two members were added to the empty congregation by vote of the trustees, presiding pastor, and representative members from other Old School Baptist congregations.
on the church's exterior suggests an acknowledgement of the emerging tastes of the time, as the Federal style was taking shape. But the interior's use of heavy, inpainted timber and raised and paneled pews recalls late medieval English building traditions, and the pulpit in particular is of a style found in late 17th- and early 18th-century churches in New England
. The Brookfield church is a very late example of a style
much more popular long before the Revolution
.
Primitive Baptist
Primitive Baptists, also known as Hard Shell Baptists or Anti-Mission Baptists, are conservative, Calvinist Baptists adhering to beliefs that formed out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 1800’s over the appropriateness of mission boards, bible tract societies, and temperance...
Church of Brookfield, also known as the Old School Baptist Meeting House, is located along US 6
U.S. Route 6 in New York
U.S. Route 6 is a part of the U.S. Highway System that runs from Bishop, California, to Provincetown, Massachusetts. In New York, US 6 extends from the Pennsylvania state line at Port Jervis to the Connecticut state line east of Brewster...
in Slate Hill
Slate Hill, New York
Slate Hill is one of the eight hamlets found in the town of Wawayanda, New York. It is home to the Minisink Valley Central School District. Slate Hill is found in Orange County, New York, one of the fastest growing counties in the state...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, USA, a hamlet of the Town of Wawayanda
Wawayanda, New York
Wawayanda is a town in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,024 as recorded by the 2006 census.The Town of Wawayanda is in the western part of the county, south of Middletown.-History:...
in Orange County
Orange County, New York
Orange County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area and is located at the northern reaches of the New York metropolitan area. The county sits in the state's scenic Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley...
. It was built in 1792, when the settlement was known as Brookfield. It is one of the oldest extant church buildings in the county, and one of the earliest buildings in the settlement that became Slate Hill.
In 1976 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
due to its age and architectural interest as a late example of vernacular
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
building techniques much more common in the early 18th century. Although there were no members of the congregation from 1933 until 2004, local preservationists continued holding an annual service presided over by an Old School Baptist pastor from North Carolina, and in recent years the membership has been repopulated.
Building
Located on a slight rise on the north side of Route 6 just east of the intersection with NY 284New York State Route 284
New York State Route 284 is a short state highway located entirely in Orange County in New York, United States. It is the continuation of New Jersey Route 284 northbound from the state line at Minisink to U.S. Route 6 in Wawayanda...
at the center of the hamlet, the church is a tall white two-story clapboard
Clapboard (architecture)
Clapboard, also known as bevel siding or lap siding or weather-board , is a board used typically for exterior horizontal siding that has one edge thicker than the other and where the board above laps over the one below...
gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
-roofed structure. A four-story tower with belfry
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
and spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
, added later, stands at the front. The north (rear) and west sides are two bays
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
apiece and still have most of the original sashing
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
on their windows. The east side has three bays, reflecting its onetime status as the church's main entrance, and it still has the classically detailed doorway with sidelights. The cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
's original dentil
Dentil
In classical architecture a dentil is a small block used as a repeating ornament in the bedmould of a cornice.The Roman architect Vitruvius In classical architecture a dentil (from Lat. dens, a tooth) is a small block used as a repeating ornament in the bedmould of a cornice.The Roman architect...
s are still present but difficult to see.
Inside there are box pews typical of the era with raised and fielded panels, a late medieval touch. A hexagonal raised pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
is mounted against the west wall. A three-sided gallery fills the building's second story; it can be reached via the tower stairs. The entire interior is done in unpainted white pine
Eastern White Pine
Pinus strobus, commonly known as the eastern white pine, is a large pine native to eastern North America, occurring from Newfoundland west to Minnesota and southeastern Manitoba, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to the northern edge of Georgia.It is occasionally known as simply white pine,...
.
A cemetery with gravestones dating to the era of the church's founding is located to the east. The only outbuilding is a non-historic outhouse because there is no plumbing in the building.
History
The meetings of local Baptists that became the church began in 1783 at nearby Woodlawn FarmWoodlawn Farm (Slate Hill, New York)
Woodlawn Farm, sometimes known as the Wood Homestead, is located on Mount Orange Road, a short distance north of Slate Hill, New York, United States. It is centered by a three-section farmhouse whose materials date to the mid-18th century, making it one of the oldest buildings in the Town of...
, the home of member Richard Wood, an early local settler. Eight years later, in 1791, the church was formally incorporated
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
and the following year another member, Joseph Hallock, gave land for the church to be built. It took the Brookfield name from the growing settlement.
In 1828 the tower was added, with the stairs inside allowing more seating capacity within. Five years later, the church broke with mainstream Baptists and affiliated itself instead with the Primitive Baptist
Primitive Baptist
Primitive Baptists, also known as Hard Shell Baptists or Anti-Mission Baptists, are conservative, Calvinist Baptists adhering to beliefs that formed out of the controversy among Baptists in the early 1800’s over the appropriateness of mission boards, bible tract societies, and temperance...
movement, which the year before had rejected the evangelical
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
directions the denomination was taking in the Second Great Awakening
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Christian revival movement during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1800, had begun to gain momentum by 1820, and was in decline by 1870. The Second Great Awakening expressed Arminian theology, by which every person could be...
. Believing that eschewing foreign missions and Sunday school
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
s was more in line with early Calvinism
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
, they were also sometimes called the Old School Meetinghouse of Brookfield. They kept Brookfield in their name even after the postal service forced the hamlet to change its name to Slate Hill to avoid confusion with New York's other Brookfield
Brookfield, New York
Brookfield is a town in Madison County, New York, United States. The population was 2,403 at the 2000 census.The Town of Brookfield is located in the southeast part of the county...
, in Madison County
Madison County, New York
Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 73,442. It is named after James Madison, fourth President of the United States of America...
.
After the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
stoves provided the building's first heat. Over the next few decades, the congregation began dwindling until its last member died in 1933. But trustees continued to hold the required annual meeting and maintain the building. In 2004, two members were added to the empty congregation by vote of the trustees, presiding pastor, and representative members from other Old School Baptist congregations.
Aesthetics
The minimal, classically-inspired ornamentOrnament (architecture)
In architecture and decorative art, ornament is a decoration used to embellish parts of a building or object. Large figurative elements such as monumental sculpture and their equivalents in decorative art are excluded from the term; most ornament does not include human figures, and if present they...
on the church's exterior suggests an acknowledgement of the emerging tastes of the time, as the Federal style was taking shape. But the interior's use of heavy, inpainted timber and raised and paneled pews recalls late medieval English building traditions, and the pulpit in particular is of a style found in late 17th- and early 18th-century churches in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. The Brookfield church is a very late example of a style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
much more popular long before the Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.