"And old parish with a young spirit"

HISTORIC SAINT GEORGE'S CHURCH

in the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island

 THIS OLD PARISH throughout the years has borne witness to the Faith in the Triune GOD which was the Foundation of Lives and noble works of our Fathers.  It continues today to witness the same Truth supporting us. 

HEMPSTEAD, NEW YORK

"Unity, perseverance and public spirit, laus deo" (The Parish Motto)

Five years after Hempstead was settled in 1643, the first meeting house was built by the Town on what later became the lands of Historic St. George's Church.  The building was located within a stockade which is now the Main Street area between Fulton Avenue and Front Street.  Here all faiths attended services and the problems of the early settlers were discussed.  Hempstead and surrounding areas were under Dutch control until 1663 and then English rule until after the Revolutionary War. Under Dutch rule all settlers had to attend worship at the Meeting House or risk a fine of 5 Guilders, corporal punishment or banishment. Religious services continued under the British in a second meeting house built in 1673 at public cost.  Missionaries sent by the Society for the Preservation of the Gospel and others ordained in the Church of England preached in Hempstead.  They are credited with establishing St. George's Church in Hempstead in 1702.  Soon thereafter, Queen Anne of England presented a coin silver Chalice, Paten, and prayer book to the newly founded Church.  Pirates captured these gifts and used the silver service until they were recovered on the island of Jamaica in 1706.  Scratches are still visible on the Paten when it was used as an eating utensil.   In 1710 St. George's received a baptismal font from England that is still in use and in perfect condition.  In 1735, St. George's Church was given a silver baptismal bowl made by Simeon Soumaine.  All silver made by Simeon Soumaine is extremely valuable.

The "third church", built in 1735 on a half acre deeded for such purpose, measured fifty feet by thirty-six feet and contained eighteen pews.  An additional half acre plot to the east of the church was added by the town in 1763 for additional burial plots.  In this resting place sleep the pioneers of yesterday; the oldest marked grave bears the date 1727.  King George II of England granted a Royal Patent and Charter to the Parish in Hempstead, Queens (now Nassau) County in 1735.  St. George's is very proud of this Royal Charter, still in its possession, which governs the Church to this day.

Samuel Seabury, the first Episcopal Bishop in the United States, grew up in Hempstead where his father served as Rector of St. George's Church from 1742 until 1764, As Bishop, he returned to the church of his boyhood in 1785 to officiate at the first ordination ever held in New York State.

The Golden Cock weather vane has been resting on the steeple of St. George's for more than 250 years. During the Revolutionary War, Continental soldiers used the weather vane for target practice.  The sixteen bullet holes can still be seen.  It is written that in Revolutionary times "the thriving community, known as the village of Hempstead has 3 taverns and 9 houses." St. George's Church was used as a military store house during the Revolution - and the communion table was used as an eating table in spite of protests.  The British used the gravestones, from the graveyard, as hearth stones. 

The present Rectory was built in 1793 and is a splendid piece of early architecture.  It replaced the small first parsonage built in 1682. The Rectory had eight working fireplaces but was built with no closets.  The present church was built in 1822 and an extension added in 1856.  Remodeling occurred in 1893 and again in 1906.  St. George's is considered to be one of the purest examples of Georgian Architecture.  The great columns within are the original ones - shaped from oak trees cut on Long Island.  The clock in St. George's Tower is as old as Big Ben in London.  It was made by Sherry and Bryan of Sag Harbor, L.I. in 1854.  The Village of Hempstead became incorporated about this time in 1853.   St. George's churchyard has some beautiful old trees and plants.  This peaceful setting stands in contrast to the hustle and bustle surrounding it in modern day Hempstead.  In 1952 and 1976 special events were held to commemorate the 250th anniversary of St. George's Church and the country's bicentennial.  The members of the Church wore colonial costumes during the events, and have since taken up the habit of wearing the customs on special occasions. They wear the colonial costumes in pride of their American Heritage.  Surrounded by the graves of the Pioneers of Hempstead, the church stands as a monument to the strong and sturdy hearts of long ago. May we be as strong as our forefathers and keep Historic St. George's going and ready for her Tercentenary Celebration in the year Two Thousand and Two.

HISTORICAL NOTES

1643    Village of Hempstead settled.

1648    First Meeting House built by Town.

1673    Second Meeting House erected at public cost.

1682    First Rectory built.

1702    Saint George's Church founded.

1706    Silver Chalice, Paten, Baptismal Font and Prayer Book presented by Queen Anne of England.

1734    Third Church erected by members of Saint George's Church.

1735    King George II of England granted Saint George's Church a Royal Charter which governs the Church to this day.

1775    The American Revolution Years.  Colonel Cornell of George Washington's heroic Continental Army wrote of Saint George's: "We established with one hundred men, headquarters at Hempstead, seeking out Tories.  We converted the Episcopal Church into a storehouse...and made use of the Communion table as a convenience for Yankees to eat upon."

1784    The Right Reverend Samuel Seabury, son of the third Rector of Saint George's Church, became the first Bishop of the Episcopal Church in America.

1785    First Ordination in the State of New York held in Saint George's Church, with Bishop Seabury presiding.