Union Church of Bay Ridge

The History of Union Church of Bay Ridge

Union Church Glances Back
by Ruth Ward
Prepared for the October 1996 Centennial Directory of
Union Church of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, NY
Update 2004 by Bruce MacIntyre

Before there were cars or subways, before there was a bridge to Staten Island, when Bay Ridge was green with lawns and "country" farms, there was a Church. Two churches actually - a Dutch Reformed church [Bay Ridge Reformed Church] at 80th Street and Ridge Boulevard, and a Presbyterian church one block south, at 81st Street and Ridge Boulevard. The cornerstone of the Dutch Reformed church was laid in June of 1896.

The Presbyterians had laid the cornerstone of their church in April of that same year. According to Andrew Dolkart, author of Landmarks of New York City, the architect of the Dutch Reformed church (the front part of the present sanctuary of Union Church) was Arthur Bates Jennings. Dr. Walter R. Ferris was the Presbyterian minister, and Dr. Charles Scudder was called, with notable brevity, to serve the Dutch. "The secretary mailed the notice, and Dr. Scudder accepted the call." There was a grand total of 32 members at both churches. Since Dr. Scudder owned a little sloop, he would take people sailing, and Dr. Ferris would take them out driving in his horse and rig. "I sail people into church, but he drives them," Dr. Scudder liked to say of his colleague. Though each small congregation displayed ambition for its own church, it soon became apparent that "Presbyterians and Reformed people exhibited the same faith, vision, and piety." In December 1918 a merger was accomplished, and Union Church as we know it came into being. Dr. Horace Leavitt was the first minister of The Union Church of Bay Ridge.

There was no Parish House or Sunday School then. Classes met in the church kitchen or in the belfry. In 1924, as the population of Bay Ridge grew, a dedicated congregation struggled to raise money, and the Union Church structure of today was built. In 1931 the parish House was erected on the site of the Presbyterian Church.

The Parish House has since seen a spectrum of events such as Bible classes and religious education for all ages, a women's shelter, gym and art classes, parties, Thanksgiving dinners, a seasonal crafts fair, and rousing musical shows, just to name a few. Today, the shared use of the Parish House allows there to be genuine outreach and communion-building in Bay Ridge.

Union Church has had many pastors over the years, each bringing his or her own uniqueness of personality to the pulpit.

• Dr. John Paul Jones (1931) was a man ahead of his time and liked to exchange pulpits with a minister from Bedford-Stuyvesant and with a rabbi. He was a dramatic, gripping preacher and one of the first civil rights activists.
  
• The Reverend George Bonnell (1956) was a theologian and scholar and his preaching style reflected that. It was during Rev. Bonnell's tenure that Margaret Howland, the first woman ordained by what was then Brooklyn-Nassau Presbytery, and the twelfth woman in the denomination, was ordained at Union Church in 1958. Also during those years, the Bay Ridge Festival of the Arts was born under the leadership of Lois Bonnell. 

• The Reverend Paul Stake (1965) presided over a thriving dramatic group and chaperoned the young people of the church on a trip to Puerto Rico.
  
• The Reverend Bill Tolley was called to Union Church in 1968, and the church became unique (pastored by a clergy couple) when his wife, the Reverend Jo Tolley, was ordained in 1983 and became assistant pastor. Those were memorable years. The Bay Ridge Festival of the Arts grew, and the Union Center for Women was founded at Union Church. Union Church became known as "the church that shares and cares."
  
• In 1994 the Reverend Jim Burton was called to serve as pastor, and he led the church through its centennial year (1996) and its turn-of-the-century New Millennium Capital Campaign.
  
• Reverend Mary Barrett Speers came to Union Church in the fall of 2001. 

Historical Article on the Union Church Windows:

Following are excerpts from Lost Art in Stained Glass Found in Bay Ridge Union Church, a newspaper article by Nell Norstrand, with revisions by Dr. Bruce MacIntyre. For more on the windows, click here or on Union Church Windows (above right).

Members of Union Church of Bay Ridge, at 80th Street and Ridge Boulevard, have always cherished the beautiful stained glass windows of the church. The first window was installed in 1896, when the church Sanctuary was built.

The large window facing Ridge Boulevard was designed and installed by Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company, under the direction of Louis C. Tiffany. The Union Church window of opalescent glass has the Tiffany quality of assuming an iridescent effect after the daylight fades and the church is lighted within. The window is dominated by the white-robed figure of the resurrected Christ with Mary Magdalene and two angels [John 20:1,11-17] against a background of varying shades of blue.

1n 1924 the main church was extended to the east, and thirteen additional memorial windows were added. Referred to as The Angel of the Resurrection, a window was installed in the chancel that is of unusual beauty, with colors, as one parishioner remarked, "like the Grand Canyon". The artist failed to include his mark on the window, but the name of the artist was learned through a neighborhood church member, Mrs. John Keers, whose father Peter Stetter, was a stained glass designer. The window was designed by Louis Lederle and was made about ten years prior to its installation in Union Church. It is thought that Mr. Lederle was trained with Tiffany Studios. The glass extending above the three arches of Mr. Lederle's window was installed to complete the aperture and was the work of Rudolph Sickinger.

The lower windows include (south side): Christ Knocking at the Door, David and the Lion, Christ Blessing Little Children, and "Christ in Gesthemane"; (near basement stairs) The Lamb Victorious ; (north side) Christ Rescuing St. Peter, Christ the Good Shepherd, The Stoning of St. Stephen and The Conversion of St. Paul.

The nine clerestory windows, of English design and make, are the only imported windows in the church. They represent in symbolic design the Christian virtues of (south side) Humility, Righteousness, Kindness, (north side) Praise, Prayer and Fortitude.

In the mid 1980s a new, tenth clerestory window was installed in the northwest wall of the sanctuary, adjacent to the choir?s rehearsal room. It depicts a family worshiping above the emblem Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory. It was given by Betty Gilkey Wilhousky in memory of her husband Peter J. Wilhousky, long-time choral music educator in New York City and composer of the well-known arrangements of the Battle Hymn of the Republic and Carol of the Bells.

How to donate for restoration: If you would like to support the efforts of Union Church to restore these beautiful stained glass windows, please contact the church and/or send a check to payable to the Union Church Window Fund. Union Church is a registered not-for-profit organization and all donations are tax deductible as allowed under law.