Brownstone and blue slate tell a story of faith. The Memorial Presbyterian Church stands proudly at 186 St. Johns Place in Brooklyn. Discussions of 19th-century communities often highlight their houses of worship. These buildings showcase some of the best architectural work. Some were designed by specialists. Others were designed by the same architects who designed many houses.
Memorial Presbyterian Church is a great church of Park Slope. However, it is often overshadowed by larger churches in the neighborhood. This corner of St. Johns Place and 7th Avenue has three churches. Grace United Methodist is on the opposite corner of 7th Avenue. St. John’s Episcopal Church is across the street mid-block. This was indeed a holy corner on Sunday mornings.
Memorial Presbyterian Church exemplifies late Victorian Gothic church architecture. The firm Pugin & Walter of Manhattan designed it. Edmund Peter Pugin was the son of Augustus W. Pugin. Augustus Pugin designed the interior of Westminster Palace and Big Ben. Peter Paul Pugin had the Pugin design genes. He is remembered for his greenhouse for Jay Gould at Lyndhurst. He is also remembered for this church.
Memorial Presbyterian is made of ashlar cut brownstone from Bellville NJ. The stone rises to a broached spire. This is an octagonal spire rising from a square base. It rises using triangular faces. The church is a collection of gabled boxes. Arched stained glass windows punctuate the boxes. Open quatrefoil parapets connect them. Most of the stained glass is by Tiffany Studios. It is gorgeous.
The chapel and Sunday school building were built five years after the church was dedicated. Pugin was no longer part of the firm. Walter partnered with John W. Marshall. They seamlessly joined the two buildings. Generations of congregants and passers-by never knew the difference.
Memorial Presbyterian was founded in 1866. The Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church in Fort Greene founded it. Park Slope was in its early development years. Lafayette Church held a large revival in the new neighborhood. The revival’s attendance encouraged them to form a new church.
The first Memorial Presbyterian was a small wood-framed church. It was on Warren Street now Prospect Place. It was between 5th and 6th Avenue. It was completed in 1866. They soon outgrew the building. As Park Slope developed closer to the new park, the congregation purchased this corner lot. They began building in 1881. The church opened on February 18 1883.
Memorial Presbyterian Church is within the Park Slope Historic District. New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated it in 1973. The current organ in Memorial Presbyterian Church was built in 1908. The Austin Organ Company built it. S. Lewis Elmer was the organist at the time. The organ had four manuals and 47 stops. At some point, the original console was replaced. It was replaced by the present three-manual Austin console. The organ is extant but unplayable. It is unplayable due to age and smoke damage from a fire.
The original organ for Memorial Presbyterian Church was built in 1883. L.C. Harrison built it. He had acquired the Henry Erben & Son organ building concern a few years earlier. Memorial Presbyterian Church stands as a testament to architectural beauty and deep-rooted faith.