Guide to the First Presbyterian Church (Elizabeth, N.J.) Records
Open for research.
To browse this collection's digital content visit Pearl.
Materials marked "Digital" in the Collection Inventory may not be available on Pearl or in their entirety.
The First Presbyterian Church of Elizabeth, New Jersey dates its origins to the founding of the town of Elizabeth in 1664. It was the first church to be organized in New Jersey for worship in the English language. Until 1717 it was a Congregational church. Services were held in a meeting house constructed in 1664 until a new building was erected in 1724. In 1717, Presbyterian articles of faith were adopted and affiliation with the Presbytery of Philadelphia followed. The Church received its charter from King George II in 1753. The Church has been rebuilt twice since 1724: once in 1786 after the British set fire to it during the Revolutionary War and again following a fire in 1946 which destroyed all but the Church's outer walls. Among those of prominence who worshipped at the First Church of Elizabeth was Elias Boudinot, member and later President of the Second Continental Congress, Director of the U.S. Mint and first President of the American Bible Society.
Collection reflects the administrative history of First Presbyterian Church in Elizabeth, New Jersey and includes session minutes, reports, membership records, property records, financial records, correspondence, and other records.
The collection is arranged as follows:
SERIES I: SESSION MINUTES/MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS AND LISTS, 1791-1903
SERIES II: MEMBERSHIP RECORDS, 1786-1870
SERIES III: PROPERTY RECORDS, 1717-1913
SERIES IV: FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1794-1861
SERIES V: CORRESPONDENCE, 1784-1868
SERIES VI: MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS, 1774-1846
To browse this collection's digital content visit Pearl.
Materials marked "Digital" in the Collection Inventory may not be available on Pearl or in their entirety.
The researcher is advised to check the card catalog in the library for further records.
The collection was originally donated to Princeton Library by First Presbyterian Church, Elizabeth, New Jersey; transferred to PHS circa 1968.
Collection processed, 1970.
Finding aid written, 1979.
Finding aid revised, 1983.
Collection guide revised, 2026.
First Presbyterian Church (Elizabeth, N.J.) Records, RG 68, Presbyterian Historical Society, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
| Box | Folder | Description | Alternative Formats |
| 1 | 1 | Finding Aid to Record Group 68 | |
| SERIES I: SESSION MINUTES/MISCELLANEOUS REPORTS/LISTS, 1791-1903 | |||
| 1 | 2 | Session Minutes, 1791-1864 | |
| 1 | 3 | Session Minutes, 1806-1816 | |
| 1 | 4 | Session Minutes, 1817-1824 | |
| 1 | 5 | Session Minutes, 1819-1820 | |
| 1 | 6 | Session Minutes, 1825-1832 | |
| 1 | 7 | Session Minutes, 1833-1840 | |
| 1 | 8 | Session Minutes, 1811-1903 | |
| 1 | 9 | Infant/Adult Baptisms, 1811-1824 | |
| 1 | 10 | Deacons' reports and accounts, 1857-1869 | |
| 1 | 11 | Resolutions, reports, correspondence, 1854-1861 | |
| 1 | 12 | Pew indentures and deeds, 1878-1860 | |
| 1 | 13 | Pew indentures and deeds, 1878-1860 | |
| 1 | 14 | Pew rental papers, 1802-1857 | |
| SERIES II: MEMBERSHIP RECORDS, 1786-1870 | |||
| 2 | 1 | Certificates of dismission, 1786-1820 | |
| 2 | 2 | Certificates of dismission, 1821-1830 | |
| 2 | 3 | Certificates of dismission, 1830-1840 | |
| 2 | 4 | Certificates of dismission, 1840-1847 | |
| 2 | 5 | Certificates of dismission, 1854-1870 | |
| 2 | 6 | Certificates of dismission, 1854-1870 | |
| 2 | 7 | Lists of families, 1810-1812, 1834-1835 | |
| 2 | 8 | List of suspended members, 1824-1851; Correspondence regarding disciplinary action, 1815-1855 | |
| 2 | 9 | List of deceased members, 1823 | |
| SERIES III: PROPERTY RECORDS, 1717-1913 | |||
| 2 | 10 | Surveyor's reports, 1717 | |
| 2 | 11 | Indentures/miscellaneous items, 1717-1913 | |
| 2 | 12 | Charter of Incorporation (copy), 1753 | |
| 2 | 13 | Correspondence, bids, receipts regarding rebuilding of Church 's spire, 1895-1902 | |
| 2 | 14 | Miscellaneous items, 1797-1830 | |
| 2 | 15 | Miscellaneous items, 1816-1840, 1890 | |
| 2 | 16 | Miscellaneous items, 1800-1857 | |
| SERIES IV: FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1794-1861 | |||
| 3 | 1 | Annual reports of the Treasurer, 1807-1861 | |
| 3 | 2 | Statements of account, 1801-1860 | |
| 3 | 3 | Receipts, 1794-1832 | |
| SERIES V: CORRESPONDENCE, 1784-1868 | |||
| 3 | 4 | Elias Boudinot, 1784-1822 [on loan] | Digital |
| 3 | 5 | Nicholas Murray, 1833-1851 | |
| 3 | 6 | Stephen Ogden Thompson, July 5, 1853 | |
| 3 | 7 | Letter from Trustees to Session, March 30, 1868 | |
| 3 | 8 | Correspondence of John McDowell, 1813-1842 | |
| SERIES VI: MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS, 1774-1846 | |||
| 3 | 9 | Miscellaneous trial notes, 1774 | |
| 3 | 10 | Subscriptions, lists and books, 1791-1846 | |
| 3 | 11 | Biographical sketches of Elders, 1818-1820 |