Guide to the First Presbyterian Church (Philadelphia, Pa.) Records

The First Presbyterian Church was organized around 1692. Religious services began in a building known as the "Barbadoes Warehouse," located on the northwest corner of Second and Chestnut Streets. For a time, both Baptists and Congregationalists shared this facility with the Presbyterians.

In 1704 the congregation moved to the south side of High Street (now Market Street) at the corner of Bank Street. Here the first Presbyterian church in Philadelphia was established. In 1729 the structure underwent enlargement with some assistance from Boston contributors. Then in 1793 it was renovated and made more spacious and elegant. Twenty-seven years later it was abandoned, due to unsafe conditions and the encroachment of the surrounding business district.

A new church was erected at Washington Square (Seventh and Locust Streets). At this church, in 1837, came the formation of the New School Assembly, from which emerged the Second Church. Its congregation received many generous contributions which enabled the construction of other churches and the establishment of the Presbyterian Hospital.