Our History
The House of Prayer, one of the most historic Episcopal parishes in Northern New Jersey, has been giving Christian witness in the city and making history since its founding in 1849.
The small, feisty parish frequently has pioneered along new pathways in worship, music, community service, social action, and even technology. The House of Prayer is the 15th oldest of 125 congregations in the Diocese of Newark, and it is the third oldest Episcopal church in Newark. The parish was organized int the late 1840s to serve people living in the northern parts of Newark, then a bustling town of about 39,000. |
The old Plume House, which had been built in the early 1700s by a wealthy family, was the scene of the first service, on November 7, 1849. Barely a half-dozen people attended. Later the ancient stone house would serve as the House of Prayer's rectory, the home for most of the priests who led the parish.
The parish was incorporated on November 24, 1849, and work on the present church began just four days later. Designed to resemble an English country church and built of brownstone from North Newark, the structure was finished in just a year at a cost of $13,000. It was consecrated on November 26, 1850, by Bishop George Washington Doane. Since then it has undergone few exterior alterations.
The church and rectory, the second oldest house in Newark, are both on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. The parish hall adjoining the back of the church was erected in stages, from the 1860s through the 1880s.
Frank Wills, a leading architect in the Gothic Revival movement in the mid-19th century, designed the church. Noteworthy features include the tower, containing a single bell; the alternating round and octagonal pillars along the nave; a high beamed roof; and a century-old pipe organ. The only major adornments in the rather plain interior area n elaborate carved altar and rear screen (known as a "reredos"), designed by William Halsey Wood, architect of First Baptist Peddie Memorial Church, and the 14 Stations of the Cross, created by Robert Robbins. The Halsey stonework was installed in the 1890s, and the Stations in the 1920s.
The church narrowly escaped demotion in the 1960s after two fires, and was extensively remodeled. The old stone altar was moved forward to serve new forms of public worship; simple stained-glass windows replaced the deteriorated originals.
The Plume House, once part of a farm outside a Colonial village, was already 125 years old when it became a rectory. Washington and his retreating army passed the house in 177. According to legend, Ann Van Wagenen Plume chased a Hessian soldier from her parlor when she found him chopping furniture for firewood.
Later, the rectory became the scene of a major scientific advance in 1887, when the Rev. Hannibal Goodwin developed flexible photographic film - a discovery that made motion pictures possible. Goodwin, who was rector for 20 years, was concerned that glass lantern slides could be broken by Sunday school children. In the attic laboratory, he put photographic images on celluloid. His patent was finally upheld in a long, bitter legal battle, which ended 14 years after his death in 1900.
House of Prayer has a long tradition of worship in this community. Three rectors of House of Prayer have stayed 20 years or more. Some of the 19th century priests helped lead the movement for more Catholic or "High Church" practices. The House of Prayer was one of the first New Jersey churches to offer daily services, and to use vestments, candles, incense, and bells. Later, it became one of the first Anglo-Catholic parishes to welcome women priests and to elect teenagers to its governing body and women to all positions.
At the end of the 19th century, when nuns from the Community of St. John Baptist lived in the parish hall, the House of Prayer was working among poor families in a teeming neighborhood - "Little Italy." The sisters started one of the first day nurseries in the city, and one of the first clothing outlets for the poor.
This tradition of social service continued through the 20th century, as the parish ran teen canteens, summer camps, after-school programs, and a flea market catering to low-income families. Beginning in the 1970s, the parish hall housed day care centers, serving hundreds of families and up to 60 pre-school children at a time.
Back in its years of greatest growth and prosperity, the parish was led by the Rev. Samuel Miller, the rector from 1889 to 1919. A longer, leaner period faced his successor, Rev. William Venables, who served 34 years - from 1920 to 1953. He had to contend with the exodus of members to outlying areas, and threats from highway construction and urban renewal projects. The elevated section of what is now Route 280 barely bypassed the rectory in the 1950s, and most of the congested neighborhood around the church was razed for high-rise housing at that time.
In a transformed setting, the House of Prayer greeted new residents and stood its ground. The church and all were upgraded in the mid-1960s, and the rectory was rehabilitated in a 1976 Bicentennial training project for minority craftsmen.
Several recent rectors attracted wide attention. The Rev. Edd L. Payne, who served from 1956 to 1965, and his wife, Mary, wrote and produced a Passion play depicting the final days of Jesus's life on earth. The colorful pageant, "And He Shall Reign," drew large crowds to the church each spring. The Rev. Herbert G. Draesel Jr. (1965-72) composed the "Rejoice" folk mass and rock 'n' roll masses that have been widely performed and recorded.
The Rev. T. James Snodgrass (1980-86) helped found the Apostles' House shelter for the homeless and a food pantry, and began regular Spanish-language services - which ended, unfortunately, after he left. The Rev. Bernard P. Healy (1990-95) began projects to help immigrants and AIDS patients. He later died of the disease, and his ashes are interred beside the church in a memorial garden named for him.
A later rector, the Rev. Mildred J. Solomon (1998-2003), was the first African-American woman to lead any congregation in the Diocese of Newark. Now the parish plays an active role in a regional ministry comprising five Newark churches.
In recent years the parish sponsored a program to combat child abuse by parents; "Jazz Vespers" services featuring local musicians; international festivals showcasing fashions and foods of parishioners' homelands; a cooking school; and health fairs. Parishioners have sought to meet its financial needs with many fund-raising ventures - even the sale of blueberries raised on the Pennsylvania farm of one church family.
Just as the House of Prayer is a little outside the center of Newark, it has been a bit off-center through the years. It is one of only three Episcopal churches in the United States named House of Prayer. The name is from the Book of Isaiah (56:7), in which the Lord welcomes all nations and declares, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." The Isaiah verse is carved on the church's front wall.
Fulfilling that prophesy, the parish in recent years has welcomed people newly arrived from the South, the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The style of worship has evolved further, and music may range from classical solos to hand-clapping, foot-tapping gospel refrains. Despite sharp differences in ethnic, educational, and economic backgrounds, the parishioners join hands in a "circle of prayer" during each Sunday service to offer individual requests and thanks.
Back in 1849 the first member listed in the parish register was "Poor old Mrs. Stone." Today the House of Prayer thanks God for her and for all who followed her, wearing a pathway across the stone threshold at the welcoming church door.
The parish was incorporated on November 24, 1849, and work on the present church began just four days later. Designed to resemble an English country church and built of brownstone from North Newark, the structure was finished in just a year at a cost of $13,000. It was consecrated on November 26, 1850, by Bishop George Washington Doane. Since then it has undergone few exterior alterations.
The church and rectory, the second oldest house in Newark, are both on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places. The parish hall adjoining the back of the church was erected in stages, from the 1860s through the 1880s.
Frank Wills, a leading architect in the Gothic Revival movement in the mid-19th century, designed the church. Noteworthy features include the tower, containing a single bell; the alternating round and octagonal pillars along the nave; a high beamed roof; and a century-old pipe organ. The only major adornments in the rather plain interior area n elaborate carved altar and rear screen (known as a "reredos"), designed by William Halsey Wood, architect of First Baptist Peddie Memorial Church, and the 14 Stations of the Cross, created by Robert Robbins. The Halsey stonework was installed in the 1890s, and the Stations in the 1920s.
The church narrowly escaped demotion in the 1960s after two fires, and was extensively remodeled. The old stone altar was moved forward to serve new forms of public worship; simple stained-glass windows replaced the deteriorated originals.
The Plume House, once part of a farm outside a Colonial village, was already 125 years old when it became a rectory. Washington and his retreating army passed the house in 177. According to legend, Ann Van Wagenen Plume chased a Hessian soldier from her parlor when she found him chopping furniture for firewood.
Later, the rectory became the scene of a major scientific advance in 1887, when the Rev. Hannibal Goodwin developed flexible photographic film - a discovery that made motion pictures possible. Goodwin, who was rector for 20 years, was concerned that glass lantern slides could be broken by Sunday school children. In the attic laboratory, he put photographic images on celluloid. His patent was finally upheld in a long, bitter legal battle, which ended 14 years after his death in 1900.
House of Prayer has a long tradition of worship in this community. Three rectors of House of Prayer have stayed 20 years or more. Some of the 19th century priests helped lead the movement for more Catholic or "High Church" practices. The House of Prayer was one of the first New Jersey churches to offer daily services, and to use vestments, candles, incense, and bells. Later, it became one of the first Anglo-Catholic parishes to welcome women priests and to elect teenagers to its governing body and women to all positions.
At the end of the 19th century, when nuns from the Community of St. John Baptist lived in the parish hall, the House of Prayer was working among poor families in a teeming neighborhood - "Little Italy." The sisters started one of the first day nurseries in the city, and one of the first clothing outlets for the poor.
This tradition of social service continued through the 20th century, as the parish ran teen canteens, summer camps, after-school programs, and a flea market catering to low-income families. Beginning in the 1970s, the parish hall housed day care centers, serving hundreds of families and up to 60 pre-school children at a time.
Back in its years of greatest growth and prosperity, the parish was led by the Rev. Samuel Miller, the rector from 1889 to 1919. A longer, leaner period faced his successor, Rev. William Venables, who served 34 years - from 1920 to 1953. He had to contend with the exodus of members to outlying areas, and threats from highway construction and urban renewal projects. The elevated section of what is now Route 280 barely bypassed the rectory in the 1950s, and most of the congested neighborhood around the church was razed for high-rise housing at that time.
In a transformed setting, the House of Prayer greeted new residents and stood its ground. The church and all were upgraded in the mid-1960s, and the rectory was rehabilitated in a 1976 Bicentennial training project for minority craftsmen.
Several recent rectors attracted wide attention. The Rev. Edd L. Payne, who served from 1956 to 1965, and his wife, Mary, wrote and produced a Passion play depicting the final days of Jesus's life on earth. The colorful pageant, "And He Shall Reign," drew large crowds to the church each spring. The Rev. Herbert G. Draesel Jr. (1965-72) composed the "Rejoice" folk mass and rock 'n' roll masses that have been widely performed and recorded.
The Rev. T. James Snodgrass (1980-86) helped found the Apostles' House shelter for the homeless and a food pantry, and began regular Spanish-language services - which ended, unfortunately, after he left. The Rev. Bernard P. Healy (1990-95) began projects to help immigrants and AIDS patients. He later died of the disease, and his ashes are interred beside the church in a memorial garden named for him.
A later rector, the Rev. Mildred J. Solomon (1998-2003), was the first African-American woman to lead any congregation in the Diocese of Newark. Now the parish plays an active role in a regional ministry comprising five Newark churches.
In recent years the parish sponsored a program to combat child abuse by parents; "Jazz Vespers" services featuring local musicians; international festivals showcasing fashions and foods of parishioners' homelands; a cooking school; and health fairs. Parishioners have sought to meet its financial needs with many fund-raising ventures - even the sale of blueberries raised on the Pennsylvania farm of one church family.
Just as the House of Prayer is a little outside the center of Newark, it has been a bit off-center through the years. It is one of only three Episcopal churches in the United States named House of Prayer. The name is from the Book of Isaiah (56:7), in which the Lord welcomes all nations and declares, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." The Isaiah verse is carved on the church's front wall.
Fulfilling that prophesy, the parish in recent years has welcomed people newly arrived from the South, the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The style of worship has evolved further, and music may range from classical solos to hand-clapping, foot-tapping gospel refrains. Despite sharp differences in ethnic, educational, and economic backgrounds, the parishioners join hands in a "circle of prayer" during each Sunday service to offer individual requests and thanks.
Back in 1849 the first member listed in the parish register was "Poor old Mrs. Stone." Today the House of Prayer thanks God for her and for all who followed her, wearing a pathway across the stone threshold at the welcoming church door.
More History of the Plume House
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In both the quantity and quality of its history, the rectory of the House of Prayer has few rivals in the city of Newark. It is the oldest of the more than 50,000 buildings in the city, and is one of only three structures in all of Newark whose origins antedate the American Revolution.
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Built around 1710 as a farm homestead on the outskirts of a Puritan village, the handsome stone dwelling stands today - and continues to serve as a home - in the heart of a great city. Its surroundings have changed almost totally in the 260 years since its stones were carved along a nearby brook, and its timbers hewn from neighboring woods. Nerly all the other landmarks from Newark's early days long since have been obliterated by various natural and human forces, particularly the relentless pressures of an expanding city.
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But the old house has survived comparatively intact, while somehow defying the threats of everyone from 18th century soldiers to 20th century highway designers. In recent years it has looked serenely upon some of the major symbols of Newark's rebirth, just as it looked long ago upon some of the symbols of the city's birth.
The longevity alone of this house is, particularly in Newark, a most historic accomplishment. But it has seen much more than the passage of many years: it has seen invasion by Hessian troops; it has seen the beginnings of a pioneer parish; it has seen a major photographic invention. But most of all it has seen closely the lives of courageous patriots and dedicated clergy - of many men and women who have helped make and remake the city that surrounds this most historic house.
The longevity alone of this house is, particularly in Newark, a most historic accomplishment. But it has seen much more than the passage of many years: it has seen invasion by Hessian troops; it has seen the beginnings of a pioneer parish; it has seen a major photographic invention. But most of all it has seen closely the lives of courageous patriots and dedicated clergy - of many men and women who have helped make and remake the city that surrounds this most historic house.