Happy 172nd anniversary to Tremont Terrace Moravian Church, founded as “Second Moravian Church” on April 27, 1852. It has its origin in the Moravian Church’s Home Mission Society and was initially part of efforts to minister to newly arrived German immigrants.

Originally worshiping in Manhattan, the congregation ultimately relocated to the Bronx in 1906, where it has remained since. Like many congregations, the history of Second Moravian / Tremont Terrace is documented in a wide variety of collections preserved here in the MAB. In this Digital Collections Spotlight, we’d like to show you just a few of the many items in our collection that might be studied by those interested in the history of this congregation.

Records of baptisms, confirmations, marriages, funerals, and other pastoral acts are recorded in church registers of the congregation.[1] Speaking to the congregation’s early roots in attracting German speakers, newly arrived in New York City, here is a sample marriage entry from 1861, recorded by the pastor, P. F. Rommel, in German.

Here is a sample baptismal entry from 1886, recorded by the pastor, William Henry Rice, again in German.

In addition to church registers, the MAB preserves twenty boxes (14 linear feet) of records from Second Moravian / Tremont Terrace. Series include church diaries, bulletins, meeting minutes, Sunday school records, and much more. Below is a sample diary entry, recorded by pastor, Robert K. Stansfield, documenting the celebration of the congregation’s 100th anniversary on April 27, 1952.

The Moravian Archives also preserves a large collection of drawings, prints, photographs, and other visual materials. In the sample below, you can see a set of plans preserved in our Drawings and Prints Collection, which are from 1964 and show the design for an addition to the current church building, intended to house the parsonage and class rooms.

Another interesting visual item is this photograph from the Oversized Photographs Collection that is labeled “Tremont Terrace Old Church.”. While it is undated, we can be reasonably confident that it shows the previous church at the current location, which was a remodeled mansion formerly belonging to the Ferris family that the congregation used from 1923 until the current building was built in 1930.

Finally, there are also a few interesting items in our library collection, such as books by Harry E. Stocker on Moravian home missions and activities in New York City that include the history of Tremont Terrace, in addition to printed materials produced by the congregation itself such as a booklet, shown below, made for their 156th anniversary in 2008.

Another particularly interesting item is shown below, the “Historical Year Book and Directory” from 1932, which describes the congregation, its schedule of events, its finances, and includes this photograph of the first location of the congregation.

 

[1] Seven of the congregation’s historic church registers are digitized, some of which have been made available online at https://www.moravianchurcharchives.findbuch.net/php/main.php#4368526567y2-13-4.