St James Episcopal Church, Lake George

St James Episcopal Church, Lake George c1861
(photo 5/7/11)

This is one of 4 churches in Warren county that had cornerstones laid during the tenure of Rev. Robert Fulton Crary between 1861 and 1867, Bolton Landing, Harresina, Lake George and Warrensburg.  Crary chose a Gothic revival style for all 4 churches.

Lake Luzerne United Methodist Church

Lake Luzerne United Methodist Church, 1852
(photo 5/7/2011)

A plaque by the front door says the congregation was established in 1807, the building built in 1852.
The steeple was struck by lightning in the 1990's and a smaller steeple was placed on the bell tower.

Historical marker in front of church:
First Methodist
Episcopal church built in 1852 by James Hedgeman and Silas Dayton.
First pastor the Rev. Henry Williams.
Now the United Methodist Church

St. Mary's Episcopal Church

St. Mary's Episcopal Church,  Lake Luzerne 1874-75
(photo 10/26/2008)

Congregation founded in 1865, the cornerstone was laid on August 25th 1874 and construction lasted about a year. There is a concise history at the churches website:
http://www.stmarysluzerne.org/pg_history/

The August 25th date is pertinent. To this point I haven't included many recently built churches.  Older churches seem more dignified, more architectural. Why?

Of course it is about people, the congregation, the founders.  Here in the Adirondacks congregations are often comprised of two groups; the locals and the "summer people." Often it was the tourists, the some-time Adirondackers, the people with summer camps who largely funded the construction of churches. There was and still is a divide between those groups.

More recent churches built within the Blue Line tend to glorify the architecture far less than in the past. My thesis is that these are churches built and paid for by locals opposed to the more elegant structures of the sometime residents. I expect this will be a running thread.

St Mary's built in "downtown" Lake Luzerne, directly on Rt. 9N is a good place to represent this dichotomy. More on that later.

St John's in the Wilderness, Paul Smiths

St John's in the Wilderness Episcopal Church, Paul Smiths 1927
(photos 9/26/2010)

Adirondack Churches, by Sally Svenson devotes a chapter to Church Design for Summer Residents and Visitors and St John's figures prominently. The original church was a log building built in 1877 designed by George Hathorne of New York city.  Fundraising for the new church was led by Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau, who I believe is buried behind the present church. The idea of building with logs was novel for wealthy visitors who enjoyed the spending time as rustics while on vacation from the city.
Locals preferred to more sophisticated construction if it could be afforded.

The original church burned down in 1927 and was replaced with a  more fire resistant stone church in a medieval English style designed by William Distin of Saranac Lake.

This is also the final resting place of Clifford R. Pettis a Cornell University Forester who is named as "the father of reforestation" in New York State. Pettis was Superintendent of State Forests from 1910 to 1927 a time when much of the Adirondacks was a deforested wasteland prone to fire and erosion.

Diamond Point Community Church

Diamond Point Community Church, formerly the Union Evangelical Church (1876-79) and St. John's Community Church
(photo 10/01/1)


This building, located on the corner of Diamond Point Road and Rt. 9N, appears in Adirondack Churches as an illustration for the wagon shed which once was a feature to many rural churches. 


From the church website a portion of the churches history.        


" Although known by many different names over the past 130 years, the mission of this church has remained the same; to welcome all who wish to worship here. Mr. George H. Cramer commenced construction of the building in 1876 as a memorial to his brother John Cramer. Built of native rough stone it consisted of a tower and belfry at its east and a chancel at the west displaying a handsome stained glass window also dedicated to his brother. Displeasure with the progress caused Mr. Cramer to unceremoniously close down the job, leaving the building available for use but possessing a barn-like floor, unpainted and soiled walls, and a generally uncomfortable and unwelcoming atmosphere. Called the Union Evangelical Church, it was dedicated to the worship of Almighty God on August 12, 1879. At that time the church and the property on which it rests were presented by Mr. Cramer to the then trustees, G. H. Cramer, Jefferson Smith, and Dr. Edwin L. Patrick. Unfortunately the disrepair of the building reflected upon the behavior of the parishioners. Children were unsupervised, youth both male and female munched apples and tossed chestnuts among themselves, while the young men came and went as they pleased, frequently disrupting the service. During its first few years the church was served by local Methodist ministers and even and itinerant evangelist who offered to preach without pay."


There is much more information on the church website:

www.diamondpointcommunitychurch.com

St. Christopher's Church

St. Christopher's Episcopalian Church, Adirondack Mission in North Creek, NY (photo 9/24/2010)

This is a postage stamp size church, I'm guessing about 12' x 32' in size with space for maybe 30 parishioners, tops. I almost didn't turn down the side street this church is located on. This charming little building of relatively new construction was a real find.

"St. Christopher's Church, North Creek, started out meeting in the local fire house.  In 1948 one and one half prefabricated garages arrived on a rail car.  The building was assembled on Ridge Street. where it still stands, making St. Christophers's one of the smallest church buildings in the Diocese of Albany." This information from the Adirondack Mission website.

If the front door is locked the key hangs conveniently within easy reach  to the right of the door.