National Historic Landmark Archives | Page 2 of 28

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George Washington Worshipped Here►

Trinity Church on Broadway and Wall Street is the seat of one of America’s oldest parishes. The current building is the third church to occupy the site. It dates back to 1846.

The Anglicans built the first Trinity Church in 1698 and then Queen Anne gave 215 acres of land to the parish in 1705. As a result, today’s Trinity Church is one of the country’s wealthiest parishes. Annual revenue from its NYC real estate holdings is over $150 million.

The Great Fire of 1776 in NYC destroyed the first Trinity Church building. This fire burned 500 structures in the city just as the Revolutionary War broke out. In 1784, the state of New York revised the church’s charter so that it was no longer loyal to the British monarchy.

Trinity rebuilt in 1790. Saint Paul’s at Vesey Street, which is part of the Trinity parish, served the congregation while the new church was under construction. George Washington and Alexander Hamilton attended services there. Hamilton and his wife Eliza Schuyler Hamilton are buried in the adjoining cemetery.

This church was demolished when it was damaged by heavy snows in 1839. The current church replaced it and is still active in the Episcopalian Diocese of New York. It provided refuge for people during the 9-11 attacks and its satellite chapel of Saint Paul’s served as a staging area during the subsequent rescue operations.