First Presbyterian Church (Downtown Ossining Historic District)

The First Presbyterian Church is included in the Downtown Ossining Historic District, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. It is architecturally significant as a well-preserved example of High Victorian architecture. This structure is also culturally significant as the home of the First Presbyterian Congregation of Ossining. 

The First Presbyterian Congregation was formed in 1763 and originally occupied a site located in what is now Sparta Cemetery on land donated by Frederick Philipse, owner of the vast Philipse Manor that stretched from modern-day Kingsbridge, Bronx to the Croton River. The original building was damaged during the Revolutionary War, prompting the congregation to build a new structure in the village of Sing Sing on the site of the current Trinity Episcopal Church at 7 South Highland Avenue in 1803. As the congregation grew, this church was expanded until it was no longer adequate to house the congregation. 

The present church was constructed from 1868 to 1870 for a cost of approximately $95,000 by contractor Peter H. Terhune of Binghamton, NY and designed by architect Isaac Gale Perry. Perry was later appointed as the State Architect for the State of New York and designed the final phase of the New York State Capitol in Albany from 1883 to 1899 as well as the New York State Armory in Poughkeepsie in 1891.

The church is two stories in height with rectangular massing. The front façade is dominated by two front towers on either side of the main entryway. Typical of the High Victorian Gothic style, the church makes use of the polychrome theme with the contrasting brick colors on window sills, lintels, surrounds, buttress caps, and surrounding the main entrance. The gothic pointed arch motif is used for window openings and entryways. The gabled main entrance, which faces South Highland Avenue, is surrounded with elaborate limestone work. The church originally was constructed with a tall steeple on the southeast tower that was subsequently removed in the 1950s when the building was renovated and modernized. The church is constructed with brick and limestone. 

The First Presbyterian Church is included in the Downtown Ossining Historic District, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

Special thanks to Joyce Cole, Ossining Village Historian, for her research and contributions to this entry.

1. “Ossining Downtown Historic District #88001827.” National Register of Historic Places. United States Department of the Interior/National Park Service. Aug 9, 1989. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75323005.  
2.  “Significant Sites & Structures.” Ossining NY. Accessed June 27, 2023. https://www.villageofossining.org/about/pages/significant-sites-structures. 
3. Williams, Gray. Picturing Our Past: National Register Sites in Westchester County. Westchester County Historical Society. 2003.