Old First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington is a historic

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

located on West Street on Brandywine Park Drive in Wilmington,

New Castle County, Delaware New Castle County is the northernmost of the three List of counties in Delaware, counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent County, Delaware, Kent, and Sussex County, Delaware, Sussex). As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

. Built in 1740, the one-story brick structure measures 30 feet by 40 feet and has a gambrel roof. Originally located on the east side of Wilmington's Market Street between 9th and 10th Streets, the building was used during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

by British troops as a prison and hospital during the occupation of Wilmington after the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Am ...

, September 12, 1777. It remained a house of worship until 1840. and A cemetery on the site was the final resting place of many noted Wilmingtonians which were reinterred to

Wilmington and Brandywine Cemetery Wilmington and Brandywine Cemetery is a rural cemetery at 701 Delaware Avenue in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1843, it contains over 21,000 burials on about 25 acres. History The cemetery was envisioned in 1843 by Sam Wollaston, who sought ...

and Riverview Cemetery. It was moved to its present site in 1916. In order to move it, it was dismantled and rebuilt with its re-dedication in 1918. It was given to the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Delaware to maintain and restore. They currently use it as their headquarters and have it open to the public on 2nd Sundays, April–October, 2-4pm. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1972.

The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America (often abbreviated as NSCDA) is an American lineage society composed of women who are descended from an ancestor "who came to reside in an American Colony before 1776, and whose services wer ...

restored the interior to its original condition in 1981.

References

External links

*
The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America: THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (1740)
* Historic American Buildings Survey in Delaware History museums in Delaware Museums in Wilmington, Delaware Churches in Wilmington, Delaware Presbyterian churches in Delaware Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Delaware Churches completed in 1740 National Society of the Colonial Dames of America National Register of Historic Places in Wilmington, Delaware 18th-century Presbyterian church buildings in the United States {{Delaware-Presbyterian-church-stub