St. John's Chapel belonged to the

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

parish of Trinity Church in Tribeca, Manhattan, New York City.

History

It was constructed in 1803 to designs by

John McComb Jr. John McComb Jr. (1763 – 1853) was an American architect who designed many landmarks in the 18th and 19th centuries. Between 1790 and 1825, McComb was New York city's leading architect. John McComb Jr. was born on October 17, 1763 in New Yo ...

and his brother Isaac McComb on Varick Street, facing

St. John's Park St. John's Park was a 19th-century park and square, and the neighborhood of townhouses around it, in what is now the Tribeca neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City. The square was bounded by Varick Street, Laight Street, Hudson Str ...

. McComb gave it a sandstone tetrastyle prostyle portico supporting a tower and multi-storeyed spire that rose to 214¼ feet. Master builders for the chapel have been recorded as T. C. Taylor, Henry Hedley, Daniel Domanick and Isaac McComb."Portico of St. John's Chapel, Varick Street," Special Index Issue
''The American Architect''
(Weekly publication, founded 1876), (New York:243 West 39th Street) (July–December 1920). The chancel was added in 1857 to designs by

Richard M. Upjohn Richard Michell Upjohn, FAIA, (March 7, 1828 – March 3, 1903) was an American architect, co-founder and president of the American Institute of Architects. Early life and career Upjohn was born on March 7, 1828 in Shaftesbury, Dorsetshire, E ...

. The original location of this church was one of the most attractive in New York. It stood opposite the eastern side of

, whose tree-shaded walks were a favorite recreational spot for the well-to-do residents of the neighbourhood. In 1867 Trinity Church, which had retained ownership of the park, sold it to the

Hudson River Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the ...

for a downtown freight terminal. This unfortunate occurrence changed the character of the residential section nearby; the warehouse's undesirable influences were felt for many blocks in every direction. What had been a neighborhood of patrician dwellings was reduced to a slovenly purlieu of ramshackle buildings. The congregation left in the 1890s and the structure was torn down in 1918. It was cleared during a construction project that widened Varick Street and also facilitated construction of the

IRT Broadway – Seventh Avenue Line IRT may refer to: Science and technology * Imagery rehearsal therapy, a treatment for nightmare disorders * Immunoreactive trypsinogen, newborn screening test for cystic fibrosis * Infrared thermography * Infrared Telescope (IRT), carried on Space ...

. City officials wanted to allow the

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

to protrude into the widened street and vault the flanking pedestrian sidewalk under it because they recognized the steeple’s importance as a landmark. The Episcopal Church instead decided to demolish the building.Christopher Gray.
STREETSCAPES: A Chapel the City Fought to Save
'' New York Times'' (April 27, 2008).

References

External links

*
St. John's Chapel records at Trinity Wall Street Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Chapel, New York City 19th-century Episcopal church buildings Buildings and structures demolished in 1918 Chapels in the United States Churches completed in 1803 Churches in Manhattan Closed churches in New York City Demolished churches in New York City Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan Federal architecture in New York City Former Episcopal church buildings in New York City Richard Upjohn church buildings 1803 establishments in New York (state) 1918 disestablishments in New York (state) John McComb Jr. buildings