The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-07-15
Grace Church


The enlargement Of Grace Church and
the addition Of building AZ it's rear in
Fourth avenue for its parish work. now
grown TO great proportions. are another
step IN the progress which that church
has made almost continuously during
a period Of nearly a century
Originally. Grace Church stood AZ the
corner Of Rector street and broadway
where is nov n of the greatest sky
scrapers : of our lime That site had
been occupied by the Trinity Lutheran
Church until 1919 when in the great fire
Of that year lts structure was burned.
Hero Grace Church was built in l~yS,
and II remained there until lsi5 when
its present Gothic editice vas con
structcd after designs by JAMES REN-
WICK. the architect who designed al-n
tho Roman Cathoiic Cathedral IN Fifth
avenu besides many other churches IN
New York and elsewhere.
When Grace Church first opened liz
doors al Rector street the population
Of New York was less han that Of Phlla-
dclphIa. II Wa not vet pne hundred
Thousand The City Hall was not COM
p!cted until four years Inter. 'hough -
cornerstone had been llId m 1893 ~
that time there were tnlrty-thr"e
churches in New York, nine 81 them tpiS-
Copalian. The exports az thu harbor
were then only about tw'ntv-threa
millions annually
one wear after the building If Grace
Church Tow PAINE died n New York.
de,estcd nv all religious people 81 tho
dav a. an Inhdel and an atheist. though
really he was a dclst and his IntdeiIty
waS mid a. compared with that which
nos appears ever IN some Of our thcolog-
zeal schools. In PARK row, between
Ann and Beckmau streets. was the PARK
Theatre. - famous 10 our dramatic
history. II ha wing been built IN 1893 II
was burned down IN $50. hut was soon
rebuilt. largely with means furnished
by the original JOHN JACoB AsloR, a
great lover Of the drama. 4 .is' of
houses and lots valued at a., D. and over
IN New York IN l7sa gives the names Of
49, owners and there were 81 sne Of
suburban residences
Tn" present site of Grace Church IS
made Conspicuous because there Broad
way takes "A sudden bend, the reason
for which II that Bowery lane, or the old
Boston road, wher" now Is Fourth ave-
u curved on passing through Union
square rs II il now, and from seven
tecnth street was called the Bloomingdalc
road IN Ina the course of Broadway
was changed bv a bend az Tenth street
So as Ia onn A. directly as possible
with the road io the %northward.
Grace Church was Opened for divine
service AZ a time when New York wa
passing through a great social and com
m.rcial transformation because Of the
Introduction of g navigation. rail-
road transportation and the telegraph
The population of the town had grown
Ia nearly half n million and Philadelphia
had been left far behind. The town
was building up with "a good deal of
~compactne~s IA far IA Thru y-iourth
street. Fifth avcnue was becoming the
street, Of fashion. and there was much
talk about the prevalence Of cxtrava-
giant luxury, though ~ compared with
the present the highest scale of grandeur
was simple and humble.
still, even at that time Tenth street
was looked on az uptown, aud st.
Johns Park was a fashionable neigh
borhood. Wealth and fashion were also
c~ongregating about Washington Square,
and they had other seats in Bond street.
.Astor place and Clinton place. In the
Chelsea neighborhood was still another
settlement of the same sort. The great
Irish immigration Of tins period popu-
lated the new districts.
Churches have gone northwsrd with
the advancing population Of the town,
bu, Grace Church remains at Tenth