1. Old St. James Episcopal Church (1735)
Old St. James Episcopal Church on 86-02 Broadway in Elmhurst, built 1735.
Old St. James Episcopal Church was a mission church built in 1735 on a parcel of land granted by the town of Newton (later renamed Elmhurst). The Colonial church was built in the style of a meetinghouse, with a rectangular form, wood shingles, round-arched windows, and a timber frame. The parish erected a new, larger church in 1848, just one block North along Broadway. The old church was abandoned in 1849, although it was still used on special occasions. The second oldest religious building in New York City, it was granted landmark status in 2017.
The parish minister and most of the congregation at Old St. James Church remained loyal to England during the Revolutionary War. While the British army was encamped in Newtown Village, General William Howe, Prince William (later King William IV of England), and other high-ranking officers attended services at the church. After the war, the church broke ties with the Church of England and its parishioners proved their loyalty to America when they fought against the British in the War of 1812.