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After a small but loyal band of 43 townsfolk
showed fervent interest in creating a local
church closer to their own neighborhoods,
they called a public meeting on January 13, 1888
and decided to hold religious services every
Sunday evening in the Glen Ridge Railway Station.
On March 4, it was decided that regular morning
and evening services should be held and that
a Sunday School should also be organized;
the first session met that very afternoon.
April 8, 1888,
however, was the most significant date in
the church's history. After the morning
service the first deacons were chosen.
The same day, a Congregational Council met
in response to an invitation from "a
body of Christians desiring to be recognized
as a Church of
Christ of the Congregational Order."
The Glen Ridge Congregational Church was then
declared to be organized.
The
services continued to be held in the station
for some time, both morning and evening,
supplemented by Prayer Meetings held at
Miss Northall's School on Thursday evenings.
The church now had met all but two main
needs: a church edifice and a pastor.
At a united meeting held July 4, 1888, the
Reverend Frank J. Goodwin was unanimously
chosen as the first minister.
As the congregation continued to grow, it
outgrew its quarters in the Railway Station,
and steps were taken to meet the need for
a building. The family of the Reverend
Joseph Gallagher, who had a sincere interest
in furthering the church and wished to give a memorial
in his name, gave the land on which the
church now stands. Encouraged by this
gift, other church members gave generously,
and plans for the building of the church were
completed. The cornerstone was laid
October 8, 1889, the church building was
completed in June 1890, and the last service
in the Station was held on Sunday evening,
June 22, 1890.
The dedications and regular services were
begun in the new church in October of that
year. Through the decades many people
of vision fashioned a committed ministry
to address the needs of the people, both
locally and throughout the world. |
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