Church History
From The First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles
The First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles is the oldest congregation in the village. It was organized July 20, 1801, by the Rev. Aaron Bascom, who had been sent by the New Hampshire Missionary Association. Originally organized as The Schaneateles Religious Society, this body of faith had three purposes: To be the Court of Equity, judging between one citizen and another in order to find redemption and forgiveness. To provide local public education, in an age before public schools. To listen for persons' confessions of faith, in order that all might be in communion. Christmas Day 1806, the body was divided by controversy, as the religious Society voted whether to become a Church. A Church meant having a building, an ordained pastor and supporting local and foreign missions, rather than the earlier three purposes. By a vote of 8 to 7 the Schaneateles religious Society became the First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles, but never forgot our roots in mission service.
Dedication of the new building was March 1, 1809. The cost of construction was $6,500. While it took over two years to raise this sum, the Church was built in six days, with the congregation worshipping in the new church on the Seventh day. This sanctuary became unsatisfactory to parishioners in less than twenty-two years, because while built on the model of being a moral beacon set atop a hill, the hill proved to be quite steep especially in the winters while the commercial and residential districts of the Village were developing beside the Lake. The first building was sold to the Baptist congregation. The first building now houses the Baptist congregation on State Street, after having been moved from Onondaga Street.
A new structure was built on the present site 97 East Genesee Street in 1831 at the cost of $6,000 with an additional $800 for the land. However, during an overflow capacity evangelistic service in December 1891 (The Second Great Awakening), the floor began to collapse. Repairs proved to be inadequate and the building was torn down.
A new church building was necessary. The present church was built for a cost of $30,000 and dedicated on July 27, 1892. Since this time many additions and improvements have been made. With the exception of the new organ and center section of the church, the newest addition had been Dobson Fellowship Hall, dedicated on February 1, 1959. That addition named in honor of the pastor at that time, the Rev. John B. Dobson.
The First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles was unique for its day. The nearest completed church building in 1809 was in Homer. Auburn had no church until 1816 while Syracuse and Rochester had none until 1826.
In 1994, with a skilled Interim Pastor and tenacious leadership, The First Presbyterian Church confronted many difficult circumstances of our history. In October 1996, the Church called the Rev. Craig Lindsey as pastor, confronting what it means to be "The Church in this Community Today". Not simply to be a non-profit organization, group, fellowship or family, but to be the Church. Called by the Watchwords of the Reformation "To Be Reformed, and Always in a State of being Reformed by God", the Church became very visible in the community, both as a place of worship and the arts, with involvement in mission in the community (Skaneateles/Syracuse/the World), and as a Community center. In 1997, the congregation voted to undertake two Capital Fund pledge drives simultaneously. The first had been to do essential maintenance, without which the facility would be in peril. The second, to correct design issues and expand the facility for the 21st Century. In addition, the congregation expanded the Operating Budget by 7-10% per year. By the year 2000 all of these renovations and the related costs were fully repaid. In June 2001 the congregation commissioned a new 40 Rank Casavant Freres Pipe Organ. This installation required removal of the Choir loft, removal of the asbestos floor, leveling, bracing and replacing the floor, removal of the old organ and chambers, rebuilding the Chancel wall with new locations for organ chambers, and creation of a Chancel platform. January 2007, the Session took action to repay the last of the debt. In total the congregation had raised $3 million more than the Operating Budget. (Read more about the history of the Church coming soon...)
