Stelton Baptist Church, Edison

Last updated
Stelton Baptist Church in 2019 Stelton Baptist Church, Edison, NJ.jpg
Stelton Baptist Church in 2019

The Stelton Baptist Church is in the Stelton section of Edison, Middlesex County, New Jersey. It is the second oldest Baptist Church in New Jersey and the tenth oldest in the United States. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

History

Stelton Baptist Church cemetery Stelton Baptist Church cemetery, Edison, NJ - area view.jpg
Stelton Baptist Church cemetery

The congregation was formed in the spring of 1689, and among its original members was the Stelle family, after whom the Stelton section of Edison, New Jersey is named. Up until 1875 the church was known as the First Baptist Church of Piscataway. [4] The land occupied by the church and cemetery at Stelton was purchased in April 1731. The first church was erected in 1748, and that building was taken down and rebuilt in 1825. This building was destroyed by a fire on New Year's Day, January 1, 1851. [5] In 1870 portions of Piscataway, New Jersey and Woodbridge, New Jersey were used to form Raritan, New Jersey. The site of the church later became Edison, New Jersey. [2] [3] The building which took its place was destroyed in a fire in 1924. The present building was erected in 1925. [3] The cemetery contains hundreds of early burials, including Andrew Drake. [6] The first female pastor of the congregation, the Rev. Kathleen Tice, was installed in 1999. After 10 years of service at the congregation, Pastor Tice retired during the summer of 2010.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edison, New Jersey</span> Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States

Edison is a township located in Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated in Central New Jersey within the core of the state's Raritan Valley region, Edison is a commercial hub and is a bedroom community of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township was the state's sixth-most-populous municipality, with a population of 107,588, an increase of 7,621 (+7.6%) from the 2010 census count of 99,967, which in turn reflected an increase of 2,280 (+2.3%) from the 97,687 counted in the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Highland Park, New Jersey</span> Borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States

Highland Park is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States in the New York City metropolitan area. The borough is located on the northern banks of the Raritan River, in the Raritan Valley region. As of the 2020 United States Census, the borough's population was 15,072, reflecting an increase (7.28%) from the 2010 United States Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscataway, New Jersey</span> Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States

Piscataway is a township in Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of the New York metropolitan area, in the Raritan Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 60,804, an increase of 4,760 (+8.5%) from the 2010 census count of 56,044, which in turn reflected an increase of 5,562 (+11.0%) from 50,482 at the 2000 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Jersey</span> Place in New Jersey, United States

Central Jersey is the central region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The designation of Central New Jersey is a distinct administrative toponym.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elm Ridge Cemetery, North Brunswick</span> Cemetery in North Brunswick, New Jersey

Elm Ridge Cemetery is on Route 27 in North Brunswick, New Jersey. It is a historic cemetery of both the Colonial period (18th-century) and the Victorian period (19th-century). Although located in Middlesex County, the majority of the burials are from Somerset County, which directly borders the cemetery.

New Jersey's 6th congressional district is represented by Democrat Frank Pallone, who has served the district in Congress since 1993. The district includes the northern and eastern portions of Middlesex County and the coastal areas of Monmouth County, including towns along the Raritan Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raritan Landing, New Jersey</span> Unincorporated community in New Jersey, United States

Raritan Landing is a historical unincorporated community located within Piscataway Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, which was once an inland port, the farthest upstream point ocean-going ships could reach along the Raritan River, across from New Brunswick. Begun in the early 18th century it remained vital until the mid 19th century, when most of the port was abandoned.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edison station</span>

Edison is a commuter railroad station in the Stelton section of Edison Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. Located at the intersection of Plainfield Avenue and Central Avenue, the station is served by New Jersey Transit's Northeast Corridor Line. Amtrak trains cross through but bypass the station. Edison station contains two side platforms, both high-level for handicap accessibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The next station north, towards New York Penn Station is Metuchen while the next station south, with service towards Jersey Avenue station in New Brunswick and Trenton Transit Center is New Brunswick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">County Route 529 (New Jersey)</span>

County Route 529 is a county highway in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The highway extends 10.57 miles (17.01 km) from Woodbridge Avenue in Edison to Mountain Boulevard in Watchung.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stelton, New Jersey</span> Unincorporated community in New Jersey, United States

Stelton is an unincorporated community located within Edison Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Road Up Raritan Historic District</span> Historic district in New Jersey, United States

The Road Up Raritan Historic District is a 69-acre (28 ha) historic district located along River Road in the township of Piscataway in Middlesex County, New Jersey. It is north of Raritan Landing, once an important inland port on the Raritan River during the 18th and 19th centuries. The name is taken from an earlier colonial era name for what was once a Lenape path, Assunpink Trail that became a main road parallel to the river. Piscataway Township itself was formed on December 18, 1666 as one of the first seven townships in East Jersey, and is one of the oldest municipalities in the state. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 18, 1997, for its significance in architecture, military history, and exploration/settlement. The district includes nine of fourteen historic homes along an approximately 1.2-mile (1.9 km) stretch of River Road. The Metlar-Bodine House and the Cornelius Low House are also in the immediate vicinity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Jersey Olde Towne Village</span>

East Jersey Old Town Village is an open-air museum located in Johnson Park in Piscataway, New Jersey. The Village is a collection of Raritan Valley area historic buildings and includes original, reconstructed, and replicated 18th and 19th century vernacular architecture typical of farm and merchant communities of Central Jersey. It is home to a permanent exhibition about Raritan Landing, an 18th-century inland port once located just downstream on the river. Since 1989, the Middlesex County Office of Arts and History has had responsibility for the village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Stone Arch Bridge (Bound Brook, New Jersey)</span> United States historic place

The Old Stone Arch Bridge is a bridge located in Bound Brook, New Jersey, United States. It is the second-oldest extant bridge in the US, after the Frankford Avenue Bridge over Pennypack Creek in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Built in 1731, it is the oldest bridge in New Jersey. It spans the Green Brook and connects Bound Brook with Middlesex Borough in northern central New Jersey.

New Dover is an unincorporated community located within Edison Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The neighborhood began as colonial village that was part of adjacent Woodbridge Township. Along with Bonhamtown, New Durham and Stelton, it is one of the older historical communities of the township.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Durham, Middlesex County, New Jersey</span> Unincorporated community in New Jersey, United States

New Durham was an unincorporated community and now a neighborhood located within Edison in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, south of Dismal Swamp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton Historic District (Clinton, New Jersey)</span> Historic district in New Jersey, United States

The Clinton Historic District is a 175-acre (71 ha) historic district encompassing much of the town of Clinton in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 28, 1995, for its significance in architecture, commerce, engineering, industry and exploration/settlement. The district includes 270 contributing buildings, one contributing structure, and three contributing sites. Five were previously listed on the NRHP individually: Dunham's Mill, M. C. Mulligan & Sons Quarry, Music Hall, Old Grandin Library, and Red Mill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piscatawaytown, New Jersey</span> Unincorporated community in New Jersey, United States

Piscatawaytown is the oldest neighborhood in Edison Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey. It was established in the 1660s as the original village in what was then within Piscataway Township. Piscatawaytown is centered around St. James Church and the Piscatawaytown Common, near the intersection of Plainfield and Woodbridge Avenues. The Piscatawaytown Burial Ground is one of the oldest recorded cemeteries in Middlesex County and maintained by the township.

References

  1. Jorgensen, Charles W. (1964). History of the Stelton Baptist Church. Stelton Baptist Church.
  2. 1 2 Wall, John P. (1921). History of Middlesex County, New Jersey.
  3. 1 2 3 "Stelton Baptist Church". Edison, New Jersey. Archived from the original on 2007-08-23. Retrieved 2007-08-26. The Stelton Baptist Church is the second oldest Baptist Church in New Jersey and the 10th oldest in the nation. Stelton Baptist Church was formed in the spring of 1689, and among its original members was the Stelle family, after whom the Stelton section of Edison is named. Through 1875, however, the church was known as the First Baptist Church of Piscataway. Present-day congregants celebrated the tercentennial of their church in a year-long celebration in 1989. The land now occupied by the church and burial ground at Stelton was purchased in April 1731, and a house of worship erected there in 1748. This building was taken down and rebuilt in 1825, but was destroyed by fire January 1, 1851. The building which took its place, also burned in 1924, and the present church was erected in 1925. In 1870 the incorporation of parts of Piscataway and Woodbridge Townships to form Raritan Township, placed the church in the latter municipality, which became Edison.
  4. Weir, David A. (2005). Early New England: A Covenanted Society. ISBN   0-8028-1352-6.
  5. Spies, Stacy E. (2001). Edison. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN   0-7385-0549-8.
  6. Sarapin, Janice Kohl (2002). Old Burial Grounds of New Jersey. Rutgers University Press. ISBN   0-8135-2111-4.

Coordinates: 40°31′01″N74°24′25″W / 40.517047°N 74.406964°W / 40.517047; -74.406964