About the Church of the Covenant

A Brief History of the Church of the Covenant and Mission

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The mission of the Church of the Covenant began on January 28, 1866, as a mission Sabbath school located in a single room above a stable at 206 E. 40th Street. The purpose was to provide education to the poor and uneducated children and residents of a shantytown on the eastside of Manhattan in a community derisively known as “Pig Hill,” “Goat Hill,” or “Corcoran’s Roost.” Organized by a faithful group of young members of the original church, located at 35th Street and Park Avenue.Its rapid growth as a mission soon necessitated a search for more adequate space. In 1869, Mr. J. Cleveland Cady, a member of the congregation, drew up plans for a country chapel to be built on land acquired on East 42nd St. near 2nd Ave. Mr. Cady, who would also design the original New York Opera House and the southern wing of the Museum of Natural History, designed the ‘reversible’ church pews and prepared plans for the original organ. The interior of the sanctuary features ‘cut wood tracery, which fills the areas between the interior arches, and is naturally lighted by four long panels of antique glass on the north and south walls.

 

The church structure, originally known as, “Memorial Chapel,” was built at 310 East 42nd Street, and its sanctuary dedicated on December 24, 1871. Later, the original Church of the Covenant merged with the Brick Presbyterian Church in 1894. Members at Memorial Chapel on 42nd Street incorporated a new church and retained the name “Church of the Covenant.”Around 1925 the developer Frederick Filmore French conceived the idea of Tudor City. He acquired properties around and adjoining the Church of the Covenant for the undertaking, which was “a pioneering venture in private urban renewal.” Tudor City featured apartment buildings, apartment hotels and a transient hotel.

 

Hotel Tudor, what is now Westgate Resorts, was the eleventh unit of Tudor City, constructed between 1929 and 1932. In response, the original parish house was demolished and rebuilt in 1927, to blend with the style of the neighboring residential complex. In 1952, the street in front of the church was lowered to provide a more appropriate approach to the new United Nations Headquarters. With the development of the United Nations,Church of the Covenant became an active partner with the international community and by the 1960’s it was affectionately known as “the church of the United Nations.”Now the second oldest structure of note on 42nd Street, and part of the Tudor City Historic District, the Church of the Covenant occupies a special place in New York City geographically, historically and spiritually.

 

Seeking to build upon our legacy of a long history of relevant mission, international compassion and strategic partnership, Church of the Covenant is poised to meet the complex demands of modern-day global ministry and community partnership. It is blessed with one of the larger gathering spaces in the immediate area. We sponsor and host and array of music, cultural, social and educational events. We also open our building and make space available for community partners striving to enhance the midtown-east experience for the thousands of seekers, workers, tourists and visitors.