Flatbush Reformed Dutch Church Complex

The Flatbush Reformed Dutch Church Complex sits on a site used for Dutch Reformed worship since 1654, making it the oldest continuous religious property in New York City. The current Federal-style church, built of Manhattan schist between 1793–1798 and designed by Thomas Fardon, features a robust stone tower, belfry, arched Romanesque windows, and Tuscan colonettes. In 1889, Tiffany Studios added commemorative stained-glass windows honoring early Dutch settler descendants.

The overall complex includes the adjacent cemetery, which has gravestones dating back to 1754, a Greek Revival/Italianate parsonage (1853) relocated onsite in 1918, and a Colonial Revival church house added in 1923–24. Together they reflect centuries of architectural evolution and community significance in the Flatbush neighborhood.

Interesting Facts

• The congregation was founded by decree of Peter Stuyvesant in 1654.

• The original third church replaced earlier structures; its bell was imported from Holland and funded by John Vanderbilt.

• The churchyard is the resting place of founding Flatbush families, with many veterans of the Battle of Long Island buried in unmarked graves beneath the building.

• Tiffany stained-glass windows commemorating early settlers were installed in 1889.

• The complex is a NYC Landmark (1966) and on the National Register of Historic Places (1983)