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Burial vaults may hold clues to Old Dutch Church's shifting wall PDF Print E-mail
Written by DeadGirl   
Wednesday, 10 January 2007
By Hugh Reynolds, Political Editor
January 10, 2007

Kingston, NY--The Old Dutch Church in Uptown Kingston has served through conflicts from the Civil War to Iraq and at least two devastating hurricanes, but it appears a combination of time and design, and maybe some long-dead bodies in the basement, have tilted the hallowed edifice off the straight and narrow.
Completed in 1852 on the site of its graveyard after the original building was burned by the British, the Dutch Reformed Church - what one architect called "Kingston's cathedral" - may have been out of kilter almost from the start. Historical records at the church show that within 10 years after construction was completed, the east wall (facing Fair Street) showed signs of stress. It was determined that a slate roof designed by renowned church architect Menard Lefever was too heavy for the 16-inch bluestone bearing walls to hold. It was replaced with a metal roof in the 1870s.


A hurricane blew off the church's original 236-foot tower in 1853 and may have contributed to long-term structural damage. The present tower, 17 feet shorter, was installed about seven years after what was described as "the great gale."

But historical architects and church elders are looking in a different direction these days in an attempt to determine the root cause of the church's structural problems: the burial vaults underneath the church itself.


Kingston Historian Edwin Ford, a member of the church consistory, said records show 80 bodies buried in the sandy soil underneath the church, but he thinks there may be many more. "You know, those old Dutch were very frugal. They might have used graves for more than one body," he said.


What that could mean to the church is a less than stable base, a shifting foundation - however slight - and problems throughout the structure.


At present, the 36-by-80-foot east wall is about 14 inches out of plumb, a condition that was addressed three years ago by buttressing the wall with steel beams. That was at best a temporary fix, at a cost of more than $450,000 in grants from the federal Save America's Treasures Foundation and the state's Environmental Protection Fund. U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley, was instrumental in securing the $100,000 federal grant to stabilize the east wall.


The church, according to its historian, Donna Light, has received approval from the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation for a $350,000 matching grant for the comprehensive survey work. Matching the $350,000 will be a challenge, Light said. The Old Dutch congregation, once one of the largest in the city, has shrunk to only 115 full-time members. The church seats more than 800.


The plan, according to the Rev. Kenneth Walsh, the church pastor, is to conduct a comprehensive structural survey of the church walls, its roof and trusses, foundation and the basement area. Ground penetrating radar will be used to locate graves under the church and its foundations. Sensors will be placed "in every nook and cranny" in the walls, according to Walsh, "in order to monitor the slightest changes." Monitoring systems will be in place for a year, beginning in April.


The church has engaged renowned historic landmarks architect John Waite of Albany to oversee the survey work. Waite was the architect responsible for the restoration of Kingston's City Hall from 1998 to 2000.


While often described architecturally as "Egyptian revival," Waite calls the church "an American original, a combination of styles that makes it unique. It is without a doubt one of the most important buildings in America."


The church is seeking National Historic Landmark designation, which may help it secure future federal and state grants for restoration and preservation.


Waite said he didn't coin the phrase "Kingston's cathedral" to describe the church's centuries long importance to the city, but calls it "an accurate thought."


Rev. Walsh agrees. "Wherever there has been a national crisis, the Old Dutch is where people flock to," he said. The first Old Dutch Church, Kingston's first religious edifice, was built near the present building in 1669.


Walsh hopes the restoration of the church will lead to a revival of its congregation, which once numbered almost a thousand. "Concerns about the wall have been hanging over our heads for five years. It's time to move on. We want a safe place in order to minister," he said.


Plans for a fund-raiser to meet the matching grant will be announced.

http://www.dailyfreeman.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1769&dept_id=74958&newsid=17690731&PAG=461&rfi=9
 
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