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| Keywords: blackandwhite monochrome building architecture outdoor black and white "The Yellow Frame congregation is one of the few pre-revolutionary churches remaining in Northwest New Jersey. For two and a half centuries the people of this congregation have bound together in worship, withstanding the changes of the region it serves, from a rural community of farmers and tradesmen tied to agriculture, to a growing population of employed men and women working within, and commuting outside, the community. In 1750 a group of worshippers met in a location about 1¼ miles northeast of Log Gaol, (pronounced Jail), forming a new congregation, meeting in homes occasionally with a Minister or a Supply sent by the Presbytery. Around 1760 they leased a parcel of land big enough for a simple log cabin and a burial ground. Log Gaol, now known as Johnsonburg, was the County Seat of Sussex County, which at that time included a very large portion of northwest New Jersey. The first church members were settlers from around Log Gaol, in the upper portion of the Township of Hardwick, who called themselves The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick. Although the name was not incorporated until 1841, records of 1751 and 1752 in the New Brunswick Presbytery state that “there were calls for a Minister or a Supply from the region of Hardwick”. The log church was located near the Dark Moon Tavern on Dark Moon Rd. (which is now State Route 519) and was often referred to as the Dark Moon Church & Cemetery. It was about one and a half miles southeast of the present Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church. The Reverend Francis Peppard, called in 1773 to serve as their first Minister, responded to the call and stayed until 1783. However, by 1780 the congregation had outgrown the log meeting house which could only be used from April through October. After great deliberation a new site was selected on one of the highest ridges in northwest New Jersey; where Shaw’s Lane, running east & west, joins The Kings Highway – a portion of the Stage Road from Boston to Philadelphia, (now Route 94.) The construction of the new church in Upper Hardwick Township was somewhat delayed because of young men going off to join Washington’s army in Morristown in the War for Independence. Eventually, construction got underway and the frame church, painted yellow, was completed and dedicated in 1786.... just about when Cornwallis was surrendering down in Yorktown. For four years a Supply named Daniel Thatcher served the congregation as preacher, while the new church was under construction. The log meeting house at Dark Moon was eventually torn down, but the cemetery and tombstones of those early members still remain. The site of the church and cemetery at Dark Moon is still accessible by a foot path from Route 519 and in 1997 the Presbyterian Historical Society of Philadelphia installed a stone marker where the log meeting house once stood, listing it as Site # 36 on the Registry of Early Presbyterian Churches. In 2005, the Yellow Frame Church Society placed an identification plaque at the site stating “1750-1786 site of Upper Hardwick First Presbyterian Church and Cemetery, First Congregation of The Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church”1787 was a year of celebration. The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick was incorporated on January 5^th , 1787 for the first time, and the Reverend Ira Condit was called to serve as the first pastor of the new church located on Shaw’s Lane and The Kings Highway. The Rev. Dr. John Witherspoon, first President of Princeton Seminary, and only cleric to sign the Declaration of Independence, arrived at The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick on November 1st , 1787, to ordain and install Reverend Ira Condit. Rev. Condit served for 6 years and later became the first pastor of The First Presbyterian Church of Newton, an ‘offspring’ of the Yellow Frame Church. The site of the 1786 church was at an elevation of 889 feet and was in clear view of all who passed by. The structure was a generous 52 feet by 50 feet with an interior gallery on three walls. Construction was of sawed lumber, with ceiling beams and rafters cut of oak. Additions and changes took place over the 100 years that the building served its members. Mainly, in 1858 the building was extended by 12 feet , adding a front entrance hall, topped with a new tower and a bell. " www.yellowframe.org/Hist2.html "The Yellow Frame congregation is one of the few pre-revolutionary churches remaining in Northwest New Jersey. For two and a half centuries the people of this congregation have bound together in worship, withstanding the changes of the region it serves, from a rural community of farmers and tradesmen tied to agriculture, to a growing population of employed men and women working within, and commuting outside, the community. In 1750 a group of worshippers met in a location about 1¼ miles northeast of Log Gaol, (pronounced Jail), forming a new congregation, meeting in homes occasionally with a Minister or a Supply sent by the Presbytery. Around 1760 they leased a parcel of land big enough for a simple log cabin and a burial ground. Log Gaol, now known as Johnsonburg, was the County Seat of Sussex County, which at that time included a very large portion of northwest New Jersey. The first church members were settlers from around Log Gaol, in the upper portion of the Township of Hardwick, who called themselves The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick. Although the name was not incorporated until 1841, records of 1751 and 1752 in the New Brunswick Presbytery state that “there were calls for a Minister or a Supply from the region of Hardwick”. The log church was located near the Dark Moon Tavern on Dark Moon Rd. (which is now State Route 519) and was often referred to as the Dark Moon Church & Cemetery. It was about one and a half miles southeast of the present Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church. The Reverend Francis Peppard, called in 1773 to serve as their first Minister, responded to the call and stayed until 1783. However, by 1780 the congregation had outgrown the log meeting house which could only be used from April through October. After great deliberation a new site was selected on one of the highest ridges in northwest New Jersey; where Shaw’s Lane, running east & west, joins The Kings Highway – a portion of the Stage Road from Boston to Philadelphia, (now Route 94.) The construction of the new church in Upper Hardwick Township was somewhat delayed because of young men going off to join Washington’s army in Morristown in the War for Independence. Eventually, construction got underway and the frame church, painted yellow, was completed and dedicated in 1786.... just about when Cornwallis was surrendering down in Yorktown. For four years a Supply named Daniel Thatcher served the congregation as preacher, while the new church was under construction. The log meeting house at Dark Moon was eventually torn down, but the cemetery and tombstones of those early members still remain. The site of the church and cemetery at Dark Moon is still accessible by a foot path from Route 519 and in 1997 the Presbyterian Historical Society of Philadelphia installed a stone marker where the log meeting house once stood, listing it as Site # 36 on the Registry of Early Presbyterian Churches. In 2005, the Yellow Frame Church Society placed an identification plaque at the site stating “1750-1786 site of Upper Hardwick First Presbyterian Church and Cemetery, First Congregation of The Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church”1787 was a year of celebration. The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick was incorporated on January 5^th , 1787 for the first time, and the Reverend Ira Condit was called to serve as the first pastor of the new church located on Shaw’s Lane and The Kings Highway. The Rev. Dr. John Witherspoon, first President of Princeton Seminary, and only cleric to sign the Declaration of Independence, arrived at The First Presbyterian Church of Upper Hardwick on November 1st , 1787, to ordain and install Reverend Ira Condit. Rev. Condit served for 6 years and later became the first pastor of The First Presbyterian Church of Newton, an ‘offspring’ of the Yellow Frame Church. The site of the 1786 church was at an elevation of 889 feet and was in clear view of all who passed by. The structure was a generous 52 feet by 50 feet with an interior gallery on three walls. Construction was of sawed lumber, with ceiling beams and rafters cut of oak. Additions and changes took place over the 100 years that the building served its members. Mainly, in 1858 the building was extended by 12 feet , adding a front entrance hall, topped with a new tower and a bell. " www.yellowframe.org/Hist2.html | ||||
