St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery

A Photo-Essay on Faith & The Arts Primordially Entwined

St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery is on 10th Street and 2nd Avenue in the East Village of Manhattan in New York City.

Built during 1795–9, St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery is the second-oldest extant house of worship in Manhattan after St. Paul’s Chapel. Even before the property’s acquisition by The Episcopal Church in 1793, it hosted a family Chapel built in 1660 by New Amsterdam Director-General Peter Stuyvesant. This history makes the property the oldest site of continuous religious worship in New York City.

A wide perspective on the parish property as seen from the south-southeast across 2nd Avenue. Unlike most edifices in Manhattan, the Church faces true south as it was built before the development of the grid.

A wide perspective on the principal facade as seen from the contiguous Abe Lebewohl Park. Before the Church is a statue of a Lion, the traditional symbol for St. Mark.

The Lion and Greek Revival Steeple in comparative perspective. The Steeple was added in 1828, designed by Martin Euclid Thompson and Ithiel Town. Thompson also designed the cast/wrought iron fence, which was added in 1838.

The unusual appellation in the Church’s name is a legacy of the property’s Dutch origins, as the Dutch word Bouwerij refers to the land Director-General Stuyvesant acquired for a farm, where the family Chapel was originally built. When Stuyvesant’s descendants sold the property to The Episcopal Church for $1, it was with the stipulation that the new parish serve the surrounding community (then-Bowery Village) and be theologically oriented as a low-church. Receiving the legal aid of Alexander Hamilton, St. Mark’s was incorporated as the first Episcopal parish independent of Trinity Church in New York City, with its fieldstone edifice designed in Georgian style by John McComb, Jr., who also designed New York City Hall.

Left & Right: The Native American statues “Inspiration” and “Aspiration” by Solon Borglum, acquired by The Rev. William Guthrie, flanking the steps before the Portico.

Left: The interior of the cast-iron Italianate Portico, designed by James Bogardus in 1856. Right: The bust of Director-General Peter Stuyvesant (1611/2–72) past the eastern terminus of the Portico. In 1915, Queen Wilhelmina (1880–1962) of the Netherlands gifted a wreath to the Church, which was later ceremonially laid at the bust in 1952 by Queen Juliana (1909–2004). Princess Margriet and Queen Beatrix also visited the Church in 1981 and 1982 respectively.

A wide perspective on the East Yard, with numerous slabs marking burial vaults. The dark plaque against the eastern facade notes the burial of Director-General Stuyvesant in a vault below the Church. The brick Annex at the right was designed by James Renwick, Jr. and added in 1861 while the Parish Hall, behind the Annex at the rear of the Church, was designed by John C. Tucker and added in 1835.

The Church has had a longstanding relationship with the arts, which began at the turn of the 20th Century when demographic changes brought artists and writers to the Lower East Side. The Rev. William Guthrie (1868–1944), Rector during 1911–37, founded the St. Mark’s Arts Committee, which came to include prominent figures like Khalil Gibran (1883–1931) and firmly established the Church as a cultural center. Furthermore, Guthrie often included non-Christian guest speakers during services and advocated for the interpretation of religion through dance, making him a controversial figure in the wider Episcopalian polity.

A wide perspective on the West Yard with the white Rectory in the background. The raised mounds mark further burial vaults.

The Rectory designed by Ernest Flagg in 1900. It was rebuilt after suffering a fire in 1988.

Left: The former Bell from 1836 in the East Yard, cracked beyond repair because of the fire in 1978. Right: The two Lions acquired by The Rev. Guthrie in the 1920s, which formerly flanked the main entrance portal, but are now kept in the West Yard.

Left: The burial slab of Daniel D. Tompkins (1774–1825) in the East Yard. Tompkins served as Governor of New York (1807–17) and Vice President of the United States (1817–25). Right: The bust of Tompkins in the West Yard.

Despite the controversies and early Diocesan rebukes, the relationship with the arts was sustained through the decades. The Church has hosted countless artists from dancers Martha Graham (1894–1991) and Ruth St. Denis (1879–1968) to the psychedelic band Mind Garage, whose nationally broadcast Electric Liturgy at St. Mark’s in 1969 was the first-ever documented Christian rock worship service. To further facilitate varied communal gatherings, pews were incrementally removed from the late-1960s onward with a total reconfiguration occurring after the devastating fire of 1978, which saw all pews permanently removed, the floor leveled, and hardwood installed.

Left: A collection of memorials within the Narthex commemorating the burials of Stuyvesant family members and Nicholas Fish (1758–1833), Officer during the Revolutionary War and Adjutant General (1784–93) of New York State. Fish was an in-law to the family via his wife Elizabeth Stuyvesant (1775–1854). Right: An adjacent memorial plaque dedicated to the people enslaved by the Congregations of Stuyvesant Chapel and St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery.

A wide perspective on the Sanctuary in its ecclesiastical iteration on Sunday. The Nave features a completely flexible configuration, with individual seats arranged in the round and fixed lateral risers within the Aisles. The western and eastern Galleries are kept vacant. The Egyptian Revival Pillars, designed by Thompson, replaced the original square pillars and were installed as part of Sanctuary renovations in 1836.

In 1978, worker negligence ignited the three-alarm fire that consumed the top portion of the Church, with the roof and upper stained glass windows lost. With a commitment to rebuild, the Friends of St. Mark’s became the Citizens to Save St. Mark’s and later the St. Mark’s Historic Landmark Fund, with the Church completely restored and rededicated five years after the fire. Community relationships have been essential to the Church’s survival and it is presently home to several arts Partners-in-Residence: The Poetry Project, Danspace, New York Theater Ballet Workshop, and Loco-Motion Dance Theater.

Left: The Credence Table bearing the Elements of Holy Communion before the Nave. Right: The Altar bearing a Gospel Book and another Credence Table bearing chalices at the center of the round. Parishioners gather in a circle to celebrate Holy Communion.

Left & Right: The western and eastern halves of the Sanctuary. The lower stained glass windows were installed gradually from the late-19th Century through to the 1920s. They are aesthetically traditional and replaced nondescript patterned stained glass installed during the 1870s-80s. The upper stained glass windows were installed after the fire in 1978 and are aesthetically modern, designed by Harold Edelman with colors representing the liturgical year.

Center: The Chancel, featuring a large Cross projected onto its recess from the western Gallery. Left: A lower stained glass window depicting Director-General Stuyvesant. Right: A lower stained glass window depicting the Tree of Life, though it is often mistaken as a Christmas Tree. The window was the last of the lower set to be installed.

Left: The Rose Window within the southern Gallery recess, which houses the Chapel, as seen from the Chancel. Center: The Chapel within the recess. Right: An upper stained glass window along the eastern Gallery. The physical degradation around the window is present throughout the Galleries, a direct result of gutters twice incorrectly installed by different contractors.

The Church has seen a revival as a house of worship under recent Rectors, practicing a “radical Christian welcome” that emphasizes total inclusivity. Led by The Rev. Anne Sawyer since 2018, the parish is currently running the Restoring Beauty capital campaign to fund a three-phase endeavor of essential restorations to the Church edifice. Before being called to St. Mark’s, The Rev. Anne and her wife, The Rev. Susan Anderson-Smith, co-founded Imago Dei Middle School, a tuition-free Episcopal school for children of economically disadvantaged families in Tucson, Arizona.

A wide perspective on the Sanctuary in its weekday iteration.

Left & Right: The western and eastern halves of the Sanctuary in its weekday iteration.

The Church has been home to two foundational pillars of human civilization: faith and the arts. It is thus a sad irony that the materialistic pursuits of modern life have often forced institutions of faith and the arts to struggle and constantly defend their mere existence. The rootedness that the Church has given to parishioners and artists alike shows that it has wholly earned its centuries of survival and is fully deserving of centuries more.

A reverse perspective on the Sanctuary in its ecclesiastical iteration on Sunday.

These photos were taken on two nonconsecutive days utilizing both a wide-angle lens and a standard zoom lens. The Sanctuary’s ecclesiastical iteration was captured inside of five minutes due to a limited timeframe between complete assembly and regular preparations for Sunday service. Acknowledgments and heartfelt gratitude go to The Rev. Anne Sawyer for graciously approving the production of this photo-essay from initial email contact through to the review of its draft, to Historian Roger Jack Walters for also reviewing the draft to ensure accuracy and precision, to Sextons Jimmy Fragosa and Clive Morris for their kind attention and assistance, and to Musical Director Jeannine Otis for accommodatingly suspending practice.

To support the Restoring Beauty capital campaign, interested parties may donate at Sunday service or mail a check to the parish office.

St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery
131 E. 10th Street
New York, NY 10003