Historic meeting held in South Amenia

WASSAIC — On Jan. 11, a group of more than 20 people gathered in the South Amenia Parish Hall to begin a year of jubilee with the 250th annual meeting of the Union Society and the South Amenia Presbyterian Church.

The foundations of the society and the sponsored church were laid sometime in the mid-1750s, as the settlers of the Oblong Valley sought an organized religious experience. During that period they had been served to some degree by the Moravian missionaries to the nearby Mohican villages and by traveling ministers. 

One of these was the Rev. Ebenezer Knibloe, a Scottish Presbyterian who primarily served a church in West Phillippi in Fairfield County.  In late 1759, a group similar to Sunday’s gathered to sign a covenant to form a church, a “Society in the name, style and title of Union.� At the same time they installed Knibloe as pastor.

Before they emigrated, the colonists had seen examples of wealth corrupting the church and conflicts over church property.  To prevent such problems here, they incorporated in 1792 under New York state law “for the purpose of administering the temporalities [i.e., property] of the religious congregation of the Oblong Valley, in the town of Amenia, New York.�

Over the last 250 years, the Union Society has bought and sold land, built three successive church buildings, offered residences for pastors, established a cemetery and provided many community functions, all in support of a sponsored church.

From Knibloe’s time forward, the spiritual needs of the area were served by a number of pastors, mainly Presbyterian.  In 1815, the congregation formally affiliated with the Hudson (River) Presbytery, with which it remains.

Interestingly, even at that early time the church served many from the town of Dover, as it does today.

From a beginning centered in Amenia Union (Hitchcock’s Corner) in Connecticut, where the first church building may have been, the organizations have gradually moved south to a location near Clark Hill Road, where the cemetery is, and finally to South Amenia (Cline’s Corner). There the present church building was built in 1880.

The South Amenia Parish Hall is the functional center for the society.  The first section was built in 1904, and it has been expanded three times since then. The last, a major addition in 1960, added a two-story wing providing Sunday school and office space, as well as additional seating for suppers and other events. It is currently a Dutchess County Office for the Aging nutrition site and also holds a local food pantry for folks in need. Boy and Girl Scouts, substance-abuse support groups, artists and other community groups meet there. A community resource, it is available for private parties, wedding receptions and the like

Many special events are being planned to celebrate the hall’s 250th anniversary throughout the year.  Programs may include outside speakers, musical groups and historical reports. Particularly exciting will be the planned Friday, Aug. 14, through Sunday, Aug. 16, revival of the annual South Amenia fair, which was held from 1921 to 1942.

Robert Meade is the clerk of the Union Society of South Amenia Presbyterian Church.