Fort Washington Presbyterian Church

Designated May 12, 2009

Mindful of the colonial and Revolutionary history of the Fort Washington neighborhood, Thomas Hastings drew on eighteenth century models, particularly the churches of the English architect James Gibbs, to produce a richly embellished design that was uniquely his own. Basilican in plan, the church features a temple-fronted Doric entrance portico with four monumental stone columns and an unusually lofty, beautifully sculpted tower embellished with classical motifs. The building is clad with buff-colored brick laid in Flemish bond and trimmed with Indiana limestone given a “rubbed finish” to enhance the Georgian character of the design.

Fort Washington Presbyterian remained affiliated with West Park Presbyterian until 1923. In 1982 Fort Washington Presbyterian’s congregation ceded its church to the Primera Iglesia Espaňola de Washington Heights, a Hispanic congregation established in Washington Heights in 1948, which had been a voice for the Puerto Rican community in New York.

*Photo credit Matthew X. Kiernan

STATUS Designated Individual Landmark

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The neighborhood is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest point on the island of Manhattan by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, to defend the area from the British forces.

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Doreen Gallo: DUMBO Neighborhood Alliance

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Fern Luskin: Lamartine Place Historic District; Friends of Lamartine Place & Gibbons Underground Railroad Site

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“HDC provided guidance and shared information during that process—we knew which Council members were going one way or another and we changed a few minds. I don’t think NoHo would have had as cohesive a district had it not been for HDC’s aid.”

Zella Jones: NoHo Historic District; NoHo East; and NoHo Extension

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Erika Petersen: West End Preservation Society

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"HDC has begun a series of projects to highlight the Bronx's architectural and cultural history. From booklet's and research highlighting specific sites and historic districts to the HDC's symposium in October 2018 to the latest community-based committee to look into further possible sites to qualify for landmarking, the HDC has established projects that will serve the Bronx community well."

Elena Martinez
City Lore, Folklorist
Bronx Music Heritage Center, Co-Artistic Director

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Ed García Conde,
founder and Executive Director,
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