Historic Pelham: Another Advertisement for Fair Held in 1842 to Fund Construction of Christ Church

Christ Church, Parish of Christ the Redeemer, in the Village of Pelham Manor was built in 1843..Built of native granite, the cornerstone of the sanctuary was laid on Friday, April 28, 1843. The church building was completed and was consecrated on September 15, 1843.

The opening of the church building was the culmination of a dream long held by the first rector of the church, The Rev. Robert Bolton. Father Bolton was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1788, the son of a prominent merchant also named Robert. As a young man, Robert Bolton traveled to England and became a merchant in Liverpool, England.

In 1838, the Bolton family built Bolton Priory in Pelham Manor. The home still stands and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1840, Reverend Bolton -- in addition to his ministerial duties in Eastchester -- began holding a Sunday service in his residence, Bolton Priory. By 1842, an effort was underway to organize a parish and construct a church building.

Today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog transcribes an advertisement published on July 26, 1842 for a fair to be held the next day on the Priory grounds to raise money for the construction of an "Episcopal Chapel" in Pelham Manor. I have written before about a related advertisement that appeared in the July 25, 1842 edition of The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. See Fri., Aug. 29, 2014: Announcement of Two-Day Fair in Pelham in 1842 to Raise Money to Build Christ Church.

Christ Church, Shortly After It Was Constructed, as Depicted in the 1848

First Edition of Bolton's History of Westchester County, Volume 1.

"A Fair will be held on the Grounds of Rev. Robert Bolton, Pelham Priory, near New Rochelle, on Wednesday the 27th, and Thursday the 28th inst. to aid in the erection of an Episcopal Chapel for Pelham. The Fair will be open from 11 to 7 o'clock.

The price of each article will be marked on it.

If the weather should prove unfavorable on the 27th, the Fair will be opened on the first fair day and continue two days. Refreshments of various kinds will be provided at reasonable prices.

The steamboat Fairfield, Capt. Peck, will leave New-York from Fulton Market slip for New-Rochelle, on Wednesday the 27th, if fair, and if not, on the first fair day thereafter, at 9 o'clock A. M.; and returning leave New-Rochelle at 5 P. M. Fair 37 1/2 cents each way.

Pelham, July 20, 1842.

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Source: A Fair, New-York Daily Tribune, Jul. 26, 1842, Vol. II, No. 91, p. 3, col. 1.