Presbyterian Church, Preschool center, Nursery school
First Presbyterian Church
The Yorktown Presbyterian Church ministers within suburban communities in and around Yorktown. It belongs to a group of 11,456 churches known as the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A), a denomination with a membership of 2,742,192 people. The Yorktown church has a total constituency of 975 men, women and children of all ages. Several members have belonged to the church as long as 50 years or more, while others are newly-joined. The congregation also includes over 100 children in an active Sunday School. Reverend Chip Low has lead the congregation as pastor since 2010. The Yorktown Presbyterian Church has a long and respected history. Established in 1730, the congregation consisted of a weekly assemblage. In 1737, a 220-acre tract was leased, followed by the construction of a meeting house. The first resident pastor was called to oversee the church in 1761. The church held an important place during the Revolutionary War, existing as both a meeting place and barracks for patriots. In 1779, British troops destroyed the parsonage and storehouse and, shortly following, burned the original church to the ground. In 1785 a second church was built. There is a monument in front of the church today that celebrates the all-black First Rhode Island Regiment, which figured prominently in the famous British raid in Yorktown in 1779. The church gradually took on a Congregational form of government, which led to a division in the church in 1806. A second church was built on Granite Springs Road, and it would be 60 years before both churches were reunited. The Yorktown Presbyterian Church owns and maintains the East Yard Cemetery at the site of the Congregational Church, and among the buried at the East Yard Cemetery are 30 to 40 former African-American members of that church. The East Yard Cemetery and the current church building are both listed as sites on the Westchester African-American Heritage Trail. The present building was replaced in 1840 and designed in its original style. Until 1930, the church held Sunday School services in the original building. The church and Sunday School services were held in the single, original building until 1930. Since that time there have been numerous building additions. The First Presbyterian Church of Yorktown is known as a "More Light" congregation. Translated, this means that the church encourages inclusiveness and the full participation of all people regardless of race, age, gender, income, marital status or sexual orientation.