October 19 Today in OPC History

On October 19, 1939, the Presbytery of New York and New England received Franklin Square OPC as a particular congregation. The Long Island church, just outside the eastern boundary of New York City, began with exploratory work in Manhattan in 1937. Two recent immigrants from Northern Ireland, Robert and Elizabeth Wallace, were especially eager to see a Presbyterian witness near the city.

After extensive neighborhood canvasing by home missionaries Edward Kellog and Bruce Coie, the Franklin Square community was chosen and regular worship began on January 29, 1939, at an American Legion Hall, with twenty in attendance. In 1942, the church called Coie as its first pastor, and a year later, the church purchased a former real estate office. Expanded significantly in 1955, the property continues to serve the church.

After Coie resigned in 1945 to take the pulpit in Fairlawn, N.J., ministers in Franklin Square have included Robert Vining (1945–1950), Elmer Dortzbach (1952–1957), John Hills (1957–1979), and William Shishko (1981–present).

Picture: Members of Franklin Square fellowship after a worship service in the 1950s.