This is a fine example of Church architecture and it remains practically unchanged since its erection in 1792.
Exterior:
The bricks, which were burned from native materials in a local kiln, are Flemish bond. The roof is gabled with wooden shingles. It is five bayed on the east and west elevations and three bayed on the north and south elevations. The windows have semicircular brick arched openings with twelve over twelve sash. The original hardware still remains.
Interior:
Entrances are on three sides of the building. A high pulpit, about fourteen feet above the main floor, is on the fourth wall. It is reached by a curved stairwell that is interestingly carved. Behind the pulpit is a Palladian window. The aisles are brick with the pew floors slightly raised and of wide boards. The high, straight back pews have doors to the aisles. The square family pews are found in the front of the ground floor and in the gallery. The gallery runs across the rear and down both sides of the building. The walls are wainscoated with beaded boards painted white. Oil burning lights furnish the only illumination and heat is furnished by two old stoves which bear the name of "Jacob Downing, Atsion Furnace". The pipes from these stoves arch across the church to meet in the middle and then slant over the gallery and disappear in the chimney…
For forty-five years after Bridgeton became the county seat it had no houses of worship. Services for the Presbyterians were held either in the Courthouse or in the church at Greenwich. In 1744 subscriptions were made to purchase land and build a church on the east side of the river but, owing to the opposition of those living on the west side, at the time more numerous and influential, the design was abandoned.
In 1791 Mark Miller, a friend, deeded a two acre lot to be used for a house of worship and a burying ground. About sixteen hundred dollars was subscribed and the foundation stone was laid. Construction began in July of 1792. In 1793 the exterior was finished but the money ran out. a special lottery was authorized by a law of the State Legislature. By means of this money and money raised by the auctioning of the pews, the interior was completed. The church was dedicated on May 17, 1795.
The First Presbyterian Church of Bridgeton has architectural significance in that it is representative of the larger churches erected in the decades immediately following the American Revolution. In all respects, the Church adheres to the classicism that dominated Federal architecture. On the exterior, the proportions of the building, the trim around the entrances, and the placement of door and window openings all exhibit the symmetry and balance associated with buildings of the Federal period. The large Palladian window, which overlooks the pulpit, is another characteristic that became increasingly popular after the Revolution. Although Palladian windows can be found on earlier churches such as Christ Church in Philadelphia, they enjoyed their greatest popularity in the post-Revolutionary era.
Inside, the wainscotting around the walls, the square family pews, and the carving on the stairwell are details that came into vogue during the Federal period.
Thus, in many respects, the First Presbyterian Church typifies religious buildings constructed in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Furthermore, the similarities between this church and churches in Philadelphia attest both to the influence of the metropolis on surrounding rural areas and to the emerging nationalism and uniformity as expressed in American architecture after the Revolution.
Services stopped at this church in 1836 when the congregation moved to a new larger church. It has remained unchanged. Is now only used for special services. Is well-maintained and in good condition.
Cemetery surrounding the church has the graves of several notable individuals including one of the first US Senators from New Jersey and an early Governor of the State.