Rev. 12/19/07 The First Presbyterian Church of Albany was founded in 1763. The Church is located at the corner of State and Willett Streets, in the Center Square area, facing Washington Park. The present Church building was constructed in 1883 and is the fourth building occupied by the congregation. Both the Building and the Sanctuary are handicap accessible. We have been called "The Church on the Park". The Education building was added in 1925. This part of the Church houses the Sunday School, Church Offices, Church Library, and the Rose Room, which is used for receptions and other events. Also in this part of the Church are the offices of the New York State Community of Churches. A parking lot, with spaces for about 20 cars and entered from State Street, is reserved for visitors and worshipers with special needs.  Additional parking is available in Washington Park, across the street from the church. The Sanctuary seats about 400 worshipers. Major renovations of the Sanctuary were completed in 1995. Restoration of the Lamb Window, and replacement of exterior window coverings was completed in 2005. An ornate, carved reredos gift of by Mr. and Mrs. Frederick McDonald was dedicated at First Presbyterian's 175th Anniversary Celebration on Nov. 20, 1938. Click here for a closeup look at the carved elements of our Reredos. Parental guidance suggested - some of the carvings relate the demise of early Christian martyrs. A large, 5 panel Tiffany stained glass window - the Sea of Galilee window - was added to the north wall of the Sanctuary in 1915. At the time of its installation, it was considered to be the finest example of a Tiffany window produced to date. Four additional Tiffany stained glass windows and many windows from other studios are found throughout the Sanctuary and Great Hall give us a feeling of God's presence. Warren Roberts, a learned member of the church, offers more information about the stained glass windows of the Church. Tim O'Toole offers a detailed photographic look at First Presbyterian's stained glass treasures. Detail from Sea of Galilee The Assembly Hall is adjacent to the Sanctuary and is the site of the after-worship coffee hour, congregational dinners, musical presentations, lectures, plays, and other congregational gatherings. A free Thanksgiving Dinner sponsored by Equinox - a community service organization - has been served annually since 1969 in the Assembly Hall to approximately 2000 guests each year. A large, nearly life-size portrait of Eliphalet Nott hangs in the Great Hall. An orphan, after a short course of studies at the future Brown University. he became pastor of the Church from 1798 to 1804, and later was president of Union College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.   At First Presbyterian, when Aaron Burr killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel, Nott wrote a persuasive sermon which led to the demise of dueling in America. Nott was also an industrious entrepreneur who developed a stove for burning anthracite coal, to deal with Albany winters. The Joseph Henry window (portion at right), another Tiffany creation, is found in the Assembly Hall and is in memory of the scientist who studied electromagnetism. Son of a laborer, he was accepted into Albany Academy on scholarship, where the child prodigy was soon assisting in teaching science lessons. Henry was the first Secretary and later a Director of the Smithsonian Institution, and also a President of the National Academy of Science. Mr. Henry was baptized in the First Presbyterian Church of Albany.