A few months ago Gerald Blaney donated to us a remarkable paperback book entitled 200 Years of Religion in Cinnaminson, Palmyra, Riverton, written by Mrs. Jean Billetter and illustrated by Mrs. Antoinette Rabil.
Published by the Cinnaminson-Palmyra-Riverton Council of Churches during our nation’s Bicentennial, this 45-year-old volume traces the history of each individual denomination that was in the Tri-Boro area at that time.
Click on the links below to read selected excerpts.
Title page, Preface, Pre-Revolutionary Period
WESTFIELD MONTHLY MEETING OF THE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS, CINNAMINSON 1785
EPWORTH UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, PALMYRA 1840
CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, RIVERTON 1855
THE CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART, RIVERTON 1874
CALVARY PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, RIVERTON 1874
TRINITY A.M.E. CHURCH, CINNAMINSON 1876
CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, PALMYRA 1884
CENTRAL BAPTIST CHURCH OF RIVERTON AND PALMYRA 1885
SAINT PAUL BAPTIST CHURCH, EAST RIVERTON 1891
MOUNT ZION A.M.E. CHURCH, RIVERTON 1896
SAINT PAUL UNION AMERICAN M.E. CHURCH, PALMYRA 1903
FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST, RIVERTON 1911
EVERGREEN BAPTIST CHURCH, WEST PALMYRA 1920
THE FIRST LUTHERAN CHURCH OF PALMYRA AND RIVERTON 1921 AND BETHANY EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH 1938
Why not include Mt. Zion AME Church on this page?
Hi, Dorothy – Members of the African Methodist Episcopal church first met in a room on the second floor of the Roberts Store that once stood on the point of Main and Howard Streets. In 1896 they acquired a small building at 3rd and Penn Sts. and soon enlarged it by extending it back to the limit of their property. Although the Mt. Zion AME church was dedicated in August of 1909, I have no vintage postcard images of it to display. I do include Mt. Zion in the list of Community Links (https://rivertonhistory.com/links/) and would welcome a an old photograph or postcard to include with the others. Thank you for your interest. – John McCormick, Editor
Hold on – I did post an image of Mt. Zion Church in 2010. Best I could do was a scan from the New Era newspaper. 3rd row, 3rd column. Not a good image and easily missed. I probably need to display captions. https://rivertonhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Mt.-Zion-Church1.jpg