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History > Our Pastors > Joseph Parrish Thompson

Joseph Parrish Thompson
The Second Pastor, 1845-1871

One of the most notable achievements of Joseph Thompson’s pastorate was the impetus he generated in the growth of congregationalism, not only in and about New York City but throughout the country. In his era, Thompson’s Tabernacle played a major role in the development of nearly 20 Congregational churches in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Dr. Thompson was influential in convening the first national synodical meeting of Congregational churches in Albany in 1852. Nearly 500 ministers and delegates from 17 states took part in this historical gathering. One result of the synod was the formation of the first national council of the denomination. Agendas for this council and other instrumentalities of the denomination were developed at meetings held in the Tabernacle.

As the city’s population expanded northward in the mid-1850s, Dr. Thompson urged members of the church to find a more suitable location for the church’s future growth. A site was selected at the Northeast corner of Broadway and 34 Street, and in April 1859 the new Tabernacle was dedicated.

With the approach the Civil War, Dr. Thompson continued to echo the Tabernacle’s adamant anti-slavery convictions. He invited black preachers to the church’s pulpit and was a frequent visitor to Washington, DC, where he conferred with President Lincoln on concerns related to the war. At one Sunday service, when a serious shortage of regiments was plaguing the Union Army, he convinced the congregation to contribute the $30,000 needed to finance a new regiment. One of the Tabernacle’s prominent laymen, Major General Oliver Howard, served with distinction in the Union Army. Following the war, Howard became involved in establishing a university for black in Washington, DC. For his efforts, Howard University honored the major general by taking his name.

Exhausted by the tremendous energies he had extended on behalf of the war effort and his ministries in the Tabernacle, Dr. Thompson found it necessary to submit his resignation in late 1871.

William Mackergo Taylor, Our Third Pastor >