Prudden a Dissent uig minister (there being no Orthodox divine sent over as yet) for j£40 per :annum but if he staid ten years then to have the Parsonage house and house Lot in fee (which agreement they could in no wise make having before that time given it for a parsonage) however M"" Prudden staid with them the ten years and afterwards by another agreement dated the 29 Sept 1693 the said M^" Prudden in consideration of other lands given him by that Town by way of Exchange conveyed the Parsonage house & land to the inhabitants of the said Town to hold as a parsonage to the use benefit k behoof of the ministry to them k their heirs for ever.

During all this time they had not been able to erect a Chiu-ch ■or public building for the worship of God but usually performed the same in the Town house or County Hall, but beginning to thrive and finding themselves in a capacity to build and erect a

Vol. hi. 15

226 PAPERS RELATING TO CHURCHES IN QUEENS COUNTy.

Ciimxh on the 13*^ day of Sept in the 1G98. at a town meetmg the deputed nine persons (some of which were professed Churchmen & some Dissenters) in these words (viz*) to carry on the work of a Cliurch or meeting house and to see the same truly completed & ended.

Soon after this vote of the Town, in the year- 1699 an Act of General Assembly w^as made to enable the respective towns within the w^hole province to build and repair their meeting houses & other public buildings upon which they laid aside tlie prosecution of building according to the said Town vote and took hold of the said Act by virtue whereof the present Church was built and erected in the middle of the highway in tlie main street and distress was made on Churchmen Quakers Anabaptists people of the Dutch Congregation k<' promiscuously for the payment of the rates towards the same --