Old Bergen Church Cemetery
Reverend William Jackson
First regular pastor · Served 1757–1790
The second church, built 1773 at Bergen Avenue and Vroom Street
Under its first regular pastor, Dominie William Jackson, the Bergen Reformed Church built a second church on the southeast corner at Bergen Avenue and Vroom Street in 1773. It was built of sandstone, and the weather vane from the previous church was attached to its spire. It was eventually placed on the cupola of the Columbian Academy, now the site of the Martin Luther King, Jr. School on Academy Street and Bergen Avenue.
New Jersey colonists were divided in their sympathies during the Revolutionary War. Historian Richard McCormick claims that the conservative branch of the Dutch Reformed Church was preponderantly Tory, especially in Bergen County (128).
The grave of Rev. William Jackson, minister of the Old Bergen Church
However, the Reverend Jackson, a skilled orator, openly addressed his congregation about support for the patriots. His comments resulted in a personal reprimand before Lord Howe, the British Commander of New York.