{"nrhp_refnum":"82001264","name":"St. Alban's Episcopal Church","other_names":["Church of the Holy Comforter"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"76 St. Alban's Place","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Staten Island","state":"NY","lat":40.543693251000036,"lon":-74.16068159599996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-10-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small board-and-batten Episcopal church with an adjoining wooden rectory at 76 St. Alban's Place in Eltingville, Staten Island, New York. Originally the Church of the Holy Comforter, it was built in 1865 and enlarged in 1869-73 to designs attributed to R.M. Upjohn.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it a fine example of a board-and-batten church and of the work of architect Richard Mitchell Upjohn. It is described as New York City's only surviving board-and-batten church. The design shows the versatility of wood used in a picturesque, ornamental way, and the church recalls the area's rural past.","narrative":"Set on an open grassy lot in Eltingville, Staten Island, St. Alban's Episcopal Church is a small wooden church built of board-and-batten siding, with an adjoining wooden rectory. It began as the Church of the Holy Comforter, incorporated in 1865 when the area, then called Southfields, was mostly farms and small houses. The congregation outgrew its first building, and in 1869 the vestry planned transepts and a bell tower. Work was delayed by financial trouble, and in 1872 the church was moved to its present site and enlarged, reopening in February 1873. The design is credited to architect Richard Mitchell Upjohn, who favored asymmetry and angular details. Zig-zag cut wood, pointed windows framed by projecting sticks, hexagonal gable windows with star-shaped tracery, and a three-stage bell tower give the building its picturesque character. It is described as New York City's only surviving board-and-batten church, and it remains close to its original appearance.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"R.M. Upjohn","architectural_style":"Board-and-batten Victorian Gothic / Gothic Revival church","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in good condition, with minor alterations: loss of quatrefoil ornaments and replacement of the original slate roof. The rectory is covered in aluminum siding.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:41.444411-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/82001264.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001264/92ec0fa1c9-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001264/92ec0fa1c9-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Dmadeo","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St-albans-staten-island.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Dmadeo</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St-albans-staten-island.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75321398","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Alban%27s_Episcopal_Church_(Staten_Island)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7586735"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/staten-island/st-albans-episcopal-church-82001264/"}