A historic church in Brooklyn’s South Bushwick neighborhood was largely destroyed by a fire on Friday afternoon, displacing a community landmark that had stood for nearly two centuries. The South Bushwick Church, originally known as the Dutch Reformed Bushwick Church and completed in 1853, suffered extensive damage, including the collapse of its well-known steeple, which once served as a navigational aid for local residents.

Emergency crews battled the blaze for approximately seven hours, but the cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to the New York Fire Department. By Saturday, charred beams and debris littered the front of the building, and the church’s interior was exposed to the elements, with most of its stained glass windows destroyed and its roof reduced to a skeletal outline.

The Rev. Dr. James E. Steward II, pastor since 2013, described the loss as deeply painful for the small congregation of roughly 50 in-person attendees, alongside an additional 100 virtual participants. He highlighted the church’s resilience over the decades, noting its survival through tumultuous periods including neighborhood riots, prior fires in the 1970s and 1980s, a tornado in 2006, and Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020. Steward emphasized the church’s significance in Bushwick’s cultural fabric, recalling how the steeple helped locals find their way home.

The church, designated a New York City landmark in 1968, was the oldest remaining historic building in Bushwick, a neighborhood originally settled by Dutch colonists and later shaped by German immigrants. Dina Alfano, co-founder of the Bushwick Historic Preservation Association, lamented the loss as another blow to the area’s architectural heritage, which has dwindled amid gentrification and redevelopment. “That steeple was instantly recognizable. It was our Leaning Tower of Pisa,” Alfano said.

Efforts to maintain the church had been ongoing, with the National Fund for Sacred Places providing $25,000 in 2021 for steeple repairs, supplemented by $75,000 raised by the congregation. Local officials, including Brooklyn Councilwoman Sandy Nurse, had collaborated with city agencies to bring the building up to code, though Nurse acknowledged the community’s limited financial resources to sustain historic structures. Both New York Attorney General Letitia James and Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso had expressed interest in supporting repair funding.

Church members and local residents expressed sorrow and hope in the aftermath of the fire. Yarison Ortiz Guzman, a recent convert to the congregation, said many historical items may still be salvageable. The church served as a community hub, hosting block parties, Thanksgiving dinners for those without family nearby, and offering support through food and clothing drives. Music director Monika Judkins noted that the church’s pipe organ had survived the fire.

Some residents questioned whether the site might be replaced by new development, underscoring concerns about the neighborhood’s changing character. Past congregant Georgy Mandou conveyed a sense of personal loss but affirmed the congregation’s determination to rebuild, a sentiment echoed by Steward, who called the restoration effort a “massive undertaking.” Alfano, meanwhile, expressed skepticism about the possibility of restoration, viewing the destruction as a permanent loss to the area’s Dutch settler heritage.