Christ Church Shrewsbury
This building was designed by noted colonial architect Robert Smith and funded by lotteries conducted in 1758 and 1760. Since lotteries were illegal in New Jersey, the drawings were held on Biles Island in the Delaware River and in Sandy Hook Bay. The new church was constructed from 1769 to 1774 under the leadership of the SPG missionary, the Reverend Samuel Cooke. Reverend Cooke was to be the last missionary serving Christ Church. He left for England in 1775 as the revolutionary war clouds thickened and the safety of a representative of the British crown was compromised.
During the Revolution the church was used as barracks by patriot soldiers. Since the church was a symbol of the British Crown, these soldiers shot at the pulpit and at the orb and crown on the steeple atop the church building. The church retains the damaged orb and a wood-embedded musketball. After 15 years a new homegrown cleric, Rev. Henry Waddell, became rector. Christ Church has had an uninterrupted clerical leadership to this day. The church remains an active Episcopal parish with worship services in the 234 year-old church each week.