Matthias Bruen

Rev. Matthias Bruen (Newark, New Jersey April 11, 1793 - September 6, 1829) was a Presbyterian minister in New York City. Bruen was a founder of the Bleecker Street Presbyterian Church in lower Manhattan, formally chartered in 1825, and served as the first Minister of that church until his death. In the 1850s, the church moved to Fourth Avenue and 22nd Street, becoming the Fourth Avenue Presbyterian Church, in 1910 moving to become the Broadway Presbyterian Church. Early life Matthias Bruen was born to Matthias Bruen Sr. and Hannah (Coe) Bruen into an established family of Newark, New Jersey. His direct ancestor, Obadiah Bruen, being one of the founders of that city. His father was a wealthy businessman who was thought at one point to be one of the richest men in New York. Studies In his youth, Bruen had an unusual interest in books: starting as a six year old he would shut himself in a room to focus on his reading. In 1808 at age 15 he attended Columbia College and graduated from there in 1812 with high honors. It was at this point that he chose to pursue a religious life and enrolled in the Theological Seminary of the Associate Reformed Church under the direction of Dr John M. Mason, who was also the head of the seminary. In 1816 Bruen was licensed to preach by the Presbyterian Classis of New York.