Our fellowship is small and welcoming,
rooted in the pleasure of gathering in the Light.
Led by the Light
During unprogrammed Meeting for Worship, we sit together in shared silence, making room for reflection, stillness, and spiritual connection. There is no sermon, preacher, or prescribed format beyond this, though we will share our traditions and civil customs with you if you join.
Attendees are not required to be Quaker or members of the Society of Friends, to know what you believe, or even to know what to expect. Whether you are a neighbor, a traveler, a longtime Friend, or simply curious, you are welcome to come in, take a seat, and spend an hour among us.
Quakerism is centered around direct experience, active compassion, quiet reflection, and the belief that every person can encounter the Divine.
Friends, as Quakers are also known, often gather without a prescribed sermon for Unplanned Worship, trusting that spiritual guidance arises within each person and the community. Faith is expressed through values such as peace, integrity, equality, simplicity, nonviolence, community, and care for our world. People use different words for what they experience, including God, Spirit, the Inner Light, and the Divine, though we share a commitment to listen deeply, allowing inward convictions to shape outward lives.
Traditional “Waiting Worship” is a profoundly peaceful, community shared, trustingly expectant Stillness. In this space of solace and quietude, we find the space neither empty nor silent.
Historical Location and Key Figures
The Society of Friends Meeting House at Quaker Street
Erected 1807
Click image for larger version.
Image photo source: Historical Marker DataBase
New York Historical Marker
Friends Meeting House
Erected 1807 Near Site
of Original Log Structure
1st Preacher — Ezekiel Tripp
Society Organized about 1790
State Education Department 1932
Ezekiel Tripp
When Ezekiel Tripp was born on 9 March 1743, in Exeter, Kings, Rhode Island, British Colonial America, his father, Job Tripp Jr., was 41 and his mother, Sarah Weeden, was 38. He married Mary Lawton on 29 April 1765, in Exeter, Kings, Rhode Island, British Colonial America. They were the parents of at least 7 sons and 6 daughters. He lived in Duanesburg, Albany, New York, United States in 1800. He died on 23 July 1827, in Duanesburg, Schenectady, New York, United States, at the age of 84, and was buried in Tripp Cemetery, Schenectady, New York, United States.
Ezekiel Tripp was among the earlier settlers of the town. With his family of four sons and four daughters, he emigrated from Rhode Island to Dutchess County about 1789. There he remained about a year, when he removed to Duanesburgh, and located upon the present homestead of Daniel C. Hoag. This farm, then comprising 110 acres with small improvements, he purchased for $30. His wife was Mary Lawton. Benjamin Tripp was their oldest son. He married Hannah Deuel, and located on the farm of 107 1/2 acres now owned by Darius Tripp, a grandson of the pioneer. They had a family of ten children. Silas Tripp was the seventh in order of birth. He married Martha A. Stevens, and succeeded to the ownership of the home. Of the children of Silas Tripp, Darius and Emily are living on the old Tripp homestead; Jedediah S. is in Wisconsin: Ezekiel, Mariette, Samuel B. and Ursula are deceased; Mercy A. is Mrs. I. G. Quimby, of Duanesburgh; and Seneca is in Minnesota.
[Source: History of the County of Schenectady, N. Y., from 1662 to 1886, George Rogers Howell, John H. Munsell]