Albany County, New York
The city of Albany was the first municipality within this large county, founded as the village (dorp in Dutch) of Beverwyck by the Director-General of New Amsterdam, Pieter Stuyvesant, who also established the first court in Albany. Albany was established as a city in 1686 by Governor Dongan through the Dongan Charter after the English took over the colony. Schenectady to the west was given a patent with some municipal rights in 1684 and became a borough in 1765.
First Church in Albany (Reformed)
It was established in 1642 to serve the Dutch inhabitants of Fort Orange, the adjacent village of Beverwyck, and the patroonship of Rensselaerswyck in general. It is the second oldest congregation in the state of New York, and the oldest upstate. The current church, designed by Philip Hooker, is the fourth building and the oldest church in Albany. The pulpit was imported from the Netherlands in 1656 and is the oldest pulpit in the United States.