Reverend Anthony Jackson

New Paltz Times~1874-03-29

In 1872, Anthony Jackson was appointed as the Reverend of the A.M.E. Zion Church. His prior appointment had been in the town of Hudson, New York. As the New Paltz minister  Rev. Jackson was praised and respected for his involvement in the church

In the June 13th, 1872, New Paltz Times an article stated “Rev. Anthony Jackson, pastor of AME Zion Church in New Paltz, expects to attend the General National Conference of the colored churches in the country to be held in Charlotte NC. Mr Jackson will represent the churches in the vicinity.” He also contributed to the church itself by holding concerts, fairs, and quarterly meetings for the A.M.E. Zion Church. He was then reappointed to serve A.M.E. Zion Church once more in 1873.

Despite his praised contributions, Reverend Anthony Jackson became involved in a dispute with the church trustess and consistory. In March of 1874, Reverend Jackson wrote a letter to the editor of the New Paltz Independent claiming that the church did not pay him his salary from the years of 1873- 1874. In return, the Board of trustees wrote a letter to the New Paltz Times claiming they were paying him as they should and that he did not convey his duties properly. This salary dispute continued between the reverend and the Trustees through the month of April in 1874. The local papers did not cover any additional information concerning the Reverend Jackson or this salary dispute after that date. Instead, a new and famous minister, the Reverend James Thomas, was appointed to serve the A.M.E. Zion Church. Reverend Jackson’s salary issue was not unique when it comes to the history of the church. Additional pastors came forth with similar issues of not being paid by the church as well.