Centre Village Meeting House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Centre Village Meeting House
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 Location in New Hampshire
Location in the United States
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| Location | NH 4A, Enfield Center, New Hampshire |
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| Area | 0.5 acres (0.20 ha) |
| Built | 1836 |
| Architect | John Noyes |
| NRHP reference No. | 85001197 |
| Added to NRHP | June 06, 1985 |
The Centre Village Meeting House is a special old building in Enfield Center, New Hampshire. It's also known as the Union Church of Enfield Center. This historic building is located right on New Hampshire Route 4A.
It was built way back in 1836. This makes it a great example of Federal period church style, which was popular in the early 1800s. It also has some cool features from the Greek Revival style. The building is unique because it's always been a nondenominational place. This means it serves many different Christian groups, not just one. In 1985, this important building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This list helps protect America's historic sites.
Contents
Exploring the Centre Village Meeting House
The Centre Village Meeting House is found in the heart of Enfield Center. This small village stretches along Route 4A in the town of Enfield, New Hampshire. The building sits on the north side of the road. Its front, which has a pointed roof (called a gable), faces the street.
What Does the Meeting House Look Like?
This building is one and a half stories tall. It has a gabled roof and its outside walls are covered with wooden boards called clapboards. A small entrance area with its own pointed roof protects the main doors. These doors are set back a bit, inside a wide opening with decorative columns called pilasters.
Both the small entrance roof and the main roof have a triangular shape called a pediment. A tall, square tower rises from the roof. It has three sections and ends with an eight-sided open top called a cupola. Inside, the meeting house is simple. It has long wooden benches called slip pews. The main stage area has furniture from the Victorian era.
A Look Back at Its History
Local builders constructed the Centre Village Meeting House in 1836. They might have gotten ideas from a book called A Country Builder's Assistant, written by Asher Benjamin in 1797. However, they added some Greek Revival details to the design. They also made some parts simpler to save money.
People paid for the building by buying pews, which are like reserved seats. This way, the church could be used by different Christian groups. No single group, like the Congregationalists, Methodists, or Unitarians, owned enough pews to control the building. This made it a truly interdenominational place of worship. In 1870, a special collection helped buy the tower bell. The building has changed very little since it was first built.
See Also
Images for kids
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The church in 2013
