Elijah Kellogg Church facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Elijah Kellogg Church
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 917 Harpswell Neck Road (ME 123), Harpswell, Maine |
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| Area | 0.5 acres (0.20 ha) |
| Built | 1843 |
| Architect | Raymond, Anthony Coombs |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival, Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 79000140 |
| Added to NRHP | June 27, 1979 |
The Elijah Kellogg Church is a special old Congregationalist church located at 917 Harpswell Neck Road (Maine State Route 123) in Harpswell, Maine. It was built in 1843. This church is a great example of two classic building styles: Greek Revival and Gothic Revival. It's also famous because of its connection to Rev. Elijah Kellogg, a well-known writer of children's books from the 1800s. The church building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, marking it as an important historical site. Today, the church is part of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches.
Contents
Discovering the Church's Design
The Elijah Kellogg Church stands in Harpswell Center. You can find it on the east side of Harpswell Neck Road. It is directly across from the even older Harpswell Meetinghouse, which was built in the 1750s.
What Does the Church Look Like?
This church is a single-story building made of wood. It has a pointed roof and its outside walls are mostly covered with clapboards. The building sits on a strong granite foundation.
A tall tower sits on top of the roof. The first part of the tower is short and made of matchboard. Above that is a taller section with decorative corner posts called pilasters. Then comes an open square bell tower, called a belfry. It has a fancy top supported by more pilastered posts, and a tall, pointed steeple rises above it all.
The front of the church has a very striking entrance. The main doors are set inside a curved archway. This archway has a special "ogee" shape and pretty windows above and next to the doors. There are also pairs of pilasters at the corners of the building. These rise up to a fully triangular pediment, which is like a decorative triangle at the very top of the front wall. The side walls of the church are divided into two sections by pilasters. Each section has windows with pointed, arch-shaped tops.
A Look Back: The Church's History
The church was built in 1843 for a Congregationalist group. This group had been meeting in Harpswell since 1753.
Why Was a New Church Built?
The new church was needed because of a disagreement about the old meetinghouse. That building was built before the idea of separation of church and state was common. This meant it was used for both town meetings and religious services. The new church helped separate these two functions.
Elijah Kellogg's Connection
The church's very first pastor was Rev. Elijah Kellogg. He had just finished his studies at nearby Bowdoin College. Kellogg served as the pastor until 1854. Even after he left, he stayed connected to Harpswell. He came back to live there in 1882. He even served as pastor again from 1889 until he passed away in 1901. Rev. Kellogg is most famous for writing many popular children's books during his lifetime.
See also
