First Parish Church (Portland, Maine) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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First Parish Church
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Front of the church
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 425 Congress St., Portland, Maine |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1825 |
| Architect | multiple |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| NRHP reference No. | 73000113 |
| Added to NRHP | January 12, 1973 |
The First Parish Church is a very old and important church building. You can find it at 425 Congress Street in Portland, Maine. This church building was finished in 1825. However, the group of people who attend this church started meeting much earlier, all the way back in 1674! This makes it the oldest church building in the city of Portland. It's also a wonderful example of a building style known as Federal architecture. Because of its long history and beautiful design, the church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The people who worship here are part of the Unitarian Universalist faith.
About the Church Building
The First Parish Church stands on the north side of Congress Street. It's right across from Temple Street, in the busy center of Portland. Portland City Hall is a short walk to the east. The public library is just west, and Portland High School is right behind it.
The church is a tall, single-story building. It is made from strong granite stones that came from Freeport. The granite blocks are cut very smoothly. The corners of the building have special decorative stones called quoins. The church building is mostly rectangular. It has a part that sticks out at the front, which is where the three main entrances are. From this part, a square tower rises even higher.
Each of the three entrances is set inside a rounded arch. Above each door, there's a beautiful fanlight, which is a window shaped like a fan. The tall tower has several sections. The second section has an arched opening with slanted slats, called a louver. Above this is a marble panel showing the date. The third section has a clock. This part of the tower looks a bit different because its corners are rounded. The top part of the tower is octagonal, meaning it has eight sides. It has arched openings with louvers. On top of this is a smaller octagonal cupola, which is like a small dome. A short spire points towards the sky from the very top.
A Look at the Church's History
The church group began in 1674. Back then, Portland was called Falmouth. Its early years were sometimes difficult because of attacks from Native American groups. The church's continuous history started in 1718. That's when the congregation began meeting in a log church. This log church was replaced in 1721, and then again in 1740, with buildings made of wood.
The wooden church from 1740 was a very important place. In 1819, a special meeting was held there. People gathered to write the first constitution for what would soon become the state of Maine. Maine officially became a state the next year, in 1820.
The current granite church building was built on the same spot as the 1740 "Old Jerusalem" church. It was the first large building made of granite east of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. This strong granite building was the only one in its area to survive Portland's huge fire of 1866. The church reused the tower clock, the bell (though the bell was replaced in 1862), and the weather vane from the older church.
Inside the church, there is a large chandelier. This chandelier holds a 12 pounds (5.4 kg) cannonball! This cannonball was actually fired at the building during a British attack on Portland in 1775.
A famous musician named Hermann Kotzschmar (1829–1908) was the church organist for 47 years.
