First Presbyterian Church (Hartford City, Indiana) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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First Presbyterian Church
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Hartford City's First Presbyterian Church in 2010
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 Location in Blackford County, Indiana
Location in Indiana
Location in the United States
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| Location | Hartford City, Indiana |
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| Built | 1893 |
| Architect | Alec Gable |
| Architectural style | Romanesque |
| NRHP reference No. | 86001263 |
| Added to NRHP | June 13, 1986 |
The First Presbyterian Church in Hartford City, Indiana, is a historic Presbyterian church building. It's the oldest church in this small city. Hartford City was once a busy place with many glass factories and businesses.
The church is located at the corner of High and Franklin Streets. It is part of the Hartford City Courthouse Square Historic District. This beautiful building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
Building the church started in 1892 and finished in 1893. It's a great example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style of architecture. One special thing about the church is its huge stained glass windows. These windows were made by hand in Belgium. Local glass workers, originally from Belgium, put them together.
The church was built during a time of big economic growth in Indiana. This was because natural gas was discovered. This period is known as the Indiana Gas Boom. Many of Hartford City's special buildings were built then. This includes the Blackford County Courthouse and the First Presbyterian Church. Both are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Presbyterians in Hartford City
In the 1840s, Hartford City was just a small farming community called Hartford. Methodists were already holding Christian services there. On December 18, 1843, a second Christian group arrived. The Presbyterian Church of Hartford was started by 13 people and Reverend Samuel N. Steel.
The first Presbyterian church building was built in 1844. It was on Mulberry Street, on the edge of the village. At that time, farmland was only two blocks away. The church changed its name a few times. It was called Blackford Presbyterian Church in 1853. Then it went back to Presbyterian Church of Hartford in 1855.
Today, the first church's location is near the current courthouse square. Hartford was renamed Hartford City in the 1850s. This was because another town named Hartford already existed in Indiana. The town grew and became an incorporated town in 1857.
The Presbyterian congregation also grew. Church members included many respected citizens. Their families helped shape the community.
As the church became too small, the women of the congregation started raising money. On March 7, 1868, the Presbyterians bought a new lot. It was on the north side of Hartford City, at High and Franklin Streets. This lot cost $150. A new wood-frame church was quickly built there. Church members and friends donated their labor. This new church was larger and had better furnishings. It was heated with two stoves.
However, within 20 years, it became too crowded again. Members didn't want to go into deep debt for a new building. But they started working to save money for a bigger church.
The women of the church played a huge role in fundraising again. They organized many projects and clubs. These included the Sewing Circle, Reading Circle, and Aftermath Society. In 1883, another group was formed. It was called "The Woman's Home and Foreign Missionary Society." This group started with 6 members. Within a year, it had up to 80 members and guests. To compare, the whole town had a population of only 1,470 in 1880.
Construction of the New Church
In 1890, Reverend A. Judson Arrick became the new pastor. He encouraged members to raise even more money for a new church. Soon, plans for the new building were ready. Alec Gable was chosen to build the new brick church.
In 1892, the old wood-frame church was moved. It went one block east to Jefferson Street. This allowed construction of the new church to begin at the Franklin and High Street site. The cornerstone for the new building was laid that same year. Sadly, Reverend Arrick left Hartford City on September 6, 1892. He didn't get to see the finished church.
By December, the roof was done and the floor was laid. Church members held their first service in the partly finished building on January 8, 1893. Reverend J. W. Fulton was the new pastor.
The new church was completed by July 1893. A special dedication ceremony was held on July 9, 1893. Many people attended, including visitors from nearby towns. It was announced that $5,000 was needed to pay off the building's debt. People pledged $4,809 that day. Later that evening, more money was donated. The total for the day was $5,529. This meant the church was free of debt!
The building cost over $10,000, which was a lot for that time. But the congregation's years of planning and generosity paid off. They had a beautiful, debt-free church. The church had two main rooms: the sanctuary on the west side and a lecture room on the east side.
The old wood-frame church was not forgotten. It was rented for a few years and used for storage. Before 1895, it was taken apart and moved again. It went to the south side of town. There, it became a mission Sunday School. About 30 to 40 students attended each Sunday.
Church Architecture
People in the community were very impressed with the new church. A local newspaper said it was "a monument of which they may be justly proud." The church is Hartford City's best example of the Romanesque Revival architectural style called Richardsonian Romanesque.
This style became popular in America in the late 1800s. It was often used for churches and public buildings. Typical features include a large single tower, round arches over windows and doors, groups of windows, gabled roofs, and different colored stone or brick masonry.
Alec Gable, the architect, used many of these features in the church's blueprint. The outside of the building is brick with limestone trim. This mix of textures is typical of the Richardsonian Romanesque style. Indiana is famous for its limestone. It has been used in many famous buildings across the United States.
The church's main front has a gabled roof. It features a round-arched doorway and a large stained-glass window. A square bell tower is on the northwest corner. It separates the north and west sides of the building. The top of the tower is steep and pyramid-shaped. It has a Christian cross on top. These are more typical Richardson designs.
The west side of the church (facing High Street) has the main entrance to the sanctuary. It also features a huge stained glass window. This window is surrounded by narrow brick buttresses topped with limestone. The circular window is called a rose window. It's similar to the circular windows in old European cathedrals. The Tournai Cathedral in Belgium and the Notre Dame Cathedral in France have famous rose windows.
The north side (facing Franklin Street) has two gabled sections. One section, next to the bell tower, has a large stained glass window. This window is almost as big as the one on the west side. Both large windows can be seen from inside the church's sanctuary. Another gabled section on the north side is where the Franklin Street entrance is. It also has more stained glass windows.
Stained Glass Windows
One of the most important features of the 1893 church was (and still is) a huge stained glass window on the High Street (west) side of the sanctuary. For over 50 years after it was put in, people thought it was the largest window in one frame in Indiana.
Mrs. George Gable paid for this stained glass window. It was a memorial to her mother, Lydia Taughinbaugh. Lydia was one of the church's first members. The glass was handmade in Belgium. Local glass workers, who were originally from Belgium, installed it. Many of Hartford City's Belgian glass workers were Catholics. They lived on the other side of the city.
Belgium was the world's top exporter of glass in the 1800s. It was known for making flat glass. Belgian craftsmen like Fourcault and Bicheroux made important contributions to glassmaking in the early 1900s. This helped Belgium be the top exporter of glass to the United States before World War I.
The stained glass windows in Hartford City's Presbyterian Church still have very bright colors. These colors are hard to make today. In the past, the "recipes" for different glass colors were often kept secret. They were passed down from master to apprentice. The exact shade of color depended on secret ingredients, how long the glass was heated, and even the pot it was made in. Some ingredients used to color glass are no longer used. This is because they were found to be harmful to the glassmakers!
In the Middle Ages, stained glass windows were often used in churches to teach people who couldn't read. This art was sometimes called a "Poor Man's Bible." Some windows showed actual scenes from the Christian Bible. Others used symbols to represent Bible teachings. The many stained glass windows in Hartford City's Presbyterian Church continue this tradition. They show both Biblical scenes and symbols.
The huge window on the church's west wall (High Street side) looks like a fancy design. But it's full of symbolism. The circular part at the top is called a rose window. This type of window was popular in Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals. The Tournai Cathedral in Belgium has a rose window. The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, also has one on its west side.
Placing the rose window on the west side is common. It allows the afternoon sunlight to make the window look even more beautiful from inside. In the 1800s and 1900s, rose windows were often dedicated to Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus. The center of the rose window in Hartford City's church has a gold ring. This represents Christ as the center "light." Around Christ are twelve objects, symbolizing the twelve disciples. Below the rose are four parts that represent the four gospel writers. This window is a memorial to its sponsor's mother. Its location on the western side follows tradition.
The church's western window has some feminine symbols. The other large window, on the north side, has a more masculine feel. It shows a crown symbolizing Jesus Christ the King. Other messages in the church's stained glass windows are shown in the photos below.
Most stained glass rose windows in churches use deep primary colors like blue, purple, red, green, and gold. But the main west window in Hartford City's First Presbyterian Church is special. It uses almost all pastel and muted colors. These colors show natural beauty and sacred meaning.
The light blue colors show the sky, air, and water. They represent moisture, rain, and water that feeds the earth. The muted greens show leaves, chlorophyll, and the life cycle in nature. They connect to the sky through the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. These colors represent all organic life.
The many light blues and muted greens in the west window tell a story from the book of Genesis. It's about God creating the heavens and the earth. It shows the sky, sunlight, air, and water nourishing the earth. It also shows soil, growing plants, and the organic life cycle that supports human life. God created organic life in these beautiful colors to support human life.
The north window confirms the meaning of the west window. It clearly shows the natural beauty of the oceans. Oceans cover almost 70% of the Earth. Their process of evaporation and condensation creates all life in the sky and on Earth. Without oceans, the rest of our earthly life cycle wouldn't exist. Together, these priceless stained glass windows tell a unique story. They show how God-given science in nature helps human life connect with the divine.
- A simple nativity of Jesus scene including the Star of Bethlehem.
- A crown of thorns with a broken cross symbolizing the crucifixion of Jesus.
- The traditional Holy Grail symbolizing communion.
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Simple design
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Nativity scene
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Crucifixion
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Holy Grail
Additions and Enhancements
The new building brought new interest to the Presbyterian Church. Membership grew to 253 in 1895. Sunday school enrollment was over 300. Over the first 100 years, small changes were made to the church. These included moving doorways and changing the sanctuary. For example, a door on the south side of the west wall was removed early on.
One of the first changes inside the church was making the pulpit and choir platform larger. This was done to fit a bigger choir. The platform was made even bigger in 1912. That's when the church bought a pipe organ.
In the 1920s, Sunday School attendance reached its highest point with 500 students. Because so many people attended, there was a plan to add a new building. But concerns about debt led to a cheaper plan. This plan involved closing off the east lecture room. It was done in the early 1930s. This created a balcony on the east side of the sanctuary and six classrooms. A few years later, in 1936, the sanctuary was completely redecorated.
The 1930s and 1940s were some of the busiest years for the church. Newer generations of important local families were still part of the church. Many members were also involved in the city's important glass industry. Membership in the 1940s reached as high as 438.
The last major change to the church building was in 1959. Construction began for an east wing. Today, the bell from the bell tower rests on the ground on the south side of the building. The bell was removed for safety reasons. It also helped reduce strain on the tower structure.
Pipe Organ
In 1908, Reverend George Sheldon became the new pastor. After a couple of years, he encouraged the congregation to get a pipe organ. Different church groups started raising money. Also, $1,000 was donated by Andrew Carnegie. He was a famous philanthropist who had retired from his businesses.
The new pipe organ cost over $2,000. It was installed in 1912. The platform for the choir and pulpit was made larger to fit this magnificent instrument. Professor Isaac Norris of DePauw University played the dedication recital. Professor Carl Bilby of Muncie, Indiana was the first regular organist. This pipe organ is thought to be the first in the city. It is still used today. The photo shows the church's pulpit and the "pipe" part of the pipe organ. Smaller stained glass windows can be seen near the choir loft. These windows were part of the church's eastern wall before the East Wing was added.
East Wing Addition
A two-story building with a flat roof was added to the east side of the church in 1960. This addition was named Westminster Fellowship Hall. It was built for fellowship and Christian education. Planning and fundraising for it began in the spring of 1958. This was the only large expansion of the church. Construction started with a groundbreaking ceremony in August 1959. Dr. John W. Halsey, the pastor, and other members took turns with a symbolic shoveling of the earth. The total cost of this expansion was about $85,000.
Present Congregation
As of 2008, the church's congregation had 122 members. Reverend David Smith was the pastor in 2010. While membership is lower than its peak before World War II, it has increased slightly from earlier in the decade.
The city's population has gone down since the 1970s. This is partly due to problems in the American auto industry. However, Hartford City's First Presbyterian Church is still "a monument of which they [the community] may be justly proud."
The church holds services in the city's historic district. It is in a historic building on land bought in 1868. Located at the corner of Franklin and High Streets, much of the church building looks the same as it did when it was built in 1892 and 1893. The building has existed in three different centuries. It continues to be an important part of the community.
See also
In Spanish: Primera Iglesia Presbiteriana (Hartford City) para niños
- Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
