Old First Church

Old First Church. First Church of Christ, Congregational. In the spring of 1636, a small band of early settlers from Roxbury, Massachusetts ventured up the Connecticut River to settle in Springfield, then known by its Indian name of Agawam. Together they executed an agreement which in part reads:, "Wee intend by God's grace, as soon as we can, with all convenient speede to procure some Godly and faithfull minister, with whom we propose to joyne in church covenant, to walk in all the ways of Christ", Although the first meetinghouse for the combined purposes of church services and town meetings was not built until 1645, the church was organized in the fall of 1637 when the settlers secured the Reverend George Moxon as their first "Godly and faithfull minister.", . Fourteenth Church organized in Massachusetts Bay Colony , . On October 18, 1971 , the first building in Springfield to be designated as a Massachusetts Historical Landmark , . Placed on National Register of Historic Places in 1972, First Meetinghouse . 1645 , The first meetinghouse was built by Thomas Cooper and stood on the southeast corner of Court Square facing Meetinghouse Lane (Elm Street). It had a shingled roof, a rare thing in those days, and two turrets, one designed for a bell and the other for a watch house to guard against the approach of unfriendly Indians. Men and women occupied separate sections of the church., Second Meetinghouse . 1677 , The second meetinghouse was built in 1677 just west of the first one at a cost of $400. It had a turret but no bell until 1687. It was protected from attack by Indians by a five-foot rail fence, excepting at the rear where a hedge was planted. John Pynchon (William’s son) was chairman of the building committee., Third Meetinghouse . 1752 , The third meetinghouse was completed in 1752 when the village population was approximately 1,000. It stood east of the present edifice with its front on Elm Street and its primary entrance facing Main Street. The rooster crowned its spire and its clock told the time from its steeple., Within were the customary high pulpit, ponderous sound board and square seats. Men and women were now allowed to sit together but were seated according to wealth and position., Fourth and Present Meetinghouse . 1819 , The fourth and present meetinghouse was erected by Captain Isaac Damon, a famous church and bridge builder from Northampton. The great timbers to form the foundation came down the Connecticut River from New Hampshire. Hand hewn from immense white pines, the likes of which cannot be found anywhere in New England today., On August 19, 1819 the church was dedicated, with an overflow crowd reported in The Federalist and Journal to be more than 3,000 people. The population of the town at that time was not quite 4,000., Here worshipped Thomas Blanchard who in 1825 drove through Main Street in the world's first automobile. Here came John Brown. Here visited Daniel Webster. Here Jenny Lind sang. Here in 1848 the body of President John Quincy Adams lay in state. Here in the heart of the city has remained the steadfastness of Old First Church., William Pynchon . 1636 , William Pynchon, the son of a country gentleman, bought shares in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629 and left Springfield in Essex, England in 1630 to sail to America. Looking to expand his fur trading business he scouted the area in 1635. He returned in 1636 to found his fur trading post, plantation, and Old First Church. Before the first meetinghouse was built, church services, town meetings, and court (over which he presided as magistrate) were all held in his house., First Church Rooster . 1750 , Tradition has it that this proud rooster, handcrafted by a noted London coppersmith, was shipped to Massachusetts along with two others , one to the First Church in Newburyport, and the other to South Church in Boston., In 1750 he appeared atop of the third meetinghouse, and in 1819 atop of the present meetinghouse. He's much larger than one would think, measuring 4 feet from tail to beak, about 45 inches tall, and he is 49 pounds in weight. He is hollow , the two sides being put together with bolts and screws, and he rotates on a glass cap working over a metal pivot., This plaque made possible through the generosity of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority’s Public Work and Tourism Grant Program. . This historical marker was erected by Massachusetts Turnpike Authority. It is in Springfield in Hampden County Massachusetts