First Universalist Church (Salem, Massachusetts)

The First Universalist Society of Salem is a historic Universalist former church building at 211 Bridge Street in Salem, Massachusetts.

First Universalist Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
First Universalist Church
Location	Salem, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°31′26″N 70°53′44″W
Built	1808
Architect	Putnam, William
Architectural style	Federal
MPS	Downtown Salem MRA
NRHP reference No.	83000577 [1]
Added to NRHP	July 29, 1983

History

The congregation was founded in 1805 after seven local people with an interest in Universalism attended a lecture by Rev. John Murray, a founder of Universalism. The current church building was constructed in 1808 with Rev. Hosea Ballou, a founder of the Universalist Church, laying the cornerstone of the Federal style building.[2] Inside the building, the Hutchings organ was constructed in 1888 with 1,200 pipes. The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The church closed in 2016, merging with First Parish, UU, in Beverly, MA.

See also

• Bessie Monroe House, located behind the church
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Salem, Massachusetts
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Essex County, Massachusetts

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
2. Lemuel Willis, A semi-centennial address delivered in the Universalist Church, Salem, Mass., Thursday, August 4, 1859 (Register Press, 1859)

External links

Media related to First Universalist Meetinghouse (Salem, Massachusetts) at Wikimedia Commons

• First Universalist Society of Salem website
• A semi-centennial address delivered in the Universalist Church, Salem, Mass., Thursday, August 4, 1859 by Lemuel Willis (Register Press, 1859)
• The historical records of the First Universalist Church in Salem are in the Andover-Harvard Theological Library at Harvard Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts.