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Built in 1899, First Parish Meetinghouse in Town Square isn’t the oldest building in Plymouth. But it does hold two national titles of distinction: the oldest continuously operating church and the oldest organization of any kind in the United States.
It sits on the spot where the Pilgrims first worshipped, and where religious freedom in our country was born.
While the meetinghouse is the fifth structure on this site – and only 112 years old, young by Plymouth’s standards – the once sturdy granite and sandstone structure is showing major signs of disrepair. Cracked and broken granite, mildewed sandstone and gaping holes where mortar once held the building together have created threatening and damaging conditions. So powerfully destructive are these conditions that engineers and preservation experts have warned of the urgency for repair, restoration and conservation of this national treasure, also known as The National Memorial Pilgrim Church.
“Old buildings possess enormous charm and serve as wise old beacons of the past,” Lester Lloyd, an architect working on the project, said. “First Parish is just such a building. But the age of a building should not detract from the needs of a structure pounded by wind, salt spray, rain, environmental damage and the ravaging effects of water. It is water and moisture that threaten First Parish, its complete structure and its Tiffany stained glass windows.”
“The desperate needs outlined in our structural survey demand that we act now to restore and preserve First Parish,” Jan Palmer-Tarbox, chairman of the Meetinghouse Restoration Committee, added. “I hate to imagine what would happen to the meetinghouse if we do not heed the warnings of our engineers.”
Specifically, the greatest threat to the building is the seepage of water between the granite blocks. Behind those blocks, the facade is in jeopardy. The interior shows massive water damage that will only be mitigated by the repair of the exterior.
The water, wind and climate are just as damaging to the stained glass windows, a number of which were designed by famed Tiffany Studios artist Edward Peck Sperry.
“First Parish’s stained glass windows are unique to Plymouth. There are no other Tiffany stained glass windows in Plymouth, and certainly there are no other windows that, window by window, tell the story of the Pilgrims in such an evocative and dramatic way,” Roberto Rosa, of Serpentino Stained and Leaded Glass of Needham, said.
All of the windows need some repair, but the most in need are John Robinson Blessing the Pilgrims at Their Departure from Delftshaven, Civil Liberty, Signing the Compact and Religious Liberty.
Built in 1899, First Parish Meetinghouse in Town Square isn’t the oldest building in Plymouth. But it does hold two national titles of distinction: the oldest continuously operating church and the oldest organization of any kind in the United States.
It sits on the spot where the Pilgrims first worshipped, and where religious freedom in our country was born.
While the meetinghouse is the fifth structure on this site – and only 112 years old, young by Plymouth’s standards – the once sturdy granite and sandstone structure is showing major signs of disrepair. Cracked and broken granite, mildewed sandstone and gaping holes where mortar once held the building together have created threatening and damaging conditions. So powerfully destructive are these conditions that engineers and preservation experts have warned of the urgency for repair, restoration and conservation of this national treasure, also known as The National Memorial Pilgrim Church.
“Old buildings possess enormous charm and serve as wise old beacons of the past,” Lester Lloyd, an architect working on the project, said. “First Parish is just such a building. But the age of a building should not detract from the needs of a structure pounded by wind, salt spray, rain, environmental damage and the ravaging effects of water. It is water and moisture that threaten First Parish, its complete structure and its Tiffany stained glass windows.”
“The desperate needs outlined in our structural survey demand that we act now to restore and preserve First Parish,” Jan Palmer-Tarbox, chairman of the Meetinghouse Restoration Committee, added. “I hate to imagine what would happen to the meetinghouse if we do not heed the warnings of our engineers.”
Specifically, the greatest threat to the building is the seepage of water between the granite blocks. Behind those blocks, the facade is in jeopardy. The interior shows massive water damage that will only be mitigated by the repair of the exterior.
The water, wind and climate are just as damaging to the stained glass windows, a number of which were designed by famed Tiffany Studios artist Edward Peck Sperry.
“First Parish’s stained glass windows are unique to Plymouth. There are no other Tiffany stained glass windows in Plymouth, and certainly there are no other windows that, window by window, tell the story of the Pilgrims in such an evocative and dramatic way,” Roberto Rosa, of Serpentino Stained and Leaded Glass of Needham, said.
All of the windows need some repair, but the most in need are John Robinson Blessing the Pilgrims at Their Departure from Delftshaven, Civil Liberty, Signing the Compact and Religious Liberty.
“To lose these windows would be a tragedy,” Ben Brewster, honorary chairman of the Campaign for First Parish, said. “In so many ways, this building belongs to the people of Plymouth and the world. We can’t just turn a blind eye and say, ‘Let someone else do it.’ We need to take responsibility now for the centerpiece of Town Square and for our collective history as Americans.”
One million dollars is needed to bring First Parish to a place where the exterior no longer wreaks havoc on the interior of the building. The First Parish leadership voted to embark on Our History, Our Heritage, Our Community, the Campaign for First Parish Meetinghouse, to raise the money.
“In just a few short months we have raised more than $62,000 for our cause, but we have a long way to go,” Brewster said. “I know there are generous individuals and companies out there who want to help us. Now they can.”
For more information about Our History, Our Heritage, Our Community, the Campaign for First Parish Meetinghouse, or to make a donation, visit www.restorefirstparishplymouth.org or call Darcy Lee, campaign director, at 508-747-1606. Donations can be mailed to First Parish Meetinghouse Restoration, 19 Town Square, Plymouth, MA 02360.
