Peterborough Unitarian Church


Peterborough Unitarian Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places

Peterborough Unitarian Church
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Location	Main and Summer Sts., Peterborough, New Hampshire
Coordinates	42°52′40″N 71°57′0″W / 42.87778°N 71.95000°W / 42.87778; -71.95000
Area	0.8 acres (0.32 ha)
Built	1825
Architect	Multiple
Architectural style	Federal
NRHP reference No.	73000165^[1]
Added to NRHP	April 23, 1973

The Peterborough Unitarian Church, also once known as the First Church in Peterborough, is a historic American church at Main and Summer streets in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Built in 1825-26 for a congregation founded in 1752, it is one of the state's finest examples of a Federal period church, drawing inspiration from the publications of Asher Benjamin. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.^[1]

Description and history[edit]

The Peterborough Unitarian Church stands prominently in the town center of Peterborough, at the northwest corner of Main and Summer streets. It is a single-story brick building, with a gabled roof and a multistage tower. The tower, set above the front facade, has a square first stage with round-arch louvers, an octagonal clock stage, an octagonal belfry, and a cupola crowned by a cross. The interior has a vestibule area, whose inner wall dividing it from the main space helps support the tower, and a galleried hall. Interior decorations are partly reflective of later 19th-century alterations, including the placement of pulpit and sounding board, and the trompe-l'œil artwork.^[2]

The church was built in 1825-26 for a congregation that was established in 1752. Its design was at one time attributed to Charles Bulfinch, but there is no documentary evidence that supports this connection, and the building clearly has Federal-style elements inspired by the publications of Asher Benjamin. The clock in its tower is owned by the town; the first was installed in 1856, the present one in 1947. The bell was installed in 1828.^[2]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
^ ^a ^b "NRHP nomination for Peterborough Unitarian Church". National Park Service. Retrieved 2014-05-30.

External links[edit]

Media related to Peterborough Unitarian Church at Wikimedia Commons

Church web site

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National Register of Historic Places in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire

Landmarks

Districts

Buildings

Commercial	Athens Building Birchwood Inn Dunlap Building Harrington-Smith Block Old Post Office Block Parker's Store T. L. Thorpe Building †
Education	Ash Street School Brick Schoolhouse Building at 418–420 Notre Dame Ave. Currier Gallery of Art Goffstown High School Goffstown Public Library Grasmere Schoolhouse No. 9 and Town Hall Hills Memorial Library Hunt Memorial Library North Weare Schoolhouse Pelham Library and Memorial Building St. George's School and Convent Varney School Weston Observatory Wilton Public and Gregg Free Library
Government	Bedford Town Hall Citizens' Hall Hillsborough County Courthouse Manchester City Hall Milford Town House and Library Annex New Hampshire State Union Armory New Ipswich Town Hall Peterborough Town House Temple Town Hall US Post Office-Peterborough Main Weare Town House Wilton Town Hall
Industrial	Daniel Cragin Mill Hillsborough Mills Hoyt Shoe Factory Kimball Brothers Shoe Factory Milford Cotton and Woolen Manufacturing Company Mine Falls Gatehouse
Religious	All Saints Church Bedford Presbyterian Church Francestown Meetinghouse Goffstown Congregational Church Greenfield Meeting House Peterborough Unitarian Church Union Chapel
Residential/ Agriculture	Abbot House Jonathan Barnes House Barrett House Carpenter and Bean Block Frank Pierce Carpenter House Amos Chase House and Mill Alpheus Gay House Hamblet-Putnam-Frye House Kennedy Hill Farm Hill–Lassonde House Hills House Thomas Russell Hubbard House Killicut-Way House Lamson Farm McClure-Hilton House The Meetinghouse Marion Nichols Summer Home William Peabody House G.O. Sanders House Signer's House and Matthew Thornton Cemetery Gov. John Butler Smith House Smith and Dow Block Smyth Tower Stonyfield Farm Gen. George Stark House Gen. John Stark House William Parker Straw House Sullivan House Roger Sullivan House Oliver Whiting Homestead Caleb Whittaker Place Levi Woodbury Homestead Zimmerman House

Sites

Structures

Footnotes

† This entry has been removed from the registry.

Description and history[edit]

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References[edit]

External links[edit]