United Church of Bernardston - Bernardston, MA - Methodist Churches on Waymarking.com

The United Church of Bernardston is a federated church of the United Methodist Episcopal Church, UMC and the United Church of Christ, UCC. The church has a complex history.

In colonial Massachusetts the construction of a Congregational church was require to establish a town. Bernardston, then known as Falls Town Fight Township was settled in 1735. The first church was built in 1739. In 1823 the congregation split between Congregationalist and Unitarians. Nine Congregationalist left the church and, in 1825, built the present church on land donated by Judge Job Goodale. They named their church the Evangelical and later the Orthodox Congregational Church and then the Goodale Memorial Church.

Methodist first settled in Bernardston in 1799. In May 1845, the Methodist Episcopal Society of Bernardston was formed and built their church on Center Street. In the the early 1900's the membership of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the nearby Goodale Memorial Church declined. In April 1912 the two churches decided to unite and form the present federated church, in the in the building of the Goodale Memorial Church. After 1957, Congregationalists voted to become part of the UCC and, in 1965, the Goodale Memorial United Church change its name to the United Church of Bernardston.

The Colonial style United Church of Bernardston has a set of steps leading up to projecting entrance pavilion covered by a pediment and gable roof. The two story high church has a gable roof an a central entrance flanked by a pair of screened windows. A second pair of screened windows on the second level are direct above those on the lower level.

Rising from the gable roof is a three stage steeple. The lower stage is a square tower. Next is a belfry with louvered windows flanked by a pair piasters on each side. The top is a slender octagonal spire topped with a weather vane.

The east side of the main block of the church is three bays wide with an auxiliary entrance on the first bay and five screened double hung windows on the other bays. The west side has three small basement windows and three larger screened windows on the upper level. Additions to the back and east of the back have been added to the church.

Active church?: Yes Year Built: 1825 Service times: Sunday at 10:30 am Website: [Web Link]

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