First Congregational Church - Dudley, MA - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

In Dudley, in the old town center by the campus of Nichols College, stands a striking brick church with a bell and clock tower. This church is the First Congregational Church in Dudley, and an active congregation still holds services and activities there.

The church is modest in size, and has a square tower on front. The structure has a gable protrusion where a set of stained glass windows are located. The doorways and windows have a semicircular arch of brick framing them. The square tower rises above the roof line, with clock faces about 2/3 of the way up and an opening for a bell the rest of the way up. At about the level of the clock faces, the corners become distinctly more rounded and end above the top of the bell tower. The clock faces have a petaled pattern along the circle edge, with a number in each 'petal.' There is an addition off the church on the right side that is much more modern, which appears to be the fellowship hall and offices for the church.

There are several cornerstones plus a historic marker embedded in the church structure. One is the stone that bears the year, "1890" which is the year that the present structure was built. Another stone confirms this date with the text, "Corner Stone of the Old Church Erected 1823 Destroyed June 3, 1890." The bronze plaque references a meeting house on the location that dated back to 1723.

Unfortunately, no web site was found for the church. The sign by the church, facing the parking lot, states that it is also known as the Conant Memorial Church, and that John R. White is the current minister.

An article maintained by the Worcester Telegram provides a little more information about the church. Hezekiah Conant provided much of the funds for the church to rebuilt in 1890. As of 2007, the bell tower was silent - deemed structurally unsound to support the bell that was in it, and the clock components and bell were taken out. $400,000 was the estimated amount to restore the tower. It is not known whether the work was done; however, the clock was not keeping time, and the bell was not heard at the time of the visit.

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 01/01/1890 Age of Church building determined by?: Cornerstone or plaque If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Congregational (United Church of Christ) If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Sunday Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: 10:00 AM Street address of Church: 135 Center Street Dudley, MA United States of America 01571 Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: Not listed Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: Not listed

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