Brunswick, Me. First Parish Church records, 1735-1829.
Scope and Contents
This collection contains the early administrative and vital membership records of the First Parish Church in Brunswick, Maine. Included in the collection are the minutes of church and parish meetings, baptismal records, marriage records, records of deaths, historical sketches, and the ministerial records of Asa Mead.
Dates
- 1735-1829
Creator
- First Parish Church (Brunswick, Me.) (Organization)
Restrictions on Access
Access to this collection is unrestricted and open to the public.
Restrictions on Use
Items in this collection are subject to U.S. Copyright Law. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine the copyright status of collection items and to secure any permissions necessary for their reproduction and publication. Requests for permission to publish material must be discussed with the archivist or librarian.
Digital Reproductions are protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use the Digital Reproductions in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the Congregational Library & Archives for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the Congregational Library & Archives. For additional information regarding copyright, please consult the Congregational Library & Archives' Digital Collections Copyright & Use policy.
Historical Note
The township of Brunswick was incorporated on May 3, 1717. The Massachusetts General Court voted to allocate funds for the dispatching of missionaries to the Native Americans still settled in Brunswick, an act which established the First Parish Church in Brunswick. The first missionary to visit was Rev. Joseph Baxter. He was followed by Rev. James Woodslide, a Brunswick local, who was deemed not puritanical enough to continue preaching. The first permanently settled minister of the First Parish Church was Rev. Robert Dunlap, a Presbyterian, who served as the pastor of the church from 1747-1760.
Funding for the first meeting house was first authorized on January 9, 1717, but the building was not completed until 1735. This meeting house, in the western part of the town, was largely Presbyterian. A second meeting house was constructed in the eastern part of the town in 1756 and was largely Congregational. The minister of the First Parish served as pastor of both churches. In 1772, the two church populations agreed to officially follow Congregational polity. In 1790 some parishioners withdrew from the church in order to form a Baptist Society, in part because they did not wish to pay taxes to the town to support the Congregational minister.
Construction on the third meeting house began in 1806 and was completed in 1808. At that point, the two church communities largely combined and met jointly in the third meeting house. The first meeting house became property of Brunswick until it was destroyed by fire in 1834. The second meeting house was largely abandoned after 1808 and was demolished by 1835. The fourth, and final, meeting house, designed by Richard Upjohn, was dedicated on March 18, 1846. Harriet Beecher Stowe sat in pew 23 in this building in 1851 when she was inspired to write "Uncle Tom's Cabin."
The First Parish Church had a close relationship with Bowdoin College during the 19th and 20th century. The college provided some of the funds needed for the construction of the third and fourth meeting houses and Baccalaureate Services and Commencement Exercises were held annually at the church building until 1966.
In 1960, the First Parish Church in Brunswick voted to join the United Church of Christ. The church continues to serve the community today.
Extent
1.09 Cubic Feet (1 box)
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The township of Brunswick was incorporated on May 3, 1717. Until 1747 the town was served by temporary missionary ministers. In 1747 the First Parish Church was actually split into two buildings, one following Congregational polity and the other following Presbyterian polity. In 1772 both groups agreed to follow Congregational polity and in 1808 both groups physically merged into a single meeting house. The church had close relations to Bowdoin College and Harriet Beecher Stowe found inspiration for Uncle Tom's Cabin while attending the church. The Church, now a member of the UCC, continues to serve the community. The collection includes the early administrative and vital membership records of the church including church and parish meeting minutes, vital statistics of members, and ministerial records for Asa Mead.
Arrangement
This collection has been arranged in chronological order by start date.
Technical Requirements
To access digital user’s copies via online-interface, a java-enabled web browser is required. Internet Explorer 8.x and later, Firefox 5.x and later, Opera 12 and later, Safari 5.x and later, or any version of Google Chrome are recommended.
Acquisition Information
Loaned to the Congregational Library & Archives, for digitization, by the First Parish Church in Brunswick, Maine, October 2014; 2014-83.
Accruals
Additional accruals are expected for this collection in the form of full-text transcription. There is no anticipated date for this accrual.
Location of Originals
The physical records are held and maintained by the First Parish Church in Brunswick, Maine.
Bibliography
Processing Information
Originally processed by Sari Mauro, January 2015. Redescribed by Zachary Bodnar, March 2019, using DACS Second Edition.
Creator
- First Parish Church (Brunswick, Me.) (Organization)
- Title
- Brunswick, Me. First Parish Church records, 1735-1829.
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Sari Mauro, Zachary Bodnar
- Date
- 2019-03-27
- Description rules
- Dacs2 2013
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the Congregational Library & Archives Repository