First Congregational Church (Alton, New Hampshire)
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The First Congregational Church (once known as the Congregational Meetinghouse and now the Community Church of Alton) is a historic church building at 20 Church Street in
Alton, New Hampshire Alton is a town in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,894 at the 2020 census, up from 5,250 at the 2010 census. It is home to Alton Bay State Forest and Mount Major State Forest. The primary settlement in town, ...
, United States. Built in 1853–54, it is one of Belknap County's finest
Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
churches. The building was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1990.


Architecture and history

The Alton Community Church is located in Alton's main village, on the south side of Church Street west of Main Street. It is a -story wood-frame structure, with a
gabled roof A gable roof is a roof consisting of two sections whose upper horizontal edges meet to form its ridge. The most common roof shape in cold or temperate climates, it is constructed of rafters, roof trusses or purlins. The pitch of a gable roof ca ...
and clapboarded exterior. The main entry projects slightly, allowing for the presence of paneled columns, which support the church tower. These columns are matched by
pilaster In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wal ...
s at the building's corners. The tower's first stage is paneled, while the second has an open belfry with square posts at the corners and
balustrades A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its con ...
in between. The belfry is topped by a cornice and four-sided spire. The interior of the main auditorium has been repeatedly altered since its original construction, with gallery spaces converted to storage. The basement level has been adapted to house classrooms, necessitating the addition of a stairwell in the vestibule area. Significant exterior alterations include the removal of a
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). ...
around the tower spire, the addition of a stained glass window in the rear gable, and the construction of an adjoining
vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquiall ...
. The church was built for a congregation established in 1827, that is now known as the Community Church of Alton. It was built in 1853–54, and is one of twelve surviving
Greek Revival buildings Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
in the county. Of those, it has one of the more high-style exteriors.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Belknap County, New Hampshire This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Belknap County, New Hampshire. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Belknap County, New Ham ...


References


External links


Community Church of Alton web site
{{NRHP in Belknap County, New Hampshire Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in New Hampshire Churches completed in 1853 19th-century churches in the United States Churches in Belknap County, New Hampshire National Register of Historic Places in Belknap County, New Hampshire Alton, New Hampshire Congregational churches in New Hampshire