{"nrhp_refnum":"78000444","name":"First Congregational Church of East Longmeadow","other_names":["Meeting House of the Third Religious Society of Longmeadow"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"7 Somers Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"East Longmeadow","county":"Hampden County","state":"MA","lat":42.06416771600004,"lon":-72.51232624699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-01-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Classical Revival church building erected in 1828 at 7 Somers Road, facing Center Square in East Longmeadow, Hampden County, Massachusetts. It was originally the Meeting House of the Third Religious Society of Longmeadow.","why_significant":"It is significant as the oldest church and church building in the Town of East Longmeadow. It is also notable for the unusual shareholder system used to finance its construction and for its role in town affairs, including hosting Town Meeting until 1882.","narrative":"Facing Center Square in the middle of East Longmeadow, this white-sided church was built in 1828 as a simple 45-by-55-foot rectangle with a ridge roof and Classical Revival detailing. Its gable front carries a small Ionic temple front with pilasters, a pediment, a square bell tower and an octagonal cupola. The building was financed unusually: in 1827 a corporation of proprietors sold $10 shares, limited to ten per holder, and used the money to build the meeting house, before any congregation existed. A congregation formed in 1829 and bought the building in 1858, moving it 750 feet north to its present site. Town Meeting was held here until the Town Hall was built in 1882, and the community became its own town in 1894. Additions followed in 1926, 1948 and 1953. It is regarded as the oldest church and church building in East Longmeadow.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in religious use; condition and alterations described include aluminum clapboarding over the original wood, later additions and a 1858 move.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:55.00476-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/51/7953/63795351/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/78000444.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000444/8c5f6197f2-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000444/8c5f6197f2-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Congregational_Church,_East_Longmeadow,_Massachusetts.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Congregational_Church,_East_Longmeadow,_Massachusetts.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63795351","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Congregational_Church_of_East_Longmeadow","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452848"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/hampden-county/first-congregational-church-of-east-longmeadow-78000444/"}