{"nrhp_refnum":"78002379","name":"Catawissa Friends Meetinghouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"South and 3rd Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Catawissa","county":"Columbia County","state":"PA","lat":40.95348219200008,"lon":-76.46109709499996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-06-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-story log Quaker meetinghouse in Catawissa, Columbia County, Pennsylvania, measuring about thirty by 27.5 feet, with a stone foundation, wood floors, a loft and a wood shingle roof.","why_significant":"The nomination states that the meetinghouse is thought to be the first completed house of worship in the North Branch Susquehanna valley between Sunbury and Wyoming. It also documents the Catawissa Friends' congregation from its founding through its decline and the later care of the building, and it records the building's Historic American Buildings Survey documentation.","narrative":"Built around 1789 of hand-hewn timber with V-notched corners and mud-and-pebble mortar chinking, the one-story Catawissa Friends Meeting House is a log structure about thirty by 27.5 feet with a stone foundation and a loft. Quakers from Berks County began settling the area in 1774, and worship was first held in homes as an Indulged Meeting. Land for the meetinghouse was made available in 1787 by William Hughes and conveyed to trustees. The building is thought to be the first completed house of worship in the North Branch Susquehanna valley between Sunbury and Wyoming. Its interior keeps unfinished white pine walls, a dutch-door partition dividing the men's and women's sides, plain plank pews, and early wood-burning stoves. Monthly meeting status was reached in 1796, but migration reduced membership, and First-day meetings ended in 1856. Miss Mary Emma Walter cared for the building from about 1890 until her death in 1930. The Historic American Buildings Survey recorded it in 1936.","period_of_significance":"1789 circa","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"The building has been faithfully and authentically restored and rests on its original site and foundation; it is used as an educational resource for the schools.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:29.33391-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/78002379.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002379/f8591e1e50-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002379/f8591e1e50-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Stanley Jones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catawissa_Friends_Meetinghouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Stanley Jones</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catawissa_Friends_Meetinghouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994919","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catawissa_Friends_Meetinghouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5051612"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/columbia-county/catawissa-friends-meetinghouse-78002379/"}