Our history

First meetinghouse built in 1772

Before any ship came into any harbor from any far lands, there were people here who were being stewards of the land. We acknowledge the indigenous Abenaki people who were the first people living in this area.

European immigrants first arrived in Nelson in 1767. At the first town meeting, in 1772, two lots were set aside, one for the site of a meetinghouse and the other for the use of a settled minister. The townspeople voted to build a meetinghouse, and as was common in this early period, it was a simple (25’ x 30’) log structure built on a site now occupied by the Nelson cemetery.

Second larger meetinghouse built in 1787

The town continued to grow and prosper so that fifteen years later, under the leadership of Rev. Jacob Foster, the first minister, the town voted to build a large new meetinghouse. It was impressive (65’ x 45’) with a gallery and two side porches. The long ministry of Gad Newell began after the completion of that structure and continued through the life of the building for 47 years. Both of the early meeting houses stood on the hill south of town where the Nelson cemetery is now located. Gad Newell’s grave is beneath the former location of the pulpit of the second meetinghouse.

During the early period the meetinghouse served the needs of both town and church. Town taxes supported both the building and the minister’s salary.

Separation of church and town activities. Church incorporates as the First Congregational Church in 1822

In the early 1800s, Nelson’s population was double our present number. After the State passed legislation separating the activities of church and state, the church incorporated as the First Congregational Church in Nelson in 1822. To align with the reorganization of old social institutions, the meetinghouse was razed, downsized, and reconstructed as the Town Hall, where it still sits today.

Current church built in 1841

The several religious revivals which swept the nation in the first half of the 19th century were reflected in Nelson as well. During Gad Newell’s ministry, 301 members were added to the church rolls. A Sunday School was started in 1835 and within five years it numbered over 100 children.

In 1841, the current church was built on the newly developing village on the “Nelson plain.” The parsonage was added in 1857 and the following year an 800-pound bell was installed in the belfry with funds raised by the women of the church.

Joining forces in 1936 to become the Monadnock Larger Parish

Nelson’s population dropped in the 1800s and early 1900s. By 1936, there were fewer than 300 residents. By necessity, the Nelson church joined with Dublin, Harrisville, and Chesham to form the Monadnock Larger Parish. These churches shared two ministers until the end of World War II. As the percentage of of non-residents grew, services were conducted only in the summer.

Forming the United Parish of Harrisville, Chesham, and Nelson in 1950

By 1950, Dublin had split away. The Harrisville Congregational Church, Chesham Baptist Church, and Nelson Congregational Church formed a United Parish with a shared minister, summer services in Harrisville and winter services in Nelson. Rev. Mary Upton served the United Parish from 1958-1983.

Adding needed space in 1989

With the population growing again, the Nelson Church separated from the United Parish and resumed year-round services with a full-time minister, Rev. Carolyn “Lindy” Black, in 1984. New young families joined, swelling the Sunday School, and church membership doubled. The church was still heated in the winter by two large woodstoves with stove pipes that ran the length of of the sanctuary. The only bathroom was across the street in the Old Brick Schoolhouse, where Sunday School also met. More space was needed.

After a successful capital campaign, the church was lifted in to the air in 1989, and a full foundation built underneath. The new space housed a large fellowship hall and kitchen, a pastor’s study, church office, nursery, and bathrooms.

Adding handicapped access in 2018

In 2018 the church accomplished a decades-long goal — providing dignified and safe access to the church for people with mobility challenges. The community responded generously to the challenge of another capital campaign and the church built a small addition on the northeast corner to house the fully enclosed lift, with access to the fellowship hall, driveway, and sanctuary.