Central Baptist Church - Westfield, MA - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

Sources:

Central Baptist Church: (visit link)
MACRIS narrative: (visit link)
Westfield Center Commercial District: (visit link)

First Baptists arrived in Westfield in the 18th century as the second religious group, after the Congregationalist, to settle in Westfield. They built their first church on the present site in 1789. In 1867, the present church was erected.

The Romanesque Revival style Central Baptist Church is constructed of brick with brownstone trim. The west facing façade has a projecting one story high section with a slanted, slate roof. This section has two entrances with rounded doors under gable roofs. The entrances are separated by a single bay with a small window with a rounded top.

A tower on the northwest corner has a ramp leading up to additional entrance. Above this entrance is a single narrow window on three sides with a rounded top followed by a belfry with louvered windows with rounded tops on three sides. The tower is topped by an octagonal spire with a gray slate roof decorated with white slate forming a chevron design. There are alternating triangular windows at every second side of the octagonal spire.

The main block of the church is built in the form of a cross and has a cross gable roof covered in slate. There is a large circular window on the gable side. Above the circular window is a single narrow window with a rounded top. Decorative crennalated brickwork is below the roof line.

The sides of the main block are five bays deep before the apse. Each bay has a large window with a rounded top. In 1959, an modern style Education Building was added to the northwest side of the church.

The Central Baptist Church is listed as a contributing building to the Westfield Center Commercial District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 01/01/1867 Age of Church building determined by?: Historical Society If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Baptist If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Sunday Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: 10:00 AM Street address of Church: 115 Elm Street Westfield, MA United States 01085 Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: [Web Link] If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
1) A photo of the church is required for visits to a waymark.

2) Please share some comments about your visit.

3) Additional photos are encouraged. If you can have information in addition to that already provided about this church, please share it with us.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.