| Ararat Armenian Congregational Church | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Armenian Evangelical |
| Location | |
| Location | 2 Salem St, Salem, New Hampshire |
  Location in New Hampshire | |
| Geographic coordinates | 42°45′18″N71°13′41″W / 42.755°N 71.228°W Coordinates: 42°45′18″N71°13′41″W / 42.755°N 71.228°W |
| Architecture | |
| Date established | 1913 |
The Ararat Armenian Congregational Church is an Armenian Evangelical church in Salem, New Hampshire, United States. The church is located at 2 Salem Street in Salem.
The Armenian Evangelical Church was established on July 1, 1846, by thirty-seven men and three women in Constantinople.
Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 28,776 at the 2010 census. Being located on Interstate 93 as the first town in New Hampshire, which lacks any state sales tax, Salem has grown into a commercial hub, anchored by the Mall at Rockingham Park. Other major sites include the Canobie Lake Park, a large amusement park, and America's Stonehenge, a stone structure of disputed origins. It is the former home of Rockingham Park, a horse racetrack. The Sununu political family hails from Salem, including former New Hampshire governor and White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu, and his sons John E. Sununu, a former U.S. senator, and Chris Sununu, current New Hampshire governor.
The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country comprising 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe, which is 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the most populous city is New York City. Most of the country is located contiguously in North America between Canada and Mexico.
Contents
Prior to the establishment of the Ararat Armenian Congregational Church, the Bethel Armenian Congregational Church in Lawrence, Massachusetts, a mission of the Lawrence Street Congregational Church, [1] served as the primary place of worship for the area's Armenian community. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, several Armenian families, many refugees fleeing the Ottoman Empire, began to settle in Salem, New Hampshire. Frustrated with the distance of the existing Armenian church in Lawrence, in October of 1912 the Armenian population of Salem moved to establish a building committee for the creation of a new Armenian congregation within the town. [2] The church was built on land provided by the Northeastern Street Railway Company, and construction was completed within a year. The church was dedicated on November 12, 1913. [3]
Lawrence is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Merrimack River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 76,377, which had risen to an estimated 78,197 as of 2014. Surrounding communities include Methuen to the north, Andover to the southwest, and North Andover to the southeast. Lawrence and Salem were the county seats of Essex County, until the Commonwealth abolished county government in 1999. Lawrence is part of the Merrimack Valley.
Armenians in the Ottoman Empire mostly belonged to either the Armenian Apostolic Church or the Armenian Catholic Church. They were part of the Armenian millet until the Tanzimat reforms in the nineteenth century equalized all Ottoman citizens before the law.
Services were originally conducted in Armenian, but are currently led in English. [2]
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language that is the only language in the Armenian branch. It is the official language of Armenia as well as the de facto Republic of Artsakh. Historically being spoken throughout the Armenian Highlands, today, Armenian is widely spoken throughout the Armenian diaspora. Armenian is written in its own writing system, the Armenian alphabet, introduced in 405 AD by Mesrop Mashtots.
