Follen Church Society-Unitarian Universalist

Last updated
Follen Community Church
Follen Community Church.jpg
USA Massachusetts location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location Lexington, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°25′47″N71°12′27″W / 42.42972°N 71.20750°W / 42.42972; -71.20750
Built1841
ArchitectRev. Charles Follen
NRHP reference No. 76000242 [1]
Added to NRHPApril 30, 1976

Follen Church is a historic Unitarian Universalist congregation located at 755 Massachusetts Avenue in Lexington, Massachusetts, United States.

Contents

History

The church is named for Charles Follen who was the first minister called by the church, in 1835. Follen served the congregation from 1835 to 1836 and from 1839 to 1840. Ralph Waldo Emerson was the minister of the congregation, then called the Christian Association of East Lexington, from 1836 to 1838. This was his last ministerial position.

Follen Church, built in 1839, is the oldest standing church building in Lexington. The unique octagonal sanctuary was designed by its first minister, Rev. Follen [2] however he never preached in the sanctuary. He died en route to the dedication ceremony in a wreck at sea. It was named in his honor in 1885.

On April 30, 1976, the church was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Follen Community Church. [1]

As of August 2013, Rev. Claire Feingold Thoryn has joined Follen as the church's settled minister. Beryl Aschenberg is the Director of Religious Education. Chris Eastburn is the Director of Music. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King's Chapel</span> United States historic Unitarian chapel in Boston

King's Chapel is an American independent Christian unitarian congregation affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association that is "unitarian Christian in theology, Anglican in worship, and congregational in governance." It is housed in what was for a time after the Revolution called the "Stone Chapel", an 18th-century structure at the corner of Tremont Street and School Street in Boston, Massachusetts. The chapel building, completed in 1754, is one of the finest designs of the noted colonial architect Peter Harrison, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960 for its architectural significance. The congregation has worshipped according to a Unitarian version of the Book of Common Prayer since 1785, currently in its ninth edition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Street Meeting House</span> Building in Massachusetts, United States of America

The Charles Street Meeting House is an early-nineteenth-century historic church in Beacon Hill at 70 Charles Street, Boston, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Unitarian Society of Madison</span> Historic church in Wisconsin, United States

The First Unitarian Society of Madison (FUS) is a Unitarian Universalist congregation in Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin. Its meeting house was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built by Marshall Erdman in 1949–1951, and has been designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark for its architecture. With over 1,000 members, it is one of the ten largest Unitarian Universalist congregations in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Follen</span> German poet, patriot, professor, and abolitionist

Charles (Karl) Theodor Christian Friedrich Follen was a German poet and patriot, who later moved to the United States and became the first professor of German at Harvard University, a Unitarian minister, and a radical abolitionist. He was fired by Harvard for his abolitionist statements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Unitarian Church (Cincinnati, Ohio)</span> United States historic place

First Unitarian Church is a historic congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Association in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. Founded in the early nineteenth century, it survived a series of division and reunifications in the nineteenth century. Among the people who have worshipped in its historic church building on the city's northern side are many members of the Taft family, including William Howard Taft, the President of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York</span> Building in Central Park West

The Fourth Universalist Society in the City of New York is a congregation within the Unitarian Universalist Association located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It is the last surviving of seven Universalist congregations in the city, founded on the belief of universal salvation that emphasized the love of God for all people. Today, the congregation is pluralistic and non-creedal, welcoming a diverse range of religious beliefs and practices and finding unity in a commitment to social justice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitarian Memorial Church</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

Unitarian Memorial Church is a historic church on 102 Green Street in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, home to the Unitarian Universalist Society of Fairhaven.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford and the Osgood House</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford and The Osgood House are a historic Unitarian Universalist church building and parsonage house at 141 and 147 High Street in Medford, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Parish Unitarian Church</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

The First Parish Unitarian Church, now the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church of Medfield, is a historic church on North Street in Medfield, Massachusetts. The white clapboarded church was built in 1789, as the third for a congregation established c. 1652. In 1839 it was rotated on its site ninety degrees. It lost its steeple in the New England Hurricane of 1938. The steeple was replaced in 1988, and the building's many layers of paint were stripped off in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernardston Congregational Unitarian Church</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

The Bernardston Congregational Unitarian Church is a historic church building at 49 Church Street in Bernardston, Massachusetts. The church is notable for the history of construction, movement, and reconstruction, since it was first erected in 1739, just two years after Bernardston was settled. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. Its congregation is affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association which was established in 1820.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo</span> Historic church in New York, United States

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo is an historic church complex located at 695 Elmwood Avenue, in Buffalo, New York. The building was designed by architect Edward Austin Kent in 1906. Kent died in 1912 aboard the RMS Titanic and a memorial plaque is located in the church honoring him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitarian Church of Barnstable</span>

The Unitarian Church of Barnstable is a historic church located on Old King's Highway Historic District in Barnstable, Massachusetts. The congregation was established in 1639, and the current building dates to 1907. A short walk from the church is Barnstable village and Barnstable Harbor. The senior minister, Rev. Dr. Kristen L. Harper, was the second woman of African descent to become a Unitarian Universalist minister. There is a pipe organ located in the sanctuary balcony and a church choir that sings during services. The congregation comes from a variety of religious and philosophical backgrounds including Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Buddhist, agnostic, atheist, humanist, and others. The traditional weekly water communion portion of the Sunday service, which is open to anyone, is done with local beach stones. A children and youth ministry helps create the essential building blocks for a spiritual, loving, healthy, compassionate, and proactive community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington</span> Historic church in Virginia, United States

Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington (UUCA), historically known as the Unitarian Church of Arlington, is a Unitarian Universalist church located at 4444 Arlington Boulevard in Arlington County, Virginia. Founded in 1948, UUCA was the first Unitarian church in Washington, D.C.'s suburbs. Throughout its history, UUCA has taken part in progressive causes from the Civil Rights Movement to the legalization of same-sex marriage in Virginia. During the Civil Rights Movement, UUCA was the only Virginia church to speak out in favor of racial integration. UUCA's sanctuary building, designed by local architect Charles M. Goodman in 1964, is a concrete Brutalist structure that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Virginia Landmarks Register in 2014. It is one of only three church buildings designed by Goodman and the only one in Virginia.

Follen is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:

Unitarian Universalist Church of Kent, Ohio is a Unitarian Universalist ("UU") church in Kent, Ohio. Founded in 1866, the current building was completed by builder Joseph Gridley (1820-1902) in 1868 on land donated by philanthropist Marvin Kent and rests on a bedrock of sandstone. Its 19 founding members were among the major movers and shakers of the then Village of Franklin Mills, and included abolitionists and Civil War veterans. They were: Dr. Aaron M. Sherman, M.D., who served as a Civil War surgeon, a prominent civic promoter, served many terms on the local school board, co-founded the Rockton Masonic Lodge that occupies the historic 1883 summer home of Marvin Kent on West Main Street, served as a State Representative in the Ohio State House of Representatives and whose 1858 home first built by Zenas Kent for his daughter Frances and her husband George Wells was recently saved, moved and restored by local historic preservation activists, Arvin Olin, Ransom Olin, Nelson Olin, Joseph Stratton, who, in 1882, donated the large bell that is in the church belfry, Phillip Boosinger, Mary Boosinger, Rhoda Boosinger, James D. Haymaker and Mary Rosetta Olin Haymaker, J.G. Whitcomb, T.H. Marshall, Eliza Wright, A. Merrell, Almund Russell, Sybil Bradley, Effie Parsons, Mary J. Parsons and Mary A. Furry. These 19 men and women gathered on May 27, 1866, to write and sign the church's constitution in the historic 1836 Village Hall that would serve as an early place of worship before the church building was completed next door in 1868. It is the only church still using its original 19th century building in the city of Kent and in 1976 the site was designed as a "significant restored building site". In the early and middle twentieth century when there were few women clergy anywhere in the United States, the church is notable for having several women ministers: Abbie Danforth in 1889, Carlotta Crosley in 1903, and Violet Kochendoerfer in 1972. Membership is between 140 and 200 full-time adults as well as 100 children in its religious education programs. The church runs a summer camp called Kent Hogwarts which is a Harry Potter-themed camp for young kids, which emphasizes chemistry, poetry, singing and community service. The church advocates social justice, environmental awareness, democracy and acceptance of diverse peoples including all religions. The Kent church follows the seven basic principles of Unitarian Universalism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation</span> Church in Georgia, United States

Northwest Unitarian Universalist Congregation (Northwest) was organized in 1969. The organization of Northwest was the result of action taken by the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta (UUCA) to establish a new congregation in the northwest suburbs of Atlanta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Unitarian Church (Iowa City, Iowa)</span> United States historic place

First Unitarian Church is a historic building located in the downtown area of Iowa City, Iowa, United States. The local Universalist congregation traces its beginnings to 1841. Their building at Iowa Avenue and Dubuque Street was destroyed in a fire in 1868, and they built a larger building at Iowa Avenue and Clinton Street. In 1881 the Universalists merged with the local Unitarian Society. In their arrangement, the Unitarians paid for the minister while the Universalists owned the church building. The University of Iowa bought their building in 1907 and renamed it Unity Hall for use as a student union. The Unitarian-Universalist congregation dedicated this Tudor Revival building for their use on October 24, 1908. The dedication address was given by Rev. Eleanor E. Gordon, who was the secretary of the State Unitarian Conference of Iowa at the time. Because of their growth and costs to update the old building, the congregation voted in 2015 to build a new structure in near-by Coralville. They sold this building to developer Jesse Allen. It has subsequently been used as a winter shelter for the homeless while plans were made to include it in a new commercial-residential development. The former church building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodore Parker Unitarian Universalist Church</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

Theodore Parker Unitarian Universalist Church is a historic church building at 1859 Centre Street in the West Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. Built in 1900 to a design by West Roxbury native Henry M. Seaver, it is a locally significant example of Normanesque architecture, and is adorned by stained glass windows created by Louis Comfort Tiffany and his firm. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020. The congregation it houses was founded in 1712, and is named for the influential Transcendentalist and abolitionist Theodore Parker, who was the congregation's minister in the 1840s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Parish of Sudbury</span>

First Parish of Sudbury refers to both an historic meetinghouse and a Unitarian Universalist congregation in Sudbury, Massachusetts. The meetinghouse was built in 1797 on the site of the first meetinghouse built on the west side on the Sudbury River. The meetinghouse was designed by Captain Thomson and built at a cost of $6,025.93. It was paid for by the Town of Sudbury to be the meetinghouse for both Town Meetings and parish worship.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. "History". Follen Community Church. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  3. "Ministers and Staff". Follen Community Church. Retrieved 2017-09-25.