Even while the official state religion of Connecticut was still the
Congregational Church, in 1807 fourteen individuals living in Bethlehem declared themselves to be members of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the State of Connecticut, according to a legal notice of their intention to meet submitted to the local Justice of the Peace on March 13 that year. The notice declared that the meeting was to be held at the home of Amos Lake. Earlier meetings may have been held at the home of George Bloss on Carmel Hill in town. It was not until after the
disestablishment of the Congregational Church in Connecticut by the new state constitution in 1818, however, that any serious thought was given to erecting a sanctuary. Even then, it was not until 1829 that ground was finally broken on a site adjacent to the town green. "Mr. Atwood" contributed $500 toward the effort, but even his generous gift did not hurry along the construction. In May 1831, the building committee finally voted that the inside of the church be finished off "after the plan entitled No. 1, with circular seats with one pair of stairs to the pulpit." Shortly after the sanctuary was completed, in 1832 the town constructed a school building slightly to the north of the church. Finally in the fall of 1835, Bishop
Thomas Church Brownell consecrated the building and named it "Christ Church." Eighteen parishioners contributed $3,041 to an endowment to help pay the salary for a priest. The parish began to thrive. It appears on the left of Barber's famous woodcut portrayal of the town green in 1836 shown here. By 1849, the current bell, made at
Meneely Bell Foundry, was mounted in the tower in the center of the east facade. An outstanding example of this is their work in 1879 creating the Gallery Organ in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City in time for its official opening. (The organ was subsequently replaced in 1927). Thus the organ at Christ Church represents a critical transition point for the firm. There are 61 organs built by George Jardine in the Pipe Organ database of the Organ Historical Society, of which only 13 remain extant. This organ was originally located at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Woodbury, Connecticut, but in 1966 it was moved to this location and restored. Some additional pipes were added, and while not original, they are of a similar age to the original pipes. It is a
pipe organ which uses
tracker action with 6 ranks, 1 manual and a slider chest. ==The church today==