Old North Church

Old North Church ( Christ Church) is situated at 191–193 Salem Street{{Efn|MassLive.com gives an address of 191 Salem Street. It has frontage on Salem Street to the west and Unity Street to the east bordering Salem Court on the south. The plot covers , with irregular borders. The complex has multiple gardens, which flank the church to the north and south, surrounded by an iron fence. The 18th Century Garden, containing plants from that era, is at the rear (eastern) end of the church, near Clough House to the southeast. Along Salem Court (next to the gift shop) is the St. Francis Garden, dating from the 1970s and commemorating the gift shop's former use as an Italian chapel. It is a stop on the Freedom Trail, a path connecting historic sites in Boston; sequentially, it is between the Paul Revere House and Copp's Hill Burying Ground. ==History==

18th century The current Old North Church is an Episcopal congregation formed as Christ Church in 1723. Its colloquial name, "Old North", originally referred to the Second Church, a Puritan congregation from 1649. and was founded in response to overcrowding at King's Chapel. In 1722, Anthony Blount of the King's Chapel congregation paid Nathaniel Henchman £100 for property in the North End, upon which Christ Church was to be built. It also sat on higher land than any of Boston's other churches; Development Christ Church's congregation collected subscriptions during late 1722 and early 1723, with which they built a brick structure with a nave and tower. Ebenezer Clough and James Varney were the stonemasons, while Thomas Bennett and Thomas Tippin were the carpenters. and the cornerstone was laid on April 15 by King's Chapel rector Samuel Myles. The nave's columns were being installed by July, and windows from London were being imported the next month. Bricks were obtained from Medford, Massachusetts, and timber was sourced from York, Maine. In September 1723, Timothy Cutler arrived in Boston to become the congregation's first rector, serving for 42 years. Jason Haven had been called to minister, but his parishioners at the First Church and Parish in Dedham convinced him to stay. Work accelerated following Cutler's arrival. The congregation held its first service on December 29, 1723, with a sermon where Cutler said: "For mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people." Christ Church initially had 80 families in its congregation and received aid from the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG). Black people, both free and enslaved, were relegated to the upper gallery. Many furnishings, including the pulpit and pews, were temporary. which led to the nave's side aisles. Christ Church, as with Church of England congregations in Boston, did not receive funding from the Province of Massachusetts Bay, so the congregation had to raise its own money. who could vote on congregational matters and customize their pews. Before the American Revolution, both pro-British Loyalists and pro-independence Patriots worshipped at Christ Church, although there were substantially more Loyalists than Patriots. The parish of Christ Church was organized on April 6, 1724, and construction continued in stages for two more years. and an entrance providing access to the nave's central aisle. and South Carolina colonial governor Francis Nicholson donated cedar planks for an altarpiece. During 1725, workers added woodwork trim and covered the walls in plaster, and the congregation added 58 pews to the main floor. An additional 24 pews in the galleries were ordered in 1726. 18th century Late 1720s to early 1770s Additional changes to the building were led by William Price, a vestryman who oversaw nearly all modifications in the church's first two decades. During the late 1720s, he decorated the interior with details such as rusticated columns and decorative curtains. Gibbs painted the galleries, columns, organ case, apse, and chandeliers, Temporary benches were installed in the western gallery, and the first vestry room was replaced by a wooden room. The pulpit was hourglass-shaped and was divided into a gallery-level deck, a reader's desk below it, and a clerk's desk at the bottom. The basement was converted to a tomb in 1732. Gibbs further modified the nave's columns during that decade, adding fluting and giving them a marble-like appearance. By the mid-1730s, the congregation was discussing adding a clock for the church's as-yet-unbuilt spire. The church received its first organ in 1736 An additional site measuring wide was acquired from John Baker in 1737. which was completed in August 1740. After the congregation raised funds for new bells, they ordered a set of change ringing bells, which were installed in 1745. The British maritime captain Thomas Gruchy, a pew owner, donated four angel sculptures to the church in 1746, having plundered them from a French vessel. Gruchy also gave Christ Church a chandelier, which was later given to one of Old North's mission churches. By mid-century, the congregation had 800 worshippers. In the early 1750s, a clock was affixed to the spire, and the congregants bought an additional site from Thomas Greenough, measuring . The spire underwent minor repairs in 1756. which took the place of the original. This organ was built by Thomas Johnston, who had been hired seven years earlier but had not been paid because of monetary shortfalls. James Greaton was also hired as an assistant reverend, In 1768, Mather Byles took over as the rector. The British Parliament closed the port of Boston in 1774; with trade stalled, the congregation could not source the funds needed to pay Byles, who would flee Massachusetts shortly after. The congregation stopped convening in April 1775, The act is variously credited to sexton Robert Newman and sea captain John Pulling; some sources credit both men with having lit the lanterns together. Revere also planned to cross the river and notify patriots of the army's movements personally, but the lanterns were intended as a contingency if this were not possible. One lantern was to be used to notify Charlestown's sentry in case the British Army marched over Boston Neck and the Great Bridge, while two were to be used in case they arrived via boat on the Charles River. they were taken down within two minutes to minimize the risk of British exposure. Revere and William Dawes later delivered the same message in person to patriots in Lexington. After receiving the signal, the Charlestown Patriots also sent a rider to Lexington, but this rider did not reach his destination, and his identity is unknown. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1860 poem "Paul Revere's Ride", which mythologized the midnight ride, The "sea" was some distance away and was mentioned only for poetic effect, and Longfellow's poem erroneously claimed that Revere himself saw the lanterns. One original lantern survives at the Concord Museum. There has been dispute over whether Christ Church or the Second Church was the "Old North Church" involved in Revere's ride. In 1901, Alexander Corbett Jr. wrote for the Boston Daily Globe that the lights would have been displayed from Christ Church because it was higher than the Second Church. The historian Mary Kent Davey Babcock wrote in 1947 that it would have been impossible to see any light from the Second Church because it had no steeple. Corbett and Babcock both wrote that the Second Church was known as the "Old North Meeting House", whereas Christ Church was called "North Church", a name Revere explicitly used in later correspondence about the ride. Kevin White, a later mayor of Boston, said that Christ Church was still revered for its symbolism regardless of whether it had been associated with Revere. Post-American Revolution Christ Church remained closed for three years, during which Robert Newman, the church's sexton, continued to ring the bells twice a day. The church reopened in August 1778 with Stephen Lewis as the rector. and the spire was repaired again. Montague was himself succeeded in 1792 by William Walter, Walter died after eight years. The next year, the vestry voted to unify the pews' designs, which previously had been built to custom standards. it was replaced by a new spire two years later. and the central aisle was eliminated as a result. New staircases to the galleries were built, requiring the closure of the western elevation's side entrances. and some seating was open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. The Salem Street Academy, a Sunday school for children partially owned by Christ Church, opened in 1813 to the north of the main church. After 1820, area residents gradually started worshipping at St. Paul's Church rather than Christ Church, while Irish and later Jewish immigrants moved into the North End. Following Eaton's resignation, William Croswell became Christ Church's rector in 1829. This work required closing the church for two months, and a celebratory hymn was written when it reopened. Two stoves were added, one each flanking the doorway on the western side of the nave. The nave was repainted white, and decaying portions of the interior were replaced. A skylit half-dome and a plaster wall were added to the apse, closing off part of it. Thomas Clark added a third seating level to the nave's west wall, flanking the organ, in 1831; this gallery was intended for children attending Sunday school. After a decade as rector, Croswell was replaced in 1840 by John Woart. During Woart's tenure, pew owners who prayed at other churches were exempted from paying dues on pews. In 1850, the Salem Street Academy was demolished, After the end of Woart's tenure in 1852, Smithett had attempted to sell unused pews, to the displeasure of Elias Goddard and William Parrott, two of the church's wardens. This led to a physical confrontation, a riot, and the replacement of Parrott and Goddard; legal disputes over the pews continued until 1857. 1860s to 1890s Smithett was succeeded in 1861 by John T. Burrell, The building underwent renovations in 1884, reopening that November after an $8,000 refurbishment. Through the 19th century, the original pew owners had been moving out, This prevented the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts from taking over the church's operation. By the early 1890s, there were 11 remaining pew owners, and the building was decaying. Charles W. Duane became the rector in 1893; but they soon deteriorated and could only be chimed. Later that decade, the congregation began raising money and repaint the exterior and repair the steeple, and it also started charging visitors admission. By then, the nave was painted pink, and there were 210 students in the Sunday school. after which the facade was repaired and the steeple underwent refurbishment. 20th century 1900s and 1910s By the early 20th century, Christ Church (now more commonly known as Old North) was Boston's oldest congregation still occupying its original building. The Daughters of the American Revolution and the Paul Revere Chapter met there regularly, and tourists traveled there because of its association with Revere's ride. The congregation retained as many of the original decorations as possible, making repairs only when necessary, Duane resigned in 1907, but was unsuccessful. A plan to convert the building to a library was also unsuccessful. Bishop William Lawrence, the congregation's interim rector, the remaining pew owners agreed to his plans. Lawrence raised $32,000 for the church's endowment and $36,000 for repairs, Lawrence announced plans for renovation in October 1911, and work began the following July. R. Clipson Sturgis and Henry C. Ross designed the project, which included replacing the original floor timbers and gallery stairs, and removing the upper gallery. the interior woodwork was repainted white, Two commemorative tablets were mounted to the walls. After the renovation, pew ownerships could no longer be bequeathed; existing pew owners retained their pews under a grandfather clause. Revere's descendants began fundraising for repairs to the steeple in 1913. During the mid-1910s, the congregation installed tablets inside, memorializing Thomas Johnston and congregant Samuel Nicholson, and a tablet outside, memorializing British soldiers who died in the Battle of Bunker Hill. William H. DeWart began serving as rector in 1914. He devised plans for a chapel for local Italian Waldensians and began hosting Italian-language services that year. The Waldensians originally prayed at the rector's house, 195 Salem Street; The chapel, known as the Chapel of St. Francis of Assisi, cost $15,000 and required the demolition of the Merry house. DeWart's plans to acquire and demolish surrounding tenement buildings were postponed due to World War I. During 1923, artifacts were dedicated and placed into the church building's entrance, the organ was restored, Another tablet commemorating Robert Newman was added the next year, and a city commission voted to swap out the Revere plaque on the tower's facade. The belfry was also illuminated by electric lights for the first time. DeWart served until 1926 operated a shuttle bus to Boston Common, and launched Sunday afternoon services. During Dennen's tenure, the nondenominational Lantern League was established to help preserve the building, and tour guides were hired for the first time. The congregation also began raising funds to replace the deteriorating roof. Dennen resigned in 1929 due to disagreements over the parish's policies. By then, the Lantern League sought to acquire and demolish neighboring tenements, saying they posed a fire hazard. The league launched a $100,000 beautification campaign in 1934, acquiring and demolishing several buildings. The Boston government also cleared land on the Unity Street side, creating a park (later Paul Revere Park). and it added a water screen to the belfry. The Lantern League's campaign was completed in 1938, By the 1940s, the church had nearly 80,000 annual visitors, although this number declined by more than 50% during World War II. Webster died in 1941 and was succeeded by William P. Hatch. and the demolition of the 19th-century sexton's house. By then, only 30 to 40 regular worshippers remained, by which the church tower's walls were crumbling. The congregation began raising $100,000 to repair the steeple but could not raise the required funds. After the steeple fell during Hurricane Carol on August 31, 1954, Peck deferred his retirement to oversee its reconstruction, The congregation sought to raise $150,000 from across the U.S., and three fundraising campaigns were formed. Charles R. Strickland was hired to design the new steeple, which was installed in July 1955. After the steeple was dedicated that October, Peck resigned the same month. and seven surrounding structures were demolished and replaced with gardens. The organ was repaired in 1957–1958, and the congregation acquired the neighboring Clough House in 1959. Women's clubs raised money for the house's restoration, and they helped plant the church's new gardens. The organ, having been converted into electric operation at some point, was converted back into a mechanically operated organ that year. An artwork of Revere by William Robinson Leigh was donated to the congregation the next year. After beetle infestations were discovered in the woodwork, the building underwent repairs in 1966, which cost $40,000. By 1969, evening services had been suspended due to neighborhood crime. The church had 500,000 yearly visitors, but the congregation struggled to fund nonessential expenses. Robert Golledge, who became vicar in 1971, At the time, the congregation had no organist or bell ringer. The church celebrated its 250th anniversary in 1973. and the long-dormant bells were reactivated. a replica of this lantern was displayed in the steeple, adjoining the two existing lanterns. Queen Elizabeth II lit another lantern when she visited for the U.S. Bicentennial in 1976, and an archive was dedicated at the church that year. By the early 1980s, the congregation was raising $100,000 to restore the bells, as the belfry and bell mechanisms had deteriorated. and reinstalled that August. Further restoration took place in the late 1980s, including beetle extermination. Preservation activities were delegated to the secular Old North Foundation (later Old North Illuminated) in 1991. It was the only Episcopal congregation in the North End, whose residents were mostly Catholics. In 2003, the U.S. government gave the church $317,000 for window restoration, bypassing a longstanding prohibition on preservation grants for religious institutions. The following year, Old North restored the building's glass the congregation also began blessing pets in 2004. The lights were replaced with LEDs in 2008. The Old North Foundation also considered opening the crypt, which, at the time, was generally closed to the public. In 2013, Old North Illuminated opened Captain Jackson's Chocolate Shop, named after Old North congregant Newark Jackson. Researchers during the 2010s also conducted archeological studies of the church's garden and searched for possible human remains in the soil. After researchers found that Newark Jackson was a slaveowner, Old North Illuminated replaced the shop with a gift shop in the late 2010s. The church began charging admission fees in 2018, as the previous suggested donations had not been raising enough money. At the time, the church needed $500,000 a year in repairs. After Ayres's resignation in 2019, Clough House remained closed for another year. Following the pandemic, Old North Illuminated announced plans to redesign the exhibits, focusing more extensively on the church's history. The organization received a grant for the restoration of the Italian chapel's windows in 2021, The Washington Garden was restored the following year. The Old North Church celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2023; and the exhibit "Sparking Revolutions" opened in the nave. In 2024, the NPS provided $1.7 million for repairs and accessibility projects, and the bust of George Washington was restored. The church had 250,000 annual visitors by the mid-2020s. ==Architecture==

Old North Church's sanctuary is a Georgian-style building patterned after Christopher Wren's churches in London. and is Boston's oldest extant church building. There is no clear documentation as to who designed it; a 1961 report failed to find evidence that any source in England was directly consulted for the building's design. Contemporary documents show that Anthony Blount and William Price were the most involved with Old North's construction. The building was also similar to St Ann Blackfriars, London, and the later Old South Meeting House in Downtown Boston was built to a similar design. which extend deep. The tower has a thicker foundation than the rest of the building and has a cellar accessed from an opening in the nave's basement. which lead to the vestry and directly outdoors. The original plot was so narrow that doorways could not be added to the nave's northern and southern elevations, so the church is instead accessed from the west. The tower has brick walls. On the tower's western elevation, the first level contains the main entrance, which is topped by a semicircular lunette. Bells Just beneath the spire is a belfry with round-arched openings, Cast in 1744 by Abel Rudhall in Gloucester, England, and hung in 1745, they are the oldest change ringing bells in North America. and they range from in height. When they are being pealed, each bell is rung by a different person, Although the bells are regularly chimed, there have been long periods in which they were not pealed. After the 1912 renovation, British bell-ringers were hired to ring the church's bells, but this practice ceased after local Italians objected. The pealing is performed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Guild of Bellringers, whose members have included students, professors, librarians, and retirees. The bells are tolled whenever U.S. presidents die. Steeples The church has had three steeples in its history. It was topped by a golden weathervane designed by Shem Drowne, but a 1981 study failed to find documentation supporting his involvement. From 1870 onward, the second steeple also had a clock with four dials, which sounded the hours whenever the bell was rung. A vestibule at the tower's ground level leads into the nave. The foundation walls, along with a brick wall in the cellar measuring thick, support the first floor. and are arranged around three aisles: two at the outer edges and one at the center. Square posts, arranged along the north and south sides of the nave, support a balcony-level gallery on all except the western wall. The current staircases date from about 1912 and incorporate elements of two earlier sets of staircases: The orientation is based on the original stairs from 1723, while the balusters and rails are from an 1806 redesign. The pews on the gallery level have simple moldings. has been repainted multiple times throughout the years. The modern apse has a pulpit. To the north, the eastern wall has a bust of George Washington, The nave's ceiling has an elliptical vault, which rises from barrel vaults at either end. LED lamps are placed along the nave's cornices. The cherubs were painted over in the 1912 renovation before being restored in 2025. as the congregation lacked space for a graveyard. Some of the burials postdate a city ordinance in 1850, which banned indoor interments. The tombs originally had wooden doors, which have been replaced due to deterioration over the years; which were placed above each other. The crypt also has an open tomb, which is smaller than the other tombs. The congregation sold space in the tombs to members, as are other soldiers killed in the battle. ==Related buildings==

Salem Street houses Immediately north of the church, at 193 Salem Street, is the church house (rectory), which has an L-shaped plan. It has a slightly more elaborate cornice than the church house. The building has been owned by the church since 1959 and functions as a gift shop. The chapel is one story high and is variously described as being in the Georgian and North Italian, The western elevation has windows of varying sizes, and a two-story rear shed extends from the building's western section. The roof is made of slate. == Operations ==

Two organizations jointly operate Old North Church. who has served since November 2020. The congregation once owned communion silver, consisting of 13 pieces. It also owned 14 prayer books and a Vinegar bible given by George II of Great Britain in 1733. The communion silver, later donated to the Museum of Fine Arts, There was also a tankard made of melted-down silver currency, donated in 1729, and a chalice, donated in 1724. The original furnishings at St. Paul's include a chandelier, along with a two-tiered pulpit and a paneled reading desk. The congregation's holdings also formerly included a sword owned by American Civil War officer Robert Gould Shaw. Since 2004, the congregational records have been held by the Massachusetts Historical Society. Rectors and vicars The church's minister was originally known as the rector. In 1939, the minister became known as the vicar, while the title of rector was given to the Bishop of the Diocese of Massachusetts. For periods where there was no official rector or vicar, a lay minister led services. • Daniel Malcolm, smuggler • Robert Newman, sexton • John Pulling, captain Harvard College also owned one of the pews. President Gerald Ford spoke at the church for the 200th anniversary of Revere's ride in 1975, Notable speakers over the years have included early Methodist minister Charles Wesley, who spoke there in 1736. Black Episcopal priest William Levington also spoke at Old North in 1833. Speakers in the 20th century have included politician Edward Lawrence Logan, Army Chief of Staff Leonard Wood, U.S. presidents Calvin Coolidge and Franklin D. Roosevelt (albeit both before their respective presidencies); The first woman to give a guest speech at Old North was poet Corinne Roosevelt Robinson, Theodore Roosevelt's younger sister, in 1921. Ties to slavery Several of Old North's earliest members and donors were involved in the Atlantic slave trade or owned slaves directly. Congregants were also affiliated with the Rising Sun, a merchant ship, where slaves were held in captivity. Two Old North members, Captain Newark Jackson and merchant George Ledain, were aboard Rising Sun when a mutiny occurred there in 1743. In the 2010s, the congregation and foundation asked historian Jared Ross Hardesty to research Old North's historical ties to slavery, Later renamed Old North Illuminated, it is responsible for operating educational programs and preserving the site. The Old North Foundation hosts the annual Lanterns and Luminaries fundraiser near the anniversary of Revere's ride. Every April 18, to celebrate the anniversary of Revere's ride, the church has also hosted a ceremony to light the lanterns in the belfry. The lantern ceremony is usually performed by a sexton or one of Revere's descendants. ==Impact and legacy==

Reception Boston.com wrote in 2024 that Old North derived much of its fame from Revere's night ride of 1775 and that many guests visited specifically for this reason. The church also received architectural commentary. The Boston Daily Globe in 1893 called the nave "sombre looking", although it described the structure as "in its day one of the architectural ornaments of the North End". The Boston Daily Globe called the church "a thing of beauty" in 1910, while writer Howard S. Andros said in 2001 that the building was "long a welcome beacon" for seafarers. Landmark designations and media The building was designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL) on October 9, 1960. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966, the day the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 went into effect. Old North is one of eight sites in the Boston National Historical Park, which was designated in 1974. The Boston Landmarks Commission designated Old North as a Boston Landmark in 2025, including the exteriors of the church and surrounding buildings. A tablet in Paul Revere Mall commemorates Old North Church. The church was depicted in a cachet issued by the United States Postal Service in 1973, a stamp issued in 1975, and a Forever stamp issued in 2025. A replica was built in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Another replica in Beverly Shores, Indiana, housing a Presbyterian congregation, was relocated from the 1933 Century of Progress fair in Chicago. ==See also==