The congregation first gathered in 1636 as a branch of the church in
Boston, becoming an independent church in 1639, known simply as "Ye Church of Braintry," because the whole area was then known as
Braintree. It was a
Puritan Congregationalist church when first established. In the mid-18th century it became
Unitarian, and then
Unitarian Universalist in the 20th century. The 1828 church is constructed of locally quarried
granite, and is one of the finest Greek Revival church buildings in New England. It has a Greek temple front, supported by four monolithic granite columns which may have been the largest set in the United States at the time. Each column is tall and weighs an estimated 25 tons. Above the main facade rises a two-stage tower. Its lower section is oblong and unadorned, while the second stage is stepped back and square. It has clock faces on each side, and is topped by an open cupola with eight columns and a dome. American
Founding Father and its second president,
John Adams, financed the church's construction through a land donation, and the bulk of the granite comes from the Adams family
quarry. However, the pillars are from another local quarry, as the Adams quarry was not deep enough for a full-height pillar. Its original bell was cast by
Paul Revere, but was melted down and recast as it was not loud enough to serve as a
fire alarm. The unusual domed ceiling represents a
passion flower surrounded by
lotuses. The fine
mahogany altar is original. ==Adams' gravesite==