One of the oldest religious organizations in Concord will be looking for a new, smaller home, eventually vacating its historic brick building on North State Street.
The Rev. Emilia Halstead announced Monday that the First Congregational Church is looking for its sixth home after years of discussion and a congregational vote on Sunday.
The congregation has been in operation in Concord for 289 years and has owned its 177 N. Main St., location since 1945, according to city assessing records. Halstead wrote that the spot is the “fifth home and fourth location, with fire claiming all previous structures.”
A member of the United Church of Christ denomination, First Congregational lead to the creation of the three other United Church congregations, including South, East and West Congregational as well as the Immanuel Community Church on the Heights, Halstead said in a press release.
The Immanuel Community Church is no longer associated with United Church of Christ, and recently affiliated with the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference.
The process of finding a new home and moving is anticipated to take up to three years. The church has been appraised at $2.9 million, according to city assessing records.
Halstead wrote that the church intends to use resources freed up by the move to further its mission of helping people in need as well as expanding its outreach and community building.
The church’s current location used to host a cold weather shelter for the homeless in Concord. That later expanded to include the South Congregational church before eventually moving to the now-demolished St. Peter’s Church.
First Congregational also runs a food pantry three days a week and hosts several group recovery meetings.
The church still provides shelters to homeless families through its partnership with Family Promise. Halstead wrote that First Congregational will be looking for a space that allows them to continue these services.
Halstead is the 14th pastor to serve the congregation. She was the first female leader of the church, according to Monitor archives.
It’s hard to say what will happen to the 82-year old building. Two of Concord’s most iconic churches – Christ the King’s St. Peter’s Church and Sacred Heart – were either torn down or converted to condos in recent years as the congregations shrank.
The congregation’s remaining church, St. John the Evangelist, is currently undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation. Discussions of ways to preserve the city’s historic churches have become more urgent after St. Peter’s was torn down despite concerns from the Demolition Review Committee.