Bell Will Again Toll At 1 Of New England's Oldest Stone Churches

EAST HAVEN, CT — Heidi Manley makes her way confidently up the ancient stairs, whose original handrails were rather deep indents in the centuries-old quarried stone to hold on to. She navigates her way into the dark passage to the top of the steeple and bell tower, 196-feet above the ground, of the Old Stone Church.

Manley, who “grew up” in the church, is now its office manager. A guide who knows much about its history, and lore, she leads Patch to the near-top of the tower, home of the now-silenced bell.

A small wood-frame meeting house in 1711, now more than 300 years later, the historic church that towers above East Haven, needs steeple and bell repairs, $100,000 worth. A campaign is underway to raise that money, and it’s just shy of a third of the way to the goal, being helped in ways big and small.

East Haven teen Grace Bast created a GoFundMe as part of a school project to support the steeple repair and to date, she’s raised $950. To donate to Bast's fundraiser, click here.

And One World Roasters of East Haven created a special community blend of coffee to help raise funds for the restoration project. Read that story here.

Church Pastor Mark Pilletere said that the tower structure itself is good, it’s the exterior that requires repairing. And, the bell clapper, the church recently learned, needs to be repaired, hence its silence.

Just nearly three months into fundraising, he said, “we’re doing well.” But regardless of how much the church raises — it has applied for state grants and is waiting to hear back — the work will begin, “whether we have the money or not.”

“We’ll figure out how much we can do once it starts,” he said.

Described as a “church without borders,” it has a congregation that Pilletere wishes were larger, but includes members from East Haven, New Haven, Branford, Wallingford, Cheshire, Hamden, Meriden, and as far away as Berlin in Hartford County.

When the church was established centuries ago, town borders were not what they are today. For example, what is now the Annex section of New Haven was originally part of East Haven. Manley said in the 18th century, meetinghouse members “would cross the Quinnipiac River and go to Center Church on the Green in New Haven.” They crossed on foot, carriage or horseback, and she said, it “took a long time to get there.”

Old Stone Church, steeped in history and lore

A recorded property on the National Register of Historic Places, it was originally known as the First Ecclesiastical Society of East Haven before being called the First Congregational Church. Known now colloquially as the Old Stone Church, the congreation was founded and organized in a 20-foot by 16-foot wood-frame building in the fall of 1711. Manley said the building was constructed with ship wood.

“When they came over from England, they took their ships apart and used that wood to build the church,” she noted.

Jacob Heminway (changed to include a ‘g,’ it’s now spelled Hemingway) was ordained its minister. It’s noted that records before 1755 were not kept, but what is known is that the early church members included names recognized today in East Haven and New Haven: Tuttle, Thompson, Farnham, Townsend, Forbes, and Tyler.

Over many decades, indeed centuries, the structure that was the original meeting house would evolve.

By 1769, it was decided the church should be built from stone, red sandstone quarried from the nearby Fair Haven hills, and oyster beds for mortar, harvested from the Quinnipiac River.

Designed and built beginning in 1772 by George Lancraft, with congregants and members of the Quinnipiac tribe the laborers, according to church history, by 1774, at a cost of around $12,000, the meeting house “was completed in a rough way.”

The whole town turned out for the dedication in September of that year.

In 1797, a “small and graceful steeple over the belfry” was added, and a clock was installed in the belfry tower.

In 1850, another transformation, inside and out, created the church seen today. Originally lit by whale oil lamps, the Old Stone Church was the first meetinghouse in Connecticut to be heated by steam, according to church history. In 1895, it gained its first pipe organ.

But before the 200-year anniversary, an inspection found that the steeple was unsafe and required a $150,000 renovation. Without that kind of money, it was the community, and nearby churches, that raised the funds, buffeted by a $50,000 state grant, that helped to see the steeple repaired.

Over the years, regular steeple inspections showed it to be in good condition. Now though, exterior repairs are necessary. And a paint job by a “steeplejack who will sit and swing around from the apex of the steeple on a rope and board," Pilletere said. And some exterior stonework needs repointing as well as some roof slate replacement.

But it’s the “rare” bell, rung for centuries and now quiet, that also requires repair. The bell itself is steeped in a rich history. Cast in 1798 by James Cochran and Gameliel Fenton of New Haven, the story goes that “silver dollars were thrown into the molten material when it was being cast to give it a silvery ring.”

According to the 170-year-old Verdin Bell and Clock Company in Cincinnati, Ohio, “it is the first Cochran & Fenton bell they have ever seen.” And, it’s noted that Paul Revere made the tolling hammer.

Supporting the Bell and Steeple Fund

The Old Stone Church has for centuries been an East Haven meeting house, including the site for community and town events and meetings.

The Old Stone Church Early Learning Center is a non-profit, non-sectarian school celebrating over 50 years of service to East Haven. Located in the educational wing of the church, and operated by the Old Stone Church Board of Finance, Buildings, and Grounds, it's licensed by the state Office of Early Childhood Education. Its thrift shop first opened almost 40 years ago. The shop donates items to community charities and its profits go to the church's general fund.

Myriad fundraisers have already been undertaken, including a dinner and cabaret in December 2021.

To donate to Old Stone Church's Bell and Steeple Fund, click here.

To donate to Bast's bell and steeple repair GoFundMe, click here.

To purchase One World Roasters of East Haven's special Old Stone Church community coffee blend, click here.

Visit the Old Stone Church website here for more information.

GoFundMe is a Patch partner.