Bristol Historical Society to host church tour on Sunday

Wednesday, September 10, 2014 10:08 PM EDT

By BRIAN M. JOHNSON STAFF WRITER

BRISTOL The Bristol Historical Society is sponsoring a free tour of three local churches on Sunday.

Participants will tour First Congregational Church at 31 Maple St. from 2 to 2:30 p.m., followed by St. Joseph Church at 33 Queen St. from 2:45 to 3:15 p.m., and finally Prospect United Methodist Church at 99 Summer St. from 3:30 to 4 p.m. Each church is independently organizing their own guided tour, during which, they will speak about the history of the building and its congregation. Vivian Brackett will lead the tour at Prospect United Methodist, Arthur Shahverdian will lead the group at First Congregational and Rev. Joseph DiSciacca will walk with the group at St. Joseph Church.

Following the tour, people can meet back at the Bristol Historical Society at 98 Summer Street for refreshments. No prior registration is required.

Ellie Wilson, program chair, member of the Bristol Historical Societys board of directors and a parishioner at St. Joseph Church, said St. Joseph is celebrating their 150th anniversary this year. Because of this, and the fact that previous church tours were well received, she suggested the event.

All three churches are steeped in history, she said. There is a lot of history here in town that people dont know about. I think this will be a draw for people, and that it will help to keep an interest in local history going.

Tom Dickau, president of the Bristol Historical Society, said First Congregational Church is the first church that was established in Bristol. St. Joseph Church is the first Catholic Church in the city. The Sessions family contributed to the construction of Prospect United Methodist.

Dickau has been researching the history of local churches for the past year. This April he held a screening for a film he created which examined interesting facts about most of the churches. Dickau said that event attracted between 80 and 100 people, and he hoped to see some of the same folks come back for the tour. If the tours become popular enough, he said he might hold them at other local churches as well.

The first time I went to Prospect United Methodist was when I was making my film, said Dickau. It is absolutely magnificent inside. Few people get a chance to see other churches aside from the one they go to, unless they are going to a wedding or a funeral. I think this will be a wonderful event and I am eager to get started.

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Bristol Historical Society to host church tour on Sunday