In The Hartford Courant 75 Years Ago: Glastonbury Church Rebuilds After Hurricane Of 1938

GLASTONBURY

On September 21, 1938 one of the worst hurricanes to hit Connecticut left a path of destruction across the state. One of those victims was the First Church of Christ's church along Main Street. On Feb. 27, 1939, The Hartford Courant ran a story on the congregation's decision to rebuild.

The headline read: "New Church Planned In Glastonbury; Structure To Be Erected On Site Of Edifice Destroyed By Hurricane In September."

"The congregation of the First Church of Christ in Glastonbury meeting at the high school auditorium Sunday afternoon unanimously voted to build a new church on the site of the hurricane-demolished church.

The proposed church will be of the 1810 to 1825 Colonial period design with a 116-foot steeple, 40 feet shorter than the old steeple. The seating capacity of the main floor will be 276. The balcony will seat 50 and 60 more may be seated along the church aisles if necessary. The destroyed church had a seating capacity of 600.

The new church will be of brick construction and the rearranged chapels will be of brick veneer. The old church was a wooden building. A chancel wll be built in the front of the church and will be 20 feet deep.

There will be rooms for the Sunday School departments, a woman's parlor, a kitchen and men's room. The main auditorium will have a slate roof. The interior of the church will have columns four feet from the church sides to support an arched ceiling.

A large vestibule will be built in back of the pews. It will be the fifth church building since Colonial times. The style is of the same period as the Town Hall. The church was designed by Dr. Hobart Upjohn of New York City, a national authority on church building.

A third meeting house was erected in 1837 on the present site. This one was destroyed by fire on December 26, 1866. A fourth meeting house was erected on the same site within a year and was completed in 1867. The steeple was blown off by a gale in 1881 and was restored at once.

The hurricane on September 21, 1938 wrecked the last church. A spectator related that the steeple was lifted from the church and was dropped on the ridge leaving the church almost a complete wreck. A special committee was named soon after the catastrophe to plan for the future of the church.

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In The Hartford Courant 75 Years Ago: Glastonbury Church Rebuilds After Hurricane Of 1938