Meeting House History

Early History

The original Meeting House was built on land where the Pennacook Native Americans once lived. An Algonquin-speaking tribe, they farmed maize, and squash along the riverbeds of the Merrimack and hunted the nearby forests. For a town to be incorporated in Colonial Massachusetts, there first had to be an established church and congregation in the community. In 1645 residents of Andover (then known as Cochichawicke) formally established The First Church of Christ at Cochichawicke.  The Cochichawicke congregation was the 37th church established by Puritan settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.   A second Meeting House was built on the site in what would become North Andover in 1669.  In 1708 a second parish, South Parish Church, was founded when the General Court divided the town now called Andover into two parishes.  A third Meeting House was built in 1710 and a fourth Meeting House in 1753. 

Succeeding generations have met weekly since then, but the theology of the ministers and members has continually opened up to new, expansive ideas. In 1834 part of the North Parish congregation seceded and formed the Evangelical Church of North Andover (now Trinitarian Congregationalist Church).  The remaining North Parish congregation became Unitarian Christian and made plans to build the current Meeting House.  At the time there was growing popularity for formal religious education of children, so the new church design included a basement structure (called the Parish Hall) to house Sunday religious education programs.  In 1855, the north and south parishes legally became separate towns, forming Andover and North Andover.

The 1836 Meeting House perches slightly above the rotary in North Andover's quaint Old Center. Its brilliant white Gothic facade is a striking sight and somewhat unusual for an older New England church building.   It is a cornerstone of the town common and serves as a welcoming beacon to those who travel through the common day and night.  It is included in the national Historic Register and the local Historic District Register.

Learn More: North Andover Historical Society