An Introduction and Our History in The 1700s

While the passage of over 250 years is but a moment in the span of Christian history, it is a significant period in the life of a particular church. The Congregational Church of New Fairfield is more than three decades older than our nation itself. When the church gathered in 1742, our land was but a colonial territory with limited self-government. The passage of the years has brought about many changes in our world, nation, and community paralleling the expansion and development of our age, the Congregational Church of New Fairfield has increased from a modest gathering of perhaps two dozen people to a growing church of over 375 members.

A Town is Settled

New Fairfield was one of the several towns originally purchased from the Indians. Old records indicate that the purchase price was 65 pounds and a few trinkets for all the land now comprising New Fairfield and Sherman, CT. A deed given in 1729 bears the names and fingerprints of several Indians. The town was named New Fairfield due to the fact that twelve proprietors of the township were originally from Fairfield, CT. The proprietors divided up the land into twelve parts and set aside a 200 acre parcel to be given to the first settled minister in the town.

A Church is Born

The town of New Fairfield was incorporated in 1740 and at the time there was a meeting of the proprietors for the purpose of establishing a church. As church and state were closely related in colonial New England, an application had to be made to the general court for the appointment of a committee to choose the site for the meeting house and make the necessary arrangements for the establishment of a church. Apparently, the application missed the 1740 session of the general court for no action was taken until 1742. Because of the size of the town, it was decided to have two parishes - a North Congregational Church, which was to become the Sherman Church in 1802 when Sherman separated from New Fairfield and a South Congregational Church, which is now our Congregational Church of New Fairfield. The church officially came into being on November 9, 1742.

Our First 58 Years (1742 - 1799)

The first meeting house was erected at the top of the hill near the site of the present Consolidated School and a short distance below our present church. The Reverend Benajah Case, a missionary to the Indians, was the first minister and served the church for a period of eleven or twelve years (ca. 1754).

A Dispute Arises

The Reverend James Taylor settled in New Fairfield in 1758 and was given the 200 acres of land reserved for the "first settled pastor." The wording of this grant was to cause future difficulty, for when Mr. Taylor left the pastorate in 1764 he continued to live in town and retained possession of the 200 acres granted to him when he settled. As there was some doubt in the minds of the church people whether the land was to become the personal property of the pastor or whether it was to be retained with the church for the use of the pastor, the issue was debated rather strenuously for some years with the church insisting that Mr. Taylor return the land and Mr. Taylor as firmly insisting that the land belonged to him. Finally, the matter was taken to court and a compromise was agreed upon which returned some land to the church and gave Mr. Taylor ownership of the rest. The exact division of the land between the church and Mr. Taylor is not given in the records. However, it is noted that when the Reverend Mr. Joseph Peck assumed the pastorate in 1769 it was agreed that he would have use of the church land but it would be considered his only if he remained pastor for twenty years or until his death. Mr. Peck left in 1774 after only five years of service and the church retained the land.

A former historian notes that the church records of this early period "have been shamefully neglected and misused." The town records, which might give much valuable information concerning these early days, were completely destroyed by fire in 1867. The church records dating from 1742 are now safely filed in the State Library. Before this was accomplished, however, pages were accidentally torn or obliterated and thus much information is lost forever. The fact that from 1742 to 1786 the church was without a settled pastor for more than half the time also contributed to the lack of careful record-keeping.

A New Church is Built

The Reverend Medad Rogers settled in New Fairfield in 1786 and in the first year of his ministry it was voted to build a new and larger meeting house because the former building had fallen into disrepair during the years when there was no pastor and only occasional services. The new building was 36 by 46 feet and was built a short distance up the hill from the original church which puts it about where our present church now stands. Building was a slow process in those days, for three years later in 1789 the church records include a vote to finish the church. The same vote was repeated in 1792. Again, in 1794 it was voted to sell pews for money to complete the church and this sale was repeated in 1795. We assume that thus after nine years the church was finished for no further mention of the need for completion is recorded. However, by 1811 the church was six years in arrears on Mr. Rogers' salary, so it was voted to sell off a parcel of the church land to settle with the patient pastor. Mr. Rogers remained as pastor until 1822.

Next: 1800 - 1899