History
Serving the community for almost 300 years!
The Rocky Hill Congregational Church was first established in 1727 in Stepney Parish in the town of Wethersfield as the Third Ecclesiastical Society. The congregation petitioned and the town of Wethersfield granted sixty acres to build its first meeting house on Old Saybrook Turnpike, now Old Main Street (current location of the Rocky Hill Police Station). The remaining acreage was used as parsonage land.
The second and current meeting house, dedicated in 1808, at 805 Old Main Street, replaced the original church. This building is a shining example of Georgian architecture with its pedimented doorways, palladian window, iconic columns, and 3-stage tower. In 1843, the town of Rocky Hill incorporated and separated from Wethersfield.
The church building was recognized in the 1930s as part of the Historic American Buildings Survey and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The first addition, the Parish House, was completed in 1952 to accommodate the growing congregation, and to add classrooms, offices, and a chapel. Another addition was constructed in 1993 to provide more meeting space, a large office, and an elevator to provide access for persons with disabilities.
We are a congregation rooted in our 300 year-old history, growing in the present and planning for the future.
A pictorial history of the church and its setting can be seen at the bottom of this page. History buffs can access RHCC records from 1726 to 1811.
For more information on the history of our church, contact our Church Historian.
A video synopsis of the myriad of changes in the RHCC Meeting House since it was built in 1808. (Narrated by RHCC historian, Ed Chiucarello.)
Rocky Hill Congregational Church Pictorial History
Pictures courtesy of the Rocky Hill Historical Society Mike Martino Collection and the Rocky Hill Congregational Church. Compiled by Church Historian Ed Chiucarello (October 2022).
