Why donate to the rehabilitation of the Langdon Congregational Church 10/20/20

Over several years the people of Langdon have accomplished much by way of preserving its quaint New England village. They succeeded in rehabilitating their 1803 Meetinghouse and in the process won a 2016 NH Preservation Alliance Achievement Award. The building is now on the National Register of Historic Places. They corrected the structural deficiencies of the 1900 “Salt Shed” formerly the town’s “Tool Shed” which shares the Meetinghouse lot. The town common has been rehabbed with new plantings. The now retired 1960 Firehouse in the village center has been repaired and given a fresh coat of paint. The neighboring 1939 Sarah Porter School house recently received an addition for ADA access and classroom space. A church community building stands unused but is under consideration as a future project.

All this work shows a love for community spaces and support of the townspeople to protect these historic buildings

The next rehabilitation project is the only church in town. The building currently has limited use for secular and non-denominational activities like art showings, annual Fall Festival, NH Humanities Council presentations, speakers, music, movies and lecture series and of course Congregational services on holidays. Its use is limited due to its structural inadequacies. However, a 2020 LCHIP supported Planning Study provides a thorough plan of action to address all aspects of use. Planned work will bring this 1842 building into compliance as a public meeting space. The Planning Study describes several phases of work, the first being to lift the building and replace its crumbling foundation and augment its timbers. It will be done in a manner that prepares for succeeding phases of planned work. The amount of $223,000 must be raised for Phase 1. All work will be done in according to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standard for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings.

The rehabilitated building will be increasingly available for secular gatherings that increase human interaction & strengthen community bonds.

Buildings in small towns are hard to preserve because of the little attention they attract and the shallow pool of donors available. (Langdon has only 700 residents.) Its use as a sacred place further limits funding resources. We ask for your support. 

Make donations at PayPal  https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/LangdonNHChurch 

or send checks written to

Langdon Congregational Church and send to Tina Christie, Treasurer, 85 Jewett Rd, Langdon NH 03602.

Contact Doug Beach with questions at 603-852-2674 or doug.beach@aebi-ne.com. Learn more www.Facebook.com/Langdoncongregationalchurch .

All donations will be used exclusively for the rehabilitation of the building.