Universalist Church of West Hartford
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The Universalist Church of West Hartford organized in 1821 as the "First Independent Universalist Society in the City of Hartford" and worshipped in a building on Central Row in Hartford, across from the Old State House. The church moved from there to a building on Main Street where the Travelers Tower now stands and then to one on Asylum Avenue near Cogswell Street. The present building in West Hartford dates from 1931, with the addition of Fiske Hall, some church school rooms and a new sanctuary organ in 1962.
In the late 1700’s in the Congregational stronghold of Hartford, Connecticut, a sizable group of people, influenced by Elhanan Winchester, began to reject Calvinist doctrine and espouse that of the universal goodness of God. It was in 1821, after a short visit from Hosea Ballou from Boston, that the “First Independent Universalist Society of the City of Hartford” was formed and the first minister called. By 1824, the first meetinghouse was completed and dedicated. Located in downtown Hartford, across the street from the Old State House, it served until 1860.
Next came a larger church on Main Street where the Travelers Tower now stands; then, in 1906, a third location in a more residential section of Hartford, on Asylum Hill. Fortunately, each of the first three churches were on prime real estate in the City of Hartford, and the sale of the property each time largely financed the building of the next church. The present building was dedicated in 1931, and a sizable addition completed in 1962. It is in a strictly residential neighborhood in West Hartford, but serves a much larger community, both urban and suburban.
The name was changed in 1870 to “Church of the Redeemer” -- to give the church “a specific title or name,” and in the early 1960’s was changed to “The Universalist Church of West Hartford.”
In the early years of the church, ministers’ tenures in general were only a few years. However, since the 1860’s there have been long series of ministries, averaging fifteen years. Most notable is the 25 year ministry of former Minister Emeritus, The Reverend Wallace Grant Fiske, followed by fifteen years with The Reverend Frederick Lipp and twelve years with The Reverend Stephen Kendrick.
In 2001, The Reverend Dr. Judith Walker-Riggs joined the church as Interim Minister
On November 17, 2002, Jan Katrina Nielsen was installed as the 22nd Senior Minister in the 181-year history of this church.
The present church building edifice is a colonial-style, tall-steepled building, erected in 1931 and designed by Walter Crabtree. A large addition was constructed in 1962 includes additional church school rooms, music room, Fiske Hall, a large multi-purpose parish hall with a stage and main kitchen. Between the sanctuary and the addition is the most-used areas, containing newly-expanded office space, conference room, library, program center with kitchen and a formal parlor.
The church is one of the many in West Hartford to have a Youth group, a place for teens to meet and reflect on the spirituality together.
The sanctuary seats up to 350 in double rows of pews flanking a center aisle. The memorial stained glass windows which grace the chancel area were designed originally for the former church building. These and other memorial windows were saved and incorporated into this building. The magnificent Austin pipe organ was installed in 1963.
On the west side of the building is a Memorial Garden dedicated in 1985. A large parking lot, which is leased from the Town of West Hartford, borders the south side of the property. The church also has a ten-room brick colonial parsonage on Middlefield Drive which it acquired in 1942.
On December 5, 1999, the entire Church was renovated with a total expenditure of $1.5 million. The extensive renovations touched nearly every inch of the building, including the refurbishing of the sanctuary and addition of a three-floor two-door elevator.
The church maintains membership in the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), organized in 1961 by the merger of the Unitarians and the Universalists. The UUA exists to serve the member congregations and to reflect the denominational unity.
