by Ron Belczak, Town of Riga Historian
On Saturday, July 13, 2024, the members of the First Congregational Church of Riga, UCC will look back in time as they celebrate the Bicentennial of their church edifice.
In 1823, at a time in history when the Erie Canal was nearing completion, 125 members of the First Congregational Society of Riga finalized their pledge to support the building of a permanent house of worship on the land of Elihu Church, brother of Churchville founder Samuel Church. The Society, which was organized on December 9, 1806, was one of the first religious societies organized west of the Genesee River under the title of “First Congregational Society of West Pulteney in the County of Genesee.”
Before the construction of their house of worship, religious services were held in barns, homes, and even Thomson’s Tavern, which is now located at the Genesee Country Village & Museum. In 1810, at a cost of $179, the Society built the first schoolhouse in the Riga township, which also served as a church meeting hall.
Unfortunately, records detailing the building of that church are lost to time, and one can only guess the fine details of that construction. What we do know is that the 40 by 60-foot wooden building cost $3,000 and was modeled after a church in Hinsdale, Massachusetts, that was built in 1789 by the architect Ithamer Pelton, who used a design created by Charles Bulfinch. But there is no doubt that local labor and wood were used and milled by the Riga sawmills, including that of Samuel Church.
On Saturday, July 17, 1824, the members of the First Congregational Church of Riga dedicated their new church edifice, which became one of the first constructed west of the Genesee River.
Over time, there were physical changes both internally and externally to the church, such as in 1829 when a bell from Troy, New York, was added to the steeple at a cost of $1,000. A heating system (wood stove) was installed in 1832, replacing the foot warmers in the women’s pews, and a parsonage was added in 1836 at a cost of $400. The church was remodeled several times, including once in 1857. It was remodeled again in 1914 for the marriage of Delancy Boice and Alice Williams, one of the first weddings held in the church because, in the past, wedding ceremonies were conducted in private homes. A hall was added behind the church in 1928, and gas fixtures were replaced by electricity in 1929. The horse barn, a staple for most residences in the 1800s, was demolished in the early 1930s. In 1951, a remodeling project added a mural in the archway behind the pulpit. Delancy Boice contracted the mural in memory of his wife and uncle, William Ormrod. Then, in 1961, the hand-pumped organ was upgraded to an electric organ, and its towering steeple was structurally reinforced and straightened in the late 1980s.
Learn more about the historic First Congregational Church of Riga, located at 7057 Chili Riga Center Road, Churchville, on Saturday, July 13, from 1 to 3 p.m. when its members invite the community to a special 200-year celebration of the building that will consist of the installation of a commemorative plaque, an ice cream social, and church building tours.
