| Ogden Presbyterian Church begins tower removal process
Since 1824 -- for nearly two centuries -- the brass bell has hung high above the farmlands in its tower atop Ogden Presbyterian Church. In the early years, the 972-pound bell was rung at sunrise to greet the day and again at sunset to end the day. It was also tolled to acknowledge that a member of the church had died. This month, the landmark gold dome and most of the tower are being removed so that necessary repairs can be made to the deteriorating structure. Church trustee Stephen Shelly said that in November it was discovered that the tower was leaning. The church hired an engineer who deemed it "totally unsafe." The wood was rotting and was no longer able to support the heavy bell. Shelly also said that there is evidence that when the tower was built in 1949 some of the lumber was actually used lumber from other buildings. Shelly said that Manning, Squires and Hennig, a company out of Batavia, will do the work. There are three tiers to the tower, and the top two tiers and the gold dome will be removed. The bell is housed in the middle tier where the shutters are. It is not yet clear whether the bell can be removed with that portion of the tower, or if it will have to be removed separately. Pat Hutchison, an elder of the church, said that the first step is to get a "cherry picker truck" to prepare the tower, so that it can hopefully come down somewhat intact. The gold dome will be put back up after repairs are made. Shelly said that this project has nothing to do with the recent renovations and expansions of the church. "This is a completely separate project," he said. Ogden Presbyterian Church is the oldest church in the Town of Ogden. It had its beginnings on August 20, 1811, when a meeting was held to discuss the possibility of having a church. On November 4 of that year the Congregational Church of Parma was formed. At that time the area was part of Parma. Their services were held in homes and barns. In 1817 the Town of Ogden was formed out of this southern section of Parma and the church group then bore the Ogden name. The church edifice on the corner of South Union Street and Ogden Center Road was built in 1824. At that time it was in the center of the Town of Ogden and at the hub of activity for the area. In those days the church was the main meeting place in the community, serving as a place to see friends, neighbors and relatives as well as a place to hold religious services. William Ogden donated a bell weighing 681 pounds for the new church building. In 1835 the group became connected with the Presbytery of Rochester-Geneva and changed its name to the Presbyterian Church of Ogden. In 1849 church members were in controversy over the location of the church. The canal was being built and the focus of the town was moving north to the Spencerport area. The group split into the Presbyterians and the Congregationalists. The Congregationalists formed the First Congregational Church of Spencerport, now known as the White Church, and the Presbyterians remained at the Ogden Center location. At that time extensive changes were made to the building and the bell was traded in for a larger, 972-pound bell from Troy, New York. Perhaps this bell was then a symbol of the newly formed Ogden Presbyterian Church. Resources: |