Swansea Friends Meeting House and Cemetery

The Swansea Friends Meeting House and Cemetery, at 223 Prospect Street in Somerset, Massachusetts, are a pair of religious properties believed to include the oldest extant Quaker meetinghouse in the state, with the oldest surviving meetinghouse form in which the pulpit and entrance face each other across the building's short dimension (instead of the 19th century form, where they stand at opposite ends of the long dimension). The oldest portion of the building dates to 1702, when Somerset was part of Swansea. Originally only 24 feet (7.3 m) wide, the building was significantly enlarged in 1746, adding side bays and a second floor gallery. In the 19th century the balconies were closed off to provide office space. The cemetery adjacent to the meetinghouse is also believed to be of great age; its oldest dated marker is 1831, but 18th century Quaker practice did not generally include the laying of markers, so there are likely a number of unmarked early graves.[2]

Swansea Friends Meeting House and Cemetery
Location223 Prospect St., Somerset, Massachusetts
Coordinates41.738713°N 71.156922°W / 41.738713; -71.156922
Arealess than one acre
Built1702 (1702)
Architectural styleGeorgian
NRHP reference No.14000156[1]
Added to NRHPApril 15, 2014

The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.[1]

See also

References
  1. "Weekly list of actions, 4/14/14 through 4/18/14". National Park Service. Retrieved 2014-04-25.
  2. "MACRIS inventory record for Swansea Friends Meetinghouse". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2014-03-18.


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