LB2016.15.1459

LB2016.15.1459

The raised pulpit at the Alna Meetinghouse, Alna, Maine The Alna Meetinghouse is a historic meeting house on Maine State Route 218 in Alna Center, Maine. Built in 1789, it is one of the oldest churches in the state, with a virtually intact interior. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Description The Alna Meetinghouse is located on the west side of Maine 218, a short way north of Alna Cemetery and about 1.3 miles south of the road's Sheepscot River crossing. It is set close to the road, and faces south. The building is a 2-1/2 story wooden structure, with a side gable roof and exterior of clapboards and wooden shingles. It has no tower, and a gable-roofed entry vestibule and stair house projects from the center of the five-bay front facade. The entrance is flanked by pilasters and topped by an entablature and cornice. Balconies surround three sides of the interior and are supported by hand-hewn pillars. The original box pews are still in place, as is the original pulpit with a sounding board hung from the ceiling. The roof is supported by massive hand-hewn beams, measuring 14 to 18 inches in thickness. The area that is now Alna was settled around 1760 as Pownalborough and incorporated in 1794 by the Massachusetts General Court as New Milford. But residents did not like the name, so it was changed in 1811 to Alna, Latin for alder, the tree which grows in profusion along the banks of the Sheepscot River. This church was built in 1789, and saw active use until 1876. Wikipedia contributors, "Alna Meetinghouse," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alna_Meetinghouse&oldid=1089863292 (accessed June 2, 2023). "518"