What Is the Round Church of Richmond?
This early 19th Century church was one of the earliest community churches and an architectural rarity with 16 sides!
What Makes It Historical?
The Round Church was born out of a 16-year controversy! Since 1796, the townfolk of Richmond couldn’t agree on where to place their community meeting house, and no committee appointed to the job could reach an agreement either! Luckily for the community, tavern keeper, Thomas Whitcomb, and store keeper, Isaac Gleason, stepping in and donated 60 rods of land (about 990 feet) to construct a church to be shared by the five local Christian denominations!
Blacksmith, William Rhodes, took charge of the project, and with a team of 17, some paid and others volunteer, completed this church in February of 1814! It served the shared needs of the community for 29 years when the Baptist Church disappeared from Richmond, then the Congregationalists left in 1849, then the Universalists in 1879! That led to the secularization of the space during the 1880s, and the Round Church served as a town meetinghouse all the way until 1973! Today, it’s a National Historic Landmark!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Become a member of the Richmond Historical Society!
- Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!
How Do I Get There?
29 Round Church Rd
Richmond, VT 05477
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit?
The Round Church is open to visitors from 10:00 AM until 4:00 PM on weekends from late May to mid-June, then daily from mid-June through the second Monday of October!