St. Andrew's Episcopal Chapel

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St. Andrew’s Episcopal Chapel was built in 1905 as a missionary church to St. John’s Episcopal church. St. Andrew’s was built to provide a closer Episcopal service for the growing population in the Blackinton area of North Adams. Before St. Andrew’s was built, service was originally being held in the home of Mrs. Eliza Thomas. When after two years the number of people attending service in the home of Mrs. Thomas became too large, the school hall was rented out. The capacity limit here was soon reached, so the community started a fund to collect money for a new building to be made. In early spring of 1905, on land donated by the Blackinton family, construction started to build a new chapel.

When St. Andrew’s Episcopal Chapel held its first service on Whitsunday of 1905, June 11^th, there was no furniture and chairs had to be borrowed from Archer School hall. There was no door in the opening and cloth was nailed over the openings for windows. The Church began to receive furnishings mainly through gifts. The pews were given to St. Andrews from the old Williams College chapel, while the altar, lecterns and an organ came from St. John’s.

The first rector was Dr. J Franklin Carter, who with the help of Williams students ran the church. Dr. Carter was in charge of baptisms, marriage ceremonies, funeral services, confirmations, and visiting the sick. In 1915, there were 210 affiliated members with St. Andrew’s. That same year, Rev. Robert R. Carmichael became rector, his first parish assignment. After two years Rev. William Hall Williams replaced Rev. Carmichael. After seven years, he was replaced by William W. Smith, a lay-reader, who ran the church for 26 years until 1950. The church continued to be run by clergy affiliated with St. John’s and Williams College students after Smith’s retirement.

In 1955 the Church underwent renovations to its interior, kitchen, and roof. These repairs were made in anticipation of the church’s 50^th anniversary service, which was was held on June 5^th of that year. The church celebrated its 57^th anniversary with only 50 people. The decline in membership continued in later decades, although St. Andrew’s continued to offer services until 2015. The Chapel is now used for Sunday services by the New Hope United Methodist Church.