On Sunday September 9, at 4 PM, the Wilmot Historical Society and the North Wilmot Church will present a program on New England’s colonial meetinghouses at the North Wilmot Church on North Wilmot Road at the corner of Breezy Hill Road in Wilmot.

Speaker Paul Wainwright of New Hampshire Humanities will explain why New England’s colonial meetinghouses embody an important yet little-known chapter in American history.

Built mostly with tax money, these buildings served as both places of worship and places for town meetings, and were the centers of life in colonial New England communities. Using photographs of the few surviving “mint condition” meetinghouses as illustrations, Wainwright will tell the story of the society that built and used them and the lasting impact they have had on American culture.  

Paul Wainwright is both a scholar and a photographer. With a doctorate from Yale University, he worked for many years at Bell Labs. Artistic photography and a love of history have been long-standing interests. He is especially drawn to photographing historic structures in very personal and introspective ways.

Directions to the church: Follow signs on North Wilmot Road from Route 4A at Wilmot Center (Town Hall/Library) for 4.5 miles to the church, which is one mile past Camp Wilmot.