The Society was incorporated in 1963 as a non-profit organization by a group of concerned townspeople. Their purpose was to form a permanent local group to preserve artifacts and memorabilia relating to the people and history of Wilbraham.
The operation of our organization is funded entirely by the dues, gifts, and activities of our membership, which is open to all interested persons from Wilbraham and other communities. The Old Meeting House, which is now our museum and headquarters to The Atheneum Society of Wilbraham, is located at 450 Main Street.
The history of the Meeting House:
Charles Brewer, who lived in Wilbraham during the 18th century, offered his property on the West Road (450 Main Street), to the Methodist Society so that they could erect a meeting house on that spot. The rental for the property he charged the group was one peppercorn yearly; this interesting agreement is documented in the lease. The Atheneum Society continues leasing the property for one peppercorn annually, from the Town of Wilbraham, which owns the property today.
Interestingly, Charles Brewer was a congregationalist and belonged to the First Parish (Congregational) whose meeting house was located on Wigwam Hill and was the first to be baptized in this new meeting house on December 25, 1748. On August 29, 1791, a vote was taken to move this meeting house down off the hill to a more central location in town. It was voted that the meeting house would be relocated to a parcel of land owned by Charles Brewer, however, three weeks later the vote was rescinded. In voting not to use his land, the Parish's action resulted in Mr. Brewer and twelve others withdrawing from the First Parish and forming the Methodist Society.
The Old Methodist Meeting House was built in 1793 and is one of the oldest standing in New England. The building is 30 x 40 feet and has a single ridge pole hand hewed from a Chestnut tree, that extends the entire length of the building. In 1814 a wood-burning stove was installed, which was an innovation of the time. This greatly helped in keeping the building warm. Local churches did not adopt this practice until about 15 years later. It took that long to convince others that the fire danger from stoves was minimal.
In 1794 the first Methodist-Episcopal Conference in New England was held at this meeting house. Bishop Francis Asbury presided over this conference. There were two other conferences held here in town; one in 1824 and one on the 100th anniversary in 1894.
This first building was the home of Wilbraham’s Methodists until the congregation outgrew the building in 1833. A new meeting house, the second one, was built and completed on May 19, 1835, across Mountain Road and on the corner of Main Street, where Wilbraham Monson Academy Chapel, the third meeting house now stands. It wasn't until the year 1856 that plans were drawn up for a much larger stone church to be built due to the church serving the Academy students as well as the townspeople. This third Methodist church building was built and completed on January 9, 1870, on the same site as the second meeting house. The second meeting house was then taken over by Wesleyan Academy and moved to where the old Smith Memorial Gymnasium is located today and was used as a gymnasium and music hall. When the Smith Memorial Gymnasium was built in 1896, the second meeting house once again was moved to make room for the new gymnasium and was relocated just to the south towards Mountain Road where the parking lot to Smith is now located. This building was torn down around 1921.
When the second Methodist Meeting House was built in 1834/1835, the original building reverted to the Brewer family and Charles sold it to Anson L. Brewer who converted it into a two-family dwelling. It remained a private dwelling for 142 years. The interior no longer consisted of a vaulted ceiling over a large single room rising from the present first floor to the present second floor. Evidence of the original vaulted chamber still exists on the walls and ceilings of the second floor and in the third-floor attic. It is believed that the second-floor windows were raised from the bottom windows when the building was converted to two floors. The exterior has been mostly unchanged since that time.
In 1841 Anson Brewer sold the house to William W. Merrick who owned it for 67 years when he sold it to Chauncey E. Peck in 1908. Subsequent owners were Ernest G. Spring and Elizabeth LaCrosse. In 1946 Mrs. LaCrosse purchased the house from Mrs. Spring and lived there until 1949 when she sold it to three sisters, Clara S. Reed, Alice Kaynor, and Mary R. Hillis who lived there for the rest of their lives.
At a Town Meeting in 1977, the townspeople voted to purchase the Old Meeting House from the heirs to the estate of the three sisters, to preserve it for future generations. The Wilbraham Historical Commission leases the building to the Atheneum Society of Wilbraham. The Society uses part of the space for its headquarters and museum to preserve traditions and artifacts relating to historic Wilbraham. The building is maintained with citizens' active participation through donations, volunteer hours, and expertise.
In 1979, the Old Meeting House was designated a National Historic Landmark as part of the Academy Historic District and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. In 1990 it was recognized as a United Methodist Historic Site by the Commission on Archives and History of the United Methodist Church.
Around the 1830s the Hearse House was built and located in Adams Cemetery at the southeast corner of the original burial yard on Tinkham Road and stood there for many years, but was removed about 1871 when it was relocated to the Chauncey Peck Carriage and Blacksmith Shop near the north edge of the center village (380 Main Street). At that point, it was used to store lumber at the carriage shop and possibly still the town hearse.
Around 1920, the Hearse House moved yet again to the property at 450 Main Street and used it as a garage. The building was restored and preserved during the years from 2001 to 2006, and now is the home of a horse-drawn hearse similar to the town hearse in use in Wilbraham from the mid-1800s to about 1920.
Inside the museum, you will find a wide array of historical artifacts and memorabilia from the very beginning to the present day.
The Atheneum Society of Wilbraham is actively looking for new members to continue the preservation of Wilbraham’s history into the 21st century. They are funded entirely by their annual membership dues ($20.00), gifts, and volunteer activities; they are open to all interested (not limited to current residents). Click the link to get started
Atheneum Society of Wilbraham Membership Form
Atheneum Society of Wilbraham Facebook Link
Atheneum Society of Wilbraham Website Link
I hope you will join us in the pursuit of preserving and celebrating Wilbraham’s history.
Here are a few examples of our collection.
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