The 125-foot steeple of the Old First Church

From 1908 until 1970, the height of the steeple on the Old First Church (125 feet) was used as a legal limit for heights of buildings in Springfield. This regulation, ordered by the Massachusetts State Legislature in 1908, resulted in Springfield having fewer skyscrapers than comparable cities like Hartford, Connecticut and Providence, Rhode Island. One exception to this rule was the Springfield Municipal Group, dedicated in 1913 by President William Howard Taft.

The congregation was organized in 1637, one year after the founding of Springfield by William Pynchon. The current building, designed by Isaac Damon, was completed in 1819 and is the fourth church structure on the site. During the pastorate of abolitionist Dr. Samuel Osgood from 1809 to 1854, the church was visited by notable figures including Daniel Webster and John Brown. In 1848, the body of President John Quincy Adams lay in state in the center aisle, and Jenny Lind performed a concert there in July 1851.

The church disbanded in 2007 after 370 years of existence due to maintenance costs and dwindling membership. The building was sold to the City of Springfield for $900,000. After the roof was damaged by a tornado in 2011 and repaired using federal funds, the building has remained closed for over a decade. It remains a significant landmark within the Court Square Historic District and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons