First Baptist Church and Society | |
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| Location | 21 Baptist St., Swansea, Massachusetts |
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| Coordinates | 41°46′16″N 71°16′9″W / 41.77111°N 71.26917°W |
| Built | 1848 |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| MPS | Swansea MRA |
| NRHP reference No. | 90000060[1] |
| Added to NRHP | February 16, 1990 |
The First Baptist Church and Society is a historic Baptist church in Swansea, Massachusetts. The congregation, founded in 1663, is the oldest Baptist congregation in Massachusetts and one of the oldest in the United States.
The congregation was founded in 1663 by John Myles as the first Baptist congregation in Massachusetts, and Myles brought the Ilston Book with him from Swansea in Wales. The congregation in Swansea, Massachusetts was located relatively nearby the First Baptist Church in America in Providence.
The current Greek Revival meeting house was constructed in 1848 and is the fifth building occupied by the congregation. The adjacent cemetery dates to 1731. The building and cemetery were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.[2]
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ "Rev. John Myles and the founding of the first Baptist church in Massachusetts : An historical address delivered at the dedication of a monument in Barrington, Rhode Island (Formerly Swansea, Mass.) June 17, 1905". 1905.