Smithfield Avenue Congregational Church
Call us: 401-725-5153
Shall We Gather at the River?
Acts 16:13
13 And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made;
Smithfield Avenue Congregational Church had its humble beginnings in the summer of 1885 on the Clapp estate on Weeden street. They began their worship outside, by a river.
In the spring of 1886 the people were given Lorraine Chapel as a place of worship. As the group of worshipers were growing it was decided to form a Congregational church in the fall of 1890. In June of 1891 they united to form the Lorraine Congregational Church. In February of 1892 an Ecclesiastical Council, made up of the area Congregational churches, voted to recognize Lorraine Congregational Church as a Congregational church, and thus Smithfield Avenue Congregational Church had its beginnings.
In February of 1895 the people voted to build a larger church and it was called the Weeden Street Congregational Church. Lorraine Congregational Church changed its name to Weeden Street Congregational Church.
In 1905, because the church was growing, the people purchased land at the corner of Smithfield and Owen Avenue, and in December of that year the cornerstone was placed.
In January of 1907, the church celebrated its first worship service in the new sanctuary. And to mark the change of location, Smithfield Avenue Congregational Church was adopted as the new name for the church.
One thing was for certain, the people of SACC over the years, were visionaries. They were willing to step out in faith. They were willing to change. They took the chance to move if so called to (3 times so far). It takes faith and courage to do what SACC did over the years. May we continue to follow that example as we look forward to the future and what it entails.
Smithfield Avenue Congregational Church
514 Smithfield Avenue
Pawtucket, RI 02860
401-725-5153