West Haven Baptist Church

West Haven Baptist Church is a historic church at 48 Book Road in West Haven, Vermont.  Built in 1831 with later alterations, it is a good local example of Federal and Gothic architecture with a Victorian interior.  It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.

Description and history
The West Haven Baptist Church stands in an open field on the west side of Book Road, just south of its junction with Main Road, the principal east-west route through the rural community.  It is a single-story wood frame structure, with a gabled roof, clapboard siding, and a mortared limestone foundation.  A gabled vestibule projects from the front (east-facing) facade, with a center entrance flanked by Gothic arched windows.  A squat two-stage square tower rises, straddling the line between the main block and vestibule, with a louvered belfry as the second stage, and a flat top above.  The vestibule interior is finished in beadboard, while the main sanctuary has vertical matchboard below a chair rail, and horizontal matchboard above.  Lines of stencilwork adorn the walls.

The church was built in 1831 for a congregation, organized in 1803, which is one of the oldest Baptist congregations in the state.  The building was renovated in 1854, when the Gothic windows (also found on the sides) were added, and again in 1886, when interior changes were probably made to its pulpit and choir loft area.  The 1854 renovations probably also added ornate Gothic elements to the tower, which were likely removed in 1927.  The building is now used only for summer services, due to a lack of heating.

See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in Rutland County, Vermont

References

Category:Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Vermont
Category:Federal architecture in Vermont
Category:Carpenter Gothic church buildings in Vermont
Category:Churches completed in 1831
Category:19th-century Baptist churches in the United States
Category:Buildings and structures in West Haven, Vermont
Category:Churches in Rutland County, Vermont
Category:National Register of Historic Places in Rutland County, Vermont