Church
Church

About

The Church of the Unity, founded and built by Winchendon’s most prominent families, has presided over downtown Winchendon for over 150 years. Now called the Unitarian Universalist Church of Winchendon (UUCW), the building hosts community and religious services.

The ravages of New England weather, time and water have taken their toll on this beautiful structure. Major repairs to the stonework are urgently needed. Set in Stone is the church's capital campaign to raise money for this purpose.

Wear & Tear

A casual walk around the big gray church quickly reveals the damage the granite stonework has suffered from years of wind, sun, rain and extreme temperature changes. Many mortar joints are in a state of disrepair, with the mortar filling either cracked or completely missing. All of this needs to be replaced and/or refilled.

In 2015, UUCW contracted with the engineering firm Structures North of Salem, Massachusetts to conduct a visual survey of the church. They produced a detailed report showing the type and extent of deterioration across the entire building exterior. A color-coded map of their findings is posted here. It shows damage ranging from cracked and missing mortar, to bulging or shifted stones, to cracks in the stones themselves. The damage is scattered throughout the building, with the most severe damage resting in the church tower and front entryway.

Contact Us

UUCW
126 Central St.
P.O. Box 218
Winchendon, MA 01475
Email: info@set-in-stone.org
Phone: (978) 297-0554

News

Next Up -Phase 5!
March 9, 2026, 3:00 pm - Since its inception in 2018, our Set in Stone capital campaign has alternated fundraising years with masonry work years. It’s an even-numbered year, and that makes it a grant application year for our dogged pursuit of sufficient money to repair our beautiful historic landmark building. Today we submitted the 2-inch bound application shown below to the Mass Historical Commission for a Round 32 Massachusetts Preservation Projects Fund (MPPF) grant.

We’re requesting $50,000 to be matched by the Robinson-Broadhurst Foundation to continue Set in Stone Phase 5 repairs. Phase 5 will focus on the last (south-facing) wall of our bell tower awaiting repair. While we have been fortunate enough to receive three prior MPPF grants, the program is very competitive and funding grants are not guaranteed. The application also asked for letters of community support. We were most grateful to obtain letters from the Winchendon History and Cultural Center, the Community Action Committee, Toy Town AA, the Winchendon Courier and the Winchendon Historic Commission. We thank all of these folks for their kind words.We patiently wait until the state announces its grant awards this June.

Phase 4 Closes Out With Fully Repaired West Wall
June 13, 2025, 5:00 pm - And it’s a wrap! Joseph Gnazzo Company Inc. did a fabulous job, finishing ahead of time and on budget. We were all heartened to discover that the two west buttresses did not need dismantling and rebuilding. Gnazzo was able to deep cut and grout each of them in place. However, the stones around the top left wall crack needed to be rebuilt, with exterior stones numbered and removed to access and reinforce the inner wall. Like a 3D puzzle, each stone was carefully returned to its rightful place.

Just ten weeks from the start, we have a completely cut and freshly grouted west wall stretching from the steeple soffit almost to the ground. For cleanup, Gnazzo swept up 12 buckets of sand that had been washed out of the joints and inner walls. The scaffolding came down in just 2 days’ time.


This Phase 4 cost $130,000 with every penny well spent. Phase 4 closes out with a voluminous Completion Report going to the Massachusetts Historical Commission.
Site Inspections Give "Thumbs Up”
April 9, 2025, 9:00 am - The masons have been hard at work and were paid a visit today by Martin Anderson, Project Manager for Joseph Gnazzo, and Jillian Borghardt of Structures North Consulting Engineers. The workers have been chiseling out dried, crumbling mortar and pressure-washing all of the joints. We were all heartened to find that some intact mortar remained; there were no places where the mortar had disintegrated all the way through to the interior. Nonetheless there is a significant amount of new pointing required.
The masons prepared several color samples of the mortar to be used, and will await for them to set and dry in order to select the sample that best matches that used in other parts of the building.