Watertown church's renovations letting in the light
Nov. 4—WATERTOWN — Worshipers at First Presbyterian Church will be seeing the light, with renovations to the building's stained-glass windows underway this week.
Old plexiglass window coverings were blocking the light from outside, and last Wednesday a company named Willet Hauser Architectural Glass Inc., based in Minnesota, began removing them.
Covers became popular for church windows during the 1960s because they protected the glass from the weather and flying objects — like the rocks that are thrown by snowblowers.
The material, however, faded after decades of exposure, clouding over the windows.
Rev. Andrew P. Long, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, said Willet Hauser is applying their own coating, called Klear-Flo, which is guaranteed to stay clear for 30 years. The church windows are original to the 1851 construction, and the product should keep them safe while allowing as much light inside as possible. In addition, the window frames will all be repainted.
"The way that it looks in here now is significantly brighter than it has been, even in my two years here," Rev. Long said, his voice reverberating through the nave, with light beaming in through eight tall windows, each a rainbow made from hundreds of stained panels of different colors.
Other windows in the church have detailed imagery on them, like the installment on the steeple, called "Christ and Doctors," gifted by a "Mrs. Rosa" in 1893, in memory of her husband W.V.V. Rosa, according to the church's website.
The window depicts Jesus when he was a child, teaching in the temple.
Rev. Long said that teaching was one of the early purposes of stained-glass windows, when congregations were mostly illiterate.
"There would be big pictures. They were a way to communicate biblical stories without people having to read them," he said.
Rev. Long said that some churches in Europe felt that the imagery could do more harm than good.
"In 1517 Protestant churches like ours began to take them out. They thought they were idols, and that it led to idolatry — which is just distraction from God. American churches didn't really lock onto that when they were built. This church has pretty ornate stained-glass windows. They don't tell stories, but they have images on them and color. Not only do they bring light in when you're in here at night, but the light is shining on the outside, too," he added.
The project is expected to take another two weeks to complete. It will mark the end of most of this year's renovations, but plans are being made for a big project that will start in the spring.
"Hopefully in April we are going to be completely restoring the steeple. It was last summer that we noticed some brickwork that was falling off it," Rev. Long said.
Like the windows, the steeple is original to the 1851 iteration of the church, and nearly 173 years of north country weather has taken its toll.
The internal structure is secure, but the slate and roofing must be replaced.
In addition, the decorative elements will be redone, and the brickwork repointed.
"The structure itself will basically be brand new, but be the same visual that it has been for the past 170 years," Rev. Long said.
He feels responsible for taking care of the building because it is a prominent structure that stands in the middle of the community.
"We are excited about this stuff because the church is a landmark for Watertown. It is the longest continually operating house of worship in the north country. It's been open nearly every Sunday since 1803. We've been here that long, and we anticipate being here that much longer."
