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During the rectorship of the Rev. Harry Hamlin Hall (1930-1955) the membership nearly tripled from 327 to 960 communicants. By the early 1950’s a larger building was needed for the burgeoning congregation. Three separate services were being held each Sunday morning in the small church building, and the Church School had two crowded sessions. In 1955, with the Rev. Hall’s encouragement and the cooperation of the parishioners, architect Arland A. Dirlam drew up plans for a new church edifice. To provide space for the new construction, the house that had been serving as rectory was moved across Highland Avenue. As time approached to break ground, it was discovered that there was not quite enough land to meet legal requirements for the footprint of the new church. To solve this unexpected problem, the house on Rosemary Street, just next door to the church, was purchased. Also shortly thereafter, a house on Homestead Park was purchased as a new rectory.
Space for the increased membership was becoming an issue. Elinor Ward recalls that the land across the street from the church was to be sold and the church wanted to buy it. The land was owned by a widow in Dover whose husband had been a member of Christ Church, though the woman was not. From Elinor, the woman learned about the church and its need for the land. Apparently pleased with what she learned, the woman quietly made a gift of the land to the church in memory of her husband.
In September 1956, the Rev. Harold D. Chase, Jr. Became the sixth rector of Christ Church, and the groundbreaking ceremony for the present church building took place 23 days later. The first service in the new building would take place during Lent in 1958, with the first Easter service following ten days later.
The new construction increased formal church capacity, but the old stone church (now the chapel) remains unmatched for its history, intimacy, and charm. The chapel, conveniently attached to the parish house, continues to be used regularly for services, weddings, funerals and special programs.
During the years of extraordinary growth between 1955 and 1965, the membership reached a peak of 1,574 communicants and 2,409 baptized members, including a total of 725 people involved in the Christian program. Young families who had moved to Needham after World War II flocked to its various churches. |
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