Baptist Meeting House at Heritage Square Museum – Ontario, NY

The Baptist Meeting House at Heritage Square Museum in Ontario offers a great look into the town’s religious history.

by Chris Clemens

The Heritage Square Museum in the town of Ontario is home to a number of very cool historical buildings. For a $4.00 tour, you get access to all of them. The day I visited I was particularly interested in the former Baptist Meeting House and a very special tree.

The town of Ontario sits in the northwest corner of Wayne County with its northernmost border dictated by the picturesque Lake Ontario.

First settled in 1806 by Freeman Hopkins, the town would undergo a number of changes in its early days. It was in 1808 that the town was officially named Ontario.

Iron Ore and fertile farm lands ensured that the town’s population would continue to grow. Of course, a growing population would need houses of worship. The historical society has made great efforts to preserve as many of those as they could.

Heritage Square Museum

The Heritage Square Museum has the former Hojack Railroad Station, the historic Warner House, an apple drying house, an old jail, log cabin, schoolhouse and a couple other stops to checkout while there.

Nearly all of the buildings at the museum originally existed somewhere else. They were moved from their original locations to the museum land with the exception of the old one room schoolhouse. The Baptist Meeting House I was there to explore originally was built on the southwest corner of Rt. 104 and Ontario Center Road, just a mile or so south of Heritage Square.

The land that was originally home to the meeting house is now a field across from the Wayne Senior High School. Today there is absolutely nothing there to indicate that the Baptists once used the space for their worship.

Baptists Settle In Ontario, New York

George B. Davis was the very first pastor for the Ontario Baptists. Davis was chosen after the congregation’s first gathering on July 3, 1834.

That same year they built their first meeting house. Almost immediately they outgrew this building and it became a parsonage next to the new and larger church built on the same property. While the larger church would later fall victim to a fire, the original meeting house withstood the test of time and sat unused while the property changed ownership throughout the years.

Finally, in 1973 Mr. and Mrs. Mason Stevens donated the Meeting House and had it moved from their property to its new home at the Heritage Square Museum.

Inside The Baptist Meeting House

The museum doesn’t get too much more in depth about the Baptist Meeting House’s history. But, the inside is part of the walking tour.

The room is now home to an extensive Civil War exhibit, and has information on the local iron ore industry. though the rows of chairs probably are similar to how the space was originally used during worship.

The noteworthy parts to the building are probably limited, as it is overall a simple design. But the unique architecture of the curved ceiling is certainly something to take note of.

The other portion of the building’s features that were pointed out was the wooden lintel over the entrance. While lintels can be load-bearing or just ornamental, our docent wasn’t sure about this one in particular. Regardless, the preserved piece of history is something we always appreciate being able to encounter in person.

Oldest Living Maple Tree In New York State

Also, if you go and visit, be sure to checkout what is potentially my favorite thing on the property. On the South edge of the museum’s property right near the road is what is believed to be the oldest living Maple tree in the entire state of New York!!

*This post previously appeared on ExploringTheBurnedOverDistrict.com

Chris Clemens is the Founder/Publisher of Exploring Upstate. From his hometown in Rochester, he spends as much time as possible connecting with the history, culture, and places that make Upstate New York a land of discovery. Follow him on Twitter at @cpclemens