The Stone Church,
180 years old in 2006

The History of the First Parish
in Portland, Maine

In 1926, Dr. Vincent Browne Silliman accepted a call and was soon considered a source of great strength and inspiration. It was at his suggestion that our famous Christmas Pageant was created and instituted as an annual event. He was a prolific hymn writer; five of his hymns are in the UUA Hymnal, “Singing the Living Tradition.” As a result of his leadership the Parish grew rapidly. In the difficult years of the depression, Dr. Silliman’s sensitive social conscience became apparent in many of his projects. Unfortunately, his compassion was not universally shared and his resignation was abruptly accepted in 1938.

After the departure of Dr. Silliman, First Parish entered an era that was marked by introversion and religious conservatism. In 1939 the Reverend George Ernest Lynch, Jr. accepted a call and entered the pulpit with many misgivings as to the validity of Unitarian tenets. After seven years of devoted soul searching he resigned to enter the Episcopal priesthood.

The Reverend Alexander Porter Winston served First Parish from 1947 to 1953. He was widely known for his pulpit presence and his beautifully polished sermons. During his pastorate, First Parish almost joined the United Church of Christ, but a narrow vote against prevented the change, and Dr. Winston resigned to accept a call from a congregation within the United Church of Christ.

Reverend W. Hollis Tegarden served First Parish from 1954 to 1958. He left the ministry to become a businessman after four years. During his tenure, in 1956, the Church School Chapel was dedicated and new classrooms were added in a second story addition to the Parish House.

The First Parish entered into a new and fruitful period by a staunch Unitarian, Dr. Wilburn Beach Miller, who served from 1958 to 1972. A warm and generous man, Dr. Miller earned the respect and devotion of his parishioners. After fourteen years of dedicated service to First Parish and community his retirement was reluctantly accepted.

In 1972, Reverend Richard Spencer Hasty was installed as the minister of First Parish. A graduate of the University of New Hampshire, Reverend Hasty received his S.T.B. degree from Harvard Divinity School in 1956, and he served until 1987. In 1974, the historic meeting house was designated as a National Historic Site. In 1977, Preble Chapel was closed as a place of worship and, two years later, became Portland Ministry at Large—a community outreach of First Parish and other Unitarian Universalist Churches in the Greater Portland area.

The Meeting House was renovated in 1980. Then, in 1984, the symbols of the world’s seven great religions were designed by the Reverend Paul Husted and placed in the apse behind the pulpit. As part of further renovation in 1986, the communion rail was removed and the Parish House was made handicapped accessible. Reverend Hasty ended his service in 1986.

The Reverend John M. Wells, D.D., Interim, served First Parish for a brief period from 1987. A former Air Force officer, Rev. Wells attended St. Lawrence University and graduated from Howard University. He won the Unitarian Universalist Association’s “Holmes Wetherly Award” for work in the Peace movement during the Vietnam era.

In 1988, the Reverend Frederick Lipp became minister and served First Parish until his retirement in 1997. He received his B.D. from Meadville-Lombard and served congregations in Beverly, Massachusetts, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and West Hartford, Connecticut, before coming to First Parish. During his sabbatical, he served a congregation in England. Presently, Mr. Lipp is a founder of the Cambodian Arts and Scholarship Foundation, which helps young Cambodian women with their education. He also writes children’s books.

In 1994, a capital campaign was organized to rebuild the First Parish organ. The refurbished instrument was dedicated in honor of Abby Niss, a long term parishioner.

The Reverend Jill Job Saxby served as Sabbatical Minister from December 1995 to June 1996. In 1996, she was called as Associate Minister for Religious Education. Rev. Saxby resigned in 2001 to pursue another pastoral ministry and is presently Executive Director of the Maine Council of Churches.

The Reverend Frances Buckmaster, Interim Senior Minister, served First Parish from 1997 to 1999, after an interim ministry in Salt Lake City, Utah, and eight years as a settled minister in British Columbia.

A capital campaign held in 1998 provided funds to repair the 1802 Simon Willard tower clock. The clock is one of few remaining time-and-strike tower clocks from its era, and had originally been installed in “Old Jerusalem,” First Parish’s previous church building.

In 1999, the Reverend William Leggett was called as Lead Minister of First Parish. After a lengthy business career, he entered seminary and received his Master of Divinity Degree in 1998 from Meadville/Lombard Theological School in Chicago. Prior to coming to Portland, he served one year as the Interim Minister of the UU Meeting House in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Rev. Leggett was involved in the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Program in Portland, and also served on the planning committee for Portland’s World AIDS Day. In 2006, Rev. Leggett left First Parish for a UU Church in Birmingham, Alabama.

The 21st Century

In 2000, First Parish officially became a “Welcoming Congregation.” Church members were becoming more aware of issues surrounding gender identity and wanted to formalize the welcome they extended to gays, lesbians, and transgendered people. Since that time, both gay and straight church members have noted how affirming it is to belong to a church that is officially open to all people. Also, many First Parish members were active in last year’s victorious campaign that kept in place legislation that protects the rights of people regardless of their sexual persuasion.

The Reverend Stephen M. Shick served as First Parish’s Interim Minister during the 2006–2007 church year. Previously, Rev. Shick served the Unitarian Universalist Church of Haverhill, Massachusetts. An honors graduate of Crozer-Colgate Rochester Theological Seminary, Rev. Shick was most recently an Urban Fellow for three years at Harvard Divinity School.

He has many awards, honors, and published writings. To mention a few, he was honored for the work he did for the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, The Children’s Defense Fund, the Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, and was awarded a grant for his radio series on the social, religious, and cultural and artist impact of the Bomb. Rev. Shick is well-known for his inspirational and noteless preaching. In addition, he has over twenty years experience as a Community Minister and has founded, developed, and administered secular and religious non-profit organizations.

The Reverend Dr. Tim W. Jensen was settled in the fall of 2007 as First Parish Minister.

Previous history page | You are on the last history page |