Readfield society offering history tour May 21
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Jesse Lee Meeting House, dedicated in 1795, is the oldest Methodist church in New England to have remained in continuous use as a Methodist house of worship. Readfield History Walkers will receive a tour of the church on May 21. This photo of Jesse Lee was taken circa 1900.
Contributed photo
Readfield History Walkers will have an opportunity to glimpse into East Readfield’s past when they visit the historic Jesse Lee Meeting House at 4 Plains Road and East Readfield Cemetery on Friday, May 21.
Construction of the meeting house was dedicated in 1795 in honor of Lee, the Methodist missionary who had traveled into the then-sparsely populated backcountry by horseback from Virginia two years prior. As Lee preached at the log cabin of Nathaniel Whittier, to Whittier and other early settlers, Lee suggested they build a meeting house, which they did on the 5-acre “Bowdoin Lot” that had been set aside in the 1791 town plan/surv