Church Building
On October 1, 1916, the building at 60 Highland Street became the third home of the Second Church in Newton. The previous church buildings, located on Washington Street where the police station now stands, had been austere traditional New England meeting houses, so that the American Gothic style of the current building was considered avant-garde. It was inspired by Salisbury Cathedral in England. It was placed on this hill in West Newton because it was in the geographical center of the residences of the congregants. The slate roof and West Townsend granite trimmed with limestone make it an integral part of the hillside.
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Charles Collens of the firm Allen & Collens was the principle architect. The firm was noted for its Gothic Revival design work including the Cloisters Museum in New York and Emmanuel Church in Boston.