‘At the last minute’: Bellows Falls church’s colorful stained glass window saved from the wrecking ball

By Layla Burke Hastings
EAGLE TIMES STAFF
BELLOWS FALLS, Vt. — There has been a change in plans to save a historic steeple and one remaining stained glass window from the former Meeting Waters YMCA building on Atkinson Street.

Walter Wallace, the town’s historic preservation coordinator, spoke in an interview with the Eagle Times about just how close the iconic stained glass window came to being lost for good.

“The window was saved at the last minute from the wrecking ball,” Wallace said.

The Rockingham Selectboard originally moved to save the steeple but hit a roadblock in trying to save an 1880s stained glass window known as the Parable of the Sower.

Wallace conducted research into the original creation of the window to find out if it was part of the Lambs Tear collection listed in the Library of Congress. It was discovered that the window was part of that collection and could be worth upwards of $50,000. The sale of the window could cover demolition costs.

Later, following extensive research, he found it was not part of the Lambs Tear collection.

The lower value of the window versus the cost of the salvage created a financial roadblock for restoration of the 1835 Methodist meeting house.

Then, at the last minute, there was a breakthrough.

“Following the Sept. 29 joint Village Trustees-Rockingham Selectboard meeting, in response to community requests the Rockingham Historic Preservation Commission spearheaded research into the feasibility of removing the Parable of the Sower stained glass window for possible restoration and conservation.” Wallace said.

But Wallace said there were complications that needed to be ironed out.

“Following due diligence, the commission on Wednesday, Nov. 3, reported to the selectboard regular meeting recommending that while the window certainly has great value in the hearts and minds of many village and town residents, its market value could not justify town investment to remove and restore it,” Wallace said.

Then a group of citizens came forward and began the delicate removal process of the window.

“Within days a group of private citizens began an effort to remove the window for restoration and public display,” he said. “The group received permission from the town (owner of the building) to proceed with removal. Through a GoFundMe campaign the group raised sufficient private donations and contracted with the Basin Farm to do the removal and relocation work.”

By the evening of Thursday, Nov. 11, the window was put on display inside the Bellows Falls train station.

“I understand that restoration planning is underway. A full and complete restoration would include disassembly, glass cleaning, replacement of missing glass elements, re-leading, and re-mounting in the restored frame. Restoration could include mounting the window in a light box to display the brilliance and crystalline delight of the beautifully handcrafted glass,” Wallace said.

Wallace did extensive research on the window and according to him while it may not have the market value of some stained glass windows it is a special piece.

“Parable of the Sower is a somewhat rare motif for a major frontal installation, yet I think quite an appropriate theme for the Methodist Church and both subsequent owners of the building, the Fall Mountain Grange and Meeting Waters YMCA,”Wallace said.

Wallace said the church itself is an iconic building with a wealth of history despite its dilapidated last years.

“One of the first churches built in the village, for nearly two centuries the building has drawn the viewer’s eye from the outskirts of downtown Bellows Falls up the School Street Boulevard, at first as the Methodist Episcopal Meeting House then Church, from 1835 to 1934; the Fall Mountain Grange Hall, from 1941 to 1971; to the Meeting Waters YMCA, from 1971 to 2015,” Wallace said.

Wallace also highlighted the behind the scenes work of the salvage and restoration of the beloved window so many townspeople regard as sacred.

“The effort to conserve the window underscores that it takes many hands to do historic preservation,” he said. “In this spirit the Historic Preservation Commission is working with what I might call ‘Friends of the Window’ collaborative to prepare a public display to raise awareness of historic preservation as intrinsic to community cultural and economic development.”

Wallace also explained that the display of the window will hold several meaningful points of hope.

“With the Parable of the Sower window as the centerpiece, the display will be done in the Bellows Falls train station to draw attention to threatened historic buildings and landscapes in our town,” Wallace said. “As a public building open to local residents and travelers using Amtrak and Greyhound busses, the train station is itself at risk of vanishing and therefore a perfect place to help raise historic preservation consciousness.”

Originally slated for restoration, the steeple will be demolished along with the entire structure.

“As for the Methodist Church steeple, I believe that it will not be saved,” Wallace said.

Bellows Falls Town Manager Scott Pickup echoed the same prediction.

“We have been unable to get a guano certification price for the droppings that are in the steeple and the support beams,” Pickup said. “It is not likely that we will be able to save the steeple.”

The Rockingham Historic Preservation Commission is funded in part through the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation and the National Park Service.

vtreporter @eagletimes.com