Canaan Chapel

The Canaan Chapel is a historic chapel on Canaan Road in Barrington, New Hampshire. Built in 1881, it is a typical example of a rural Free Will Baptist church of the mid-19th century, exhibitng modest elements of Greek Revival design despite a late construction date for that style. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.Description and historyThe Canaan Chapel is located in western Barrington, on the north side of Canaan Road at its junction with Canaan Back Road. It is a single-story wood frame structure, with a gable roof, clapboarded exterior, and stone foundation. The interior of the building consists of a vestibule, with a small room off to the right, and an auditorium space measuring about 24by. There is a raised stage at the far end, at whose center stands a raised pulpit. An 1890 organ manufactured by the Boston Organ Company occupies the corner to the left of the pulpit. Most of the room is occupied by the original pews. The property includes a c. 1898 horse shed.The chapel was built in 1881, and is one of a small number of surviving area Free Will Baptist churches of the period. The Free Will Baptist denomination was founded in nearby New Durham in 1780, and spread through the rural communities of eastern New Hampshire. Most of the surviving chuches of the group were built in the mid-19th century; this one is a particularly rare late example, but it exhibits modest elements of the Greek Revival also found on older buildings. The building has been little altered; the main alteration has been the introduction of electricity, and the replacement of the wood stove.