Sitting on the ground on the corner of Webster and Main, the bell Rang and a crowd gathered. Squire William Seymour, a founding member of the church, stood close by "to receive contributions to pay for the bell." He did this often in 1848; when the bell was paid for, it was placed in the tower of the church's first building on Webster Street. Seymour, his wife, Anna, and seven other men and women, including David and Elizabeth Brigham, established the church in 1840, a month before William Henry Harrison was elected the ninth President of the United States. Madison's population was a rousing 146 persons; Dane County had about twice that number. The Episcopalians founded their church earlier that year, and 10 other Congregational and Presbyterian churches were already going concerns in Wisconsin. Even so, the church's 1869 Manual claimed, in 1840, "within fifty miles in any direction you could not find another, and in a due north direction perhaps not one on this side of the Pole." In its early years, First Congregational Church was neither cramped for space nor choked by competition.

Yet the path to stability was not smooth. After less than a year with the Dutch Reformed connection, the nine members adopted the name, "Congregational Church." After worshipping first in the state Capitol, then in a log house and a barn, the congregation set to work to construct their own building, a task which proved to be so arduous that they needed the loan of the minister's horse to raise their spirits. It was the only time, the minister remembered, that "a missionary's horse had more moral power in church building than the missionary." They moved into their building in 1846, where the bell later found its tower resting place.

The church grew beyond its building's capacity, so it purchased a lot and began a new edifice. The move was ill-timed: with onset of the 1857 depression, the old building had to be sold while the new one remained a shell. The congregation was homeless, the debt divisive, and large numbers deserted to form a new Congregational church. By 1858 the congregation was reduced to Deacon F. J. Lamb and his Sunday school class of six boys. But the spirit survived; within ten years those who left reunited with the First Congregational Church and went on to complete their new high-steepled structure on West Washington Street, It was dedicated in 1874.

The early years had seen a succession of ministers serving short terms, until 1867, when the Rev. Charles Richards assumed the pulpit. Characterized as a man with "great executive abilities" and "a pleasing personality," Richards "was an easy, persuasive speaker, a harmonizer and peacemaker and a wise counselor." A Presbyterian layman who attended two services (in one day) in 1874 wrote his father that the sermons "started with a good deal of perfumery and flowers, but reached a close practical application of the texts." Richards was to stay for 23 years and was followed by the Rev. Eugene G. Updike, who led the church for 25 years. In those years, 1890 to 1915, the membership jumped from 673 to 1,069 to become the largest Congregational church in the state. A powerful preacher, Updike attracted members from the community and the university; one student recorded that he sat "spellbound...as he [Updike] spoke without a note in his hand on the life of St. Paul." Updike, the alumnus went on, was "a stimulating civic leader whose influence followed alumni out into communities in the state."

Before World War I, the church and the University grew closer together. Four University presidents were members during this era and a dean and acting president, Edward A. Birge, was a stalwart pillar for almost 70 years. He believed that the church was obliged "to make its religion an effective force in student life." Realizing that First Congregational Church's "temperament has been somewhat colored by the intellectual," Birge thought that "its influence has always been for the development of the religious impulse." Student participation in the church increased as University enrollment grew and University presidents from John Bascom and Thomas Chamberlin to Charles Kendall Adams stressed the importance of religion and its compatibility with science.

Building on Deacon Lamb's dedication, the Sunday School grew slowly after the Civil War. Samuel D. Hastings served as superintendent for 17 years while enrollment rose to 300 youngsters. Women did most of the teaching: the emphasis was Bible study, the technique memorization and recitation of Bible verses. Men occupied the official church positions, almost interminably, some serving in offices for over 40 years. In addition to his Superintendency, Hastings spent almost 20 years as a Trustee and church Treasurer. Women's organizations proliferated, doing good work in aid societies, missionary societies, and the Women's Union.

After World War I, ministerial tenures were relatively brief. During the six-year term of Rev. Robbins Barstow, who stimulated a growth in memberhip and church attendance, the church began to build its present building on Breese Terrace. His successor, Alfred W. Swan, left his mark on the church; for 35 years Dr. Swan preached a liberal social gospel, a strong Jesus-centered theology, and a commanding moral commitment. Eloquent in the pulpit and attentive to administrative detail, Dr. Swan became a national figure leading a denominationally-respected church. His wife, Eva, added grace and graciousness to their ministry.

The Swan years saw the firm establishment of religious education for all ages, a continuing close relationship with University faculty, staff and students, and an expanding outreach into the Madison community. After World War II, new groups and programs prospered, some social, some theological, some issue-related. The church joined the newly-formed United Church of Christ, a merger of the Congregational Christian and Evangelical and Reform denominations. An associate minister's position was established in the early 1950s to help serve a congregation of over 2,000. The high school program flourished under the knowing hand of Norris Tibbetts. By the mid-1960s, when Dr. Swan retired, the church was poised to react to the soul-stirring issues of that time: civil rights, women's rights, Vietnam, the war on poverty, and sexual standards, among others.

A tumultuous decade in the nation and the church followed Dr. Swan's ministry. The Rev. Lawrence L. Gruman, an outgoing, warm-hearted consensus-builder, was hard put to keep segments of the congregation from flying off in opposite, and occasionally confrontational, directions. Some members of the church and two successive Youth ministers, the Revs. Robert L. Burt and C. Raymond Gillies, urged the church to be active in behalf of minorities, anti-Vietnam war movements, and student protesters. The issue of sanctuary for a draft resister, and a ten-day residence for him and his supporters in the church, evoked an intense and divisive response from the congregation. Yet despite these passionate performances and a declining membership (2100 to 1300), the decade was not without accomplishment: an elevator for the elderly and handicapped, an extended outreach into and beyond the community, an ongoing discussion of theological issues, and continued efforts to involve young people.

The Rev. Wells Grogan served as senior minister in the mid-1980s. He expanded the church's outreach: one of the two church-owned houses was used by HospiceCare, Inc. and the other became a hostel for out-of-town relatives of hospital patients. His preaching gave secular issues a Christian base and he facilitated the renovation of the sanctuary, including a new Holtkamp organ. When Rev. Grogan retired, the church invited the Rev. Fritz West to its pulpit. His tenure was cut short by dissension and, in 1992, the Rev. Paul Kittlaus suceeded him.

Rev. Kittlaus realized that the church's aging population was an opportunity for growth in spirit and size. To enrich the worship experience and attract children and young people, he persuaded the congregation to make full-time appointments in music and Christian education. The early results suggest the wisdom of this move, since the congregation has welcomed an increasing number of young families and individuals. Under his leadership, the church endorsed an open and affirming posture and has been blessed with the active membership of gays and lesbians. Rev. Kittlaus's interest in outreach led to a vital connection to communities in Chiapas, Mexico, a bond strengthened by church members' work visits there. Sensitive to the church's financial pressures, he challenged the congregation to embark on a campaign to support the church's operations and foundation endowment, and the church responded with enthusiasm. In all of these activities, the church has benefitted from the warm and winning participation of Rev. Kittlaus's wife, Janet Vandevender. Retiring in August, 1999, these two have left a growing, enlivened church well prepared to face the new millenium in faith, love, and, as always, hope.

Written by Leslie H. Fishel, jr.