OTISFIELD — The Bell Hill Meetinghouse held its 100th consecutive service Sunday in the 1839 building at 191 Bell Hill Road.

The service, which was attended by scores of area residents, was highlighted by keynote speaker Randall Bennett, executive director of the Bethel Historical Society, who talked about preserving and protecting historic structures.

In his talk, titled “To Preserve and Protect: Historic Preservation, Then and Now,” Bennett praised the many individuals who have worked to preserve the meetinghouse and the Otisfield Historical Society for its recent success in rescuing the Otisfield Town House, members of the association said.

To mark the occasion, music was provided by the Olden Retrievers, the Arcadia Singers, a quartet of recorders from nearby Camp Arcadia and the Bell Hill Singers directed by Priscilla Delehanty, who performed a medley of well-known songs from the 18th and 19th centuries.

During the service, Polly Bartow, vice president of the Bell Hill Meetinghouse Association, presented President Callie Zilinsky with a 100th birthday cake.

The first service in the meetinghouse, which was built by Nathan Nutting Jr. as a Congregational Church to replace an earlier church, was held in 1913. The Bell Hill Meetinghouse Association was formed in 1927. The association owns the meetinghouse and the brick schoolhouse next to it. The schoolhouse, which was recently renovated, was used to display historic posters and photos during the celebration.

Association members said the annual service on the last Sunday in July continues the religious traditions which the church represented and raises funds to maintain the building.

ldixon@sunjournal.com

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