HADLEY — The steeple atop the First Congregational Church was lowered by a crane to the ground on Wednesday, as the church begins a long-planned project to renovate the deteriorating structure.
The work to fix up the steeple and replace rotted beams below it is supported by town Community Preservation Act money, with $350,000 appropriated at annual Town Meeting in May. The church is contributing $50,000 toward its share of the project.
The church was built in 1808 on West Street and moved to its current site in 1841, where it now forms part of a three-building historic complex with the Town Hall and the Hadley Farm Museum.
Below the steeple the church hopes to reinstall a functioning four-sided clock, which has previously been renovated.
