Ceremony

Rev. Dr. Dennis B. Calhoun

Dennis Calhoun had just moved to Marblehead about three weeks prior when we knocked on the door of the Parish Office.  From our first conversation with him we knew that we had found a home in this church and, in turn, the man who we wanted to marry us.  He and his wife Susan have two young adult daughters, Ellen and Abigail. He holds degrees from the University of Missouri, Yale Divinity School and Princeton Theological Seminary.

Maria van Kalken

Maria van Kalken’s eighteen-year association with Old North Church started in the fall of 1989 when she was hired as Organist & Choir Director; Maria was subsequently awarded the title “Minister of Music” by the congregation, and is in charge of the Church’s flourishing music program.  Maria earned the degrees of Bachelor of Music in Organ Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music (Oberlin, Ohio) and Master of Music from the New England Conservatory of Music (Boston, MA).

Marblehead was settled about 1629 by fishermen and seamen. In 1638 a barn-like meeting house was constructed upon a rocky hill overlooking the ocean. Services were held every Sabbath and the citizens gathered to meet to talk about their concerns. Following the custom of their forefathers, the fishermen buried their dead by the meeting house. Today this part of Marblehead is known as Old Burial Hill. Today, Old North celebrates its Easter Sunrise Service here.

Marblehead’s first church was Puritan in style of worship but also took into consideration the life styles of its less than genteel congregation (maybe that's why we fit in so well here).

In 1684, under the guidance of Reverend Samuel Cheever the settlers received permission from the First Church in Salem to become a separate institution. Then in 1695 the First Church in Marblehead moved into a new structure on Franklin Street. This structure also served as a meeting place for townspeople. A schoolhouse was built with materials from the old structure.

Parson John Barnard, whose pulpit Bible is still in use today, served the First Church from 1715-1770. Parson Barnard donated a silver tankard to the First Church to be used during the communion service. Other church members also gave communion silver, including a silver baptismal bowl by Paul Revere, all of which we use.

With a gift from the Honorable William Reed in 1821 the congregation was able to purchase a lot of land on Washington Street where the congregation now worships.