Somerset has been granted money to help preserve a piece of local history.
The Town of Somerset has announced the award of $750,000 for the continued restoration of the Swansea Friends Meeting House located at 223 Prospect St in Somerset.
The National Park Service has announced the award of $10 million in History of Equal Rights Grant funding for 14 projects in 10 states. These grants fund physical preservation projects utilizing appropriations from the Historic Preservation Fund. Somerset received the highest amount that can be allocated under this grant.
Led by Somerset’s intrepid Historic Preservation Grant Specialist, Richard Pierce, and other community leaders that include the Town Planner Amy Messier, and Historical Commission members Marybeth Rua-Larsen and John Larsen, these individuals were integral in planning, filing, and ultimately receiving the grant.
As indicated on the National Park Service website, the Historic Preservation Fund invests in communities nationwide to safeguard cultural resources, strengthen local economies and ensure that more Americans see their history represented. This fund is supported by revenue from federal oil and gas leases on the outer continental shelf and does not use tax dollars.
According to Town Administrator Mark Ullucci, the Meetinghouse dates back to 1702 and reflects the Quaker struggle for religious freedom in Massachusetts. The Meetinghouse helped influence the abolition movement and expanding women’s roles in ministry. Patience Brayton, an early female minister (1760-1794), was a key figure in making the Town one of the earliest Massachusetts communities to abolish slavery.
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Slavery in Massachusetts was abolished in 1783 through judicial decisions interpreting the 1780 State Constitution.
The Town of Somerset thanked the National Park Service and all the members of the community that assisted in this “historic” grant award.
