Minding Your Business -South Harwich Meetinghouse

Judith Ford can barely contain herself when she talks about the South Harwich Meetinghouse on Chatham Road and the history of the place. Ford is passionate about the cause. And she should be. She and the nonprofit group Friends of the South Harwich Meetinghouse, Inc. have spent nearly 20 years getting to this point.  

  “We started the restoration project of the South Harwich Meetinghouse in 2005,” said Ford.  Today the meetinghouse is a testament to the ship captains and fishermen who created it in 1836. The outside is majestic, but the inside will take your breath away. 

“We did fundraisers, petitioned the town to buy it, accepted CPC funds and donations from local contractors to get here,” she said. They also got advice from Sara Chase, a preservation consultant from the Boston area. “Sara was amazing. She helped us with every inch of the decor. For instance, we gave her pieces of the inner part of the interior walls, and she and her daughter were able to determine the original colors and stencils. Those [are the] stencils you see here now. This is how the Meetinghouse looked in 1836.” 

Today the meetinghouse is home to musical festivals and performances. “The acoustics are amazing,” said Ford. “The Lighthouse Chamber Players, Rose Clancy’s Chatham Fiddle Orchestra and others are thrilled to perform here.”

On the Saturday and Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day, March 15 and 16, the Meetinghouse will host “Celtic Crossroads: A Celebration of Celtic Songs, Tunes, and Spoken Word.”  

“They shake the whole place!” said Ford, who was secretive about April’s event. “I have a creative idea.” 

June’s production is one that Ford has a soft spot for: a repeat of a presentation of the musical she wrote called “O Captain! My Captain!” The production was so well received on its first run that they decided to bring it back. 

“It’s all about the sea captains of Harwich and their ships,” she said. “Ending with the most famous one of all: Capt Jonathan Walker, the abolitionist. People were crying and laughing last year, and this year we've added a captain and a couple other twists. The special effects are incredible!” Ford said the show allows us to revisit the history of Harwich: for instance, why Deep Hole Road is called Deep Hole Road. I plan on securing tickets as soon as they become available. 

The shows continue with a tentative schedule including a Cape Breton performance in September, a Halloween extravaganza in October, “A Pilgrim Storyteller” in November and a Christmas concert in December with the Chatham Fiddle Orchestra under Rose Clancy’s direction. They hope to bring back the Boar’s Head Festival, too. “It’s like a Christmas pageant. Last year, we had sheep, goats, two llamas, a donkey and even a camel in here!” 

The building has a balcony, a Steinway piano, an organ, and an elevator to a functional tea room downstairs. The space is beautiful. I can’t wait to see a show there.