A symbol of defiance, adaptation, and history, King’s Chapel holds the distinction of being New England’s first Anglican congregation and Boston’s first state-sanctioned, non-Puritan church. Established in 1686, it was a radical presence in a city founded by Puritans who had distanced themselves from the Church of England. The original wooden church stood on what had previously been a burial ground—land repurposed in a city where space was scarce.

As Anglicanism gained traction in colonial Boston, King’s Chapel expanded. In 1754, the current stone chapel was completed, featuring Georgian architecture that still defines the building today. However, the American Revolution nearly ended its presence—most of the congregation fled when British troops evacuated Boston, leaving the church without leadership. The vacant chapel was then used by Old South Church, a congregation of Puritan dissenters.

Following the war, King’s Chapel reinvented itself. In 1787, under James Freeman, it became the first Unitarian church in the United States, severing ties with Anglican doctrine while retaining its historic building and traditions. This transformation set the stage for Unitarianism’s growth in America.

King’s Chapel is also a site of musical firsts—it housed New England’s first pipe organ in 1713 and still boasts the oldest pulpit in continuous use in the U.S. Today, the church remains an active congregation while also serving as a historical site and concert venue. Visitors can explore its layered history and step inside Boston’s oldest surviving church building to see where revolutionaries, enslaved individuals, and abolitionists once worshipped side by side.

For an even deeper look, King’s Chapel Burying Ground, adjacent to the church, is Boston’s oldest English burial ground and the resting place of John Winthrop and Mary Chilton, a Mayflower passenger.