The First Baptist Church of Essex, Connecticut

Essex, Connecticut

Essex is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 6,505 at the 2000 census. It is made up of three villages: Essex Village, Centerbrook, and Ivoryton.- History :- The Great Attack :...

, built in 1846, is notable for being one of only three Egyptian revival churches known to have ever been built in the United States. The architect was Minard Lafever

Minard Lafever

Minard Lafever was an influential American architect of churches and houses in the United States in the early nineteenth century.-Life and career:...

.

The handsome, white clapboard building features a tripartite facade, the central section of which is a frustum

Frustum

In geometry, a frustum is the portion of a solid that lies between two parallel planes cutting it....

 that rises to support the cupola

Cupola

In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....

. The church's original steeple was destroyed after being struck by lightning in 1925.