First Presbyterian Church, Lewistown
This grand cut-stone structure was formally dedicated in 1913, becoming a major contributor to Lewistown’s character as a “city of stone.” Although Lewistown had Presbyterian services as early as 1890 and an early Presbyterian Church and manse, planning for this building began in 1909 during Lewistown’s period of greatest growth. The congregation hired local architects Otto F. Wasmansdorff and George Eastman. They created a design with many Gothic Revival details, to be built of native sandstone by local Croatian stone masons under the direction of builder T. J. Tubb. Look for the Gothic Revival influence in the square crenellated bell tower, engaged buttresses with dressed stone weathering caps, the arched windows, and the dressed stone cornice. Imagine the sandstone slabs weighing 140-180 pounds per cubic foot, quarried south of Lewistown, being hauled to the site and then fashioned into precise blocks with hand chisels, hammers, and mallets.
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