On October 25, 1912, nineteen individuals in the Salem, New Hampshire area, met to make known their aspirations in the establishment of a church wherein they could worship God and nurture their faith and still maintain and preserve their Armenian culture and traditions. In these humble beginnings, they strove to keep alive their religious traditions and expose their children and grandchildren to their unique heritage and customs.

A great deal of sacrifice was necessary to achieve this goal, none of which would have been successful without the effort of the Executive Committee under the guidance of Rev. Kapriel Bedrosian.

Help was first sought, and attained, from the Congregational Conference, presently known as the United Church of Christ. A land grant was obtained from the Northeastern Street Railway Company. Within a short time the church was built, and dedication services took place on November 12, 1913.

As the years passed, God’s blessings were shown in the growth of church membership and the strengthening of spiritual living in the community.

In time, Ararat Church merged with two other churches: Bethel Armenian Church of Methuen, Massachusetts, in 1965; Armenian Congregational Church of Haverhill, Massachusetts, in 1977.

Thank be to God for this shared unity.

The Ararat Church family has been fortunate to have had many hard-working and dedicated leaders throughout its history.