The Old Stone Meeting House, the oldest stone meeting house in New England, grew from a church founded in 1711 by Jacob Hemingway, Yale's first student and the church's first pastor. Construction of the building began in 1772, first services were held here in 1774, the first town meeting took place in 1785, and the building was completed with its spire erected in 1796. A bell and clock were installed in 1798, square pews were replaced by slip pews and the interior was remodeled in 1822, wood stoves were installed in 1825 and replaced by coal in 1840, the interior was remodeled again and doors and windows were altered in 1850, a belfry with a new spire reaching 196 feet was added in 1859, and in 1868 it became the first steam heated church in the state. Gas lighting was added in 1899, a slate roof in 1908, and electric lights in 1928. In 1979, a tornado blew down the steeple and part of the roof.