Unitarianism and Universalism were both born during the time of the Protestant Reformation in Central Europe. In 1786, Universalist churches in Massachusetts won the key legal battle for religious freedom in that state.
Joseph Priestly, the discoverer of oxygen, immigrated to America in 1794 and founded the first permanent Unitarian Church in America, counting Thomas Jefferson among his followers.
In the 1830’s, Unitarianism gave birth to the movement known as Transcendentalism, which influenced such writers as Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville, Dickinson and Whitman. Leading social activists include Susan B. Anthony, Horace Greeley, Clara Barton, Dorothea Dix, and Clarence Skinner, to name just a few.
In 1961, recognizing that they were stronger united, the Unitarians and Universalists joined to form the Unitarian Universalists Association (UUA) headquartered in Boston, MA.
HUUF was formed in 1996 by a small but dedicated group of people who wished to create a local haven for those who are seeking their own personal path to enlightenment. In January 2001 we joined the larger UUA community and sent our first delegates to the national General Assembly.
