| The general committee voted on February 15 to stay at the present location and rebuild, but by March 15 a movement to consider moving to West Hartford gained momentum. It is possible that the rising cost of rebuilding in Hartford prompted this, but it is also clear that informal conversations had been taking place between members of the church’s building committee and members of First Baptist Church of West Hartford. A plan to merge the two churches, sell both church’s properties, and then purchase a new property in West Hartford and build a wholly new church building took shape. First Baptist Church of West Hartford empowered a committee to discuss this new plan on March 16. Asylum Avenue Baptist Church followed suit on March 29, although informal discussions continued between First Baptist’s committee and Asylum Avenue Baptist’s building committee. The two committees held one meeting, on April 1, and merger talks collapsed. The representatives of Asylum Avenue Baptist Church voted to recommended that their church rebuild at their current location at this same time. The official reason given for the collapse in the talks was that Asylum Avenue Baptist Church’s “urgent need” required “immediate action” and that negotiations on a merger would “take too long … to make the merger practical at this time.” The Courant’s article on the April 1 meeting reported that the two committee had discussed • Possible sites for the new church • The minister for the new church • Fundraising to purchase the land and build the new church • Other routine matters According to the Courant, the committees “discovered that there were many things to be ironed out before the merger could be consummated, and it was felt that the need for immediate action was pressing.” Additional details: First Baptist Church reaffirmed its desire for a merger at its annual meeting on April 9; Asylum Avenue Baptist Church agreed to hire R. G Bent Company to rebuild its church on April 13. |