The Harpswell Meetinghouse is set on the west side of Maine State Route 123, in the center of Harpswell, about nine miles south of Brunswick. It is a two-story wood frame structure, set on a rubble stone foundation, with clapboard siding and a side gable roof. The main block is about 35-by-40 feet and there is a small 10-by-15 feet projecting section at the center of the front facade, which houses the stairwell which gives access to the second floor gallery.

The interior of the meetinghouse is a single large chamber with a gallery level on three sides. On the fourth side, one of the long walls has a dark green pulpit in the center with a multi-paned arched window to the rear, opposite the entrance. This arrangement was typical in New England meetinghouses until the early 19th century. Also typical of the period are the soffits and sounding board which frame the pulpit area. The pumpkin pine box pews were of the finest quality: Their occupants bid as much as $150 for one of them and, in addition, paid a fee each year to cover their use. The walls are finished with wooden wainscoting and plaster over lath.

In June 1749, the General Court passed an order making Harpswell and the Islands a separate parish. In 1751, it did become a parish and employed a minister, the Rev. Richard Pateshall, a graduate of Harvard, who served as minister for about three years. The Rev. Elisha Eaton, was appointed in 1753. Construction of the meeting house was begun in 1757, a job in which Eaton’s son, also named Elisha, assisted by providing window sashes and frames. The building was not ready for use until 1759 and was still reported to be unfinished in 1774.

It served as both a religious and civic meeting space until 1844, and then stood vacant for 14 years before the town adapted it for its exclusive use. It was used to house town offices and as a polling place. In 1958, Harpswell celebrated its bicentennial and from this realized a profit of $1,400. Using this money, a painstaking restoration was begun, replacing plaster with carefully colormatched replacements and custom-building windows to match the originals. During the plaster work, a supply of bullets believed to have been used in the War of 1812, was found in an attic.

In 1938, the building was included in a Federal program which made detailed drawings all of which are now on file in the Library of Congress. The meeting house was designated a National Historic Landmark and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1968.