On this day in 1735, Framingham's town meeting voted to "give the old meeting house frame" to their minister, who would undoubtedly find another use for it. The town had erected its first meetinghouse in 1698. By the early 1730s, the building had fallen into disrepair, and the town decided to replace it. Meetinghouses in colonial Massachusetts were literally houses in which the community met, for religious, social, and political purposes. Attendance at religious services was compulsory, and only the most essential work was performed on the Sabbath. "Going to meeting" was the central event of the week, a time not only for worship but for nourishing ties between friends, family, and neighbors. Many a young couple conducted their courtship during the break between Sunday sermons.