Sanderson “Sandy” Sloane selected the site of his future dream home on a knoll in Rindge before leaving to fight in World War II. He asked that nothing on the land be touched until his return, as he wanted to be there for the construction his future home.
He never made it home.
The land he picked, with a panoramic vista of Bullet Pond and Mount Monadnock, was never developed – at least, not as a residence. Now, that view greets those who sit before the Cathedral of the Pines Altar of Nations, a standing monument to Sandy Sloane and veterans of all wars who have lost their lives.
“I wonder how many people, in the midst of such devastation, could make the choice to make something beautiful for the community,” said Cathedral of the Pines Executive Director Patricia Vargas, of what the Cathedral has grown into.
In August of 2020, the Cathedral of the Pines was planning to recognize the 75th anniversary of the very first service held at the Cathedral of the Pines, but due to COVID-19 restrictions, celebrations had to be put on hold. This weekend, the nonprofit will be holding those belated celebrations, recognizing the history of the land and its founders.
When Douglas and Sibyl Sanderson Sloane purchased their 128 acres in Rindge, New Hampshire, they weren’t envisioning the memorial it would become. They chose it for its beauty, yes – but thought it would eventually become homes for their children.
In mid-October of 1935, the Sloanes were looking for a new property, something close to their home in Newtonville, Mass. While looking at a property on Route 119 in Massachusetts, and finding themselves dissatisfied with the offering, it was proposed they take a look at another property just up the road – but over the border in New Hampshire.
Skeptical, but willing, the couple found a heavily wooded countryside, with beautiful vistas. When they came to the property, known as “Interlaken,” due to its surrounding ponds and lakes, including views of Emerson and Grassy Pond, and they needed no further convincing. Within a month, the property was theirs.
One piece of the property on the knoll included a narrow trail, surrounded by giant pines. The trees were so thick walkers could see only a few dozen feet, and the overhead canopy blocked much of the sunlight.
Then, came the hurricane of 1938, which swept through the property. Lumbermen asked and received permission to remove the damaged trees on the knoll. The family agreed, heartbroken over the loss of the pines. But in 1939, when they hiked up the knoll again, and found a stand of young pines spared by the storm, they found the storm and logging had cleared a view, which would eventually become the centerpiece of the Cathedral of the Pines.
But originally, it had a different destiny. The Sloane’s children were offered portions of the land for their own homes, and their son Sanderson, known as Sandy, picked the knoll.
But before he could build his home, Sandy joined the World War II war effort. While serving in Britain, Sandy met Arch Whitehouse, a war correspondent and World War I veteran from Westmoreland, New Hampshire.
Thrilled to find another New Hampshirite, the two struck up a conversation, and upon learning Whitehouse was soon to return to the United States, Sandy gave him his parent’s contact information, urging him to contact them and let them know he was well, and to see his knoll.
Whitehouse, who later wrote about the conversation with Sandy for Reader’s Digest, told of the passion Sandy had for the property and its beauty.
“Remember the hurricane of 1938? Well, it’s just as if God had taken a hand in the making of it. Just as though He had finished something that had slipped His mind,” Sandy told Whitehouse.
Sandy asked Whitehouse to remind his father “not to touch my knoll until I get back,” noting he was eventually going to build a cabin or a house there, “something worthwhile.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t even touch it,” Sandy told Whitehouse. “It’s just like a cathedral.”
Whitehouse did make it back to New Hampshire, and visited Sandy’s knoll, and conveyed his messages to his family.
Two days later, the Sloanes received a telegram. Sandy was missing in action, his plane was assumed to have gone down over Germany. He was officially declared deceased in January of 1945.
In that summer, friends of the family visited Sandy’s knoll to clear away brush and trees, and the family began to plan for a memorial “cathedral” on Sandy’s spot.
On the last Sunday in August 1945, the family held their first service in the spot – the day the Cathedral of the Pines marks as its beginning. Just before the service was to begin, it began to rain. But the weather did not stop the 127 neighbors and friends who had come to the property to take part in the service, who sat in their cars until the rain abated, and then stood under the dripping pines to hold what would be the first of many services.
At that time, the parishioners sat on benches among a scattering of remaining pine trees – a literal cathedral among the pines. But in 2008, the massive December ice storm took down many of the remaining pines, leaving the more open view it has today.
The response from the community was so strong, the Sloanes took it as a sign to continue with plans to make a permanent memorial of the property.
“The vision – even the name, ‘cathedral’ – was always meant to welcome everyone and anyone with a spirit of respect,” Vargas said. “It was meant to be a cathedral, without walls.”
Sandy’s widow, Margaret “Pegs” Sloane, selected the site for an altar, built from stones excavated from the property. The “Altar of the Nation” was dedicated as a memorial to the World War II dead from New Hampshire.
Over the years, the property served as a worship site for more than 25 different religions and has hosted weddings and baptisms. In its first five years, it’s estimated over 425,00 people visited the Cathedral.
And while the early days of the memorial did not actively fundraise, besides having a box for donations, the vision for what it could be only continued to grow.
The Hilltop House was added in 1949, for small services and events, and expanded in 1982 and again in 2019.
The Woman’s Memorial Bell Tower was dedicated in 1967.
Vargas said those feelings of peace and beauty that drew Sandy Sloane to the spot still resonate with visitors today.
“People say over and over again, they have a sense of gratitude when they’re here. That’s what they express – peace and gratitude. When you drive in through the entrance, when you pass the stone wall and see the welcome sign, that’s what they experience here. It is a jewel in Rindge.”