The first minister of this church and society was Rev. Ebenezer Porter Dyer.   Mr. Dyer was born in South Abington, Aug. 15, 1813, entered Amherst College in 1829, where he remained one year, and was graduated at Brown University in 1833, after which he pursued his theological studies at the Andover Theological Seminary.   He was licensed to preach in 1838, at Carlisle, and was ordained by the wayside at Stow, Sept. 25, 1839.   He was for a time pastor of the Evangelical Congregatioual Church in Stow, from which he was dismissed in March, 1846.   He served as city missionary in Boston from February, 1846, to October, 1847.   While city missionary, in August, 1847, upon invitation of the Norfolk Conference of Churches, he visited Hingham with a view to establishing Evangelical Congregational preaching here.
   Religious services according to this faith had previously been held by Rev. Mr. Loring, in the Town Hall, and in September, 1847, with financial aid from the Norfolk Conference, an engagement was made for Mr. Dyer to preach in the Town Hall for a period of one year.   In October of the same year a Sunday-school was organized.   Dec. 21, 1847, a church was formed, with eleven members, of which Asa H. Holden was chosen deacon.
   In 1848 the present meeting-house was erected, at the junction of Main and Pleasant Streets, and on Jan. 4, 1849, it was dedicated.
   At the close of Mr. Dyer's engagement of a year he became the settled minister, and his installation took place on Jan. 4, 1849, the day of the dedication of the meeting-house.
   Mr. Dyer was dismissed from his pastorate Nov. 17, 1863, after sixteen years' service, during which he served the church faithfully, and he was a good citizen of the town as well.
   The ministers of this church who succeeded Mr. Dyer have been the following: —
   Rev. Henry W. Parker, a graduate of Amherst College and