Built in 1836 for a Free Will Baptist congregation headed by Moses Cheney, the church is a good example of transitional Federal and Gothic Revival architecture.

The property is on high land overlooking Lake Winnisquam to the east, which was historically known as Sanbornton Bay, the origin of the church's name.

The church is a two-story wood-frame structure, with a gabled roof topped by a two-stage square tower.

The first stage is plain, with a projecting cornice topped by a low railing and Gothic spires at the corners.

The second stage is an open belfry (now lacking a bell), with paneled square posts joined by segmental arched moulding.