Episcopal Church of the Atonement and Parish House

Last updated
Episcopal Church of the Atonement and Parish House, The
Gerald Farinas Church of the Atonement.jpg
Chicago locator map.png
Red pog.svg
USA Illinois location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location5751 N. Kenmore Ave., Chicago, Illinois
Coordinates 41°59′13″N87°39′23″W / 41.98694°N 87.65639°W / 41.98694; -87.65639
Arealess than one acre
Built1889
Architect Henry Ives Cobb
Architectural styleGothic Revival
NRHP reference No. 09000590 [1]
Added to NRHPJuly 30, 2009

The Episcopal Church of the Atonement and Parish House is a historic church building at 5751 North Kenmore Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The Gothic Revival building was constructed in 1889 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.

Contents

Congregational history

In 1886 several Episcopalian families met in the Guild Hall at Bryn Mawr and Winthrop Avenues (the first commercial building in the Edgewater neighborhood then on the outskirts of Chicago), and decided that a Church should be built. By June 17, 1888, then-lawyer Frederick W. Keator held a service in the hall, and by November 1888 the group had become a mission congregation within the diocese, taking as the name of Church of the Atonement. The original Church's cornerstone was laid on November 30, 1889 at the present site (the intersection of Kenmore and Ardmore Avenues), and consecrated in June 1890. By then, Keator had left his legal practice and had become a minister, as well as the first-priest-in-charge of the new mission. He remained at the parish until 1896, when he accepted a call from a church in Iowa, near his childhood home, and soon become the first Bishop of the Missionary diocese of Olympia, Washington. [2]

In May 1898 the Mission became a self-supporting Parish and had 120 members, and construction of the Parish House began south of the church. The Parish House was finished in 1901.

By the early 20th century, the parish had become one of the leading Anglo-Catholic parishes in the country. Beginning under Rector Charles E. Deuel (1903-1914) in 1910, the original church building was enlarged to twice its capacity, since by then the parish had more than 500 members. This expansion and the 1919 expansion were under the guidance of British born parishioner J.E.O. Pridmore, who carefully maintained the English Gothic church style. [3] The first service after the last expansion was on Easter in 1920. The parish then had 650 members, and Rector Frederick Fleming (who served from 1915-1927) would represent the Diocese of Chicago at several Anglo-Catholic conferences. Rev. Fleming would leave this parish to accept a call as rector of St. Stephen's Church in Providence, Rhode Island in 1927, and finished his career as rector of historic Holy Trinity Church in Manhattan, New York City. Meanwhile, in 1922 a new Parish House was begun and completed in 1924. Stained glass windows were added beginning in 1929, under Rector Alfred Newberry (1927-1937; who would ultimately leave to accept a call from the Church of the Advent in Boston) and finished in 1946.

Under Rector Dean Paxton Rice, the church received a donation of an Elizabethan-era paneled room (installed in the Parish House), and also expanded its outreach to the diverse and changing neighborhood. It established St. Augustine's Mission to the Native American community in the nearby Uptown neighborhood. In the 1970s, the church established a ministry to Spanish-speaking neighbors. The parish also developed a distinguished music program, including a choir which expanded under Rev. Thomas Harris to include women, and a custom-built organ.

Architecture

Parishioner Henry Ives Cobb designed the original church building, including a stone tower on the northwest corner and constructing the east wall of wood to facilitate future expansion. Cobb was known for his English Gothic and Richardson Romanesque buildings, including the Potter Palmer Mansion, the Newberry Library and the Old Chicago Historical Society on Dearborn and Ontario Streets (now a nightclub). He also designed the Fisher Building.

Pridmore's expansion, finished during World War I, created the current church. The roof was raised and extended 16 feet, to Kenmore Avenue, and side aisles added. Stained glass windows were added, with the final one installed at the end of World War II, and after Pridmore's death.

The best example of the stained glass is the Christ the King window in the North Chapel. It has been recognized in books on stained glass in Chicago as one of the best.

On the second level of the Parish House, is the Elizabethan Room. It was brought to the United States from England in 1620. The paneling is registered with The Art Institute of Chicago and is the only authentic example of its kind in the Midwest.

Rectors

Source: [4]

Current status

The Reverend Charles Everson was instituted as Rector in October 2023. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bryn Mawr Historic District</span> Historic district in Illinois, United States

The Bryn Mawr Historic District is on the lakefront of the Edgewater neighborhood of far-north Chicago, Illinois. It extends along Bryn Mawr Avenue between Broadway and Sheridan Road. Its most prominent features are the Belle Shore Apartment Hotel, Bryn Mawr Apartment Hotel, Edgewater Beach Apartments, Edgewater Presbyterian Church, Manor House, and the northernmost area of Lincoln Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Episcopal Church (Houston)</span> Historic church in Texas, United States

Trinity Church, in Midtown Houston, Texas, is a parish church in the Episcopal Diocese of Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of the Ascension, Episcopal (Manhattan)</span> Church in New York City

The Church of the Ascension is an Episcopal church in the Diocese of New York, located at 36–38 Fifth Avenue and West 10th Street in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan New York City. It was built in 1840–41, the first church to be built on Fifth Avenue and was designed by Richard Upjohn in the Gothic Revival style. The interior was remodeled by Stanford White in 1885–88.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grace Church (Manhattan)</span> Episcopal church in New York City

Grace Church is a historic parish church in Manhattan, New York City which is part of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. The church is located at 800–804 Broadway, at the corner of East 10th Street, where Broadway bends to the south-southeast, bringing it in alignment with the avenues in Manhattan's grid. Grace Church School and the church houses—which are now used by the school—are located to the east at 86–98 Fourth Avenue between East 10th and 12th Streets. In 2021, it reported 1,038 members, average attendance of 212, and $1,034,712 in plate and pledge income.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Michael's Episcopal Church (Manhattan)</span> Church in Manhattan, New York

St. Michael's Church is a historic Episcopal church at 225 West 99th Street and Amsterdam Avenue on Manhattan's Upper West Side in New York City. The parish was founded on the present site in January 1807, at that time in the rural Bloomingdale District. The present limestone Romanesque building, the third on the site, was built in 1890–91 to designs by Robert W. Gibson and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Saints Church (Peterborough, New Hampshire)</span> Historic church in New Hampshire, United States

All Saints Church is an historic Episcopal church located at 51 Concord Street in Peterborough, New Hampshire, in the United States. Completed in 1914, it is a completely realized example of an English country church as interpreted by the architect Ralph Adams Cram. On December 1, 1980, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calvary Episcopal Church (Pittsburgh)</span> Historic site in Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Calvary Episcopal Church is a parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The parish was founded in 1855.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Boniface Church, Germiston</span> Church in Gauteng, South Africa

St Boniface Church is the mother church of the Anglican parish of Germiston, Gauteng which also includes the chapelries of St Mary and St John in Lambton, and St Mark in Rosedeep. The parish is part of the Diocese of the Highveld, which is in turn part of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa.

The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany of San Carlos, California, is a parish in the Episcopal Diocese of California, and part of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA). Within its community the parish is normally referred to as simply The Church of the Epiphany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Portland, Maine)</span> Historic church in Maine, United States

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is a historic cathedral on Cumberland Avenue in Portland, Maine, which serves as seat of the Diocese of Portland. The rector is Father Seamus Griesbach. The church, an imposing Gothic Revival structure built in 1866–69, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. Until 2023, it was the tallest building in Portland. It was surpassed by 201 Federal Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Trinity Episcopal Church (Swanton, Vermont)</span> Historic church in Vermont, United States

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church also known as Holy Trinity Memorial Church is an historic Episcopal church building located at 38 Grand Avenue in the village of Swanton, Franklin County, Vermont. Built in 1876 and expanded in 1909-10, the church facilities include a fine example of the Carpenter Gothic in the older section, and the Late Victorian Gothic Revival in the newer section. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Parish of the Holy Trinity in 2001. The church is an active parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont; its current rector is the Rev. Reid D. Farrell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Parish Church (Seattle)</span> Historic church in Washington, United States

Trinity Parish Church is a historic church located in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. It is an Episcopal congregation in the Diocese of Olympia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Trinity Church (Nashville)</span> Historic church in Tennessee, United States

Holy Trinity Church is a historic Episcopal church at 615 6th Avenue South in Nashville, Tennessee, currently a parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee. The congregation was formed in 1849 as a mission of the nearby Christ Church Episcopal, attained parish status in 1851, and grew to around fifty members per service by the beginning of the American Civil War. During the war, the church was occupied by Federal troops and was badly damaged. After repairs, services continued and a new mission was opened on Wharf Avenue, which catered to the African American population of Nashville and soon overtook Holy Trinity in membership. After Holy Trinity lost parish status in 1895, the two missions merged and continued to serve the African American community of Nashville. Its congregation was largely made up of faculty and students from nearby Fisk University and other educational institutions. The mission reattained parish status in 1962, and the current rector is Bill Dennler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Andrew's Episcopal Church (Albany, New York)</span> Historic church in New York, United States

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church is located at North Main and Madison avenues in Albany, New York, United States. It is a complex of three buildings, centered on the church itself, a stone structure designed by architect Norman Sturgis in the Late Gothic Revival architectural style and built in 1930. In 2005 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St. Peter (Danbury, Connecticut)</span> Church in Connecticut, United States

St. Peter is a Roman Catholic church in Danbury, Connecticut, part of the Diocese of Bridgeport. St. Peter's was the first Catholic church built in northern Fairfield County. It is the third oldest parish, and the fifth oldest Roman Catholic Church in the Diocese of Bridgeport. St. Peter's was originally a predominantly Irish congregation. Danbury's Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade steps off in front of St. Peter's. In more recent time, the parish has a significant number of parishioners of Latino and Brazilian heritage.

John Edmund Oldaker Pridmore was a British-American architect, best known for his theater designs. He lived in Edgewater, Chicago and carried out many residential designs in the area. Pridmore was the architect for three homes he lived in at 6249 N. Magnolia, four years later he designed a larger house at 5959 North Winthrop where he spent the majority of his professional and family life, and then an apartment in the building at 6003 N. Winthrop, to the north of his house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick W. Keator</span> Episcopical priest & third missionary bishop of Washington state

Frederick William Keator was an American lawyer who became an Episcopal priest and the third missionary bishop of Washington state, which encompassed that portion of Washington State west of the Cascade Range. It achieved full diocesan status during his tenure, so Rt.Rev. Keator became the first bishop of what became the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Vincent de Paul Church (Chicago)</span> Church in Illinois, United States

St. Vincent de Paul Church is a historic parish church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago located in Chicago, Illinois. The parish was founded by the Vincentians in 1875. It is affiliated with DePaul University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blessed Sacrament Church (Buffalo, New York)</span> Church in New York , United States

Blessed Sacrament Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in Buffalo, New York, United States. Constructed in the late 19th century, it remains the home of an active congregation and has been recognized as a historically significant building in the Linwood Historic District of Buffalo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Saints' Episcopal Church (Austin, Texas)</span> Historic Episcopal church in Austin, Texas

All Saints' Episcopal Church is a historic Episcopal parish church in Austin, Texas, United States. Built in 1899 on the edge of the University of Texas at Austin campus, the church has long-standing connections with the university's student body and faculty. The chapel was a project of Episcopal Bishop George Herbert Kinsolving, whose crypt is located under the church. It has been designated as a City of Austin Historic Landmark since 1980 and a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark since 2014, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "History of Atonement | atonement". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
  3. J.E.O. Pridmore, Edgewater Architect Vol. IV No. 3 - FALL/WINTER 1992 by LeRoy Blommaert
  4. "History of Atonement | atonement". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-04.
  5. https://www.atonementchicago.org/clergy-and-staff