| Address | 5600-5610 South Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago, IL |
|---|---|
| Built | 1906 (Church Building); 1926 (Education Wing) |
| Architect | James Gamble Rogers & Morison & Wallace |
| Status | Designated Chicago Landmark |
| Designation Date | July 17, 2024 (Final)City Council Journal of the Proceedings, p. 15194 |
| Neighborhood | Hyde Park |
| Type | Place of worship |
| Landmark ID | L-391 |
Interior spaces protected by this designation
- The interior of the entrance vestibules and sanctuary, including but not limited to the overall historic spatial volume and historic decorative finishes and features.
Not covered by the designation
- Specifically excluded as significant features of the interior are the pews, the organ, and any non-historic elements including but not limited to the recreated hanging light fixtures. 11 f000 Hyde Park Union Church, circa 1960. (Source: Hyde Park Union Church archives)
Direct quotes from the Chicago Landmark Designation Report
“The secular university was organized by the American Baptist Education Society. As a result, many of the early faculty, including the first University President William Rainey Harper, were of the Baptist faith and became active members of the church.”
“The University of Chicago began holding classes in 1892, and Hyde Park quickly became a thriving academic community. Although the university was secular, its early association with the ABES drew in many Baptist students and faculty, and the First Baptist Church of Hyde Park was well-situated as the closest Baptist house of worship to the campus.”
“Hyde Park Union Church was originally founded as the First Baptist Church of Hyde Park in 1874. The church experienced tandem growth with the University of Chicago, founded in 1890, due in large part to their shared Baptist origins.”
“Begun in 1831, its strong massing, round arches, and simple ornament made it seem less visually ostentatious than Gothic Revival-style churches of the period. The earliest-known American religious structure in the Romanesque Revival style was the Church of the Pilgrims, a Congregational church in Brooklyn Heights, New York, completed in 1846 by English-born architect Richard Upjohn.”
“However, construction bids for this design turned out to be double the amount raised by the congregation. Rogers worked with church officials to develop a more cost-efficient, yet still impressive, Richardsonian Romanesque design, which would complement the existing church building.”
“At the south wall, this room opens to a wood-paneled parlor with a fireplace. Stained Glass The stained-glass windows of Hyde Park Union Church are a vivid tapestry of artistry and faith, encompassing works from the renowned studios of Tiffany, Charles J. Connick, and F. X. Zettler.”
“Ernest DeWitt Burton, a distinguished biblical scholar who later served as president of the university, played a crucial role in the development of the university's Divinity School as well as the Hyde Park Baptist Church School, where he was the Director of Instruction for nearly a decade.”
“The new church building for the Hyde Park Baptist Church (the congregation had changed their name in 1904) was completed at a cost of approximately $80,000 as planned.”
“That help came in many forms. Among the new congregants was University President Harper, who, along with other academics, naturally took an active role in the teaching functions of the church.”
“The first secretary of the University of Chicago, Thomas Wakefield Goodspeed, was a gifted fundraiser who was instrumental in raising money and support for the initial founding of the university and, later, the construction of the Hyde Park Baptist Church's 1906 sanctuary building.”