Charles Street Meeting House
Charles Street Meeting House | |
---|---|
United States of America | |
Construction started | 1804 |
Completed | 1807 |
Client | The Third Baptist Church |
Technical details | |
Structural system | Rendered masonry |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Asher Benjamin |
The Charles Street Meeting House is an early-nineteenth-century historic church in
The church has been used over its history by several
The meeting house is a site on the
History
19th century
Third Baptist Church
The church was built between 1804 and 1807 to the designs by noted American architect Asher Benjamin for the Third Baptist Church, which used the nearby Charles River for its baptisms. In the years before the American Civil War, it was a stronghold of the anti-slavery movement, and was the site of notable speeches from such anti-slavery activists as Frederick Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Phillips, Harriet Tubman, and Sojourner Truth. Pastors of the Third Baptist Church included Caleb Blood (1807-1810), Daniel Sharp (1812-ca.1853)[1][2][3] and J.C. Stockbridge (1853-ca.1861).[4] The congregation was eventually "absorbed by the First Baptist Church."[4]
First African Methodist Episcopal Church
The Baptist congregation sold the structure to the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1876. The AME congregation was part of the first black independent denomination in the United States, established in Philadelphia in the early 19th century. Pastors included William H. Hunter and J.T. Juniper.[4]
20th century
The AME Church sold the building in 1939 to the Charles Street Meeting House Society. It was briefly used as an
The historic LGBT newsletter Gay Community News was founded in the building in 1973.[6]
In 1979, the building was sold to a private owner.[7] At that time, the Society negotiated a specific preservation easement with the owner.
The Meeting House is a recognized site on the Boston
In 1980 the Meeting House was purchased by the Charles Street Meeting House Associates. This group intended to restore the exterior and find viable, compatible uses for the interior spaces. Exterior restoration and interior renovation for office, retail, and residential uses commenced in the fall of 1981. Construction and occupancy were completed in the summer of 1982. The meeting house was converted in the early 1980s by the architectural firm of John Sharrat Associates into four floors of offices, with retail on the ground floor. The exterior was completely preserved.[8]
On May 6, 1983 The National Trust for Historic Preservation presented the Preservation Honor Award to the Charles Street Meeting House for its successful restoration and reuse. On September 22, 1984 The American Institute of Architects presented the Award for Excellence in Architecture to the Charles Street Meeting House for the same project.[9]
In literature
In Pauline Hopkins' novel Contending Forces (1900), the principal character, sitting in a pew, recalls some of the building's history, including the exclusion of Blacks from the main seating area in the years before the Civil War. She relishes the irony of the building's purchase by a Black congregation in 1876.[10]
See also
- Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church, congregation formerly housed in the Charles St. Meeting House (1876-1939)
Notes
References
- ^ Bowen's picture of Boston. 1838
- ^ Services at the fortieth anniversary of the installation of the Rev. Daniel Sharp, D.D.: as pastor of the Charles Street Baptist Church and Society, Boston, April 29, 1852. Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1852
- ^ "Boston Pulpit". Gleasons Pictorial. 5. Boston, Mass. 1853.
- ^ a b c Bacon's dictionary of Boston. 1886
- ^ Religious Properties Preservation: A Boston Casebook, Adaptive Use of Properties. (Boston: Historic Boston Incorporate, 1991), p.10.
- ^ "We Raise Our Voices: Celebrating Activism for Equality & Pride in Boston's African American, Feminist, Gay & Lesbian, & Latino Communities". Northeastern University. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Mark A. Bower, “Putting Offices in the Sanctuary: Utilizing Rehabilitation Tax Credits for Adaptive Reuse of Religious Buildings,” Inspired, Mar-Apr 1989: p.4-6, 8, 16-17.
- ^ William C. Shopsin. Restoring Old Building for Contemporary Uses: An American Sourcebook for Architects and Preservationists. (New York: Whitney Library of Design, 1986), p.64-65.
- ^ Kruse, Mirko (June 26, 2013). "Beacon Hill's Charles Street Meeting House: History with Functionality". Historic Boston Incorporated. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
- ^ Webster, Madeline (Fall 2022). "The Other Side of a Preservation Tale". Historic New England. 23 (2): 20–23.
- Additional sources
- Maryell Cleary, ed. A Bold Experiment: The Charles Street Universalist Meeting House (Chicago: Meadville Lombard Theological School Press, 2002). ISBN 0-9702479-3-1
- Alan Seaburg, ed. "The Charles Street Meeting House: An Evolving Bibliography" (Billerica, MA.; Anne Miniver Press, 2013).
External links
Media related to Charles Street Meeting House (Boston) at Wikimedia Commons