{"nrhp_refnum":"04000061","name":"First Congregational Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"292 E. Market St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Akron","county":"Summit County","state":"OH","lat":41.081447464000064,"lon":-81.50858544599998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2004-02-20","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A church building at 292 East Market Street in Akron, Summit County, Ohio, completed in 1910 and designed by Charles Henry and Son Architects. It is an Akron Plan church in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, with later additions.","why_significant":"The nomination presents the church as an example of the Akron Plan church type, which grew from a Sunday School layout first developed at Akron's First Methodist Episcopal Church. The design joins the sanctuary and Sunday School in one building, with radial classrooms and an auditorium-style sanctuary. The interior remains little altered from the original design.","narrative":"Completed in 1910 at the corner of East Market and South Union Streets in Akron, this limestone church was designed by Charles Henry and Son Architects in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. It follows the Akron Plan, in which a sanctuary and a Sunday School share one building. The sanctuary has a diagonal pulpit, radial pews on a sloping floor and an oval balcony hung from the roof structure. The Sunday School wing has a two-story lecture space ringed by radially arranged classrooms. A five-story crenelated clock tower and a three-story tower mark the entrances on Union Street. Nearly all windows hold Tiffany-style stained glass. A separate Arts and Crafts Parish House was built within about a decade, and a 1958 addition by Ward & Conrad linked it to the church and added a chapel, offices and classrooms. The building matters for its connection to the Akron Plan, a church layout that originated in Akron and influenced church design across the country.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Charles Henry and Son Architects (original building); Frank, Wagner & Mitchell (Parish House); Ward & Conrad (1958 addition)","architectural_style":"Richardsonian Romanesque, Craftsman Style","criteria":[],"status_note":"Still used for religious purposes, including a Sunday School and parish house; some rooms house a learning center.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:07.829872-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/04000061.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/04000061/673619b470-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/04000061/673619b470-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Akron_First_Congregational_Church.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Akron_First_Congregational_Church.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71991525","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Congregational_Church_(Akron,_Ohio)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452785"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/summit-county/first-congregational-church-04000061/"}