{"nrhp_refnum":"07000870","name":"Christ Evangelical English Lutheran Church","other_names":["Rugged Cross Baptist Church"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1084 Lafayette Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Brooklyn","county":"Brooklyn","state":"NY","lat":40.69223707900005,"lon":-73.92864999699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2007-08-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Romanesque Revival church at 1084 Lafayette Avenue in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, built in 1898-99 to designs by Dodge & Morrison for an English-language Lutheran congregation. It is now used by the Rugged Cross Baptist Church.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the church is an intact example of Romanesque Revival design by the architecture firm Dodge & Morrison, with a largely original interior and German-made stained glass. It is also significant in religion and social history as an example of the shift from German to English services in Lutheran churches, supported in Brooklyn by Charles A. Schieren.","narrative":"Built in 1898-99 on Lafayette Avenue in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, this brick and terra-cotta church was designed by the firm Dodge & Morrison for Christ Evangelical English Lutheran Church. Its Romanesque Revival front has a tall central gable, a tiled arched loggia and two asymmetrical towers. Inside, a barrel-vaulted nave, marble altar, carved organ case, wooden pews and original lighting fixtures survive, along with stained-glass windows made by the Franz Mayer studio in Munich. The congregation was part of a movement among Lutherans whose younger generations spoke English rather than German. In Brooklyn the movement was promoted by former mayor Charles A. Schieren, who helped secure the site and funds. The building is valued for its architecture and for what it shows about immigrant assimilation. It is now home to the Rugged Cross Baptist Church. Its bell tower roof and several windows need repair, and stabilization work has been carried out.","period_of_significance":"1898-1899","architect_builder":"Dodge & Morrison; Franz Mayer Studios (stained glass)","architectural_style":"Late Victorian: Romanesque","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Still used as a religious facility by Rugged Cross Baptist Church, with the basement used as a school. The bell tower roof has failed and needs major repair, and some stained glass windows required emergency stabilization.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:52.671262-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/07000870.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000870/d1fc67742f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/07000870/d1fc67742f-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Jim.henderson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rugged_Cross_BC_Lafayette_jeh.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Jim.henderson</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rugged_Cross_BC_Lafayette_jeh.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75318343","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Evangelical_English_Lutheran_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5108903"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/brooklyn/christ-evangelical-english-lutheran-church-07000870/"}