{"nrhp_refnum":"74001554","name":"Congregational Church of Christ","other_names":["Congregational Church of Christ at Oberlin"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"W. Lorain and N. Main Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Oberlin","county":"Lorain County","state":"OH","lat":41.29442865300007,"lon":-82.21808976099999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-08-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Politics/Government","Architecture","Religion","Social History"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large brick Greek Revival church, 70 x 100 feet, at West Lorain and North Main Streets in Oberlin, Ohio, built 1842-1844 with a tower added in 1845.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it one of the most important Greek Revival churches in northern Ohio, for its ties to Oberlin College and for the simplicity and proportion of its design. It is the only building surviving from Oberlin College's pre-Civil War days. It also served as a community meeting house, including a welcome ceremony in 1859 for citizens released after being arrested for aiding a fugitive slave.","narrative":"Built between 1842 and 1844 at West Lorain and North Main Streets in Oberlin, this large brick church measures 70 by 100 feet and follows the Greek Revival style. Its exterior is severely simple, with a three-part facade, plain pilaster strips, sandstone foundations and lintels, and a two-stage boxlike tower added in 1845 from a design by Asher Benjamin. Inside, a horseshoe gallery, original box pews and a 66-foot span carried by massive trusses survive, though the pulpit end was remodeled in 1927. The congregation formed in 1834 and was closely bound to Oberlin College, with faculty serving as preachers and students required to attend. The building doubled as a meeting house for the community. In 1859, townspeople arrested for helping a fugitive slave escape were welcomed home there. It is the only structure remaining from the college's pre-Civil War years.","period_of_significance":"1842-1844","architect_builder":"Tower designed by Asher Benjamin; plan by an unnamed Boston architect, friend of Pastor Finney; building supervisor Thomas Porter Turner, carpenter from Vermont","architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition marked excellent; occupied and in religious use; altered in part, including a 1927 remodeling of the west end and a 1966 narthex connecting it to the parish house.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.901947-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/74001554.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001554/2db24f79bf-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74001554/2db24f79bf-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Jack Boucher","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Church_in_Oberlin.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jack Boucher</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Church_in_Oberlin.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989825","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congregational_Church_of_Christ","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5160723"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/lorain-county/congregational-church-of-christ-74001554/"}