{"nrhp_refnum":"75001639","name":"Salem United Church of Christ","other_names":["Old Salem Reformed Church"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"231 Chestnut St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Harrisburg","county":"Dauphin County","state":"PA","lat":40.259559714000034,"lon":-76.87891718599997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1975-04-23","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A church building in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, the present Salem United Church of Christ, erected in 1821-22 by the firm of Samuel Pool and Henry V. Wilson. It traces its origins to a German Reformed congregation founded in 1787.","why_significant":"The nomination describes the congregation as the first church erected in Harrisburg and says it played an important role in the city's development. It notes the building was used as a hospital during the Civil War and is a good example of the classic style. It is also described as one of the few old buildings left in an area given over to high rises and hotels.","narrative":"Built in 1821-22 by the firm of Samuel Pool and Henry V. Wilson, this two-story brick church in Harrisburg grew out of a German Reformed congregation founded in 1787, whose first log meeting house stood on an adjacent lot until the 1850s. The classical design originally featured a large square tower topped by a domed cupola that rose 110 feet, flanked by two three-story towers with stepped gables. An interior with Corinthian columns framed the main altar. A Sunday-school annex was attached to the rear in 1862. After an arson fire in 1890 damaged the church and annex, cross-gable roofs with brackets were installed on the corner towers. The church was used as a hospital during the Civil War. It is regarded as the first church erected in Harrisburg and remains an active congregation, one of the few older buildings left in a district now dominated by high rises and hotels.","period_of_significance":"1821-1822, 1876, 1890","architect_builder":"Samuel Pool and Henry V. Wilson (firm, 1821-22 building)","architectural_style":"Classical","criteria":[],"status_note":"The building is still used as a church.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:30.815636-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/75001639.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001639/e69b81c08a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/75001639/e69b81c08a-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Pubdog (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Salem_United_Church_of_Christ_Harrisburg_PA_Nov_10.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Pubdog (talk)</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Salem_United_Church_of_Christ_Harrisburg_PA_Nov_10.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"83002238","name":"Old Downtown Harrisburg Commercial Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/pennsylvania/old-downtown-harrisburg-commercial-historic-district-83002238/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71995767","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_United_Church_of_Christ_(Harrisburg,_Pennsylvania)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7404232"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/dauphin-county/salem-united-church-of-christ-75001639/"}