{"nrhp_refnum":"79003783","name":"Table Grove Community Church","other_names":["Universalist Church"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N. Broadway and W. Liberty Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Table Grove","county":"Fulton County","state":"IL","lat":40.366982215000064,"lon":-90.42540816499996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-02-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Religion","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A frame church building at the corner of N. Broadway and W. Liberty Streets in Table Grove, Fulton County, Illinois, built in 1869 by a Universalist congregation and extended in 1934. Its architect is unknown.","why_significant":"The church is tied to the Rev. John Hughes, its first pastor and a prominent Universalist minister and Illinois legislator, and to his wife the Rev. Kate Hughes, a suffrage leader. It later became the Table Grove Community Church through a 1931 merger of three congregations. The nomination presents it as a long-running site of religious and community life.","narrative":"Standing in a grove of oaks and hickories at the corner of North Broadway and West Liberty Streets, this frame church in Table Grove was built in 1869 by a Universalist congregation. It has clapboard siding, a sandstone block foundation and a 66-foot bell tower with four pinnacles and a spire. A broken pediment and corner pilasters recall Greek Revival design, while arched windows reflect Italianate influence. A 1934 addition lengthened the building to 85 feet, and a basement was excavated in 1934 and 1952. The church's importance rests largely on its first pastor, the Rev. John Hughes, a widely known Universalist preacher who later served in the Illinois legislature. His wife, the Rev. Kate Hughes, was ordained in 1895 and led the Illinois Equal Suffrage Association. In 1931 the Disciples of Christ, Presbyterian and Universalist congregations merged here as the Table Grove Community Church. The building continues as a house of worship and meeting place.","period_of_significance":"1868-9","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Combination of Greek Revival and Italianate elements, with a bell tower topped by pinnacles and a spire","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in use as a church and community gathering place; the exterior is maintained much as originally built, with changes made in 1934, 1952 and 1960.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.062183-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/90/8928/28892890/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/79003783.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79003783/b663bed163-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79003783/b663bed163-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Table_Grove_Community_Church.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Table_Grove_Community_Church.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892890","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_Grove_Community_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7673134"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/fulton-county/table-grove-community-church-79003783/"}