{"nrhp_refnum":"83002032","name":"First English Lutheran Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"53 Park Ave., W.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Mansfield","county":"Richland County","state":"OH","lat":40.75832775500004,"lon":-82.51768925499994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-07-08","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A massive sandstone church at 53 Park Avenue West, at the southeast corner with Mulberry Street in downtown Mansfield, Richland County, Ohio. The front cornerstone is dated 1891 and the rear cornerstone 1913.","why_significant":"The church is the home of the mother congregation of the Lutheran churches in Mansfield, which was one of the largest in the country in the 1950s and 60s. The building marks a period of major congregational expansion around the turn of the century, and its Romanesque corner tower proclaimed the congregation's prominence. It is also described as a major architectural landmark in the downtown that remains relatively intact.","narrative":"First English Lutheran Church occupies a prominent corner at Park Avenue West and Mulberry Street in downtown Mansfield. Built of warm light brown sandstone in a Victorian Romanesque style, it has a four-stage corner tower with a steep pyramidal roof, a projecting entrance bay with round-headed windows and Romanesque columns, and a complex slate hip roof. Cornerstones date the front to 1891 and the rear to 1913, and a later education wing stands to the east. Inside, the sanctuary follows the Akron Plan, with a bowled floor, curving pews, a balcony, and large doors opening to a Sunday School auditorium with radiating classrooms. The church was listed as the home of the mother congregation of Mansfield's Lutheran churches, one of the largest in the country in the 1950s and 60s. Its sandstone building and tall tower reflect the congregation's expansion around the turn of the century and remain a major downtown landmark.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Victorian Romanesque","criteria":[],"status_note":"In use as a church; condition listed as good, with a later education wing and Sunday School wing added.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:14.411717-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/83002032.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83002032/6ef240a12c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83002032/6ef240a12c-1600.webp","licence":"CC0","author":"Smallbones","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:53_PAW_Lutheran_Mansfield.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Smallbones</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:53_PAW_Lutheran_Mansfield.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100004214","name":"Downtown Mansfield Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/downtown-mansfield-historic-district-100004214/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71986028","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_English_Lutheran_Church_(Mansfield,_Ohio)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452965"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/richland-county/first-english-lutheran-church-83002032/"}