{"nrhp_refnum":"96000327","name":"First Baptist Church of Orange","other_names":["First Missionary Baptist Church","Antioch Baptist Church"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"192 S. Orange St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Orange","county":"Orange County","state":"CA","lat":33.786282984000024,"lon":-117.85235231699994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1996-03-28","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A single-story, ell-shaped Late Victorian wood-frame church at 192 S. Orange Street in Old Towne Orange, California, built in 1893 and altered in 1912, with a barn moved to the rear in 1922 and converted to a social hall.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a fine example of Victorian church architecture and the only remaining Victorian church in the City of Orange. Its two-story tower, fishscale-shingled gables, stained glass, shiplap siding and original carsiding interior are cited as character-defining features. The 1912 changes are said not to have harmed its Victorian character.","narrative":"Standing on a prominent corner in Old Towne Orange, this church was built in 1893 for a Baptist congregation founded in 1886. It is a wood-frame building with an ell-shaped plan, a square two-story corner tower, steep gables covered in fishscale shingles, narrow shiplap siding, stained glass windows and a small Victorian porch on the Almond Street side. In 1912 the tower was moved outward and a matching gable was added to enlarge the sanctuary. A barn was moved behind the church in 1922 and became a social hall. The tower lost much of its roof in the 1933 earthquake. Inside, the auditorium keeps its carsiding ceiling, pine and redwood wainscotting and a sunburst over the altar. The church is considered significant for its architecture, as the only surviving Victorian church within the city. Later congregations used it until it became vacant, and a restaurant rehabilitation was planned.","period_of_significance":"1893-1912","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Late Victorian: Gothic, Queen Anne","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Vacant for about three years at the time of nomination; the owner planned a rehabilitation into a restaurant, and the tower roof, shortened in the 1933 earthquake, was being restored.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.738533-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/96000327.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000327/342083b381-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/96000327/342083b381-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Eli Pousson","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Baptist_Church_of_Orange.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Eli Pousson</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Baptist_Church_of_Orange.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"97000617","name":"Old Towne Orange Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/california/old-towne-orange-historic-district-97000617/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860210","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Baptist_Church_of_Orange","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452476"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/orange-county/first-baptist-church-of-orange-96000327/"}