First Unitarian Church (Cincinnati, Ohio) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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First Congregational-Unitarian Church
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Front of the church
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 Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
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| Location | 2901 Reading Rd., Cincinnati, Ohio |
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| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1889 |
| Architect | James W. McLaughlin |
| Architectural style | Richardsonian Romanesque |
| NRHP reference No. | 76001434 |
| Added to NRHP | May 28, 1976 |
The First Unitarian Church is a very old church building in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It belongs to the Unitarian Universalist Association. This church started in the early 1800s. It went through many changes, including splitting apart and then coming back together. Many famous people have attended services here. This includes members of the Taft family, like William Howard Taft, who later became a President of the United States.
Contents
History of the Church
In 1828, a Unitarian minister from Boston visited Cincinnati. His name was John Pierpont. He stayed for about five weeks. When he went back to New England, he told everyone how great Cincinnati was. Because of his stories, a Unitarian church group started in the city within two years.
Their first church building was in downtown at Fourth and Race Streets. It opened on May 23, 1830. Later, they built a new church nearby at Eighth and Plum Streets. In its first year, the church had many young ministers. These ministers were often very good. But many of them left their jobs early because they got sick. This meant the church often needed to find new preachers from New England.
One important minister was William Henry Channing. He led the church from 1839 to 1844. After him came James H. Perkins, a former lawyer. He was a minister for five years. During his time, he worked on many social justice projects. These included helping to improve prisons and caring for poor people.
In the 1850s, the church faced big problems. There were strong feelings about ending slavery. Cincinnati was very close to Kentucky, which was a slave state. Also, people disagreed about whether miracles were real. These disagreements caused the church to split into two groups.
By the 1870s, these problems were solved. Both groups agreed that miracles were not real. Also, the Thirteenth Amendment had ended slavery in the United States. So, the two church groups joined back together.
In 1882, George Thayer became the minister. Many church members were moving from downtown to the northern parts of the city. Because of this, the church decided to build a new home. The current building was built on Reading Road. This was about 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of their old location.
Building Design and Features
The church built its new home on Reading Road in the late 1880s. This new building was finished in 1889. It was made using rough blocks of stone called ashlar.
The architect, James C. McLaughlin, designed the church in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. This style uses rounded arch windows. It also has parts that make the building look like it's divided into two sections. The walls are made of random stone blocks.
One special part of the church is a large rose window on its north side. This window was designed by Frederick Wilson, a Tiffany artist. In the middle of the window is a picture of "Truth." McLaughlin used mostly stone to build the church. The foundation is made of sandstone. The walls and other parts are made of different kinds of stone.
Before this new building, the church was losing members. Many people had moved away from its old downtown spot. By moving to a growing neighborhood, the church leaders hoped more people could easily get there by public transportation.
McLaughlin's design included a tile roof. It also had large, golden stained glass windows. There were two fireplaces in the main worship area, called the sanctuary. The sanctuary itself is a square room, 56 feet (17 m) on each side. When it was built, about 300 people could sit there. A big platform under the rose window held the organ and a pulpit made of hand-carved oak.
The Taft Family's Connection
The Taft family was very important to the First Unitarian Church. This included Alphonso and Louise Taft, and their children. For many years, Alphonso was one of the church's trustees. He even led the board of trustees for a while. Later in his life, he was often away from the church. This was because he had important jobs like United States Attorney General and Secretary of War.
Their son, William Howard, was active in the church from a young age. He took part in many youth activities. Years later, when he was running for president, the church's minister remembered him. The minister recalled William Howard playing a fairy in a play put on by the church's Unity Club.
As William Howard Taft's government jobs grew, he also attended church less often. But his influence in the church remained strong. For example, the church's minister, who believed in peace, was removed. This happened because Taft publicly supported America joining World War I.
Recent History
In 1976, the First Unitarian Church building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It was listed as the "First Unitarian-Congregational Church." It earned this honor because of its important historical design.
Two years later, many church members worked with musician Richard Waller. They helped create the Linton Chamber Music Series. This was a partnership with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.
Today, the church is still an active part of the Unitarian Universalist Association. Rev. Constance Simon became the minister in 2018.
See also
In Spanish: Primera Iglesia Unitaria (Cincinnati) para niños
