United Methodist Church of Batavia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids United Methodist Church of Batavia
Religion
Affiliation	Methodism
Leadership	Pastor Melissa Meyers, Senior Pastor
Status	Active
Location
Location	8 N. Batavia Ave. Batavia, Kane County, Illinois, U.S.
Architecture
Architect(s)	Solon Spencer Beman
Architectural style	Romanesque Revival
Completed	1887
Direction of façade	West
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Added to NRHP	July 28, 1983
NRHP Reference no.	83000320

The United Methodist Church of Batavia is an old and important church building in Batavia, Illinois. It was built in 1887. Two generous people, Rev. E. H. Gammon and Cpt. Don Carlos Newton, gave money for it. They wanted to replace an older church. A famous architect named Solon Spencer Beman designed it. He used a special style called Romanesque Revival. This church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. This means it's a very important historical place.

The Church's Story

The first Methodist church in Batavia was called the First Methodist Church of Batavia. It served the Methodist community from 1852 to 1887. The first leader of that church was Rev. E. H. Gammon. He later became very rich from the farming machine business.

Rev. Gammon and a wealthy businessman named Cpt. Don Carlos Newton gave a lot of money. They wanted to build a brand new Methodist church in Batavia. Cpt. Newton had recently traveled to southern France. He really liked the old French building style called Romanesque Revival. He suggested this style to a well-known local architect, Solon Spencer Beman. Mr. Beman was then hired to design the new church.

The northern exterior of the church, as prepared by the Historic American Buildings Survey.

Building the Church

The outside of the church was mostly built using local rocks. These rocks came from I. S. Stephens' Mill Creek Farm. Mr. Stephens also helped build the church. Smooth Limestone was carefully shaped to stand out against the rougher rocks.

The church is about 106 feet long and 60 feet wide. It has a main open space called a nave. The ceiling of the nave is shaped like a half-circle, called a barrel vault. Inside the nave, there are thirteen rows of red oak pews (church benches). The church also has a tall tower. This tower rises 52 feet from the ground. It has a pointed roof. On the north and south sides of the tower, there are special archways. These archways, called Palladian arches, are next to the church bells.

A Historic Landmark

The United Methodist Church of Batavia became a part of the National Register of Historic Places on July 28, 1983. This means it is recognized as an important historical site. Later, in 1991, a three-story addition was built on the east side of the church. People still attend church services here today.