Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Church

Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	405 2nd Ave. Coralville, Iowa
Coordinates	41°40′27.2″N 91°34′13.3″W
Area	less than one acre
Built	1885
NRHP reference No.	77000526[1]
Added to NRHP	April 11, 1977

Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Church, also known as Coralville Town Hall, is a historic building located in Coralville, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.^[1]

History

Coralville's first church was a frame structure built by a Methodist Episcopal congregation.^[2] It was destroyed in a fire around 1880. The Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Society was formed to build a new church. The simple brick structure with a gable roof was built about 1885 to serve as a multi-denominational church on the main floor and as a town hall on the lower level. Any orthodox church, which excluded the Unitarians or Universalists, could use the building.^[2] In addition to the town's administration, the lower level could be used for a variety of social functions, excluding dancing. The town purchased the building in 1921 for $2,500,^[3] and it was used as a school, a meeting house for the Evangelical Free Church, and as the town's administrative center. It was renovated for the later purpose in 1953.

After its use as a town hall the building was converted into a museum. The building stood in the way of economic development, and in order to preserve it, the city of Coralville moved it from Second Avenue to Fifth Street in 2014.^[3] It now sits across the street from the historic Coralville Public School (1876). Both buildings flank the entrance to a mixed use development known as Old Town.

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. Virginia West. "Coralville Union Ecclesiastical Church". National Park Service. Retrieved 2017-05-09. with photos
3. Mitchell Schmidt (January 30, 2015). "Coralville's 'Old Town Hall' gets thumbs up for historic preservation". Cedar Rapids: The Gazette. Retrieved 2017-05-09.