First Unitarian Church of Portland

First Unitarian Church of Portland
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Portland Historic Landmark[2]
The church's exterior in 2011
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Location	1011 SW 12th Avenue Portland, Oregon
Coordinates	45°31′07″N 122°41′08″W
Built	1924
Architect	Jamieson K. Parker
Architectural style	Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival[3]
NRHP reference No.	78002315[1]
Added to NRHP	November 22, 1978

The First Unitarian Church of Portland is a church building located in downtown Portland, Oregon, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[4] Located on S.W. 12th Avenue at Salmon Street, it was constructed and opened in 1924.^[3]

History

Not listed on the NRHP is the building now serving as the First Unitarian Church's main sanctuary, built in 1921 as the First Church of the Nazarene.

In 1979, the Unitarian church purchased a larger church located directly adjacent, the original First Church of the Nazarene of Portland,^[5] which had been built in 1921.^[6] The Nazarene church congregation was preparing for construction of a new, larger building in the Sylvan neighborhood, so decided to sell their original building.^[5]

The former Nazarene building (at 1211 S.W. Main Street),^[5] which adjoins the First Unitarian Church but with its entrance oriented to the corner of 12th and Main, has been regularly used for Sunday services by the Unitarian church since 1993 and is currently the church's primary sanctuary,^[7] but the 1921 building is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The NRHP-listed 1924 building is still owned and used by the First Unitarian Church of Portland, and church members refer to it as the Eliot Chapel after the first minister, Thomas Lamb Eliot.^[7] Eliot Chapel was designed by Jamieson K. Parker, while the former Nazarene building was designed by Raymond W. Hatch.^[8]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Southwest Portland, Oregon

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. Portland Historic Landmarks Commission (July 2010), Historic Landmarks -- Portland, Oregon (XLS), retrieved November 5, 2013.
3. "Unitarian Church to Be Dedicated Today". (November 16, 1924). The Oregonian, section 5, p. 8.
4. "Oregon National Register List" (PDF). Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. June 6, 2011. p. 33. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 25, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
5. "Nazarenes sell church to neighbor: Unitarians next door". (August 8, 1979). The Oregonian, p. C9.
6. "New edifice dedicated: First Church of the Nazarene holds formal ceremonies". (August 8, 1921). The Morning Oregonian, p. 14, col 1. Quote: "The new church building of the First Church of the Nazarene, Twelfth and Main streets, was dedicated formally at ceremonies yesterday afternoon ..."
7. "Portland Unitarian History". First Unitarian Church of Portland. Retrieved June 12, 2011.
8. "First Church of the Nazarene". Oregon Historic Sites Database: Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation. Retrieved June 25, 2011.

Further reading

• Alfred Staehli, Lorraine P. McConnell (January 15, 1978). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: First Unitarian Church of Portland" (pdf). National Park Service.

External links

• Bothwell, Mary. "First Unitarian Church of Portland". The Oregon Encyclopedia.