originally Second Presbyterian Church
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Central Presbyterian Church (originally Second Presbyterian Church)
c. 1936, Souers and Spooner. 3829 Grand Ave.
Another exercise in modernized medieval revival architecture, this church bears open yet abstracted references to the European Gothic tradition. The smooth stone walls of the church are cut in a sharp, angular manner that decidedly enhances the modern feeling of the building. The buttressed front of the church contains broad pointed arches for the entrance and for the large window above. This window in turn houses a double-arched window that is more Romanesque than Gothic. The Gothic theme is repeated in the solid balustrade of the entrance terrace which is punctured by a row of small open pointed arches. The Central Presbyterian Church, along with the First Church of Christ Scientist, were the two religious buildings singled out for praise in the 1939 survey of “noteworthy” recent buildings in the city.
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