First Congregational Church (Des Plaines, Illinois)

First Congregational Church is a historic Congregational church at 766 Graceland Avenue in Des Plaines, Illinois. The church's congregation formed in 1869 and built its first church in the early 1870s. As Des Plaines expanded in the 1920s, the congregation outgrew its original church, and it had the current church building constructed in 1929. The firm of Pond & Pond, Martin and Lloyd gave the church an Arts and Crafts design; it is one of the few buildings in Des Plaines designed by a major architecture firm. The church's design includes a brick and limestone exterior with an emphasis on geometric patterns, a gable front entrance flanked by square towers, and an arched window divided by buttresses above the entrance. Its sanctuary houses a stained glass window designed by Edgar Miller which depicts events in the life of Christ.^[2]

First Congregational Church, Des Plaines
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	766 Graceland Ave., Des Plaines, Illinois
Coordinates	42°02′21″N 87°53′30″W
Built	1929 (1929)
Architect	Pond & Pond, Martin and Lloyd
Architectural style	Arts and Crafts
NRHP reference No.	100004310[1]
Added to NRHP	August 27, 2019

The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 27, 2019.^[1]

References

1. "Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 8/12/2019 Through 8/29/2019". National Park Service. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
2. Wolf, Brian L. (April 2019). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: First Congregational Church, Des Plaines" (PDF). Illinois Historic Preservation Division. Retrieved September 26, 2020.