A Temple for Christ, Scientists


[Second Church of Christ, Scientist (1899) Solon S. Beman, architect /Image & Artwork: designslinger]

Solon Spencer (S.S.) Beman was a prolific, well-known, highly regarded architect when he
beat 11 other colleagues to win the commission to design the first Christian Science church in Chicago. His design proved so popular with other Christian Science denominations that Beman went on to design 5 more buildings in Chicago, and several more around the country.


[Second Church of Christ, Scientist, 2700 N. Pine Grove, Chicago /Images & Artwork: designslinger]

Beman designed the First Church in 1897, 18 years after Mary Baker Eddy formed the
Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston. The first building was located on the city's south side, where a large population of Ms. Eddy's followers resided. By 1899, their numbers had grown to such an extent across the city that the mother church back east decided to organize denominations on Chicago's north and west sides to accommodate their expanding group of believers. Beman followed the Greco-classical tradition which had won him the first commission on all his church buildings for the organization, from Chicago to Philadelphia and beyond.


[Greco inspirations /Images & Artwork: designslinger]

The architect's statement on the First Church could be applied to all the church buildings
he designed for the Scientists:

The design for the church edifice is an interesting and marked departure from the usual ecclesiastical type of building. The exterior is characterized by a simplicity and breadth of treatment that is at once impressive and dignified, taken from the Ionic of the Erechtheion of the Acropolis. The architectural order is confined to the street facade, and its distinguishing feature is an Ionic colonnade of impressive proportions, set and framed in an expanse of almost plain wall surface.

From the Greek temple to Beman's temple.


[The Beman temple, July 13, 2009 /Images & Artwork: designslinger]

Beman turned his back on the traditional use of Romanesque and Gothic details found on
most church buildings in the later part of the 19th century. He even rejected the much more florid Corinthian capital of later Greece, in favor of the more sober Ionic order to cap his tall colonnade of columns. The style was a favorite device for libraries and universities but seldom seen in church architecture. The Second Church stands out among Beman's six Chicago churches because it is the only one still functioning as a temple of worship for Christian Scientists.
Posted by designslinger at 6/28/2010 2:15 AM
Categories: Architecture, Architects, History
Tags: Chicago churches S.S. Beman Christian Scientists
 

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  • 6/28/2010 5:49 AM Joanne Capella wrote:
    It's interesting that the church does follow the design standards of the period for a government or financial building. It still pulls off a very dignified air nonetheless.
    1. 6/29/2010 4:48 AM designslinger wrote:
      It's a great little building.
  • 6/28/2010 8:37 PM LShure wrote:
    And oddly enough, his son, Spencer Solon Beman(!) carried on his father's work for the Christian Scientists. But it never equaled that of his dad, as far as I can tell.
    1. 6/29/2010 5:02 AM designslinger wrote:
      Have to agree with you there. And thanks for the visit and taking the time to comment.
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