There is a section of the book St. Louis: Historic Churches & Synagogues that describes the interior of the building in 1995:

“The interior of the Memorial church of God in Christ features a simple wood-paneled ceiling with pointed-arched ribs marking bay divisions. Vertical sliding glass doors (a partial Akron plan) partition the auditorium from auxiliary rooms in the balcony. Façade windows in the church display a Decorated English Gothic tracery pattern in the form of a circle inset with a six-pointed star.”

Though it is a terrible shame this interior was destroyed by fire, it seems from reading this description that trying to reproduce the interior would be a pointless action. In an email to me, Michael Allen of the website www.eco-absence.org and of the blog www.ecoabsence.blogspot.com (both wonderful resources for those interested in abandoned buildings and the discussion of the issues surrounding “the built environment” of St. Louis) wrote, “A skilled reconstruction could bring back the church’s character, but the original interior is gone forever and imitation would be obvious no matter how attractive.” He then added, “Retaining the walls and using the interior for what essentially will be a sanctuary is a fitting reuse.” And he’s right. What once was a place for people to gather as members of the same faith is now serving a similar function. The title of the first work to be installed at this site will be “Chorus,” a fitting name for the new roof of a church.

Something I’ve noticed as I read the resources given to me is how the church congregation changed as Grand Center changed. Most cities in America have gone through the same type of changes that St. Louis has over its history. The city was the center of life and culture. Now, cities are places a majority of Americans go visit or travel to from the suburbs for entertainment. That is unless you live in places that survived urban sprawl like New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The reasons for this are numerous, but I won’t rehash them in this post. What I’m interested in is the church shuffling congregations as the neighborhood changed. First, the Baptists had too many churches in one area, so they moved. Then, as more white Americans moved to the suburbs across the country, cities became increasingly African-American in population. The Church of the Open Word had its congregation commuting from the suburbs to attend services. So, obviously, they decided it would be better to have services closer to their members’ homes and moved out to Creve Coeur, MO. The National Memorial Church of God in Christ was not able to rebuild their church after the electrical fire and the building was sold to Grand Center. Now, since the Arts have moved into Grand Center, the church walls will be a place for sculpture to reside and people to visit with the intention of viewing art works. Somehow, despite presently having no religious affiliation, the purpose of this church has not changed as it will be a contributing member of the community in Grand Center.

The theme of recycling really jumps out when I take a look at this project. A leftover, damaged church needs a new roof and a purpose. Two artists from Germany come to St. Louis and are going to make a “roof” out of old, rejected, twice used lamps from the community. Watching something like this unfold puts some of my negativity aside when it comes to urban redevelopment. I watch buildings be destroyed because it’s easier to knock them over and start from scratch than repair the years of misuse and neglect. With the current trend toward green energy and recycling, I see this project as a positive endorsement of these new ideas. I’m not entirely sure that was the motivation behind this project from the beginning, but it sure does stand out as a major part from my viewpoint.

Prior to today, the lot next to the burnt-out church was quite treacherous, with stray wires, irregular dips in terrain, and rocks of different sizes scattered about. For the opening of CHORUS, Grand Center offered to give the lot a makeover to make it safe for pedestrians. Yesterday, a crew began leveling the ground. Today, a sidewalk was uncovered, and sod was put into place. What looks to have been a basement was filled with white stones, which were pressed into the ground. We’re not sure yet what used to be next to the church, but the rumor is that it was a house. As of now, this side of the church has the romantic feel of Grecian ruins plus sod.

Cardinal Ritter College Prep High School is across the street from the burned church and also involved in The Community Light Project. Yesterday, while watching the lot adjacent to the church being leveled, I caught a few people exiting the school and asked them their opinions on CHORUS.

Timeline: 620 North Spring Avenue

1880-1896: Zebediah and Mary Wetzel owned the lot on which her congregation, Garrison Avenue Baptist Church, constructed their new building.

October 5, 1884: Delmar Avenue Baptist Church (formerly known as Garrison Avenue Baptist Church) opens its doors at 620 N. Spring Ave.

1892: Delmar Avenue Baptist Church moves to a newly built stone church at Delmar and Pendleton.

1893: Church of the New Jerusalem occupies the building.  Throughout its time at the site, it was known as First Society of the New Jerusalem, New Church Chapel, Church of the Divine Humanity, New Jerusalem Church of the Divine Humanity, New Jerusalem Church, and First Church of the New Jerusalem.

1956:  Church of the New Jerusalem moves to a temporary location until the completion of their present church which is located in Creve Coeur National Memorial Church of God in Christ occupies the building.

March 27, 2001: Electrical fire destroys church at 620 N. Spring Avenue.

2001: National Memorial Church of God in Christ moves to its new location at 6082 Primrose.