First Presbyterian Church
1856-1859
— Iowa Historic Site —
The National Register of Historic Places
Division of Historic Preservation
Iowa State Historical Department
Erected by Division of Historic Preservation, Iowa State Historical Department.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Churches & Religion • Notable Buildings. A significant historical year for this entry is 1859.
Location. 41° 25.387′ N, 91° 2.835′ W. Marker is in Muscatine, Iowa, in Muscatine County. Marker is on Iowa Avenue just north of East 4th Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is mounted at eye-level on the right side of the sanctuary front entrance staircase. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 401 Iowa Avenue, Muscatine IA 52761, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Replica of the Statue of Liberty (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Papoose Creek (about 800 feet away); Pioneer Drug Store (approx. 0.2 miles away); Carry A. Nation (approx. 0.2 miles away); Old Jail (approx. ¼ mile away); Address by President Lincoln (approx. ¼ mile away); Muscatine County All Veterans Memorial
this page online
Regarding First Presbyterian Church. National Register of Historic Places #77000544.
From the National Register Nomination:
This nomination includes two structures, connected by an entrance pavilion, the Presbyterian Church and an accompanying Sunday school building. It is particularly noteworthy for the remarkable harmony of the entire complex, the two parts of which were built nearly 50 years apart.The church is a rectangular structure of red brick, early Gothic Revival in style, which exhibits Tudor influence in its details. On the north side of the church is a red brick "Sunday School" building, which is joined to the sanctuary by a hall and wide, gable-ended entrance pavilion, so that the whole forms a U-shaped complex. The plan and massing of the Sunday School is classical, but its Gothic details repeat those of the basilica in a remarkably harmonious fashion. The entrance pavilion (between church and Sunday School buildings) helps to bring the two sections together, visually. The stone trim and shape of the gable end here repeats that of the pavilion on the Sunday School
building, while the wide Tudor-style arch entry with tracery panel echoes that of the sanctuary entrance.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 25, 20212. First Presbyterian Church MarkerMarker is mounted on the right side of the staircase - beside the first landing.The church, built in the latter 1850's, was the home of the first Iowa Presbytery, organized in 1840. The first Iowa Synod was created here in 1852 and may have encouraged the erection of this substantial structure as a proper symbol of these early organizational efforts in Iowa.
Also see . . . First Presbyterian Church (Wikipedia). Excerpt:
The congregation was initially organized in 1839. It was the first presbytery established in Iowa. The congregation erected its first church building in 1849 when the Rev. John Hudson was the pastor. The first Iowa Synod in the Presbyterian Church was organized here in 1852. By 1856 the congregation outgrew the building and plans were made for a new one. The present Gothic Revival style structure was dedicated in 1859. The classroom wing was added to the church in 1915. The building was listed as an American Presbyterian and Reformed Historical Site in 1976, and the following year it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.(Submitted on January 5, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 5, 2024. It was originally submitted on January 4, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 50 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 5, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
