Built 1867 Designated NHL October 17, 2012 Opened 1867 Added to NRHP 17 October 2012 | NRHP Reference # 12001012 Designated CP August 14, 1973 Phone +1 617-266-7480 | |
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Address 67 Newbury St, Boston, MA 02116, USA Architectural style Gothic Revival architecture Similar Old South Church, Arlington Street Church, Charles Street African M, Emmanuel Episcopal Church - B, Baker Congregational Church | ||
The Church of the Covenant is a historic church at 67 Newbury Street in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. A National Historic Landmark, it was built in 1865-1867 by the Central Congregational Church, and is now affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the United Church of Christ. The church was designed by Richard M. Upjohn, and its distinctive interior is largely the work of Tiffany & Co.
History
Built of Roxbury puddingstone in Gothic Revival style it was one of the first churches to relocate in the new Back Bay and was built largely with funds donated by Benjamin Bates, an industrialist who founded Bates College. Designed by Richard M. Upjohn, the son and partner of Richard Upjohn, who insisted on "a high gothic edifice ... which no ordinary dwelling house would overtop." It has a 240-foot (73 m) high steeple, that overtops the Bunker Hill Monument. Oliver Wendell Holmes said: "We have one steeple in Boston that to my eyes seems absolutely perfect--that of the Central Church on the corner of Newbury and Berkeley Streets." In the 1890s the sanctuary was redecorated by Tiffany Glass and Decorating Co. with stained-glass windows and mosaics and an electric-light chandelier designed by Tiffany's Jacob Adolphus Holzer for the World's Columbian Exhibition, Chicago, 1893.
The Church of the Covenant is located at 67 Newbury Street. It was known as the "Central Church" until 1932 when the Central Congregational Church merged with the First Presbyterian Church of Boston creating the Church of the Covenant, which is now affiliated with both the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the United Church of Christ.
In October 2012 the church building was designated a National Historic Landmark (as "Central Congregational Church") in recognition of its unique interior decorations.