First Church of Christ, Scientist, 1913

409 South Division Street

First Church of Christ, Scientist, 1913

This building was originally the home of the First Church of Christ, Scientist. Its members first organized as a society in 1900, and re-organized into a church in 1901. Services were held in a rented home on this site which the church eventually bought. They removed the house and laid the cornerstone for this church building in 1912. It was opened to the public in 1913 and officially dedicated in June of 1926, free from debt.

The church is designed in a neo-classical style, somewhat reminiscent of Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, whose models for classicism came from the Romans rather than the Greeks. The architect was Spencer Solon Beman, son of Chicago architect Solon Spencer Beman, who is famous for his design of Pullman, a planned community in Chicago.

Spencer was the successor to his father's business and after training at Oxford, returned to Chicago. His commissions were mainly residential buildings and churches, the latter primarily for the Christian Scientists in the Georgian and Neo-Classical styles popular at that time. He designed over 100 churches in more than 20 states. The builders were a local firm, Koch Brothers, who built many of Ann Arbor's public structures in the early 20th century.

Though the Christian Scientists moved to Washtenaw in 1950, the building continued to serve as a church for over 75 years. It has recently been converted into a residence by an owner who plans to make it a showplace for downtown living.