First Presbyterian Church of Portland

About this property

The First Presbyterian Church is a church building located in downtown Portland, Oregon, that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Construction began in 1886 and was completed in 1890. The building has been called "one of the finest examples" of High Victorian Gothic architecture in the state of Oregon. It includes stained-glass windows made by Portland's Povey Brothers Art Glass Works and a church bell cast with bronze from captured Civil War cannons. As a congregation, what is now known as the First Presbyterian Church of Portland was organized on January 1, 1854, and was only the third Presbyterian church in the Oregon Territory. With a congregation numbering just twelve members initially, services were originally held in private homes, twice a month. For the first year, Reverend J. L. Yantis journeyed on horseback to Portland from Calapooia, Oregon (2 miles east of Shedd), 80 miles to the south. Services were later held at a larger venue, the Canton House—a public meeting place at Front and Washington streets that was later known as the Pioneer Hotel, the Lincoln House and the American Exchange building. By 1860, the congregation had grown to 87 members, and fundraising for a permanent church building began. Property was purchased in 1862. The congregation's first permanent building was completed in 1864, at 3rd and Washington streets, and was dedicated on May 22. It included the first pipe organ in Portland. A 1,052-pound bell was donated by Caroline E. Jagger Corbett, wife of Senator Henry W. Corbett. It was made by Meneely & Company (of Troy, New York) from bronze Civil War cannons. A 1987 article in The Oregonian said that in 1865, the bell "rang out the news that the Civil War had ended. Five days later, it tolled for President Lincoln's death." The church society was incorporated as "the First Presbyterian Church and Society of the City of Portland" in 1865, by members William S. Ladd, John C. Ainsworth, O.P.S. Plummer and others. As the congregation continued to grow, First Presbyterian counted many prominent Portlanders among its members, including Henry W. Corbett, William S. Ladd, John C. Ainsworth, and Jacob Kamm. By the 1880s the congregation had grown to 900 members, and it was decided that a new, larger building was needed. In 1883, a parcel of more than a quarter-block was purchased at 12th and Alder streets for the new church, and later an adjacent property at 13th and Alder was purchased for a parsonage. Architect William F. McCaw was hired to design the new building, and his plans were approved in July 1886. According to The Oregon Encyclopedia, in the 1920s First Presbyterian Church was "among the ten largest [Presbyterian] congregations in the United States." In 1929, membership stood at 2,802. In 1997, there were 1,100 members.

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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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