Neoclassical Church Becomes WPB Landmark

By Bob Davidsson
        The West Palm Beach City Commission unanimously approved a local landmark designation Dec. 2 for the First Church of Christ, Scientist, placing the unique neoclassical house of worship on the city's Register of Historic Places.
        Located in the heart of West Palm Beach at the intersection of Okeechobee Blvd. and Flagler Drive, the Greek revival-style landmark graces the city's waterfront like a 21st century Parthenon rising above the Lake Worth Lagoon.
        The historic building has served as an anchor to the west side of the city's Royal Palm Bridge since the 1920's. The church is thus a visual landmark marking the entrance and departure point for West Palm Beach and the Town of Palm Beach across the lagoon.
        In their recommendation to approve the church as an official historic site, city staff reported, "It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of construction."
        "It possesses a singular physical characteristic that makes it an established or familiar visual feature," the Dec. 2 West Palm Beach staff report concludes.
        The First Church of Christ, Scientist, was built between 1927-29 on land originally donated by Anne Phipps, the wife of steel magnate Henry Phipps of Palm Beach. The Phipps family acquired extensive land holdings in both Palm Beach and West Palm Beach during the 1920's.
        One longtime seasonal congregant and supporter of the church was General Foods cereal heiress and socialite Marjorie Merriweather Post of Palm Beach. Her Mar-a-lago mansion was built the same year as the church on the island of Palm Beach.
        Christian Science is a religion founded by Mary Baker Eddy in the late 19th century.  It is based  on the Bible and the tenets explained in Eddy's "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures."
        The First Church of Christ, Scientist qualified for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places in December 1998. However, since the building was still a functioning church, the owners decided the designation was inappropriate at that time.

Architects of Distinction
        The Philadelphia-based architectural firm headed by Horace Trumbauer was contracted by the local Christian Science congregation to design their new church in 1927. The builder was F.W. Blandford.
        Trumbauer (1868-1938) was a self-trained architect who became prominent during the "Gilded Age" at the turn of 20th century. His firm designed more than 400 mansions, cultural centers and government buildings.
        In 1906 Trumbauer hired African-American architect Julian Abele (1881-1950) of Philadelphia as his chief designer.  After Trumbauer's death in 1938, Abele would continue managing the "Office of Horace Trumbauer" architectural firm until 1950.
        Among his many projects, Abele was belatedly credited as the designer of several buildings on the campus of Duke University, including the Duke University Chapel in 1934.
        He also designed  the Widener Memorial Library at Harvard University. Tragically, the library would later serve as a family memorial to Trumbauer's son, Henry, a Harvard alumni and bibliophile who died while aboard the "HMS Titanic" on its maiden voyage.
        The neoclassical design for the First Church of Christ, Scientist in West Palm Beach was Abele's inspiration. He was an admirer and scholar of classical Greek and Roman architectural techniques.
        The east entrance to the church is supported by eight fluted Ionic columns. The name of the church is inscribed in the pediment. Behind the columns, three 10-foot doors at the main entrance open into the sanctuary.
        Acroterions, winged architectural ornaments commonly placed on Greek temples and early Christian churches, are mounted on the four corners of the building's pediments.
        Four Ionic columns also are posted on the south entrance to the church. The structure's use of blue tiles was inspired by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, an earlier Trumbauer-Abele architectural design.

The Price of Preservation
        An agreement was made between the church and the Related Cos. in 2016 for the purchase of the west parking lot by the development company for a future "One Flagler" high-rise office building.
        In exchange for the property, Related agreed to provide a church reading room and parking for the congregation within the "One Flagler" garage. The historic church will be preserved and maintained at its current site.
        The First Church of Christ, Scientist Building Fund was established in 2019 to finance the maintenance of the building. The special preservation fund was created through the Community Foundation of Palm Beach ad Martin Counties.
        The landmark church will be preserved in perpetuity, but it may soon be under the shadow of a 25-story office building.
(c.) Davidsson. 2019.
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