Stories of churches and congregations to be surveyed, documented by city

It remains difficult to find a silver lining in the 2007 demolition of Tacoma’s First United Methodist Church.

A desperate congregation took a tempting offer from an ever-expanding medical center. A 90-year-old church housing one of the city’s first religious communities was demolished. Advocates were caught unaware and unprepared. The city backed down in the face of a powerful institution.

Somewhere the massive stained-glass dome that illuminated the interior of the church sits in storage, perhaps to adorn a skating rink. And the naming rights for a chapel being built inside the new hospital building are being sold to the highest bidder.

Not much to be proud of there. Not much to look back upon fondly.

But there are some positives, some lessons learned. The destruction did motivate preservationists to head off future loses. It convinced the current stewards of other historic churches to make sure a future congregation can’t sell the temples handed down by their parents and grandparents.

And the City of Tacoma, perhaps trying to salve guilt over its role in the destruction of the modified Gothic designed First United Methodist, is conducting a survey of the other historic church buildings in the city. Using grants from the State of Washington and a private group, the city hired consultant Caroline Swope to find them, categorize them and photograph them.

Then, with the help of Historic Tacoma, the stories behind the churches and their congregations will be documented.

“I can now say I’ve been lost in every neighborhood in Tacoma,” Swope said. That’s because while the churches that get the most attention are the biggest and most obvious, the other story is how these buildings anchor many neighborhoods. There, they tell the history of the people who built the churches – pioneers, immigrants, ethnic groups and activists.

“The churches really dominate the city,” Swope told the Landmarks Preservation Commission during a preliminary briefing on her study. Nearly 200 churches built before 1965 still exist but just seven are protected by placement on the city’s historic register.

“There are some great structures,” she said. “Some are in tremendous shape.”

They include examples of nearly every architectural style.

 • Classical (the Church of Christ Scientist near Wright Park and the Mormon church south of Mary Bridge Hospital);

 • Romanesque Revival (First Presbyterian in Stadium);

 • Gothic Revival ( St. Patrick’s Catholic in North Slope, Epworth-LeSourd Methodist in the Sixth Avenue District, Holy Rosary east of downtown, and Urban Grace at Ninth and Market downtown);

 • Mission Style (Immanuel Presbyterian in North Slope)

 • Vernacular (Root of David and First Korean Lutheran in South Tacoma);

 • Modern (Temple Beth El, the Mormon Church and St. Charles Borromeo, all along South 12 Street).

Swope understands that most preservationists dislike modern buildings and the ones mentioned are not quite old enough to be eligible for protection. Still, they are worth documenting because the city has many examples.

“They’re not cute and cuddly,” she said. “If Craftsmans are the puppy dogs of architecture, they’re the pet iguanas.”

Preserving churches is difficult, however, because most of the tools available don’t apply. Religious groups are tax-exempt so have no interest in the tax breaks available to save and restore historic structures. And the state Supreme Court ruled that governments can’t protect historic churches unless congregations agree.

While some churches have been saved by being adapted into commercial uses, they are rare.

“Tacoma probably doesn’t need 200 theaters or 200 community centers,” Swope said.

The best way to save them is probably to help current congregations – or new religious groups – keep them as places of worship, Swope said.

If you want to get involved, you can “Adopt a Church.” This is the effort by Swope and Historic Tacoma to enlist volunteers to help research the history of each building.

The first meeting begins at 7 p.m. tonight in the Rare Book Room of the Tacoma Public Library main branch. For information, call 253-370-6984 or send e-mail to cswope@nventure.com.

Peter Callaghan: 253-597-8657

peter.callaghan@thenewstribune.com

blogs.thenewstribune.com/politics