North Lawndale in Chicago in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Stone Temple Baptist Church

Joseph W. Cohen & Co., architects; 1926

— Chicago Landmark —

Stone Temple Baptist Church Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, June 21, 2024

1. Stone Temple Baptist Church Marker

Inscription. This monumental brick and stone edifice was built in 1926 as a synagogue for Jewish immigrants who came to the U.S. to escape anti-Semitism in Romania. In 1954 the building was bought by an African-American Baptist congregation under the leadership of Reverend J.M. Stone. Stone led his congregation to support the Civil Rights Movement and this church hosted frequent sermons by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., especially during the Chicago Freedom Movement in 1966 when King led a campaign to end housing discrimination in the city. The Chicago Freedom Movement prompted national debate about housing discrimination that ultimately led to the passage of the Fair Housing Act in 1968.

Designated on June 22, 2016
Rahm Emanuel, Mayor

Erected 2016 by Commission on Chicago Landmarks; City of Chicago.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Architecture • Churches & Religion • Civil Rights. In addition, it is included in the Illinois, Chicago Landmarks Commission, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1926.

Location. 41° 51.781′ N, 87° 42.983′ W. Marker is in Chicago, Illinois, in Cook County. It is in North

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Lawndale. Marker is on West Douglas Boulevard east of South Millard Avenue, on the right when traveling west. The marker is to the left of the front entrance of the church. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3622 West Douglas Boulevard, Chicago IL 60623, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. North Lawndale Wayfinding Map (a few steps from this marker); Storytelling Sukkah (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); A Nation's Image (approx. 0.6 miles away); (Former) Anshe Sholom Synagogue Building (approx. 0.6 miles away); Douglas Park (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Boulevard System (approx. 0.7 miles away); a different marker also named The Boulevard System (approx. 0.8 miles away); Garfield Park (approx. 0.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chicago.

Regarding Stone Temple Baptist Church. The Lawndale neighborhood shifted after World War II from a heavily Jewish neighborhood to one that remains primarily African American today, and this church building is one of many that highlight this transition.

Martin Luther King Jr. preached here in the 1960s as he fought housing rules that discriminated against African Americans. And this neighborhood was particularly impacted by rioting in the wake of Dr. King's assassination in April 1968.

Also see . . .

Stone Temple Baptist Church image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, June 21, 2024

2. Stone Temple Baptist Church

The marker is to the left of the church doors.

1. Chicago Landmark Designation Report: Stone Temple Baptist Church.

Excerpt: "Layers of Chicago history converge at the monumental brick and limestone house of worship at 3620 W. Douglas Boulevard in North Lawndale. The structure was built in 1925-1926 as a synagogue for a community of Jewish immigrants who had come to Chicago to escape anti-Semitism and pogroms in their native Romania. They named their synagogue the First Roumanian Congregation. From 1926 to 1954 the building served as a house of worship and an anchor for Chicago’s Romanian Jewish community, a community that provided aid to and demanded justice for the Jews of Romania and Europe from the 1920s through the 1940s. In addition to its history, the building is one of several religious and institutional buildings that tell the story of Jewish settlement in North Lawndale, once known as 'Chicago’s Jerusalem.'"

(Submitted on June 22, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. King Remembered At Church Where He Preached.

Excerpt from Block Club Chicago: "King lived in a rundown apartment building at 16th Street and Hamlin Avenue when he came to Chicago to support the fight to end redlining and substandard housing. King preached at Stone Temple and helped organize Lawndale’s Black community to fight for racial equity."

(Submitted on June 22, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Stone Temple Baptist Church cornerstones image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, June 21, 2024

3. Stone Temple Baptist Church cornerstones

The bottom cornerstone is related to the Jewish synagogue that originally built this structure; above a plaque marks the dedication of the Baptist church in 1954.

Photographed By Sean Flynn, June 21, 2024

4. Stone Temple Baptist Church

The scroll with Hebrew writing at the very top of the building is a remnant of its origins as a synagogue.

Martin Luther King in Chicago, 1966 image. Click for full size.

Photographed By 2, 1966

5. Martin Luther King in Chicago, 1966

Martin Luther King appears at the Chicago Freedom Festival to End Slums and Segregation. In this photo, he is on stage with Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, Al Raby and Mahalia Jackson.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 22, 2024. It was originally submitted on June 22, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 35 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on June 22, 2024, by Sean Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.