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Helen Betts | all galleries >> Galleries >> Creatively Repurposed Buildings on Capitol Hill > Grace Baptist Church (1891) condo conversion
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18-FEB-2018

Grace Baptist Church (1891) condo conversion

Built in 1891, Grace Baptist Church became Faith Baptist Church in 1970 before being converted to 18 condos in 1989, one of the first of such conversions on Capitol Hill. The units range from 570 to 1,375 square feet, but I can’t find any evidence of what they cost these days, probably because none are available. The stained glass windows from the original property were retained.

From a December 1987 Washington Post article:

“The church's cornerstone was laid in 1891 by Grace Baptist Church, a congregation that remained in the building for almost 90 years. Grace was a conservative, middle-class white Baptist congregation with about 1,200 members during the 1950s, explained Erwin Nase, 58, a former deacon. The congregation had pride in its building, its teaching and missionary work in the neighborhood where few of its white members lived.

“After the 1968 riots, which destroyed several neighborhoods in the city, the congregation began to swiftly dwindle. ‘It wasn't safe to go to church,’ Nase said. ‘One man was robbed at gunpoint. It even happened on Sunday mornings.’

“The congregation began to lose members at a rate of 40 to 50 a month, Nase said. ‘We had a colored evangelist come to the church. He wasn't racist. He just told us the mood of the day around here, there's nothing you can do. They won't listen to whites. So we took his advice’.”

Buchanan School condos, entry, posted earlier

Nikon D850 ,Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED
1/200s f/10.0 at 35.0mm iso100 full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto
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Paolo Peggi (aka Bracciodiferro)15-Mar-2018 19:57
Top class image.V
Paolo
Alexander Kazakov02-Mar-2018 20:00
Amazing! V
Zoltán Balogh28-Feb-2018 18:13
Fabulous photo of this impressive building. V
Dave Berry27-Feb-2018 23:07
It's a wonderful building. It is good that they saved it, rather than building new. V
Pierre27-Feb-2018 22:24
Une église d'une grande beauté et d' une très belle architecture, une mise en valeur très réussie! V
John Hamers27-Feb-2018 18:07
Wonderful turrets on this building. ! Great pov for this great image !!V
Fong Lam27-Feb-2018 13:08
Such splendid architecture for a church....excellent clear shot...V
cobler27-Feb-2018 13:05
Wonder what it's like living in a church.... fine capture, Helen.....V
Tom LeRoy27-Feb-2018 11:52
A gorgeous building, what nice workmanship back then. Nice sharp shot. V
Milan Vogrin27-Feb-2018 10:48
Beautiful building, look like a castle. V
Charlene Ambrose27-Feb-2018 08:35
A beautiful old building with amazing architecture. Kind of hoped, at first glance, that it was a private residence. A fine image! V
Ika Zinka Eferl27-Feb-2018 07:04
A beautiful building, excellent light and colors. V
joseantonio27-Feb-2018 05:21
interesting design for a church.V
Nirvan Hope27-Feb-2018 03:58
I really like the look of this old church building with the turrets, eaves and window shapes..
Julie Oldfield27-Feb-2018 03:22
It looks beautiful. Nice perspective to capture this fine building. V
Jeff Real27-Feb-2018 02:58
What a beautiful building!
A fine photograph, Helen
V
janescottcumming27-Feb-2018 02:09
I'd love to see the inside of these condos! Interesting and sad story about the church. V
Gill Kopy27-Feb-2018 02:07
So sad that wonderful churches like this one have to be "repurposed" to survive. Great shot Helen V
bill friedlander27-Feb-2018 00:13
Nice crisp shot, the steep roofs and conical towers are very interesting. V
globalgadabout27-Feb-2018 00:06
excellent shot...the varied design is so lively...better to use the structure for housing than for following ancient superstitions...
Jim Coffman26-Feb-2018 23:41
Wow, I like it! Nicely captured, Helen...