Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-12-23
Opening Exercises in the Fifteenth
Street M. E. Edifce.
THE EPWORFH M. E. DEDICATION
Something Of the History Of These
Organizations.
HRISTIAN KERS

Last year during the holidays Washing
tonians, or at least these interested, had
the pleasure of seeing the opening services
of but one new church. Yesterday one
was opened for divine worship, and during
the week the dedicatory exercises of an
ether church will take place. One of these
is the Fifteenth Street Al. Il. Church,
located on the northeast corner If 10Th and
r streets northwest, and the other Ep-
worth NJ. E. Church South, situated on the
northeast corner of 9TH and A streets
northeast. The congregation have been In
the latter edilce for month or so, and
therefore the ceremony to take place
will be that of dedication. Bishop
Alpheus w. Wilson of the NJ. f. Church
South, and whose hcme is in Baltimore,
will conduct the services. which will for
the most part be simple in character, con-
Sisting of religious exercises participated
in by those present and addresses of a his
torical character and a sermon. Just what
day these services will be held, how ever,
is not definitely settled owing to there being
a delay in delivering the stained glass, but
it IS hoped to have it occur on Christmas
day, and if not then, then the Sunday fol-
lowing. At the conference OF the church.
held last spring in Mt. Vernon Church, Rev.
John o. Knott was assigned to this charge.
In few short me nths thereafter the corner
stone CT a nav church was laid, ana now,
less than year since he began his
pastorate he and his people are about 10
enter into fine new house of worship.
The ground plan is almost that of a
square but the roof IS CT entirely different
design, having gable on the sides 'front.'
ing the streets and an imposing tower rising
from the southwest corner, with a belfry.
There are TWO smaller towers, one at the
rorthWest corner of the building and the
other al the southeast, all being decorated
with various styles of ornamental bricks in
seometrical designs. The material used in
the rest of the exterior is pressed brick on
the two sides facing the street. The three
main doors have lintes of brown stone and
are arched at the top with the same stone
the latter also being used with good effect
in a number of other places. In the two
gables, which are exactly alike, are large
cricl windows surmounted by small triple
windows, and below series of five large
windows. These windows are filed with
cathedral glass. and in several instances
are memorials TO members of the church.
The Basement Plan.
Entrance into the main auditorium
is by three doors. all in the towers, and
into the basement or lecture room by large
door facing on A street. and smaller door
on 7th street. The basement, in which the
congregation have been worshiping for the
past two months, is so arranged shat it can
readily be turned into one large room, either
for services should occasion require 1t for
this use, or for Sabbath school room ana
place in which to hold entertainments and
sociables. This is done by means of NOV
able partitions. nearly all of glass and when
closed dividing the space into a main room.
for the intermediate department of the sun
day school; an infant class room and En-
wcrth League gathering place. and pastors
study. From the latter access for the
preacher to the pulpit is by small stairway,
and another and larger staircase leads from
30 t1N,,lN H.
room proper. A striking feature of the main
auditorium is a large dome in the center
the full effect of which is better obtained by
night when the chandelier. which has
just been put in, is lighted. The pulpit is a
the north end, and facing it is a gallery,
which extends in curve around three sides,
thereby considerably increasing the seating
capacity of the church, which, it is thought.
will be pretty close to eight hundred. TIE
furniture of the pulpit and of the pews is
ak of light shade. which harmonic with
tie same wood used in the other parts Of the
auditorium.
The Heating System.
The heat, from a steam boiler, will rot be
carried directly into the church by means
of radiators, as is usually the case, but will
be taken part way by piping and then forced
through the various rooms. including the
auditorium, by large revolving fan. Fresh
air will be obtained from up in the tower.
air from the outside. This feature closely
resembles that used in the Gunton Temple
Memorial Presbyterian Church, on 18th
street.
The cost of the entire structure has been
very close to $1,000 and the sum nee
essary to begin the work of building
was raised on the bond plan, with which all
church-goers are familiar, the congregation
for this purpose turning themselves to
committee of the whole on subscriptions.
The supervision of the work of construction
on the part of the congregation has been in
the hands of a committee of the congrega
ton composed as follows: Chairman, Rev.
John o. Knott, pastor; S. II. Bowman, treas
urer, and Messrs. J. w. Boteler, w. +.
Hummer and J. H. Bell. The architect is
Mr.. Woltz of this city. and the contractor
and builder, I. B. Bursey.
Fifteenth street Church.
The congregation of Fifteenth Street
Church yesterday occupied it's new edi-
flee for the first time. The services Incl
dent however. to the dedication will not be
held at this time, but will take place some
weeks later, as then the entire edifice will
have been fully completed. The event of
yesterday was one of great Importance in
the history of the church. \ sermon was
delivered by the pastor, Rev. w. w. Van
Arsdale, appropriate to the occasion.
The present church is an offspring of Nc
Kendree, as a number of members of the
into d church in a building at the corner of
9TH and p streets northwest. The original
building, a wooden structure. belonging to
Hamline Church, was bought and was re-
moved to the present site. Since 1874 the
church edlfice has remained the same,
with the exception that a small room
of brick was added in the for
the better accommodation of the Sabbath
school and a tower added to the southwest
corner The original name of the church
was Mount Zion Methodist Episcopal
Church, but that was changed some years
ago to the more definite one of Fifteenth
Street NJ. f. Church Though the rules of
the Methodist Church allow of FREQUENT
changes of pastors, and make such change
necessary a least once every five years, Fiji
teonth Street Church has been fortunate in
having small number of pastors, and all
men of ability. Some of them are as fol-
lows: Rev. John NJ. Greene, Rev. l.. c. Null
Ter, Rev. ]. H. Dashiell, Rev. J. N. Davis
and the present pastor, Rev w. w. Van
Arsdale. During the pastorate of Rev. Mr..
Davis the spacious new parsonage adjoin-
ing the church on the east was erected and
is one of the best parsonageS in the city.
Though something was done toward estab-
fishing a building fund during previous pas
torates, it was not until the present one
took hold that anything definite was accom-
plshed. Practically all the money needed
to start the church in the way of subscrp-