New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-04-21
TO BE THE LARGEST CHURCH ~ THE CIR!
THE BROOKLYN BAPTIST TEMPLE WILL. EXCEED
ANY or THE OTHER HOUSES or WORSHIP.

THE BROOKLYN BAPTIST TEMPLE WILL EXCEED
ANY or THE OTHER HOUSES or WORSHIP
The building 10 be known as the Brooklyn BAPTIST
Temple the cornerstone Of which was laid recently
at Third-ave. and Schermerhorn-st. VIII be the
largest church In the City Of Churches now hat I)r
Talmage's Tabernacle has been destroyed. No
church now existing in the city Will seat more than
200 norsons The Temple Is designed 10 seat 5000
DR. Talmage's Tabernacle in Clnton-ave. seated
about 400 although II claimed that Il would
hold 600 With the sunday school room thrown
open and all the standing room occupied the "Iioe
probably could contain 500 persons. The seating
capacity Of churches is usually exaggerated. The
Rev Mr. Halliday once had the people counted who
PASSED out Of Plymouth Church on certain sun
day In the palmy days Of the preaching o. Mr
Beechcr and found that with the aisle seats all IN
use and every foot of standing room occupied there
were 1000 persons present. The seating capacity
of the pews OF the church Is 800 and the aisle
seats number 900 The seating capacity OF the
former brooklyn Tabernacle in SchcrmoI thorn st.
near whose site the Baptist Temple VIII stand.
was less than 1000 but II usually called much
larger At the time when the pcws In that church
were sold for the first time after II had been
changed from a free church. the writer asked the
late Dr. H. A. Tucker, then president Of the Tabor-
naclc trustees, how many the church actually
seated. "Wcll." said Or. Tucker. with Il twinkle
I'm his eye. Eve had the seating capacity Of the
pews counted and they Will actually hold 2C7i. but
always says it Is 1900. He sees things large"
Aside from plymouth Church the largest churches
in the city the TOmpkins Avenue Congrcga-
tional seating 1000; the Lafayette Avenue IrcSby-
terrain seating 1900; the Marcy Avenue Baptist.
seating 1900; the Central Congregational. seating
1900; St AIMS Episcopal seating 100; the Han
son Pace Methodist seating 1850 St Johns Meth
| odist seating 600. and the Roman Catholic Church
OF SITS. Peter and Paul seating 1900.
! The new Baptist Temple will be built for the
congregation of the First Baptist Church in Pierre
| pont-st which has worshipped in the Academy Of
| Music since the Rev. Cortland Myers became its
pastor a little more than year ago. The former
ediGce at Pierr. pont and Clinton sts sold for
! 5000 900 to the Brooklyn Savings Bank, which has
| erected a bank building upon the site at a cost Of
a quarter OF million Of dollars Directly after the
sale the Rev. Willard Robinson resigned the pas
torate to become Congregational!st. Services
were then held for "A time In the chapel Of the Poly
technic Institute. When the Rev. Mr. Myers was
called from Syracuse he believed that field ex-
! listed for a peoples church in the downtown por-
ton of the city, and it understood that the
Academy of Music to be hired. and If he sue
! ceeded In drawing large audiences spacious
church would be built with the money In hand.
He succeeded In filling the Academy OF Music.
! which seats $50 persons, Last spring site WAS
purchased and plans prepared, but, OWING to some
church ready for at the present time. the work
OF laying the foundations was begun only few
The plans call for a building 100 by l3o feet. and
the main entrance will be at the street corner 1t
will be constructed OF washed brick, trimmed with
| terra Gotta The roof II to be supported solely by
| the side walls and trusses. without columns TO mar
the acoustic qualities The basement floor will be
| devoted to the Sunday-school and social work of
| the church. 1t will be eight feet below the street
| level There will be nine entrances. and the main
auditorium will be reached by two flights OF broad
| steps with landings between at the doOrways.
There viii be n large square tower at ,he corner OF
| the intersectng streets where the church stands
| and large gables in both fronts, so that the lines
will be broken. The architecture is Norman-Gothic
The interior will be arranged on what Is known as
| the Akron plan, and the floor will slope from the
| main entrance TO the pulpit with horseshoe gal