April 18, 1863.

Iowa City’s North Presbyterian Church – Today’s Old Brick.

April 18, 1863 – In The State Democratic Press, the members of North Presbyterian call for a Congregational Meeting to discuss the urgent need to finish construction on their church building which began seven years earlier in 1856.

North Presbyterian Church of Iowa City. Under the leadership of Rev. Michael Hummer, construction on their first building began in 1843. It took seven years to complete (1850), but sadly burned to the ground six years later (1856). It’s replacement, completed in 1865 and today known as Old Brick, is one of the few surviving pre-Civil War structures in Iowa City. The steeple was demolished in an 1877 wind storm and was rebuilt with a crenellated belfry, giving Old Brick its distinctive appearance. Last used as a church in 1975, Old Brick was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 28, 1973 as North Presbyterian Church.

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1 thought on “April 18, 1863.

  1. Pingback: April 17, 1979. | Our Iowa Heritage

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