153 612 Throckmorton Street [NR], First Christian Church, 1914-15. First Christian Church, the oldest church in Fort Worth, was founded in 1855 and held services in the log home of Dr. and Mrs. Carroll Peak. As it grew, the church moved through a succession of buildings until, under the direction of Rev. L.D. Anderson, who assumed the pastorate in 1912, the decision was made to construct this building. At the time the church, the third largest Disciples of Christ congregation in the world with over 3,000 members, needed additional space for the church ministry. In 1912 the congregation asked architects E.W Van Slyke and Clyde Woodruff (Van Slyke and Woodruff) to design the new Renaissance Revival building. Reinhart and Donovan Co. from Oklahoma City were the general contractors. Constructed in 1914-15, the raised two-story limestone building has a Greek Cross plan with a tower and copper-clad dome at the crossing. Three classical porticos, each with six Corinthian columns, are located on the front and two sides ofthe building. The main entry, on Throckmorton St., has a terraced stairway leading to the main doors flanking a street level entrance. Stained glass windows with representations of the cross and lily are used throughout the structure. The building’s seating, organ case, pulpit furniture, and art glass were all designed by the architects and erected under their supervision. In 1928-29 the church constructed a seven-story Educational Building (CBD 150) to the north of the main church building. That structure was demolished in 1990. The church received an Official Texas Historical Marker commemorating the history of the congregation in 1970, and the church complex was listed on the National Register in 1983.
