Time Machine: St. Andrew’s fire

Arson suspected in gutting of Cedar Rapids church built in 1911

One of the front doors of the old St. Andrew’s Evangelical United Brethren Church, at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street SE in Cedar Rapids, stands ajar in the winter of 1966, shortly before its demolition. The church, built in 1911, was closed in 1961 and then gutted by fire in 1964. (Gazette archives)

A 1964 fire destroyed the building that had formerly housed St. Andrew’s Evangelical United Brethren Church in Cedar Rapids, one of the city’s oldest churches.

The Church of the United Brethren was formed in 1800 after Mennonite pastor Martin Boehm and Reformed pastor William Otterbein met in Pennsylvania. The Iowa Conference was organized in 1845, a year before Iowa became a state.

The First United Brethren congregation in Cedar Rapids was organized in 1869. Members met on the third floor of an office building on First Street West. Ten years later, in the spring of 1879, they secured land to build a church at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street SE under the leadership of the Rev. M.R. Drury.

This drawing of the original First United Brethren Church, at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street SE in Cedar Rapids, was published in The Gazette on Jan. 1, 1901. Bishop Milton Wright and his sons, Orville and Wilbur, who went on to fame as aviation pioneers, helped build the church. A small portion of the building was preserved when the church was rebuilt and enlarged in 1910. (Gazette archives)

Among the church’s members was Bishop Milton Wright, father of the famous Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville, and bishop of the church district that included Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas and the Dakotas. Wright lived in Cedar Rapids with his family from 1878 to 1881 and aided in building the church.

Church rebuilt

In July 1910, contracts were let to rebuild the church, with A.J. Smith as principal contractor. Ground was broken July 18. After the foundation was set for the new part, the old building was demolished and what was left was incorporated into the new building.

Attending the groundbreaking was Louise Smith, the mother of contractor Smith. She was recognized as being one of the oldest charter members of the church.

“She belonged to the first United Brethren society ever organized in this city,” The Gazette reported. “This society existed before the war (World War I) and worshipped in a private home that stood where the present Union Station (on Fourth Street between Fourth and Sixth avenues) now stands.”

While construction was underway, the congregation met in the public library auditorium.

The rebuilt and enlarged First United Brethren Church, at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street SE in Cedar Rapids, was dedicated Feb. 26, 1911, with the Rev. B.J. Clark as pastor. This photo ran with The Gazette story about the church the day before. (Gazette archives)

The church, built of sand brick and Bedford-cut limestone, was dedicated Feb. 26, 1911, although the lower floor already had been used for services for several weeks.

The building was all above ground. A 38-foot-square meeting room, classrooms and kitchen were on the first floor. Upstairs, the 64-by-30-foot auditorium, with a gallery, seated 150. A pastor’s study and choir room also were on that floor.

The church had six stairways between floors, and all the furnishings were oak.

Of the many stained-glass windows, the largest faced Seventh Street and depicted “Christ, the Good Shepherd.” The Fourth Avenue window was “Christ Knocking at the Door.” The window at the rear, above the choir gallery, was “Christ in Gethsemane.” It was dedicated to Louisa Smith.

Three windows graced each side of the church, all memorials to former pastors.

This Gazette photo was taken shortly before the former St. Andrew’s Evangelical United Brethren Church was demolished in the winter of 1966. The building, at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street SE in Cedar Rapids, was gutted by fire in August 1964 when it had been occupied by the Citizen-Times weekly newspaper. (Gazette archives)

Mergers

In November 1946, First United Brethren, First Evangelical and Second Evangelical churches merged and formed the Evangelical United Brethren denomination.

The following January, First United Brethren changed its name to St. Andrew’s United Brethren. First Evangelical church became Salem United Brethren and Second Evangelical became Sharon United Brethren.

In 1959, St. Andrew’s asked the Rev. Dr. W.Z. Henline to come to Cedar Rapids to help the congregation figure out the future of the church.

After two years of surveys by church trustees and committees and consultations with builders and architects, the congregation voted to close the church in 1961. There were three other Evangelical United Brethren churches in Cedar Rapids, and St. Andrew’s needed major repair and renovation.

The last Sunday service for the 92-year-old congregation was May 14, 1961.

In 1968, the Evangelical United Brethren and Methodist denominations merged to form the United Methodist denomination. First Evangelical became Salem United Methodist Church, and Second Evangelical became Sharon United Methodist Church, both of which continue operating today.

This Gazette photo was taken shortly before the former St. Andrew’s Evangelical United Brethren Church of Cedar Rapids was razed in the winter of 1966. A 1964 fire gutted the church building, one of the oldest in the city, after the congregation had closed it and sold the building. (Gazette archives)

Building sale, fire

The congregation sold the now-empty St. Andrew’s building to Tony Catanzaro, who then sold it to Fred Burchard in August 1963. Burchard leased it in the spring of 1964 to a weekly newspaper, the Citizen-Times, owned by Thomas Kuncl and Lee Grant.

In August, fire broke out in a closed-off area of the building where the church altar had once stood.

It took about 35 minutes for firefighters to bring the fire under control, but the interior was gutted. Damage was estimated at $100,000 — almost $1 million in today’s dollars.

Fire Chief Jesse Hunter and State Fire Marshal Wilbur Johnson inspected the ruins. Hunter pointed out that there were numerous drop cords in the building and the rewiring had not been completed.

After consulting with Bud Hoffman, investigator for the National Board of Fire Underwriters, the two officials labeled the fire as arson.

Grant, one of the weekly newspaper owners, was indicted Oct. 14 but acquitted after a 1966 jury trial. He was back in court in September 1967 in connection with what was called “Iowa’s biggest counterfeiting scheme,” accused of printing fake money on the old Citizen-Times press.

Kuncl, the other weekly newspaper owner, went on to work for the Quad-City Times before becoming executive editor of the National Enquirer tabloid.

The former St. Andrew’s structure stood derelict for two years. It was demolished during the winter of 1966. The site is now a parking lot in the MedQuarter.

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