#old brick

[sagent-of-chaos]

im not leaving without you

[pamwmsn]

Wonderful tabby and old brick fireplace. Tybee Island GA.

[cheapshell]

[scrapxrat]

Patio - Outdoor Kitchen Picture of a large farmhouse backyard patio kitchen

[k-wame]

PAUL NEWMAN as Brick Pollitt Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958) dir. Richard Brooks

[tweitzelposts]

History and Architecture Quiz Answer

The answer is Old Brick.

Just north of the central part of Iowa City and located on the eastern edge of the University of Iowa campus stands a red brick church building we now call Old Brick.  It is one of the oldest in Iowa City and is the oldest surviving church building. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

Old Brick was constructed in an eclectic Romanesque revival style between 1856 and 1865. Following the derecho of July of 1877, the tall steeple that was destroyed needed to be replaced. A square crenelated parapet was installed making the tower look like a castle from the Middle Ages of Europe. Various other details blend a sixteenth century church floor plan with revivalist themes from Norman Period and the High Middle Ages.

The building was constructed for the North Presbyterian Church. The congregation of this church organized in 1840 and was the first Presbyterian congregation in Iowa City, so their buildings were also known as First Presbyterian. The congregation also appears in histories as the “Old School” church. There is a lot to unpack there, and critical discussion of the schism that led to Old and New School Presbyterian churches is valid but will not take place here. It is enough to note that the schism in the North was resolved by 1869.

It’s not clear at this time what role the individuals that were members in the First Presbyterian Church played in the change in Iowa that occurred in the decades leading to the Civil War, but since the new church building was not completed until after the end of the Civil War it likely played no great part in events surrounding the war or its related movements such as Freedom seekers passing through Iowa City on the way to Chicago or Canada.

In the decades following the Civil War, the polymath Professor Samuel Calvin was a member of First Presbyterian church and he took some of the first aerial photographs of Iowa City from the top of the tower.  But the building is more than a symbol of the Nineteenth Century. Old Brick is also the living record of the contemporary historic preservation moment in Iowa City. 

A short version of the story of saving Old Brick goes as follows. By the late 1960s, the First Presbyterian Church had a new pastor and many members of the congregation wanted to move to a new building. Iowa City was undergoing urban renewal and demolition of old buildings was very common. The appeal of the suburbs probably was at its greatest since the major expansion of suburban styled subdivisions in Iowa City during the first decades of the twentieth century. The church decided to move to a new location on the edge of the built up area of town, offering to demolish the building to more easily find a buyer of the property. 

In a series of events worthy of a novel or movie adaptation a story unfolded in the local, state, and, at one point, the national press. There were many players including multiple parts of the State government, sometimes working across purposes. University professors from two universities, the The University of Iowa administration, the Iowa Board of Regents, The Iowa Division of Historic Preservation, as well as members of two church congregations and other members of the Iowa City community organized in three different groups all played a role. For the promotional reel, pan in on two members of the church as they nail grievances to the door and then are later excommunicated for causing a disruption. The Iowa Division of Historic Preservation ultimately was a major broker of the final negotiation as were a group that included lawyers and concerned citizens who were vocal in the press and the courts.  Again, there is much to tell here at another place or time. 

Today, Old Brick is a good example of adaptive reuse of a historic building. Operated by the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, the main hall, the former sanctuary, serves as an events space sought after by many. The former classrooms and offices serve as low cost rental space for nonprofit organizations.

Links for Old Brick and Friends of Historic Preservation

Old Brick website https://oldbrick.org/

Friends of Historic Preservation https://www.ic-fhp.org/about

Sources

Clarence Ray Aurner, Leading Events in Johnson County, Iowa History. Volume 1. Cedar Rapids, IA: Western Historical Press, 1912, pp. 311–322

Clarence Ray Aurner, Leading Events in Johnson County, Iowa History. Volume 2. Cedar Rapids, IA: Western Historical Press, 1913, pp. 366–367

Daily Iowan, Nov. 23, 1967, p. 1

Daily Iowan, Jan 1, 1974, p. 1

Iowa City’s Friends of Historic Preservation: Their First 25 Years. Iowa City: Friends of Historic Preservation, 2001. 

Joseph Hubbard, Chair. The Presbyterian Church in Iowa, 1837–1900: History. Cedar Rapids: Committee of Synod of Iowa, 1907, p. 3 

Mrs. Joseph E. [Tillie] Baker, North Presbyterian Church. National Register Nomination Form ID 73000730, Washington, D.C.: Keeper of the Register, National Park Service, 1973

This essay relates to the quiz questions posted on March 14, 2023 and was written by Tim Weitzel.

CC-BY-NC 4.0 or by standard written permission from the author.

[eagleflieswiththedove]

Contemporary Exterior in Houston Large trendy two-story brick house exterior photo with a clipped gable roof and a shingle roof

[royaltea000]

POV they just told their da shixiong on you

[arkarti]

“Is this what you needed me for?” William said breathlessly. “You should do that more often. I’m eager to help.”

Jealous Henry real and out now 😳

[oscar-out-of-a-suitcase]

Chernivtsi, Ukraine

[lesbianslugreaction]

T-shirt that says I ♥️ M. Mabeuf from the 1862 hit novel Les Misérables

[sagent-of-chaos]

porcelain ceiling

[pamwmsn]

Fireplace in old brick wall.

[darkwood-sleddog]

i really gotta wonder what goes through the heads of people that are adopt don't shop EXCEPT when it comes to service dogs. as if this somehow makes them noble? as if service dog users are the only people in the world that deserve dogs with stable temperaments or dogs that are bred with thought towards their health and structure? it's a really bizarre way of thinking that really, to me, harkens to the ARAs that are anti sled dogs until it's somebody doing it for fun only or until you mention indigenous people. are you so afraid of looking ignorant for your ill held beliefs? is challenging your currently held beliefs about what's 'morally right' for dogs that uncomfortable?

there are so many other jobs that dogs currently DO for us that require balanced, stable, healthy, purposeful dogs (including companionship!) and on top of all this dogs deserve to exist with thought and care put towards their existence. Dogs do not deserve to only exist if they're random happenstances from backroad strays or somebody's ill conceived backyard litter with zero health testing. dogs deserve responsible breeding just as much as humans deserve to have dogs with responsible breeding. how is this remotely hard to grasp?

[winters-rose-daughterofcain]

Oh you think I'm autistic now? You haven't seen me talk about my little french musical and the brick it came from I can get so, so much worse.

[k-wame]

PAUL NEWMAN as Brick Pollitt Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958) dir. Richard Brooks