First Community Church/Chapel

The only option for attending religious services in the Grandview Heights/Marble Cliff area in the late 1800s and early 1900s was to take a trolley to downtown Columbus where all churches were located at the time. To avoid the lengthy trip, GH/MC residents began holding Sunday school classes in a local school, nearby yards, and front porches. Soon the community determined there was a need for a church, and the Grandview Heights Congregational Church was founded in 1910. The young congregation flourished especially under the leadership of the Reverend Oliver Weist. In addition to serving the spiritual needs of his flock, Weist believed that a church should also meet the social needs of all people within the surrounding community. Thus, the church started a library and newspaper, organized an orchestra and choir, showed movies, instigated Field Days, and provided a meeting place for Scout troops, a Men’s Brotherhood and a Women’s Guild which were open to everyone. Because of the high level of involvement in every facet of community life, this congregation felt that they were indeed “the community church”. The name became official in 1919 when the congregation chose to become non-denominational and reorganized.    

The 1-story original chapel facing Lincoln Road is constructed of native limestone with a full basement and balcony. The architectural style is Romanesque with wall buttresses. An oculus window on the south (First Avenue) side lights the balcony. A brass plaque on an interior stair landing lists the name of all men from the congregation who served in World War I. The belfry bell loudly announced victory at the end of World War II. The chapel was dedicated in 1911. 

A large, new church was built on Cambridge Boulevard and dedicated in 1926. The innovative ministries of Dr. Roy Burkhart (1935-1957) brought new vigor and insights to the congregation. An article in the February 5, 1949 Saturday Evening Post noted that 96% of the high school students in Grandview and Arlington attended its youth programs. In 1950 it was named as one of the 12 great churches in America in a poll of 100,000 clergymen conducted by The Christian Century. Through the years members became involved in a variety of new ministries - Village Little Theater, Vaudvillities, The Tri-Village Trading Post, Pastoral Counseling Center, etc. Today First Community Church is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and The Christian Church, and the buildings on Cambridge Boulevard and Lincoln Road constitute the church’s “South” campus.  A new Atrium and Welcome Center were added to the south (First Avenue) side of the church and opened in 2018.   

Original Lincoln Road Chapel (1910)

Interior of the chapel (circa 1920). 

First Community Church, 

Rev. Weist directing First Community Church men’s chorus (1921)

Construction of chapel on Lincoln Road in 1911 with stone brought in by horse-drawn carts from nearby quarries.