Chartered in 1796, the First Unitarian Church congregation was the first continuously functioning church to call itself “Unitarian.” The current church building, constructed in 1886, is considered one the most significant surviving works of notable Philadelphia architect Frank Furness. Designed to stress speech and reason over ritual, the building is cruciform in plan, placing both pulpit and congregation at the center, beneath an exposed hammerbeam roof truss that eliminated the need for internal structural supports. The building also features stained glass by notable artisans including John LaFarge and Louis Comfort Tiffany. Furness’s father, Rev. WH Furness, led the First Unitarian congregation for 50 years prior to the construction of the current building. Rev. Furness was a noted abolitionist, speaking alongside figures such as Frederick Douglass and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. First Unitarian Church has been recognized as the site where Martin Luther King Jr first encountered Mahatma Gandhi’s message of non-violence in 1950.  

Today, First Unitarian Church is active in interfaith social justice advocacy and other community service initiatives including racial, economic, environmental, and immigration justice work.  Their buildings house two childcare centers, a music education program for youth, Spanish language instruction, adult recovery programs, a wide range of rehearsals and performances, community meetings, and High Holy Days services for congregation Leyv Ha’ir. 

A National Fund grant of $250,000 with matching funds of at least $500,000 to be raised by the congregation and its nonprofit friends’ group, Friends of 2125, will support replacement of First Unitarian Church’s deteriorated roof system, including flashings, built-in gutters, pole gutters and downspouts.  

First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia by Joseph Elliott

First Church in Oberlin