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Pilgrim Congregational Church (1958 - S.431)
 
  INTRODUCTION    DRAWINGS    FLOOR PLAN    MODEL    CONSTRUCION    2015 EXTERIOR    2015 INTERIOR    RELATED ITEMS    BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 

Introduction

     
During a road trip in June of 2015, to acquire Nakoma Golf Resort furniture, with my son and granddaughter, we had the opportunity to visit the Pilgrim Congregational Church, the last church building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The members were very accommodating and generously allowed us access to the interior and grounds.
       In March, 1958, when the church contacted Wright, they were specific in "What our Building Must Express. Preamble: If it is true that architecture reflects the people that produce it, their life, faith, hopes and fears, the following comments will be helpful for the architect's preparation. Two significant items were: A) We believe that creative architecture will make people aware of the resources or our Christian faith.  B) Man, if we correctly evaluate his predicament, fells incomplete, fragmentary, and anxious. Our church ought then to enhance his desire for wholeness, and develop his capacity to fulfill his divine destiny and confer his nature as a potential child of God. Mr. Wright responded, 'Tell the people of the little church that I will help them out.' After the Presentation drawings were presented, Mr. Wright said, 'Now your faith has emotion in it, and so does your building.' " Pilgrim Congregational Church.

       "The legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright continues with the approaching construction of the Pilgrim Congregational Church in Redding, designed by the late architect in 1958. Situated on the crown of a small hill amidst boulders and pine trees, the church, of course, will use natural materials to integrate with the natural beauty of the area. The steeply-pitched roof of the sanctuary will use as its motif the forms of the surrounding conifers. Long precast-concrete poles will rise from a stone base to meet above the sanctuary, supporting a plank roof hung from the apex. Opaque walls will utilize local boulders to tie in even more with the terrain. A great triangular expanse of stained glass will terminate the sanctuary at the crest of the hill..." Progressive Architecture, November 1958.
       After Mr. Wright accepted the commission, John Rattenbury, Anthony Puttman and Aaron Green visited the property. "Rev. Wells, the churches first minister, and church member Clayton Kantz traveled to Taliesin West at Mr. Wright‘s invitation, where he walked them though his design studios, introducing a number of his students, stopping before three different designs... He turned
  to Redding church presentation drawing and said, 'Now, your faith has emotion in it, and so does your building.' With tongue-in-cheek, Mr. Wright referred to the Redding design as 'pole and boulder gothic.' He stated that the design represented the form of a tent, the ancient dwelling of Israel, as a symbol of our temporary, migratory and transient lives." The Building, PCC History.
       Due to the lack of funds, instead of hiring a contractor, the work was accomplished by church members. "The parishioners, including women and children, along with volunteers from the community, picked up hammers and paintbrushes, even borrowed heavy machinery from the nearby Whiskeytown Dam project, and built much of Frank Lloyd Wright’s design themselves." Taliesin apprentice Anthony Puttnam oversaw the construction. Puttnam lived on the site in a small travel trailer until it got too cold, and one of the families from the congregation took him in. The walls contain 91 tons of rock gathered by church members, sometimes loaded in the back of family stationwagons.*
       Nearly sixty years after Wright designed the building, the main and most spectacular portion of the church's design remains unbuilt. The church was comprised of three sections. The center Sanctuary, the Chapel wing, and the Fellowship Hall and administration wing. Only the Fellowship Hall was completed. "Frank Lloyd Wright cautioned his clients, when they wanted to build one section of a building
and then complete it at a future date, they should build the main, or most important, part first. 'Get over the major hurdle first, and then you will always find the means to get over the minor ones," he told them." Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, Frank Lloyd Wright Monograph 1951-1959.
      
The design of the building is based on an equilateral triangle, the triangle being symbolic of the spiritual Trinity. Like Taliesin West's Drafting Room, the exposed exterior supporting beams are an integral part of the buildings design. Here, the roof is suspended below the beams, a unique feature of Wright's design, and the only completed building to utilize this feature. The poles are precast concrete. The east poles begin inside the fellowship hall, continue up and out through the roof.
       The poles on the west side of the Fellowship Hall begin outside the building, cut inside the Fellowship Hall and continue through the roof. Triangles are integrated throughout the whole church's design, and can be seen everywhere you look.
    *The Wright Time," Sue Lang, 2014.
     
     
     
Pilgrim Congregational Church Drawings
 
Perspective of the Pilgrim Congregational Church. The Chapel is on the left, the main Sanctuary is in the foreground. "Pilgrim Congregational Church. Redding, California. Frank Lloyd Wright Architect." Courtesy of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.
 
Detail from original drawing. Courtesy of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.
 
Perspective of the Pilgrim Congregational Church. The Chapel is on the left, the main Sanctuary is in the foreground, the Fellowship Hall is on the right. "Pilgrim Congregational Church. Redding, California. Frank Lloyd Wright Architect." Hand written: "'Pole and Boulder Gothic." Courtesy of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.
 
Detail from original drawing. Courtesy of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.
 
 
 

Pilgrim Congregational Church Floor Plan

 

Frank Lloyd Wright utilized an equilateral triangle module, each side of the triangle equaled four feet. Floor Plan courtesy of William Storrer.

 
Pilgrim Congregational Church floor plan overlaid with equilateral triangles.
 
 
 

Pilgrim Congregational Church Model

 
1) In the lower level of the Pilgrim Congregational Church Fellowship Hall is a model of the Church as Frank Lloyd Wright originally designed it. "Designed in 1958 By Frank Lloyd Wright. Model by The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. August, 2001." The Chapel is on the left, the main Sanctuary is in the foreground, the Fellowship Hall is on the right. The white oval is an amphitheater. The Fellowship Hall wing on the right has been completed. Viewed (as if completed) from the West. Photographed on June 19, 2015 by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
2) Pilgrim Congregational Church Model. Triangles are integrated throughout the whole church's design, and can be seen everywhere you look. The Chapel is on the left, the main Sanctuary is in the foreground, the Fellowship Hall is on the right. The Fellowship Hall on the right has been completed. Viewed (as if completed) from the Northwest. Background modified by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
3) Pilgrim Congregational Church Model. Like Taliesin West's Drafting Room, the exposed exterior supporting beams are an integral part of the buildings design. The Chapel is in the background on the left, the main Sanctuary is in the foreground, the Fellowship Hall is on the right. Viewed (as if completed) from the West. Background modified by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
4) Pilgrim Congregational Church Model. The poles on the west side of the Fellowship Hall begin outside the building, cut inside the fellowship hall and continue through the roof. The main Sanctuary is on the left, the Chapel is in the background, and the Fellowship Hall is in the foreground. Class rooms are on the right. Viewed (as if completed) from the Southwest. Background modified by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
4A) Detail of the Fellowship Hall. The poles on the west side of the Fellowship Hall begin outside the building, cut inside the fellowship hall and continue through the roof.
 
4B Exterior #31) The precast concrete poles on the west side of the Fellowship Hall begin outside the building, cut inside the fellowship hall and continue through the roof.
 
5) Pilgrim Congregational Church Model. The design of the building is based on an equilateral triangle, the triangle being the symbol of the spiritual Trinity. The Fellowship Hall and class rooms are in the foreground. The main Sanctuary is in the center, the Chapel is on the right. Viewed (as if completed) from the Southeast. Background modified by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
5A) Detail of the completed section of the complex, the Fellowship Hall and class rooms.
 
6) Pilgrim Congregational Church Model. Frank Lloyd Wright designed the main entrance as the focal point of the complex. The roof is suspended below the beams, a unique feature of his Wright design, and the only completed building to utilize this feature. Viewed (as if completed) from the Southeast. Background modified by Douglas M. Steiner.
 
6A) Detail of the main entrance Pilgrim Congregational Church.
Photographs by Douglas M. Steiner, copyright 2016.
 
 
 
Pilgrim Congregational Church Construction
 
1) Pilgrim Congregational Church under construction, viewed from the Southeast. Concrete beams have been installed. Courtesy of Pilgrim Congregational Church.
 
2) Pilgrim Congregational Church under construction, viewed from the Southeast. Work has begun on the roof. Courtesy of Pilgrim Congregational Church.
 
3) Pilgrim Congregational Church under construction, viewed from the Northeast. Work continues on the concrete rubble walls. Courtesy of Pilgrim Congregational Church.
 
 
 

Pilgrim Congregational Church Model

   
Date: 2015

Title: Pilgrim Congregational Church Model (1958 - S.431) photographed on June 19, 2015.

Description: Set of 6 photographs of the Pilgrim Congregational Church model, June, 2015. In the lower level of the Pilgrim Congregational Church Fellowship Hall is a model of the Church as Frank Lloyd Wright originally designed it. "Designed in 1958 By Frank Lloyd Wright. Model by The Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. August, 2001." Triangles are integrated throughout the whole church's design, and can be seen everywhere you look. Like Taliesin West's Drafting Room...  Continue...

Size: 20 x 14 high res digital color photographs.

ST#: 2015.17.0615 (1-6)
   


  (See additional photographs.)
   
   
 
Pilgrim Congregational Church Exterior - By Douglas M. Steiner (2015)
   
Date: 2015

Title: Pilgrim Congregational Church Exterior (1958 - S.431) photographed on June 19, 2015.

Description: Set of 68 images of the exterior of the Pilgrim Congregational Church photographed on June 19, 2015. The Fellowship Hall is set on a hillside, so as you approach the church from the parking lot, the church is below you. The roof is suspended below the beams, a unique feature of this Wright design, and the only completed building to utilize this feature. The precast concrete poles at the entry are on the exterior of the building, those to the South begin on the interior of the fellowship Hall and continue up and out through the roof. The rubble masonry walls are constructed of natural stone set in concrete...  Continue...

Size: 20 x 14 high res digital color photographs.

ST#: 2015.15.0615 (1-68)
   
 
 
  (See additional photographs.)
   
   
   
Pilgrim Congregational Church Interior - By Douglas M. Steiner (2015)
   
Date: 2015

Title: Pilgrim Congregational Church Interior (1958 - S.431) photographed on June 19, 2015.

Description: Set of 23 images of the exterior of the Pilgrim Congregational Church photographed on June 19, 2015. The Concrete beams on the East side of the Fellowship Hall begin on the interior of the building. Concrete beams on the West side  begin outside, cut through the wall, then continue though the roof. The floor is tinted Cherokee red. Low stairs lead up to the Sanctuary. A fireplace is set into the two-story rubble stone mass. The hexagon ceiling lights are created with six equilateral triangles then set within triangles. Clerestory stained glass windows, created with "Slag" or chunks of glass, are...  Continue...

Size: 20 x 14 high res digital color photographs.

ST#: 2015.16.0615 (1-23)
   


  (See additional photographs.)
   
   
 
Pilgrim Congregational Church
 
Date: 1962

Title: Wright at 88. 1955. Press photograph for "Architecture: Man in Possession of His Earth".

Description: Includes three images. 1) V. C. Morris Gift Shop (S.310 - 1948). Caption on face below image; "Interior of Morris store, San Francisco (Maynard L. Parker)." Originally photographed in 1948. 2) Mr. And Mrs. Frank Lloyd Wright in a horse draw carriage, 1955. Caption on face below image; "Mr. And Mrs. Frank Lloyd Wright (John Engstead). Photographed by John Engstead, it appears that Wright is wearing the same suit, tie and handkerchief as he did when he was photographed on June 8, 1955 for his 88th birthday. She has changed her outfit. On June 8th, Engstead photographed images for the November 1955 issue of House Beautiful, published on page 243, bottom left.  3) Rendering of the Pilgrim Congregational Church (Project 1958). Caption on face below image; "Architect’s rendering of Pilgrim Congregational Church – Redding, California." Caption pasted on verso; "Memoir from a Master Builder. Frank Lloyd Wright’s last book, "Architecture: Man in Possession of His Earth," explains architecture in terms of building materials (Doubleday, $5.95). Prefaced by a biography of the late architect by his daughter, Iovanna Lloyd Wright, the volume is illustrated throughout with sketches, renderings, and photographs. Picture Release Date: November 2, 1962. Book Release Date: November 9, 1962. From: Louise Thomas. Doubleday & Co., 575 Madison Ave., N.Y. 22, N.Y. MU8-5300.)

Size: Original 8 x 10 B&W photograph.

1496.03.1210

 

   
Date: 1990

Title: Pilgrim Congregational Church

Description: "Pilgrim Congregational Church, 2850 Foothill Boulevard, P.O. 993183, Redding, CA 96099-3183, (530) 243-1233. Provided by Olan Mills Directory Division." Circa 1990. (S.431 - 1958)

Size: 5.5 x 3.5

ST#: 1990.74.0809

   
Date: 1992

Title: The Building of Pilgrim Congregational Church, 1957-1967, Redding California (Soft Cover) (Published by Pilgrim Congregational Church, Redding, California)


Author: Ashbaugh, Barbara L.

Description:
"...Committee members traveled to the city to meet Mr. Wright when his renderings for the Marin Civic Center were made public. As Ray Wells recalls, Meeting Frank Lloyd Wright was quite a thrill. He was exceedingly deferential to this young minister. I was about as naive as he was arrogant, but he reaches across and tapped my knee as we sat in a tight circle in Aaron's office and said, ‘Well Domini,' A familiar Scottish term for a reverend - ‘how long do you suppose we'll keep building churches?' Obviously, a spirited conversation followed, and we had to work at getting back to the reason for which we came..."

Size: 8.5 x 11

Pages: Pp 14

ST#:
1992.107.0615
   
   
   
Pilgrim Congregational Church Bibliography
 
"Progressive Architecture," November, 1958, p.70.
"Architecture: Man in Possession of His Earth," Wright, 1962, p.126-127.
"The Drawings of Frank Lloyd Wright," Drexler, 1962, Plate 239.
"Frank Lloyd Wright Monograph 1951-1959," Vol. 8, Text: Pfeiffer; Edited and Photographed: Futagawa, 1990, p.356-359.
"The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion," Storrer, 1993, p.463.
"Details of Frank Lloyd Wright, The California Work 1909-1974," Dunham, 1994, p.136-139.
"The California Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright," Gebhard, 1997, p.116-119.
"Frank Lloyd Wright - Field Guide," Heinz, 2005, p.22.
"Frank Lloyd Wright. The Buildings," Hess, 2008, p.282-287.
 
 
 

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