St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church // 1860

St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church is a landmark Gothic Revival church in Providence, Rhode Island, built in 1860 from plans by famed architect, Richard Upjohn. Constructed of gray stone with brownstone trim, the church is unique for its siting with the nave/long-side parallel to the street. The church was built for the local congregation, who two decades earlier, constructed the original St. Stephen’s Church on Benefit Street (now home to the Barker Playhouse), but sought to relocate to a more central location and in a more substantial building. With its entrance at one end and tower at the other, the nave is lined with a row of four gabled bays with lancet windows connecting the two. The church was modified over time, with Upjohn’s original intention for a 180-foot stone tower never undertaken, it would be capped by a copper-clad conical spire in 1900 from architects, Hoppin and Ely. The chancel was remodeled in 1882 by Henry Vaughan, and the Tudor Revival style Guild House immediately west of the church was built in the late 1890s Martin & Hall, architects. The congregation continues to this day, and preserves this significant building fitting of an English estate.

Unity Church of North Easton // 1875

The Unity Church of North Easton, Massachusetts looks like it could stand toe-to-toe architecturally with the large churches in major American cities. The church was a gift to the Unitarian Society in town, by Oliver Ames II, who hired renowned Gothic architect Henry Vaughan to design a chapel, worthy of the town’s wealth. The church contains various tablets and memorials to the Ames Family, with stunning stained glass windows by John LaFarge, recently restored by the church! Behind the grounds is the cemetery where many of the Ames family members are buried.