Unity Temple

Unity Temple is a Unitarian Universalist church building that houses the Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation at 875 Lake Street in Oak Park, Illinois, United States. The structure, designed by the architect Frank Lloyd Wright in the Prairie style, is cited as an early example of modern architecture.<ref name="The Manchester Guardian 1939" /> The building consists of an auditorium to the north and a church house called Unity House to the south. The two sections, and an entrance pavilion between them, are all made of reinforced concrete.

The congregation was formed as the Unity Church of Oak Park in 1871. It originally occupied a Gothic Revival building and went through several pastors in its first two decades. Rodney Johonnot, who became the senior pastor in 1892, began planning a replacement structure in the early 1900s. After the original church burned down in 1905, the board of trustees selected a site on Lake Street and hired Wright to design a new building, Unity Temple. Wright's plans were approved in 1906 after much debate, and construction began on May 15 of that year. After various delays, Unity House opened in September 1907, and the auditorium was finished in October 1908; the church was dedicated on September 26, 1909. Over the years, the temple attracted visitors from around the U.S. and worldwide. The church was restored in the 1960s, and it gradually underwent further upgrades from the 1970s to the 2000s. Unity Temple was completely refurbished from 2015 to 2017.

The temple is decorated with abstract motifs instead of overtly religious imagery. The facade is made of Portland cement, which has been washed away to expose the gravel underneath; there are recessed clerestory windows near the top. Unlike contemporary churches, Unity Temple was designed without a spire; instead, the roof consists of multiple flat, overhanging concrete slabs. The auditorium is shaped like a Greek cross, with stair towers at each corner. It has two levels of seating surrounding a central pulpit, in addition to clerestories and skylights. Unity House has skylights and two balconies.

Unity Temple has received extensive architectural commentary over the years, and it has been the subject of many media works, including books and museum exhibits. Its design is credited with having helped inspire multiple architects. Unity Temple is designated as a National Historic Landmark and is part of The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, a World Heritage Site.

Early history

Eleven members of the Union Church—a liberal Protestant congregation in Oak Park, a village in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois—met on January 25, 1871, to discuss the formation of a new congregation.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves p. 100">Template:Harvnb</ref> E. W. Hoard hosted a meeting to raise money for a church building,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Sokol p. 7">Template:Harvnb</ref> collecting more than $5,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 100" /><ref name="Sokol p. 7" /> Unity Church of Oak Park, a non-denominational church, was formed that March.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 100" /><ref name="Sokol p. 7" /> The congregation acquired land at the southwest corner of Wisconsin Avenue (later Pleasant Street) and Marion Street, south of the Union Pacific West railroad line, from Milton C. Niles.<ref name="Sokol p. 7" /> The treasurer, Edwin O. Gale, provided $5,600, or nearly half of the $13,689 cost.<ref name="Sokol pp. 7–82">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur It is unknown who designed the original church, which was built in the Gothic Revival style.<ref name="Sokol pp. 7–82" /><ref name="Siry p. 52">Template:Harvnb</ref> The original church was a Template:Convert rectangle topped by a Template:Convert spire.<ref name="Siry p. 52" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1872">Template:Cite news</ref> Inside was a ground-level parish hall with an auditorium above it;<ref name="Siry p. 52" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 10">Template:Harvnb</ref> a Chicago Tribune article from 1872 described the church as having a stone foundation and wood frame.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1872" /> Within the auditorium was a raised pulpit and rows of seats bisected by a central aisle.<ref name="Siry p. 52" />

Work on the new church began in early 1871, and the basement was finished later that year.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 100" /> A consecration ceremony was held on August 11, 1872.<ref name="Sokol pp. 7–82" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1872" /> In its early years, the congregation was composed of Universalists and Unitarians.<ref name="Sokol p. 9" /> As such, the church went through several pastors in its first decade. In 1882, some of the congregation's Universalist members formed a sub-congregation affiliated with the Universalist Church of America; the congregation at large remained unaffiliated with any denomination.<ref name="Sokol p. 9">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101">Template:Harvnb</ref> After going through six pastors in fifteen years,<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" /> the church selected Augusta Jane Chapin as its pastor in 1886.<ref name="Sokol p. 9" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During Chapin's tenure, Anna Jones Wright, the mother of the architect Frank Lloyd Wright, joined the congregation.<ref name="Siry p. 52" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Chapin left the congregation in December 1891,<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" /> and Rodney Johonnot became the senior pastor the next year.<ref name="Siry p. 52; Sokol p. 12">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> During Johonnot's first four years, the congregation grew to 225 members.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> A church organ was installed in 1897.<ref name="Siry p. 52" /><ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" /> The congregation had decided to build a new structure by March 1901, when members voted to establish a fund for the construction of a new temple.<ref name="Siry p. 59">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sokol pp. 13–14">Template:Harvnb</ref> Johonott felt that the existing building could not accommodate all of the congregation's activities.<ref name="Sokol pp. 13–14" /> The congregation hired H. P. Harned to design a new structure on the existing site, south of the railroad tracks.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> By then, numerous churches were being built in Oak Park,<ref name="Siry p. 59" /> and many of the newer churches were being built on Lake Street, north of the tracks.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> In December 1904, the board of trustees again asked the congregation for donations for a new temple.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Following a meeting in May 1905,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> a committee was appointed to discuss plans for the new building.<ref name="Siry p. 70; Sokol p. 18">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref>

Temple development

The original Unity Church was destroyed on June 4, 1905, when a lightning strike started a blaze;<ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="The Inter Ocean 1905">Template:Cite news</ref> firefighters were unable to extinguish the flames because of low water pressure.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" /><ref name="Siry p. 70; Sokol p. 18" /> The fire caused about $20,000 in damage<ref name="The Inter Ocean 1905" />Template:Efn-ur and destroyed everything except for the piano, chairs, paintings, dishes, and utensils.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Within one week, the congregation had appointed four committees to oversee fundraising, site selection, design, and construction.<ref name="Siry pp. 70—71; Sokol pp. 20–21">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves pp. 101–102">Template:Harvnb</ref> In the meantime, the congregation temporarily met at Nakama Hall.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" /><ref name="Sokol p. 25">Template:Harvnb</ref> The nearby First Baptist Church also hosted some of the congregation's events.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />

Selection of site and architect

File:Oak park unity temple.jpg

The temple as seen from Lake Street and Kenilworth Avenue

Initially, it was estimated that the new building would cost $50,000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn-ur The fundraising committee requested donations from various sources,<ref name="Sokol p. 22">Template:Harvnb</ref> while the site selection committee recommended that the new temple be built "in some place more central".<ref name="Siry pp. 70—71; Sokol pp. 20–21" /> At the time, two-thirds of the congregation lived south of Lake Street, but congregants favored a site near that street; only one person preferred to keep the existing site.<ref name="Sokol pp. 23–24">Template:Harvnb</ref> The committee considered several locations throughout the village.<ref name="Sokol pp. 23–24" /><ref name="Siry p. 71" /> Two of these sites were located at Lake Street and Kenilworth Avenue: a private house on the southwestern corner, and a vacant lot owned by Gale on the southeastern corner.<ref name="Siry p. 71">Template:Harvnb</ref> In early August 1905, the congregation paid Gale $10,000<ref name="Siry p. 71" /><ref name="Sokol p. 24">Template:Harvnb</ref> or $11,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves pp. 101–102" />Template:Efn-ur The tract measured Template:Convert along Kenilworth Avenue and either Template:Convert<ref name="Siry p. 71" /> or Template:Convert along Lake Street.<ref name="Sokol p. 24" /> The site complemented the nearby First Presbyterian and Grace Episcopal churches slightly to the west.<ref name="Siry p. 71" /><ref name="Sokol p. 25" />

When the site was selected, the congregation had raised $30,000 toward the new building,<ref name="Sokol p. 25" />Template:Efn-ur and they began searching for an architect shortly afterward.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> On August 30, the planning committee met with nine architects, selecting four finalists: Frank Lloyd Wright, Dwight H. Perkins, William Augustus Otis, and Normand Smith Patton.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> At their September meeting, Unity Church's board of trustees voted to allow the planning committee to select an architect.<ref name="Sokol p. 37" /> This person was to draw up plans for an edifice costing no more than $30,000.<ref name="Sokol p. 37">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Siry p. 74">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Wright had been selected by mid-September.<ref name="Siry p. 73">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sokol p. 39">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="The Construction News 1905">Template:Cite news</ref> The engineer Charles E. Roberts, who led the church's building committee, had influenced the church's decision to select Wright.<ref name="Siry p. 73" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1957c">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to Wright, the board had considered hosting an architectural design competition (which he would have refused to join),<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957c" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> but the historian Joseph Siry writes that there is no evidence that the board ever considered such a competition.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Construction News reported that the temple would cost $35,000 and would be a one-story, brick-and-stone edifice.<ref name="The Construction News 1905" /><ref name="Siry p. 108">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur Though Wright may have considered using brick, this was never recorded in his plans.<ref name="Siry p. 108" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright instead proposed using concrete to save money,<ref name="Siry p. 108" /><ref name="Wright p. 154">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Saint p. 162">Template:Harvnb</ref> since, at the time, the church had only $45,000 on hand.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /><ref name="Siry p. 108" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1964a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Efn-ur The temple was the first public building that Wright designed by himself.<ref name="Jeffrey b0492">Template:Cite news</ref>

Design

Original plans

The trustees mandated that the new house of worship include a sanctuary for worship, a meeting room for secular events, and a classroom for the Sunday school.<ref name="Siry p. 74" /><ref name="Siry pp. 81–83">Template:Harvnb</ref> Furthermore, as Lake Street was a major street, Wright had to design a monumental building that would also fit the church's budget.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957c" /> Many of the original drawings have been lost or destroyed,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /> but Wright extensively documented his thought process in his autobiography.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Wright wrote that Johonnot had wanted a "Mission"-style building,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and he avoided traditional church architecture, instead proposing to the planning committee a "temple to man ... in which to study man himself for his God's sake".<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sawyers y222">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the early plans, the temple's northern wall was aligned with the house to the east (which was set back Template:Convert from Lake Street), and the north–south axis was aligned with the house to the south.<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /> Wright created physical drawings only after extensively refining the plans mentally.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> He also produced a plaster model of the temple, which he presented to the planning committee.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

The entrance to the main sanctuary, known as the auditorium, was intentionally positioned away from the streetcar lines on Lake Street.<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /><ref name="Wright pp. 154–155" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1957b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Wright did not want to put the meeting room and Sunday school in the auditorium, as he felt that it would "spoil the simplicity of the room".<ref name="Wright pp. 154–155" /><ref name="Sokol p. 59">Template:Harvnb</ref> Accordingly, these rooms were instead placed in a separate church house called Unity House,<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /><ref name="Wright pp. 154–155">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sokol p. 59" /> which was linked to the auditorium by a central entrance hall.<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Having decided upon the site layout, Wright next designed the cube-shaped auditorium.<ref name="Siry pp. 96–97">Template:Harvnb</ref> Some preliminary drawings for the auditorium still exist. These include Scheme A, which called for 388 seats facing a pulpit on the south wall, and the rejected Scheme B, which called for 478 seats facing the north wall.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Design changes

File:Unity Temple - Oak Park IL 16 (3224994948).jpg

The auditorium's skylights

In December 1905, the planning committee received Wright's plans and recommended that the board of trustees approve them.<ref name="Siry p. 74" /><ref name="Sokol p. 39" /> The same month, Gale gave the congregation a Template:Convert strip of land on Kenilworth Avenue.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> By the beginning of 1906, the site of the original building had been sold for $6,500.<ref name="Sokol p. 45" />Template:Efn-ur The congregation decided to proceed with construction, even though it had received only one bid for the general contract, which exceeded the church's budget by $8–10 thousand.<ref name="Sokol p. 45">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur Thomas Skillin, who led the board of trustees, reported that the temple was to cost $40,000 but that there was only $31,000 available.<ref name="Sokol p. 47">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur The trustees considered modifying the plans, splitting work into two phases, or borrowing money.<ref name="Sokol p. 47" /> Wright offered to reduce the cost to $35,000Template:Efn-ur by revising the plans and deferring installation of the furnishings.<ref name="Siry p. 128">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Skillin objected that the auditorium was too small and dark.<ref name="Cypret 1975b">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Siry p. 128; Sokol p. 52" /> At its meeting on January 18, 1906, the board asked Skillin and Johonnot to discuss possible modifications with Wright.<ref name="Siry p. 128; Sokol p. 52">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Subsequently, Wright revised the auditorium's design,<ref name="Siry pp. 129—130; Sokol pp. 52–54">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and he invited 75 members of the congregation to see the drawings and models for Unity Temple at his studio.<ref name="Siry p. 128" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 19910807">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The board approved Wright's revisions on February 7,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /><ref name="Siry pp. 129—130; Sokol pp. 52–54" /> on the condition that no more than $36,200 be spent.<ref name="Siry pp. 129—130; Sokol pp. 52–54" />Template:Efn-ur Details of the design were reported in the local media on February 24,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> and a brochure describing the final plan was published on March 4.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright's assistant Charles E. White Jr. said the planning process had been marked by "endless fighting".<ref name="Siry p. 130">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Schrenk p. 151">Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright continued refining the design details even after the final plans were accepted and (in some cases) partially completed.<ref name="Siry p. 137">Template:Harvnb</ref> Despite initial objections to Wright's design, Oak Park residents eventually came to like it.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19910807" />

Construction

Early construction

It took weeks to find a general contractor.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Most of the bids that church officials did receive were significantly over budget, probably because of the unconventional nature of the concrete design,<ref name="Siry p. 138">Template:Harvnb</ref> which drove many contractors away.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1964a" /> Contractors found it difficult to decipher Wright's plans, which did not resemble standard blueprints.<ref name="Siry p. 138" /> Paul Mueller, who had previously built Wright's E-Z Polish Factory and Larkin Administration Building,<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> was ultimately selected as the contractor.<ref name="Siry p. 139; Sokol p. 77">Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Saint p. 163">Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright and Mueller began discussing the temple in January 1906,<ref name="Siry p. 138" /> and Mueller was hired that April, having submitted a low bid of $32,221.<ref name="Siry p. 139; Sokol p. 77" />Template:Efn-ur The trustees agreed to pay Mueller $32,661 as long as Mueller paid a $15,000 bond, which would be refunded if the temple was completed on time.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The board also approved a $1,243.23 builder's fee for Wright.<ref name="Sokol p. 79">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur A groundbreaking ceremony took place on May 15, 1906.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Siry p. 139">Template:Harvnb</ref> One of Wright's draftsmen, Isabel Roberts, acted as a liaison to church officials, while Arthur Tobin coordinated the construction schedules.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

The first part of the temple to be constructed was Unity House.<ref name="Siry p. 157">Template:Harvnb</ref> Work on the foundation progressed slowly, and the building committee had to allocate another $645.60 for the foundations due to cost overruns.<ref name="Sokol pp. 81–82" />Template:Efn-ur Mueller was also busy with other projects across the United States, which further delayed the temple's construction.<ref name="Sokol pp. 81–82">Template:Harvnb</ref> The contractors acquired large amounts of wood to create the formwork, into which the temple's concrete slabs were to be poured.<ref name="Sokol p. 80">Template:Harvnb</ref> The wooden forms were constructed to uniform dimensions of Template:Convert, allowing them to be reused;<ref name="Sokol p. 80" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Levine p. 40">Template:Harvnb</ref> each timber form was made of several 2-by-4 boards.<ref name="Siry p. 140">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Ferry p. 98">Template:Harvnb</ref> Rectangular blocks of wood were used to cast the facade's Template:Convert concrete columns, which had to be cast in multiple pieces because they were too large.<ref name="Ferry p. 98" /><ref name="Siry p. 152">Template:Harvnb</ref> The various pieces of each column were bound together using grout.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Wright contemplated embedding red granite or another material into the outer walls.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Sokol p. 83">Template:Harvnb</ref> Twenty samples of concrete, embedded with red granite or gravel, were presented to the board of trustees for review.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> Church officials decided not to use red granite due to the expense involved;<ref name="Sokol p. 83" /> instead, they agreed to apply an acidic solution to roughen the facade.<ref name="Siry p. 145">Template:Harvnb</ref> The concrete walls were poured at a rate of no more than Template:Convert every 24 hours.<ref name="Sokol pp. 81–82" /><ref name="Siry p. 146">Template:Harvnb</ref> The walls were constructed one by one, and the wooden forms had to be disassembled and rebuilt after each wall was completed, which caused further delays.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> In addition, concrete could not be poured during the wintertime.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /> Foster & Glidden Co. were hired in September 1906 to install the electrical, plumbing, and heating and ventilation systems.<ref name="Sokol p. 86">Template:Harvnb</ref> Although Mueller's contract mandated that the temple be completed by November 1906,<ref name="Siry p. 139" /> the exterior was not nearly finished at that time.<ref name="Siry p. 157" /><ref name="Sokol p. 86" /> This prompted Edwin Ehrman, the building committee's leader, to complain to Mueller.<ref name="Siry p. 157" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Furthermore, Wright frequently modified the plans while construction was underway, then tried to force the trustees to pay for the increased costs, to which they refused.<ref name="Sokol pp. 122–123" /> Mueller, who did not reject Wright's changes, lost money as a result<ref name="Sokol pp. 122–123">Template:Harvnb</ref> and eventually went bankrupt.<ref name="Schrenk p. 154" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Delays and completion

File:Unity Temple Interior.jpg

One of the piers in Unity Temple's auditorium

The heating system was installed in February 1907.<ref name="Sokol p. 89">Template:Harvnb</ref> Amid increasing expenses and decreasing revenue, the congregation's general fund had dwindled to $11.31 by March,Template:Efn-ur and many former members had departed.<ref name="Sokol p. 89" /> Oak Leaves wrote that "the finances were in good condition", despite a shortfall in the construction fund.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> By then, Wright wrote that Unity House would be finished in May and the auditorium in September.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The eastern wall and parts of the auditorium's stair towers had been completed by May, but the roofs had not been constructed.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Church officials had resorted to borrowing money, despite a concerted attempt to obtain donations and other fees from the congregation.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Unity House began hosting services on September 15, 1907,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and the church's Ladies Social Union purchased some furniture the same week.<ref name="Sokol p. 100">Template:Harvnb</ref> The auditorium's roof had been completed, but the terraces and entrance pavilion were still under construction,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and landscaping work was still ongoing.<ref name="Sokol p. 103">Template:Harvnb</ref> Congregants had to enter Unity House through the back door.<ref name="Sokol p. 149">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Wright and the contractors continued to fine-tune the building's heating system,<ref name="Sokol p. 103" /> and the contractors submitted invoices for their work, which the congregation could not afford to pay.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The project was paused in late 1907,<ref name="Siry p. 171">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and Ehrman requested that Wright provide a timetable for Unity Temple's completion, which the architect did in January 1908.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> That February, Wright invited artists and musicians to attend a "Symposium of Art" at Unity House.<ref name="Siry p. 168">Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright wrote to the congregation the next month, requesting that Mueller be paid $11,000.<ref name="Siry p. 171" />Template:Efn-ur Congregants pledged $5,771 for the building's completion at their annual meeting the same month,<ref name="Sokol p. 111">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur which allowed the trustees to finally reimburse Mueller.<ref name="Sokol p. 111" /><ref name="Siry p. 171" /> The plasterwork was completed in July 1908,<ref name="Siry p. 146" /> after the board of trustees had threatened to fire Mueller over his failure to finish the plastering.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The temple's mechanical contractor Foster & Glidden were completing the building's electrical systems by August,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and the pews were under construction by that September.<ref name="Siry p. 171" /><ref name="Sokol pp. 119–120">Template:Harvnb</ref> All of the art glass had also been installed by then.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

The auditorium's opening, scheduled for October 11, 1908, was postponed due to delays in manufacturing the pews.<ref name="Sokol pp. 119–120" /> The auditorium hosted its first service on October 25, 1908,<ref name="Schrenk p. 154">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Chicago Daily Tribune 1908">Template:Cite news</ref> though Wright did not attend.<ref name="Cypret 1975b" /><ref name="Siry pp. 192–193" /> The building could not be formally dedicated because the organ had not been installed;<ref name="Chicago Daily Tribune 1908" /> church officials had received bids from a dozen organ manufacturers, many of whom were discouraged by Wright's abstruse drawings.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The church did not hire a manufacturer until September 1908, when officials paid Coburn & Taylor $3,500 to install an organ in two months.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur The heating system was also ineffective, and the boiler burst shortly after the auditorium opened,<ref name="Sokol pp. 138–139">Template:Harvnb</ref> forcing the congregation to vacate the auditorium until February 1909.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

Construction issues notwithstanding, congregants quickly came to like the new temple.<ref name="Siry pp. 192–193">Template:Harvnb</ref> By 1909, the congregation's membership consisted of more than 140 families.<ref name="Sokol p. 149" /><ref name="Siry p. 103">Template:Harvnb</ref> During that year, church officials largely resolved their remaining disputes with contractors, and the decorations inside were finished.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Johonnot resigned that June, expressing frustration that he had received little encouragement from the congregation during his tenure.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Church members refused to accept his resignation,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Sokol p. 152">Template:Harvnb</ref> as he was still popular among members of the congregation.<ref name="Sokol p. 152" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Johonnot ultimately agreed to remain Unity Church's pastor for one more year.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1910">Template:Cite news</ref> The temple was officially dedicated on September 26, 1909,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 10" /><ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> and the congregation published a brochure for the occasion.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The temple had cost $60,344.55, and the congregation borrowed some $14,500 to pay for the cost overruns.<ref name="Siry p. 193">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn-ur Members pledged two-thirds, or nearly $32,200, of the remaining cost,Template:Efn-ur though it would take several years before the construction cost was fully repaid.<ref name="Siry p. 193" />

Temple usage

Early and mid-20th century

File:Unity Temple - Oak Park IL 3 (3224125951).jpg

View of the auditorium's pulpit from the north

After Unity Temple opened, the building's architecture attracted visitors from across the U.S.<ref name="Siry pp. 192–193" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Johonnot ultimately resigned at the end of June 1910.<ref name="Sokol p. 152" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1910" /> The next pastor, S. G. Dunham, established a weekly "social clinics class" at the temple in late 1910;<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1910a">Template:Cite news</ref> he served as the pastor until early 1913.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1913">Template:Cite news</ref> William J. Taylor became Unity Temple's pastor in November 1913<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and began giving sermons there the next month.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During Taylor's tenure, the congregation paid back its remaining debt of $6,000, and a congregant, E. O. Gale, donated a parsonage.<ref name="Wausau Pilot 1919" /> Taylor resigned in 1919 to become the pastor of First Universalist Church in Wausau, Wisconsin,<ref name="Wausau Pilot 1919">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and he was succeeded by James W. Vallentyne.<ref name="Portland Press Herald 1924" /> The congregation celebrated the 50th anniversary of its founding with a weeklong party in early 1921.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Vallentyne resigned as Unity Church's pastor in 1924,<ref name="Portland Press Herald 1924">Template:Cite news</ref> though he remained in Oak Park for several months.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> D. T. Denman, who had served various congregations in Oak Park for two decades,<ref name="Chicago Daily Tribune 1932" /> merged his congregation with that of Unity Church in 1925, becoming the combined congregation's pastor.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1946b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Denman served until 1932<ref name="Chicago Daily Tribune 1932">Template:Cite news</ref> and was replaced that year with Frank D. Adams.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1932">Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> In 1935, the congregation of the Church of the Redeemer in Chicago also merged with Unity Church's congregation.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1946b" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The congregation had 200 members by the mid-1940s, who met every Sunday from September to June; by then, the church was called the Unity Universalist Church.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> John Q. Parkhurst was elected as the church's pastor in early 1945,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1945a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> just after Adams resigned.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1945b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The next year, Unity House was lent to a local youth club, and its interior was redecorated to resemble a ship's lounge;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the club operated there for three months.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At the time, the congregation's membership included many of Oak Park's longtime families, in addition to congregants from neighboring towns and villages.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1946b" /> Oak Leaves reported that the building was depicted in a wide range of architectural publications and that it attracted visitors from around the world,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> though local residents largely ignored it.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969c">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Parkhurst left the congregation in 1952, and Robert M. Rice became the church's new minister.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1952a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By then, the congregation had 325 members who met every Sunday except in August, and the church's youth fellowship met every other Sunday.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The church was known simply as the Universalist Church by the late 1950s.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The temple also hosted visiting architects, including Wright himself, as well as several groups of students each year.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957b" /> Rice left the building largely intact during his tenure, converting Unity House's two balconies to classrooms and adding a chapel for children.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957c" /> In addition, in 1959, workers filled in cracks and covered up exposed rods, and they applied a stucco-like paste to the exterior.<ref name="Cypret 1975a">Template:Cite news</ref>

Late 20th century

1960s

By the 1960s, the concrete had begun to spall and leak; the congregation ruled out the idea of using stucco to patch the facade, and there were discussions about potentially demolishing the temple.<ref name="McCue 1961" /> Instead, Wright's son-in-law William Wesley Peters, a principal in Taliesin Associated Architects, oversaw a restoration of the building,<ref name="McCue 1961" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1961a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which was completed in 1961 for $22,000.<ref name="McCue 1961" /><ref name="Nicholas 1962">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Efn-ur Workers patched the cracks by sandblasting the concrete, placing a cement aggregate into the cracks, and applying another mixture to wear away the facade's topmost layer.<ref name="Nicholas 1962" /> A sealant was then applied onto the facade,<ref name="McCue 1961">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Nicholas 1962" /> and the building was repainted in its original color scheme.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1961a" /><ref name="Nicholas 1962" /> The temple was rededicated in 1962. By then, the congregation had a religious school and a youth club, in addition to its typical Sunday services.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1962a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The building still attracted international visitors,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1962a" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while the congregation had become known as the Unitarian Universalist Church.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1964a" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1963">Template:Cite news</ref>

John Michiels renovated the temple's lower level in 1966 for $20,000,Template:Efn-ur though these modifications did not follow Wright's original design.<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /> The work involved refurbishing a bathroom and three classrooms.<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /><ref name="Conner 1971" /> Church officials formed a committee in 1967 to raise funds for a further renovation of Unity Temple.<ref name="Devine 1976">Template:Cite news</ref> That May, the congregation decided to open the temple for public tours five days a week<ref name="Oak Leaves 1967b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; Template:Cite news</ref> to raise money for the renovations.<ref name="Devine 1976" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1967b" /> It cost $1,000 to launch the tour program, which did not make a net profit until its second year. The skylights were subsequently replaced in 1968; since the tours had not raised sufficient funds, the women's auxiliary at Unity Temple helped fund part of the project.<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /> The next year, the Edgar J. Kaufmann Foundation pledged $75,000 in matching funds toward the temple's renovation<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /><ref name="Conner 1971" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1969b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> after Edgar Kaufmann Jr., a former Wright acolyte, heard about the initiative.<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /><ref name="Marlin 1971">Template:Cite news</ref> Bill Fyfe and Michiels jointly designed a restoration plan.<ref name="Marlin 1971" /> According to Michiels, the wiring, doors, stairs, windows, and sidewalks needed repairs the most urgently.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969b" />

1970s

File:Unity Temple (35121738661).jpg

Detail of the Kenilworth Avenue facade

By 1970, the church had raised $25,000 from tours, subscriptions, and donations.<ref name="Marlin 1971" /> The restoration also received funds from the congregation itself, the National Park Service, four anonymous donors, and Alden B. Dow, in addition to tour revenue and insurance payments.<ref name="Cypret 1975a" /> After Rice retired in 1970,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1971a2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> he was replaced by Gerald Krick the following March.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1971a2" /> In addition, a committee was formed to oversee the restoration,<ref name="Conner 1971">Template:Cite news</ref> which was prioritized after a fire had damaged Unity House in January 1971.<ref name="Conner 1971" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1971c">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A local firm, Sturr-Young Associates, was hired to repaint the auditorium in its original colors, restore the skylights, and redecorate the interior, while Frank's son Lloyd Wright was retained as a consultant.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1971c" /> The congregation was unable to raise the funds for the temple's upkeep by itself.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 1979a" /> As such, congregants directed the board of trustees to establish a foundation to oversee the temple's restoration in December 1972.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Unity Temple Restoration Corporation was formed the next year<ref name="Cypret 1975">Template:Cite news</ref> as a secular entity, separate from the congregation.<ref name="Gapp 1978">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 1979a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The restoration group raised $500 per month from small donors and tour revenue, and it received additional funding from large donors, the federal and local governments, and the congregation.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1974b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

A restoration of the facade commenced in 1973<ref name="Oak Leaves 1973a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Kamin x694">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and ultimately cost $200,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19831019">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Workers removed the cladding that had been added in the 1960s,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1973a" /> and they sprayed shotcrete, a type of concrete, onto the facade.<ref name="Gauer x647">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 1973a" /> The interior was also repainted and partially rewired,<ref name="Devine 1976" /> That year, the Kaufmann Foundation increased their grant to $250,000, at which point the church had raised $230,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1974b" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The temple could also receive federal restoration funds because it was on the National Register of Historic Places, so the Illinois Department of Conservation requested $114,850 for interior restoration in late 1973.<ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> The temple began hosting concerts later that year,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1974c">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and it launched a concert series that helped raise money for the renovation.<ref name="News Journal 1974" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> To raise further money, the church sponsored field trips to Taliesin, Wright's studio in Wisconsin.<ref name="Devine 1976" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By 1975, church officials had spent more than $250,000 over the preceding eight years, but the project needed at least another $250,000.<ref name="Cypret 1975" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In addition, the Restoration Foundation had gone into debt.<ref name="Cypret 1975" />

The Restoration Foundation had nearly matched the Kaufmann grant by 1976,<ref name="Devine 1976" /> and it wanted to create a $500,000 financial endowment for Unity Temple's continued upkeep.<ref name="Gapp 1978" /> The Kaufmann Foundation offered a grant to establish the restoration fund in April 1978, provided the Restoration Foundation raise $50,000 in eight weeks.<ref name="Gapp 1978" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The next year, the Kaufmann Foundation offered another $50,000 matching grant.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1979a" /><ref name="The Life 1979">Template:Cite news</ref> Work on the foyer's renovation began in May 1979<ref name="Oak Leaves 1979a" /><ref name="The Life 1979" /> and was nearly completed by the end of the year.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1979b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The foyer was restored to its original appearance, and later modifications, such as ceiling tiles and shelves, were removed.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Restoration Foundation also planned to repair the leaky roof,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1979b" /> a project that ultimately cost $85,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19831019" /> A company from Washington, D.C., was hired to determine the original paint colors.<ref name="The Life 1979" />

1980s and 1990s

Charles Scot Giles became Unity Temple's pastor in 1981 following a year-long search.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1981b">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The next year, the Restoration Foundation established a subcommittee to organize events at the temple.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By then, the temple received 10,000 to 15,000 annual visitors, and the Restoration Foundation was planning to spend $500,000 on the interior.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19831019" /> The auditorium was subsequently repainted gray, green-gray, yellow, and ivory, and magnesite carpets were added.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1984a" /> This work was completed in 1984, coinciding with the 75th anniversary of the temple's dedication.<ref name="nyt-1984-09-02">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 1984a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The temple received a $20,000 matching grant from Domino's cofounder Thomas Monaghan in 1987,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; Template:Cite news</ref> which was to be used restore the temple's skylights.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19880127">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By then, the predicted cost of the renovation had increased to $750,000.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19880127" /> In addition, the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois and the congregation signed an agreement to preserve the temple in January 1988.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier 1988">Template:Cite news</ref> The council received a preservation easement that limited changes to the temple.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The auditorium's skylights were repaired that year,<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier 1988" /> and a firm from Wisconsin restored the panels and replaced 40% of the glass.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Despite large donations from Kaufmann, Domino's and Steelcase, officials at the Restoration Foundation reported decreasing revenue in the 1980s.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19941123">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Foundation officials commissioned a report in 1989, which found that the roof was in very poor condition; foundation officials estimated that the roof would cost $280,000 to repair.<ref name="Fegelman 1989">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Seigenthaler 1989">Template:Cite news</ref> Though the foundation wanted to dismantle part of the roof for inspection, congregation members disputed the report's findings<ref name="Seigenthaler 1989" /> and considered severing their relationship with the foundation.<ref name="Fegelman 1989" /> Ultimately, the congregation decided to continue working with the foundation, and it ordered additional inspections of the roof.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During the 1990s, the temple continued to host tours for a fee,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> along with services every Sunday.<ref name="Posner 1992">Template:Cite news</ref> Shirley Ann Ranck was named as Unity Temple's interim minister in 1991, becoming the first woman to lead the congregation in a century.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19910904">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> F. Jay Deacon became the permanent minister of the congregation in 1993,<ref name="Oak Leaves 19930901">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and the clerestory windows were repaired that year.<ref name="Kamin 1993">Template:Cite news</ref>

The congregation merged with the Beacon Unitarian Church in 1994, becoming the Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> That year, the Restoration Foundation established a volunteer program to raise further money;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> it sought to raise $600,000 over seven years.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19941123" /> The temple started hosting avant-garde music concerts in 1996 to raise more money.<ref name="Reich 1997">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 19970226">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Oak Park village government allocated $32,500 in 1999 for a study of the temple's exterior. By then, $1.5 million had been spent on restoration.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19990310">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Simultaneously, the Restoration Foundation was raising $1.5 million in advance of the temple's centennial.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19990310" /> Unlike other state governments, Illinois did not provide historic-preservation loans at the time,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> although it subsequently began distributing such loans.<ref name="Dardick 2004">Template:Cite news</ref> State representative Angelo Saviano negotiated to secure state funding for Unity Temple after seeing the poor condition of the exterior.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

21st century

2000s

File:Unity Temple - Oak Park IL 7 (3224987418).jpg

Detail of the balcony railing in the auditorium

Unity Temple still had serious mechanical and structural issues in the 21st century.<ref name="Building Design & Construction 2001" /><ref name="Pierre l011">Template:Cite news</ref> The building had no air-conditioning system, leading to significant temperature fluctuations;<ref name="Pierre l011" /> the temperature sometimes reached Template:Convert during the summer.<ref name="Kamin 1999">Template:Cite news</ref> The temple's roof sagged significantly, while the interiors were damaged by carbon-dioxide buildups and humidity.<ref name="Knecht p. 173">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Building Design & Construction 2001">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The art glass, which had cracked due to repeated freezing and thawing over the years, needed to be repaired.<ref name="Southern Illinoisan 2005" /> The concrete facade had become cracked and spalled,<ref name="Building Design & Construction 2001" /><ref name="Pierre l011" /> and condensation had built up within the walls, causing it to rain inside.<ref name="Kamin 1999" /> There were also leaks from the drains inside the building.<ref name="Kamin x694" /> Workers began removing concrete samples from the facade in January 2000 in preparation for a wider-ranging renovation.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois labeled the building among Illinois's most endangered structures that March,<ref name="Mendell 2000">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 20000329">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the state government gave Unity Temple $1 million for restoration.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 20000329" />

By late 2000, workers were about to restore the concrete.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This work was part of a larger, three-phase project<ref name="Building Design & Construction 2001" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> which would cost up to $5 million.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Holes were cut into the facade, and the underlying rebar was replaced.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Fern C. Stanley was appointed as interim pastor in August 2002.<ref name="Kates 2003">Template:Cite news</ref> After her death in May 2003,<ref name="Kates 2003" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Alan Taylor became Unity Temple's pastor the same year.<ref name="Oak Leaves 20030910" /> At that point, there were 359 congregants,<ref name="Oak Leaves 20030910">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> though Taylor helped double the congregation's size during his 18-year tenure.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Landmarks Preservation Council provided $100,000 for a geothermal heating upgrade in 2004,<ref name="Oak Leaves 20041027">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Oak Leaves 20041027a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which was part of the first phase of a $12–15 million renovation.<ref name="Oak Leaves 20041027a" /><ref name="Stuart k623">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="AR-2006-02">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The Restoration Foundation planned to patch the concrete<ref name="Stuart k623" /> and add a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system.<ref name="Oak Leaves 20041027" /><ref name="Hampton b253">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The third and final phase would entail restoration of the interior.<ref name="Stuart k623" /><ref name="Hampton b253" /> Gunny Harboe, a restoration architect based in nearby Chicago, was hired to design a restoration of the temple.<ref name="Dardick 2004" /> A test well for the heating system was installed in late 2005.<ref name="Southern Illinoisan 2005">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Stuart k623" /> The congregation continued to host tours,<ref name="Pierre l011" /> and it sold off furniture and furnishings to raise money.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Weekend Chicago Defender 2003">Template:Cite news</ref>

By the mid-2000s, the temple attracted 25–30 thousand annual visitors, many of them from outside the U.S.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Because parts of the temple were still being used as offices and classrooms, they could not be renovated until the congregation obtained additional space.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Part of the ceiling collapsed around 2008;<ref name="Johnson o698">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the water damage was attributed to the lack of expansion joints and a flat roof.<ref name="Stempniak w160">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A huge piece of the left wall had cracked open,<ref name="Johnson o698" /> and there were cracks in the facade and leaks throughout the building.<ref name="Working 2008">Template:Cite news</ref> Unity Temple received a $200,000 matching funds grant in December 2008 through the Save America's Treasures program,<ref name="Working 2008" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> contingent on the congregation raising an equivalent amount for the temple's restoration.<ref name="Stempniak w160" /> The next year, the National Trust for Historic Preservation added Unity Temple to its America's Most Endangered Places list,<ref name="Stempniak w160" /><ref>Template:Cite magazine; Template:Cite news</ref> and the temple received more than $82,000 for visitor services such as tours and brochures.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By then, the renovation was scheduled to cost $20–25 million,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the Restoration Foundation hoped to raise more money for restoration if the building were designated as a World Heritage Site.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

2010s to present

File:Unity Temple.JPG

Interior of the auditorium, facing the pulpit

Most of the letters from the sign above Unity Temple's main entrance were stolen in 2010, shortly after the roof was replaced for $500,000.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After the congregation raised $3,000 to replace the letters,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> a local preservation firm installed a new sign above the entrance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Alphawood Foundation pledged $10 million toward the temple's restoration in 2013.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Bentley o054">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The congregation also considered transferring ownership of the temple to Alphawood so that organization could help maintain the building.<ref name="Bentley o054" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By early 2015, the Restoration Foundation had about $11.5 million<ref name="Mullen s067">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> or $12.5 million on hand.<ref name="Hernandez z123">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Restorers drew up detailed plans to repaint the building, restore the original architectural features, and repair mechanical systems; the plans needed approval from three agencies before renovations could start.<ref name="Mullen s067" />

A full restoration began in 2015,<ref name="Johnson o698" /><ref name="Inklebarger t044">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> at which point the project was to cost $23 million<ref name="Johnson o698" /> or $25 million.<ref name="Inklebarger t044" /> The congregation relocated that June;<ref name="Johnson o698" /><ref name="Inklebarger t044" /> services were hosted in the nearby United Lutheran Church, while church officials also used an administrative office on South Boulevard and another office nearby.<ref name="Hernandez z123" /> The first phase of the project involved replacing the skylights, roof, and shotcrete facade. A second phase included the geothermal and HVAC system, new art glass, and new light fixtures.<ref name="Inklebarger t044" /> The windows were restored in California, and new electric wiring, glass, and wood finishes were added.<ref name="CBS Chicago 2017 o792">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The project was supposed to be completed in late 2016<ref name="Mullen s067" /> but was postponed by several months because of restorers' focus on architectural details.<ref name="Mullen o997">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The congregation bought the nearby Oak Park Billiards building at South Boulevard in 2016, which was also renovated.<ref name="Mullen o997" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Following a preview event in May 2017 to mark the renovation's completion,<ref name="Gauer x647" /><ref name="CBS Chicago 2017 o792" /> the temple formally reopened on June 17, 2017,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and tours resumed that July.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Dechter 2017">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> About half of the construction cost had been raised at the time.<ref name="Hindery h568">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After a developer proposed a 28-story tower nearby in 2018, the church's board of trustees expressed concerns that the tower would cast shadows on the temple;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the tower was eventually canceled.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Alan Taylor resigned as Unity Temple's senior minister in 2021.<ref name="Holmes h818">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Roger Bertschausen became the senior minister in 2023,<ref name="Holmes e727">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and the Unity Temple Restoration Foundation was dissolved that year.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Building

File:Oak Park Il Unity Temple1.jpg

The temple as seen from a parking lot to the east

Unity Temple is located at 875 Lake Street in Oak Park, Illinois, United States.<ref name="Wright Sites">Template:Cite book</ref> Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in the Prairie style,<ref name="Gibson e506" /> the structure is T-shaped in plan, measuring Template:Convert<ref name="NPS p. 2">Template:Harvnb</ref> or Template:Convert long from north to south.<ref name="Siry p. 139" /><ref name="Sokol p. 79" /> On the same city block to the east is Scoville Square. The Calvary Memorial Church is nearby to the west, across Kenilworth Avenue, while the Oak Park Public Library and Scoville Park are directly to the north, across Lake Street. In addition, the Oak Park station of the Chicago "L"'s Green Line is two blocks to the southeast.<ref name="Oak Park Map Viewer">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Unity Temple is one of 24<ref name="Jeffrey b0492" /><ref name="Zak 2001" /> or 25 buildings that Wright designed in Oak Park,<ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> as well as Wright's only significant remaining Prairie-style structure that was designed as a public building.<ref name="Pierre l011" /> Wright used abstract motifs instead of overtly religious imagery,<ref name="Posner 1992" /><ref name="Siry p. 189">Template:Harvnb</ref> and he described the building as a "temple" because its simple motifs resembled those of old temples.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Unity Temple is arranged around a grid of cubic "units" measuring Template:Convert on each side.<ref name="Siry p. 121">Template:Harvnb</ref> The building is made of four types of concrete,<ref name="Knecht p. 173" /> which were poured in place<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969c" /> and used because of the material's low cost.<ref name="Wright p. 154" /><ref name="Saint p. 162" /> Concrete and crushed limestone are used in the Template:Convert foundation walls at the perimeter of the building, as well as underneath the columns.<ref name="Siry p. 140" /> Interior and exterior walls are made of a concrete-and-gravel aggregate with embedded steel rods.<ref name="Siry p. 145" /> The concrete was poured in place.<ref name="Inland Architect 1906 e817" /> The Temple Art Glass Company manufactured Unity Temple's multicolored art glass panes, which are bound together by strips of zinc.<ref name="Siry pp. 166–167">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Several elements of the design are shared with the now-demolished Larkin Building, which was completed shortly before Unity Temple was.<ref name="Levine p. 40" /><ref name="Siry p. 189" /> For example, both structures included two rectangular spaces linked by an entrance pavilion,<ref name="Levine p. 40" /><ref name="Siry pp. 189–190">Template:Harvnb</ref> a layout also used in Wright's Oak Park studio.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The Larkin Building and Unity Temple were both centered on a large communal room;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> in both structures, visitors had to make several turns to access the room, and there were balconies around the space itself.<ref name="Siry pp. 189–190" /> Other decorative elements, such as contrasting vertical and horizontal lines, were also visible in both structures.<ref name="Siry pp. 189–190" /> However, the two buildings also differed in key respects, such as their functions and shapes.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Levine p. 41" /> Unity Temple also bears similarities to the Prairie style houses that Wright designed in Chicagoland;<ref name="Newsday 1957">Template:Cite news</ref> for instance, both Unity Temple and Wright's Prairie-style houses have windows with geometric patterns.<ref name="Wenneker 1965">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Exterior

The temple is composed of two main structures—the auditorium to the north and Unity House to the south—connected by a low, central entrance hall.<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /><ref name="Sawyers y222" /><ref name="Levine p. 40" /> The arrangement allowed religious and secular activities to be kept separate.<ref name="Siry pp. 81–83" /><ref name="Inland Architect 1906 e817">Template:Cite magazine</ref> The exterior of the auditorium section is a square measuring Template:Convert across and Template:Convert high, while Unity House measures about Template:Convert across.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /><ref name="Ferry p. 97">Template:Harvnb</ref>Template:Efn The two-story entrance building measures Template:Convert across.<ref name="NPS p. 2" /> The facade is recessed Template:Convert from the southern edge of the site, Template:Convert from the western and eastern edges, and Template:Convert from the northern edge.<ref name="Siry p. 139" /><ref name="Sokol p. 79" />

Facade

File:0401 Unity Temple.jpg

Clerestory windows above the facade

The facade uses Portland cement.<ref name="Knecht p. 173" /> To give the facade some texture, the top layer of cement was washed away, exposing bits of gravel underneath.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1964a" /><ref name="Siry p. 145" /><ref name="Kamin 2025">Template:Cite news</ref> The wooden formwork created markings, which remained in place after the concrete had been poured. Joseph Siry described Unity Temple's exterior as a predecessor to the béton brut ("raw concrete") facades that became popular in the 1960s.<ref name="Siry p. 147">Template:Harvnb</ref> There are stair towers at each corner of the auditorium building, which measure Template:Convert high and Template:Convert across.<ref name="Siry pp. 141–142">Template:Harvnb</ref> On each elevation of the facade, narrow slit windows separate the central portions of the facade from the staircase towers.<ref name="Siry pp. 141–142" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 18">Template:Harvnb</ref>

The base of the facade, directly above the foundation walls, is thicker than the rest of the facade<ref name="Siry p. 156">Template:Harvnb</ref> and is decorated with square and rectangular moldings.<ref name="Siry p. 147" /> Above the base, the facade takes two small steps inward. On each elevation of the facade, the central portions ascend without interruption to a protruding window sill,<ref name="Siry p. 156" /> situated Template:Convert above ground.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /><ref name="Ferry p. 97" /> There is no entrance on Lake Street; instead, there is a low wall on Kenilworth Avenue, behind which a set of stairs ascends to the entrance pavilion.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 17">Template:Harvnb</ref> The words "For the worship of GodTemplate:\ and the service of man" are inscribed in bronze letters above the entrance pavilion's doors.<ref name="Kamin 2025" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 17" /> There are Japanese–inspired square lanterns on the exterior, next to the entrance.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Next to the Kenilworth Avenue facade, there is a pier with colonnades and rectangular flower boxes.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

The centers of all four elevations of the auditorium are decorated with clerestory windows, which are recessed<ref name="Sokol p. 22" /><ref name="Concrete Engineering 1907">Template:Cite magazine</ref> and measure Template:Convert across.<ref name="Kamin 1993" /> The clerestory windows have geometric patterns<ref name="Wenneker 1965" /> and are largely made of plain glass, except for white and green panes at the tops of the windows.<ref name="Siry pp. 187–188">Template:Harvnb</ref> Each set of clerestory windows is flanked by six exterior columns.<ref name="Ferry p. 97" /><ref name="Siry p. 150" /> Additionally, Unity House has four columns on two of its elevations.<ref name="Siry p. 150">Template:Harvnb</ref> All of the columns were designed by Richard Bock<ref name="Schrenk p. 154" /><ref name="Siry p. 150" /> and measure Template:Convert tall.<ref name="Siry p. 152" /> The columns are spaced Template:Convert apart, aligning with the interior grid.<ref name="Siry p. 121" /> The tops of the columns are decorated with hollyhock motifs.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The lowest 7 feet of each column is unornamented and was cast in one piece, while the ornate Template:Convert upper sections were cast in four pieces.<ref name="Ferry p. 98" /><ref name="Siry p. 152" /> The bases of the columns are stepped inward, while the capitals are stepped outward, supporting the cantilevered roofs above.<ref name="Siry p. 156" /> The juxtaposition of the columns, and the roofs above them, may have been an allusion to older classical-style and religious buildings with pillars.<ref name="Siry p. 156" /> The facade is topped by square and rectangular copings.<ref name="Siry p. 147" /> In the 2010s, lighting was installed on the ground outside the building.<ref name="Kamin x694" />

Roofs

Unlike contemporary churches, Unity Temple was designed without a spire,<ref name="Nicholas 1962" /><ref name="Siry p. 77" /> nor did it include typical church features such as a tower or an arched roof.<ref name="Cypret 1975b" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At the time of construction, church spires were increasingly outdated and were vulnerable to lightning strikes.<ref name="Siry p. 77">Template:Harvnb</ref> The temple is instead topped by 14,<ref name="Building Design & Construction 2001" /> 16,<ref name="Gauer x647" /> or 17 flat roofs.<ref name="Mendell 2000" /> These are made of cinder concrete, topped with lightweight cinder-concrete tiles.<ref name="Knecht p. 173" /> Each roof is composed of slabs measuring Template:Convert wide.<ref name="Siry p. 156" /> The auditorium roof's eaves extend Template:Convert outward from the facade's columns,<ref name="Siry p. 155">Template:Harvnb</ref> overhanging the adjacent lawns and paths.<ref name="Levine p. 41" /> The writer Neil Levine wrote that the cantilevered roofs created the impression that the interiors were being directed outward.<ref name="Levine p. 41">Template:Harvnb</ref> The edges of each roof are twice as thick as the rest of the roof, creating a low parapet wall,<ref name="Siry p. 155" /> while the eaves contrast with the facade's thick base.<ref name="Siry p. 156" />

Interior

Wright described Unity Temple's interior as reflecting "the reality of the building—the space in which we live and not the walls and the roof".<ref name="Newsday 1957" /> The foundations and columns are made of conventional concrete;<ref name="Knecht p. 173" /> the floor slabs are made of cinder concrete,<ref name="Knecht p. 173" /><ref name="Siry p. 140" /> in which coal cinders are embedded into the cement.<ref name="Siry p. 140" /> The superstructure also uses steel beams, which are entirely covered with concrete.<ref name="Siry p. 140" /> The interior was more colorful than the gray exterior, in part because of the windows.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 18" /> The walls are made of plaster, which is covered with an aggregate of sand, cement, and putty; a sealant was added to this aggregate, and the sealant was painted.<ref name="Siry p. 165">Template:Harvnb</ref> The interiors are also decorated with wooden boards, which not only articulate (or stylize) the interiors,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 19">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Siry p. 164" /> but also conceal electrical wires.<ref name="Siry p. 164">Template:Harvnb</ref> Joseph Siry described the decorations as "a poetic invention that sprang from Wright's own imagination",<ref name="Siry p. 137" /> while Neil Levine wrote that the decorations highlighted "space and depth, rather than mass and volume".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Wright also included high ceilings 'for the contemplation for the soul", as Oak Leaves described it.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969d">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Entrance pavilion

An entrance pavilion, measuring Template:Convert across,<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /> connects the auditorium and Unity House.<ref name="Levine p. 41" /> On the first floor, there is a foyer with a low ceiling.<ref name="Levine p. 41" /><ref name="Siry p. 170">Template:Harvnb</ref> an example of the compression-and-release principle that Wright espoused.<ref name="Reid 2014">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Koziarz j035">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The foyer measures about Template:Convert wide<ref name="Siry p. 170" /> and adjoins a cloak room and a bathroom.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /> To the north, visitors make two 90-degree turns before reaching the auditorium's perimeter,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> as Wright wanted visitors to go on a "path of discovery" to reach the auditorium.<ref name="Kamin 2025" /><ref name="Reid 2014" /><ref name="Koziarz j035" /> The north wall of the foyer is decorated with wooden slats and was initially designed as a hidden exit from the auditorium, without any doorknobs or visible hinges.<ref name="Siry p. 170" />

The foyer's west and east walls each contain a bank of six doors measuring Template:Convert wide, with art-glass panes; the west doors form the main entrance.<ref name="Siry p. 170" /> The south wall has a glass partition,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 17" /> behind which Unity House's fireplace can be seen.<ref name="Levine p. 41" /> A pastor's study is located within the second floor of the pavilion and is directly connected to both the auditorium and Unity House.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22">Template:Harvnb</ref>

Auditorium

Layout

File:Unity Temple - Oak Park IL 14 (3224136697).jpg

Detail of one of the piers, with wooden strips that meet at right angles

Wright wrote that he had "let the room inside be the architecture outside" by designing the rest of the temple around the auditorium.<ref name="Wright p. 154" /><ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The auditorium at the north end of the temple has either 380<ref name="Oak Leaves 1975e">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> or 400 seats.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969c" /><ref name="News Journal 1974">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Zoroya 1998">Template:Cite news</ref> It is shaped like a Greek cross,<ref name="Kamin 2025" /><ref name="Levine p. 45">Template:Harvnb</ref> with a freestanding pier at each corner.<ref name="Levine p. 41" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 19" /><ref name="Wright p. 155">Template:Harvnb</ref> This contrasted with other churches in Oak Park, which had naves that were significantly longer than their width.<ref name="Siry pp. 96–97" /> Wright wanted congregants to circulate around the auditorium's perimeter, rather than entering it from a central aisle,<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and he wanted the piers to draw visitors' attention inward.<ref name="Wright p. 155" /> The piers are connected by "cloisters", hallways Template:Convert beneath the auditorium's main floor.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /><ref name="Levine p. 43">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="McCarter2 p. 17" /> According to Wright, this preserved the auditorium's "quiet and dignity" by allowing people to circulate around the room unnoticed.<ref name="McCarter2 pp. 17–18">Template:Harvnb</ref> The bases of the piers contain small anterooms,<ref name="Levine p. 43" /> and staircases ascend to the main floor and balcony level.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /><ref name="McCarter2 pp. 17–18" /> The piers also include pipes and ducts for heating and ventilation.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 19" /> The piers are decorated with wooden strips that meet at right angles.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>

At the center of the cross is a square measuring Template:Convert on each side,<ref name="Siry p. 160">Template:Harvnb</ref> with a pulpit at the center.<ref name="Levine p. 44" /> The pulpit is arranged so it is no farther than Template:Convert<ref name="Kamin x694" /><ref name="Zoroya 1998" /> or Template:Convert from any seat.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969d" /> In front of the pulpit is a railing with wooden boards across its surface and a wooden coping at its top. The center of the railing, in front of the pulpit's lectern, is slightly raised. There is a bench behind the railing, as well as lamps to either side.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> The southern wall contains a choir loft directly above the auditorium's entrance, which extends to the balcony level.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /> The choir screen consists of a series of vertical slits and interlocking geometric planes.<ref name="Levine p. 44" /><ref name="Siry pp. 182–183">Template:Harvnb</ref> The screen protrudes from the south wall, providing space for the organ pipes behind them.<ref name="Siry pp. 182–183" /> There is a door to the pastor's study behind the choir screen.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" />

File:Unity Temple, 875 Lake Street, Oak Park, Cook County, IL 061740pv.jpg

Historic American Buildings Survey photograph of the pulpit

The pews in the auditorium are variants of a mass-produced model of pews manufactured by the American Seating Company.<ref name="Sokol pp. 119–120" /> On three sides of the main floor are raised pews, which seat 54 people each;<ref name="Levine p. 44">Template:Harvnb</ref> they are raked, sloping down toward the pulpit.<ref name="Siry p. 177">Template:Harvnb</ref> The layout also allows audience members to face each other.<ref name="Siry p. 189" /><ref name="Reid 2014" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 21">Template:Harvnb</ref> Exits from either side of the pulpit lead directly to the entrance pavilion.<ref name="Levine p. 44" /><ref name="McCarter2 pp. 21–22" /><ref name="Biemiller 1996">Template:Cite magazine</ref> This eliminated the need for congregants to turn away from the pulpit to leave, as was customary in older churches,<ref name="Oak Leaves 1969c" /><ref name="Levine p. 44" /><ref name="McCarter2 pp. 21–22">Template:Harvnb</ref> and it allowed congregants to mingle with the pastor or other speakers at the pulpit.<ref name="Biemiller 1996" /> According to architectural critic Blair Kamin, the layout makes it so that "one enters as an individual and leaves as a member of a community".<ref name="Kamin x694" /> The exit doors are normally closed during services.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957c" /> Since 2017, there has been a video screen behind the pulpit.<ref name="Hindery h568" />

The balcony is about Template:Convert or two units above the ground<ref name="Siry p. 124" /> and also surrounds the auditorium on three sides.<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /><ref name="Levine p. 43" /> The balcony has 153 seats in total,<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 102" /> which are more steeply raked than those on the main level.<ref name="Siry p. 177" /> The balcony is illuminated by spherical lamps, and there are wooden bands on the balcony's railings and on the soffit along the balcony's underside.<ref name="Siry p. 177" /> The architectural historian Robert Twombly wrote that the balconies gave the auditorium an intimate feel while allowing visitors to feel like they were part of a larger "majestic whole".<ref name="nyt-1984-09-02" />

Decorations

The decorations in the auditorium, such as the windows and chandeliers, are generally designed with cruciform motifs, recalling its overall shape.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 21" /> Generally, the lower part of the room is painted in darker shades of yellow and green, while the upper part is painted in lighter shades. The baseboards and the piers' pedestals were left unpainted, since Wright anticipated that this would give the room a more somber ambiance.<ref name="Siry pp. 187–188" /> Natural light is provided through ceiling skylights and clerestories,<ref name="McCarter2 p. 18" /><ref name="Concrete Engineering 1907" /> as well as the narrow slit windows.<ref name="Inland Architect 1906 e817" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 18" /> According to Wright, the windows were intended "to get a sense of a happy cloudless day into the room".<ref name="Wright p. 155" /><ref name="Levine p. 45" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 18" /> Other than the slit windows and the door to the foyer, the lower part of the auditorium has no openings.<ref name="Inland Architect 1906 e817" /> Wright had designed planters or urns for the auditorium, but church officials refused to accept them.<ref>Template:Harvnb; Template:Harvnb</ref> The auditorium also has several hardwood chairs, built in 2003 to replace the original Wright–designed chairs.<ref name="Weekend Chicago Defender 2003" />

The auditorium's ceiling is Template:Convert high.<ref name="Siry p. 124">Template:Harvnb</ref> The center of the ceiling is topped by amber skylights,<ref name="Levine p. 41" /> which are surrounded by bands of wood.<ref name="Siry p. 164" /> The roof is supported by solid concrete beams oriented east–west, while the north–south beams are of hollow concrete.<ref name="Siry p. 172">Template:Harvnb</ref> Inset within this grid of beams are 25 square skylight panels.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 18" /><ref name="Siry p. 172" /><ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier 1988" /> Each panel measures Template:Convert across, with 83 pieces of glass,<ref name="JG-TC: Journal Gazette and Times-Courier 1988" /> and is decorated with a fork-shaped motif pointing in one of the four cardinal directions.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> A New York Times article likened the skylights' designs to Piet Mondrian's artwork.<ref name="nyt-1984-09-02" /> The space is also illuminated by overhanging spherical chandeliers flanked by cubic lamps,<ref name="Schrenk p. 151" /><ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> and the perimeter of the ceiling is made of oak boards.<ref name="Siry p. 164" />

Unity House

File:Historic American Buildings Survey Philip Turner, Photographer June 1967 INTERIOR- LOOKING NORTH - Unity Temple, 875 Lake Street, Oak Park, Cook County, IL HABS ILL,16-OAKPA,3-5.tif

Interior of Unity House, looking north toward the temple

The interior of Unity House is painted in various shades of green, yellow, and brown.<ref name="Siry p. 165" /> Unity House's primary interior space measures about Template:Convert across, corresponding to approximately 12 by 4 units.<ref name="Siry p. 160" /> There is a square hall at the center, measuring about Template:Convert<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" /> or Template:Convert on each side.<ref name="Siry p. 160" /> There are balconies to the west and east of the central hall, on the same story as the auditorium's lower seating level.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" /><ref name="Siry pp. 161–162" /> The balconies are supported by I-beams and contain small columns with wooden sconces,<ref name="Siry pp. 161–162" /> in addition to railings with wood strips.<ref name="Siry p. 164" /> The columns have vertical wood strips along their shafts and horizontal wood strips at their capitals.<ref name="Siry p. 164" /> The spaces under each balcony are illuminated by spherical lamps.<ref name="Siry pp. 161–162">Template:Harvnb</ref> The balconies and the spaces beneath them were originally used as classrooms.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" />

There are square closets at each corner of Unity House's main room, measuring about 1 unit wide.<ref name="Siry p. 160" /> On the southern wall of the central hall is a recess with a fireplace measuring about Template:Convert wide;<ref name="Siry p. 160" /> this feature recalled many of Wright's residential designs, which also had central fireplaces.<ref name="Gibson e506">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On the northern wall, there are three casement windows facing the pastor's study.<ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" />

Unity House primarily receives natural light from skylights in the ceiling.<ref name="Inland Architect 1906 e817" /> The roof trusses are supported by eight columns arranged in a 2×4 grid.<ref name="Siry p. 160" /> The ceiling is divided into rectangular coffers measuring Template:Convert across. Each coffer has a skylight with four glass panes, which are either opaque or tinted in various shades of yellow, green, and brown.<ref name="Siry pp. 166–167" /> There are seven skylights in total, all of which are surrounded by wood strips.<ref name="Siry p. 164" /><ref name="McCarter2 p. 22" /> Rectangular and square motifs, reminiscent of the floor plans, are used in the skylights.<ref name="Siry p. 168" />

Mechanical features

Unity Temple originally had a coal-fired steam boiler, in addition to concrete ducts that were supposed to distribute heat.<ref name="AR-2006-02" /><ref name="Hampton b253" /><ref name="Sokol p. 137">Template:Harvnb</ref> The ducts proved ineffective at carrying air,<ref name="Sokol p. 137" /> and as such, steam radiators were installed shortly after the temple was finished.<ref name="AR-2006-02" /><ref name="Hampton b253" /><ref name="Sokol pp. 138–139" /> A hot-water system was also installed within half a year of the temple's completion; it remained in use through the 21st century.<ref name="Southern Illinoisan 2005" /> The coal-fired boiler was replaced with an oil-fired boiler in the early 20th century, and a gas generator was added later in the century.<ref name="AR-2006-02" /> Since the 2010s, the church has been heated by a geothermal heating system,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> which consists of nine Template:Convert wells on the lawn just north of the church.<ref name="Johnson o698" /> This system includes ice-storage space and a set of geothermal wells.<ref name="Hampton b253" /><ref name="AR-2006-02" />

Clergy, services, and programs

Clergy

Template:As of, Roger Bertschausen is the senior minister at Unity Temple,<ref name="Ministers e460">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> having joined as a "developmental minister" in 2023.<ref name="Holmes e727" /> The associate minister is Emily Gage,<ref name="Ministers e460" /> who joined as the minister of faith development in 2008.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The church hosts services every Sunday at 9:00 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In addition, it hosted an annual meeting every May.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1962a" /> Senior pastors and senior ministers over the years have included:

Senior pastor/minister	Start year	End year	Template:Abbr
A. H. Sweetser	1871	1872	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
J. O. M. Hewitt	1872	1875	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
John W. Hinds	1875	1878	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
LeGrand Powers	1878	1879	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
N. S. SageTemplate:Efn	1879	1881	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
H. D. L. Webster	1882	1883	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
Augusta Jane Chapin	1886	1891	<ref name="Oak Leaves p. 101" />
Rodney F. Johonnot	1892	1910	<ref name="Siry p. 52; Sokol p. 12" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1910" />
S. G. Dunham	Template:Circa 1910	1913	<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1910a" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1913" />
William J. Taylor	1913	1919	<ref name="Wausau Pilot 1919" />
James W. Vallentyne	1919	1924	<ref name="Portland Press Herald 1924" />
Daniel T. Denman	1925	1932	<ref name="Chicago Daily Tribune 1932" />
Frank D. Adams	1932	1945	<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1932" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1945b" />
John Q. Parkhurst	1945	1952	<ref name="Oak Leaves 1945a" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1952a" />
Robert M. Rice	1952	1970	<ref name="Oak Leaves 1952a" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1971a2" />
Gerald Krick	1971	Template:Circa	<ref name="Oak Leaves 1971a2" />
Charles Scot Giles	1981	1990	<ref name="Oak Leaves 1981b" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 19930901" />
Shirley Ann Ranck	1991	Template:Circa	<ref name="Oak Leaves 19910904" />
F. Jay Deacon	1993	Template:Circa	<ref name="Oak Leaves 19930901" />
Fern C. Stanley	2002	2003	<ref name="Kates 2003" />
Alan Taylor	2003	2021	<ref name="Oak Leaves 20030910" /><ref name="Holmes h818" />
Roger Bertschausen	2023	present	<ref name="Holmes e727" />

Events and tours

Over the years, Unity Temple has been included in tours of Wright's Oak Park buildings,<ref>See, for example: {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; Template:Cite news</ref> such as tours provided by the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio Foundation (later the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust).<ref>See, for example: Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> Unity Temple is also part of the annual "Wright Plus" walking tour, which includes visits to several buildings designed by Wright.<ref name="Zak 2001">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> By 2017, the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust hosted tours of Unity Temple six days a week, in addition to more detailed tours once a week.<ref name="Dechter 2017" /> During the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual tours of the temple were also hosted.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Since 2018, Unity Temple has been part of the Frank Lloyd Wright Trail, a collection of 13 buildings designed by Wright in Illinois.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The church began hosting concerts in late 1973.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1974c" /> Musicians frequently requested permission to perform there,<ref name="News Journal 1974" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1976a" /> prompting the church to launch a regular concert series in 1974.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1975e" /> The series, which included music from a variety of genres, raised over $50,000 for the temple in its first quarter-century.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The temple also hosted theatrical, ballet, and opera performances.<ref name="Gapp 1978" /> In addition, in 1996, the church started hosting avant-garde music performances as part of its Creative and Improvised Music program,<ref name="Reich 1997" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 19970226" /> which was hosted there for two years.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Over the years, Unity Temple has hosted meetings for the local community,<ref name="Siry p. 103" /> such as meetings for other Universalist congregations,<ref>See, for instance: Template:Cite news</ref> conventions of the National Young People's Christian Union,<ref>See, for example: Template:Cite news</ref> and dinners.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957a" /> The church hosted a program called "Ways of Mankind" during 1954, in which members of the public were invited to listen to, and discuss, radio broadcasts about selected topics.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The church has also invited guest speakers, such as in 1964 when four liberal pastors gave speeches there.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Other programs at the church have included "Constructive Kids", an architectural program for primary-school children.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Over the years, Unity Temple has hosted public exhibits, such as a 1963 exhibit about Wright's architecture<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1963" /> and a 1978 exhibit of Wright's architectural drawings.<ref>Template:Cite news; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Impact

When Unity Temple was completed, it differed significantly from other local churches' designs.<ref name="Siry p. 130" /> Wright considered Unity Temple to be his first completed concrete-building design,<ref name="Saint p. 162" /><ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite magazine</ref> and it was reportedly the first major reinforced-concrete building constructed in the U.S.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1957b" /><ref name="Posner 1992" /><ref name="Gapp 1992">Template:Cite news</ref> The temple is also an early example of a building with an exposed-concrete facade,<ref name="Saint p. 163" /><ref name="Oak Leaves 1946b" /> contrasting with earlier concrete structures in Europe, whose surfaces were typically concealed behind cladding.<ref name="Saint p. 163" /> Paul Gapp of the Chicago Tribune wrote retrospectively that Wright's use of concrete was "a daring risk at the time".<ref name="Gapp 1992" />

Unity Temple has been cited as an early example of modern architecture,<ref name="The Manchester Guardian 1939">Template:Cite news</ref> with Wright citing it as his first modern-style building.<ref name="Gibson e506" /> The Oak Park Wednesday Journal wrote in 2017 that Unity Temple was "considered by many to be the world's first 'modern' building".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to Wright's wife Olgivanna, after the temple was finished, foreign architects copied elements of its design.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Unity Temple's design has been credited with having helped inspire the European architects Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and Peter Behrens.<ref>Template:Cite news; Template:Cite news</ref> In addition, Unity Temple has inspired the design of structures such as the Maisonneuve Fire Station in Montreal,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the Emerson Unitarian Church in Houston,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and the Kunstmuseum Den Haag building in The Hague.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The emphasis of materials and light in Unity Temple's design helped inspire later buildings such as Notre-Dame du Haut and the First Unitarian Church of Rochester.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Reception

File:Lloyd Wright Unity Temple sanctuary 1.jpg

View of the auditorium from the balcony

Upon the temple's completion, images of the auditorium were published in Inland Architect and News Record magazine.<ref name="Siry pp. 192–193" /> Local newspaper Oak Leaves called it "the most radical departure in traditional church architecture ever attempted",<ref name="Siry p. 130" /> and the same newspaper said the "severe simplicity of the exterior of the building [...] gives one little hint of the beauty of the interior".<ref name="Sokol p. 100" /> A writer for the Chicago Daily Tribune said Unity Temple's modern design represented "the present, the twentieth century, the modern spirit, thought, faith, the modern freedom, the modern ideal".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Architectural Record praised the acoustics as "not sonorous and [...] only slightly reverberant".<ref name="Oak Leaves 1976a">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Conversely, Winthrop Kendall regarded the building as unattractive, "without a vine or a tree to relieve its massive monotony",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and disappointed congregants likened the temple to a Mayan handball court.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1928, a writer for The Baltimore Sun described Unity Temple as one of a few buildings that expressed Wright's "idea of the thing—made to sing to heaven",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> while the Wausau Daily Herald said the design "gave rise to the cubical monolith".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A writer for the Manchester Guardian, in 1939, described Unity Temple as one of Wright's "pedigree buildings".<ref name="The Manchester Guardian 1939" /> A St. Louis Post-Dispatch article in 1961 said Unity Temple still "looks quite fresh and contemporary today",<ref name="McCue 1961" /> and The Buffalo News likened the building to a "visiting spaceship" in 1981,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and architectural historian Vincent Scully called it "small, yet large" and one of the nation's most beautiful buildings.<ref name="nyt-1984-09-02" /> After the auditorium's interior restoration was completed in the 1980s, a Boston Globe editor said the auditorium was "almost as shocking as the restoration of the Sistine Chapel".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The architectural critic Paul Goldberger perceived Unity Temple as representing "a kind of symbolic gathering and communal presence, monumental dignity in a public place",<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> calling it one of "the greatest religious structures" of the 20th century.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

A writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education in 1996 contrasted Unity Temple's "blocky" massing with the low-roofed design of Robie House on Chicago's South Side.<ref name="Biemiller 1996" /> David M. Sokol, in his 2008 book The Noble Room, wrote that the temple's "majesty and importance" was partially derived from the fact that it was not arranged as typical church buildings had been.<ref name="Sokol p. 83" /> A writer for The Washington Post wrote that the building may have been one of Wright's favorite designs because it was "imposing yet elegant".<ref name="Jeffrey b0492" /> After the temple's renovation was finished in 2017, a Curbed writer said the building's imposing concrete facade "belies what's inside",<ref name="Koziarz j035" /> while a Chicago Tribune writer called the auditorium "magnificent sanctuary noted for its high skylights of amber-tinted leaded glass".<ref name="Dechter 2017" /> Blair Kamin wrote for The Wall Street Journal in 2025 that the temple's exterior was "monolithic, not monotonous" because of its use of textured concrete and geometric motifs, while "the sanctuary is as serene as architecture gets".<ref name="Kamin 2025" />

Unity Temple has also received architectural accolades. In 1959, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) deemed Unity Temple as one of 17 buildings designed by Wright that merited the highest levels of architectural preservation.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A 1991 poll in Architectural Record magazine ranked Unity Temple as one of the 10 most significant buildings in the United States from the previous century.<ref name="Johnson o698" /> The temple's 2017 restoration received several awards, including the American Institute of Architects' Crombie Taylor Award,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the World Monuments Fund's Modernism Prize,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the Urban Land Institute's Vision Award,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation's Preservation Award.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Media

File:Oak Park Il Unity Temple4.jpg

Side view of Unity Temple's facade

Wright's building has been the subject of several books. Unity Temple was detailed in Ernst Wasmuth's 1910 Wasmuth Portfolio.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The historian Joseph Siry wrote a book about the church's architecture in 1996,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> while Robert McCarter published another book the following year with photographs of the temple.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Patrick F. Cannon published a book about the temple through the Unity Temple Restoration Foundation in 2009,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> which received an accolade from the Independent Publisher Book Awards in 2023.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The Library of Congress acquired photographs and documents about Unity Temple in 1967.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Additionally, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York displayed images of the temple in 1965<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and 1988.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Local photographer Redd Griffin created a slideshow with images of Unity Temple in the 1970s,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and drawings of the temple have also been displayed at the Phoenix Art Museum in Arizona<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and at the Oak Park Library.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The temple was detailed in the Scottish filmmaker Murray Grigor 's 1982 documentary about Wright's Oak Park buildings.<ref name="Oak Leaves 19820519">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In addition, the 2020 documentary Unity Temple: Frank Lloyd Wright's Modern Masterpiece, produced by Lauren Levine and narrated by Brad Pitt, details the temple's renovation.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Landmark designations

Unity Temple was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in April 1970;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> such a designation allowed properties to receive federal funds for restoration.<ref name="Oak Leaves 1971c" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The building was designated a National Historic Landmark on December 30, 1970,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and was re-added to the NRHP at that time.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A plaque commemorating the National Historic Landmark designation was installed in June 1971.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Oak Park officials considered including Unity Temple as part of a municipal historic district in 1971.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> When the district was created the next year, however, it excluded the temple.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The United States Department of the Interior nominated Unity Temple and nine other Wright–designed buildings to the World Heritage List in 2015;<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> the buildings had previously been nominated in 2008.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> UNESCO added eight properties, including Unity Temple, to the World Heritage List in July 2019 under the title "The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}; {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

See also

• List of Frank Lloyd Wright works
• List of National Historic Landmarks in Illinois
• List of World Heritage Sites in the United States
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Cook County, Illinois
• Unitarian Meeting House, Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin
• Unitarian Universalist Association

References

Sources

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External links

• Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation