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Idarabasi Akpan
Professor Nicholas Anderson
ENC 1930
3 October 2015
Plymouth Congregational Church
Location: This historical marker is placed by the front gate of the church so that
passersbys and anyone that comes to the church will see it.
Text: This historical marker is placed here to commemorate the Plymouth
Congregational Church and its importance to the area of Coconut Grove.
The church started out as the Union Congregational Church founded in 1897 by Rev.
James Bolton. In 1915, Rev. George Spalding, one of the ministers of the church, and George
Merrick, the president of the Board of Trustees, urged the church to contribute to the purchase of
a land at Devon road which they succeeded in purchasing on June 22, 1915. It was on this land
that the original rectangular structure of the Plymouth Congregational Church was erected.
The building was designed by Clinton McKenzie, a New York architect who studied in
Mexico for several years. His time spent in Mexico inspired him to create this Spanish Missionstyle architecture building. The entire original structure of outstanding stonework was built by a
single stonemason, a Spaniard by the name of Felix Rebom, from June 1916 to August 1917
using only four primitive tools: a hatchet, a trowel, a T-square and a plumb line. Undoubtedly,
the tools devoted to the construction of the building are what gives it its unique style and beauty.
Over a period of 98 years, the church that was once a single building, with a seating
capacity for 600 people, has now expanded to a campus of 18 buildings including pastors’
residential buildings. In 1963, a preschool was built to accommodate the growing congregation
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and in the year 2013, the school served more than 140 students from the wider community and is
still growing in population. There are several Church School programs that are available for all
age groups. These programs give the congregation opportunities to learn, share and discuss
several aspects of growing in the faith. Three times a week, the residents of and around Coconut
Grove get the chance to worship in the beautiful and nostalgic sanctuary. It is this same beauty
and nostalgia that attracts an average of 300 weddings every year.
Plymouth Congregational Church was a significant contribution to the early
development of Coconut Grove and is of great historical importance to the area. As such, it is
recognized by The National Register of Historic Places.
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Works Cited
Plymouth Congregational Church. Plymouth Congregational Church, 2012. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
Eaton, Sarah. "REPORT OF THE CITY OF MIAMI PLANNING DEPARTMENT TO THE
HERITAGE CONSERVATION BOARD ON THE POTENTIAL DESIGNATION OF
PLYMOUTH CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH 3429 DEVON ROAD AS A
HERITAGE CONSERVATION ZONING DISTRICT." City of Miami: Historic
Preservation. City of Miami Planning Department, 31 May 1983. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.