Calvary Baptist Church

125 West 57th Street | also 123 West 57th Street | Midtown | built 2024

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Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

  1. 1918

    John Roach Straton becomes pastor of Calvary Baptist, turning it into a national center of fundamentalism

    In 1918 John Roach Straton became pastor of Calvary Baptist Church, which by then occupied this West 57th Street site. He held the post until 1929. Under him the congregation became nationally known as a center of fundamentalism and of his efforts to reform society according to what he saw as Bible-based morality.

    “1918-1929 John Roach Straton. During his tenure, Calvary was nationally known as a center for fundamentalism and efforts to reform society…”

    Source: Wikipedia

  2. 1923

    Calvary Baptist Church starts its own radio station, among the earliest run by any church

    In 1923 Calvary Baptist Church, then based on this West 57th Street site, began operating a radio station of its own, one of the first churches to do so. The broadcasting habit lasted: the church still produces a weekly radio program, "Tell It From Calvary," which is heard on WMCA.

    Source: Wikipedia

  3. 1931

    A 16-story skyscraper church with the Hotel Salisbury is dedicated at 123 West 57th Street

    Planning for a high-rise church on West 57th Street began in 1929, with the firm of Jardine, Hill & Murdock credited as designer. The finished building, dedicated in 1931, was an early example of a skyscraper church: sixteen stories that also held the Hotel Salisbury, an apartment hotel. It stood on the lot until demolition began in 2022.

    Source: Wikipedia

  4. 1973

    Stephen Olford resigns as pastor of Calvary Baptist Church after more than 13 years

    The New York Times reported on January 20, 1973, that the Rev. Dr. Stephen F. Olford, then 54, had resigned as pastor of Calvary Baptist Church at 123 West 57th Street, in the building that preceded today's tower, after more than 13 years. He planned to work full time with Encounter Ministries, Inc., which had sponsored his radio and television programs. As minister-at-large he meant to keep broadcasting and to write and train pastors, students and laymen.

    Source: The New York Times

  5. 2019

    October 7

    Alchemy and ABR plan a 26-story office tower on the Calvary Baptist Church site

    Reports in October 2019 said developers Alchemy and ABR Investment Partners would buy Calvary Baptist Church's properties at 123-141 West 57th Street and build a 26-story boutique office building with space for the church. The church, which had owned the Salisbury Hotel for nearly a century, wanted to leave the hospitality business, and deacons' chairman Todd Williams said the old space no longer served its needs. The developers put the cost at about $350 million.

    Source: 6sqft

  6. 2023

    December 13

    Calvary Baptist rents space in an Upper West Side synagogue while its new church is built

    With its longtime West 57th Street home demolished, Calvary Baptist Church agreed in late 2023 to rent 17,814 square feet at the SAJ synagogue, 15 West 86th Street, on a 2.25-year lease. The tower going up at 125 West 57th Street is a 440-foot, 26-story mixed-use building, and building permits set aside 47,436 square feet on its first six floors for the church and its community center.

    Source: commercialobserver.com

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