In the fabric of the Back Bay

Arlington Street Church

In 1860-1861, the congregation of the Federal Street Church commissioned the Arlington Street Church, a new home on the wide boulevards of the newly infilled Back Bay. Like many of Boston’s elite, the Back Bay presented an opportunity to flee the old streets of Boston, increasingly viewed as cramped and unhygienic. Many congregations and individuals would follow in the following decades.

Designed by Arthur Delevan Gilman, creator of the entire street layout of the Back Bay, the Church offers a unique synthesis of Gilman’s urban design and architectural vision. The exterior is modeled on St Martin-in-the-Fields, London, although replacing St Martin’s white limestone with the brownstone so familiar in northeastern cities. The design is credited as an early part of the colonial revival style.