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The Church Missions House was built in 1894 as the center for the Protestant Episcopal Church's missionary activities. The building was constructed on land donated by J. Pierpont Morgan and was built with substantial help from Cornelius Vanderbilt. The building, which now houses the Swedish photography museum, Fotografiska, was designed by architects Robert William Gibson and Edward J. Neville Stent. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Church Missions House as it appeared at the time of its construction

The Church Missions House as it appeared at the time of its construction

The building as it appears today

The building as it appears today

Detail of the building's entrance

Detail of the building's entrance

Though it would not be built for many years, the origins of the Church Missions House go back to 1821. That year, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church formed the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society to oversee the church's mission work. The organization was originally headquartered in Philadelphia, but moved to New York in 1835.

The society began looking into the prospect of constructing a permanent headquarters in 1864, but no serious efforts were made until 1889. J.P. Morgan donated land on what was then 4th Avenue and the cornerstone was laid in 1892. Morgan and Cornelius Vanderbilt were both major contributors to the effort. To design the building, two English architects were chosen: Robert W. Gibson and Edward J. Neville Stent. Its location on 4th Avenue put it on a major thoroughfare and also meant that it was adjacent to one of the nation's most important Episcopal churches.

The building was completed in 1894. Though the original estimate for its construction was $100,000, by the time it was finished, the total cost was $500,000, or about $11 million today. Part of the reason for the greatly increased cost was the elaborate sculptures that adorn the building's entrance, as well as the materials used in its interior, including marbles and mosaics.

Eventually, the building became the property of Protestant Welfare Agencies. That organization oversaw a massive restoration of the building, which was completed in the 1990s, almost exactly a century after the building was built. In 2018, the Stockholm-based photography museum, Fotografiska, moved into the building, following another restoration.

Miller , Tom . The 1894 Church Missions House--No. 281 Park Ave. S. , Daytonian in Manhattan . December 6th 2013. Accessed August 16th 2020. http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-1894-church-missions-house-no-281.html.

Oriaku, Ali . Swedish Photo Museum Plans its First New York City Outpost, The Architect's Newspaper . November 13th 2018. Accessed August 16th 2020. https://www.archpaper.com/2018/11/fotografiska-claims-church-missions-house-new-york-city/.

Postings: Mission House Restoration; Going Back to the Future , New York Times . December 15th 1991. Accessed August 16th 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/15/realestate/postings-mission-house-restoration-going-back-to-the-future.html.

Church Missions House , Flatiron District . February 1st 2008. Accessed August 16th 2020. https://www.flatirondistrict.nyc/discover-flatiron/flatiron-history/23/church-missions-house.