A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
From the Photo series: A Closer Look: Explore Western New York’s architectural treasures series
The Delaware Avenue Baptist Church, built in 1894, is for sale because the congregation of 250 members can no longer afford the upkeep of the massive building.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Designed by architect John H. Coxhead in the Richardsonian Romanesque style (named for Henry Hobson Richardson, who designed the Buffalo Psychiatric Center), the church features a stained-glass dome atop a 6,500-square-foot vaulted sanctuary with mosaic-tile detailing inside. Coxhead designed hundreds of buildings in Buffalo and across the nation in his nearly 60-year career.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The stained glass dome features mosaic-tile detailing. The church is for sale for $895,000 because the congregation of 250 members can't afford the upkeep of the 27,831-square-foot church, said the Rev. Michael J. Robinson, the church's pastor.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The pipe organ in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. The Delaware Avenue Restoration Corp., a nonprofit formed by and affiliated with the church, is trying to raise $300,000 to $500,000 to fix the building and ensure its long-term survival.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
An intricate column top in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. Architect John H. Coxhead designed several other churches, along with the J.N. Adam TB hospital in Perrysburg and the Knox stables in East Aurora.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of a mosaic on the altar at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. One million tiles were used to create the mosaic altar.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The intricate detail is mirrored on the molding and on wall painting in the sanctuary of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The sanctuary in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. The sanctuary includes extensive lower-level seating in wooden pews, as well as a vast balcony with an organ.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
A stained glass window at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of one of the mosaics on the altar at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of angels on the dome ceiling of the sanctuary at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of the painting on the dome ceiling of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The stained glass dome in the sanctuary of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. Architect John H. Coxhead was a member of the church and at one lived within walking distance of the church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The massive pipe organ in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Frescoes in plaster frames line the archway on the balcony in the sanctuary of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Rows of stained glass in the sanctuary at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Intricate woodwork on the south tower stairwell at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of the bannister in the back hallway of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
A seating area in the parlor of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. The building includes three floors of meeting, classroom and office space, including a 700-square-foot kitchen, a library, a fellowship hall and a lounge.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Views from upper balcony of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
One million tiles make up the mosaic on the altar at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of a pew marker in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. Among the repairs needed are the leaky roof, much of which is original to the building. "It's well over 100 years old now, and there are places where it's deteriorated to the point where it needs replacing," said Paul McDonnell, chairman of the city's Preservation Board.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. "We're sad that the congregation feels the church is beyond their long-term financial wherewithal. It's really a very special building," said Paul McDonnell, chairman of the city's Preservation Board. The church's deep arcaded porch and arched door openings are also reminiscent of H.R. Richardson's Buffalo Psychiatric Center design.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Intricate gold painting on the dome ceiling of the sanctuary at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The sanctuary in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Thousands of tiny tiles make up the mosaic floor of the altar in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The baptismal font behind the altar in the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of one of the angels on the dome ceiling of the sanctuary at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Thousands of tiny tiles make up the mosaic floor of the entryway to the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Detail of the molding in the sanctuary of the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Thousands of tiny tiles make up the mosaic floor of the entryway to the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
A stained glass window at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The Delaware Avenue Baptist Church. Paul McDonnell Paul McDonnell, chairman of the city's Preservation Board, said any redevelopment that relies on historic tax credits would be prevented from altering the sanctuary, which is "the defining element."
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
Intricate painting on the walls of the balcony at the Delaware Avenue Baptist Church.
A Closer Look: Delaware Avenue Baptist Church
The Delaware Avenue Baptist Church has started looking for a new and smaller location in the city, ideally within a mile of Delaware Avenue so it can keep a name that "has significance and history," said the Rev. Michael Robinson. "We don't need 30,000 square feet of space."
This series has taken Buffalo News photographers inside, outside, above and, on occasion, underneath local landmarks and to places most people…