Plymouth United Church of Christ - Oakland

Plymouth United Church of Christ ¹

Plymouth United Church of Christ is a UCC church at 424 Monte Vista Avenue. Plymouth Church's denominational roots extend to the first Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth Rock and the New England Congregationalists who defended the rights of the Africans on the Amistad, worked for the abolition of slavery, and ordained the first woman minister in 1853.

Inspired by St. Columba's on San Pablo, Plymouth Church started putting up crosses in 2006 representing those who had died violent deaths. The stated goal was to show that, even in the hills, all of Oakland was affected by violence.

Crosses representing violent deaths in 2007. photo CC BY-NC 2.0 by Thomas Hawk

History

Plymouth was formed by the merger of two congregations in 1904, the Oak Chapel Congregational Church (est. 1894) near Piedmont Avenue on Linda and the Plymouth Avenue Congregational Church (est. 1874), formerly located near the present site of Summit Medical Center. It was known as Plymouth Congregational Church.

The first sanctuary was a wooden church on Howe Street near MacArthur Boulevard.

Plymouth United Church of Christ ¹1911 Sanborn excerpt

In 1914, the cornerstone for new, larger church building was laid. The building was designed by William Knowles. It was dedicated October 18, 1914. ²

1914 ²1950 Sanborn excerpt

1919 ³1919 ³

In 1954, the present site at the corner of Oakland Avenue and Monte Vista Avenue was acquired, and funds were gathered for a new building. In 1958, the old property was sold to Kaiser Foundation Hospitals for the construction of a Kaiser parking garage, and in November 1959, the present building was dedicated. ¹

1959 Sanborn excerpt Plymouth United Church of Christ ¹