This church was originally built by the Grace Evangelical Lutheran congregation, led at the time by Rev. August Koerber. With an initial budget of $10,000, it was expanded in 1951 and hosted a private elementary school, becoming a community staple for over ninety years. Over time, the congregation dwindled and the property was eventually sold in 2006. It currently serves as St. Samuel’s Cathedral Church of God in Christ.

The two-story brick structure was designed by architectural engineer Adolph F. Bernhard, who was a partner at James Gamble Rogers Inc. for nearly forty years. The firm became a major figure in American architecture, designing much of Yale University’s campus, buildings for Northwestern University, and the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, among many other notable projects.

Born in Austria, Bernhard studied in Chicago and was an active member of the Lutheran Church. He was a trustee of the Church in Bedford Park and secretary of its Bible School, treasurer of the Lutheran Education Society (the organization which supported Concordia College at Bronxville), and member of the Committee on Church Architecture of the Missouri Synod.