INDIANAPOLIS — With visits to century-old places of worship still in operation and sacred spaces that have found new uses, a Dec. 4 tour in and around Indianapolis’s Old Northside neighborhood offers insights into the ways 10 Indianapolis churches have adapted to changes in the city and its residents’ spiritual lives.
Indiana Landmarks’ Holiday Church Tour highlights institutions built between 1891 and 1929 to serve residents who settled beyond the city’s core. Focusing on how congregations responded to post-World War II changes that resulted in a neighborhood with increasingly diverse religious and social needs, the event showcases efforts to preserve the historic buildings through creative reuse, community outreach, or liturgical adaptations.
Church buildings featured on the tour range from the 1926 Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church — built to serve a congregation of newly freed slaves established after the Civil War — to Indiana Landmarks’ state headquarters at the former Central Avenue Methodist Church, and the former First Friends Church on Alabama Street, which now serves as condominiums.
The tour also includes exterior views of the former Central Universalist Church, former First Friends Church, and Trader’s Point Christian Church.
The self-guided tours take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets are $20 for the general public, $15 for members of Indiana Landmarks, $10 for children ages 6 to 11, and free for children ages 5 and under. Tickets may be purchased in advance at indyholidaychurchtour21.eventbrite.com, or on the day of the tour at Indiana Landmarks Center, 1201 Central Avenue. Day-of-tour tickets cost an additional $5 each (except for children ages 5 and under).
To begin their tours, attendees may check-in at any of the sites open for interior visitation to exchange their Eventbrite receipts for tickets and programs.
A Nov. 30 preview event will feature Lee Little discussing churches featured on the tour as well as other area houses of worship. The program will be offered in-person at Indiana Landmarks Center and online via Zoom. The talk is $7 for the general public and free for members of Indiana Landmarks. Tickets may be purchased at oldchurchesindytalk21.eventbrite.com or by calling 317-639-4534. Attendees will be able to purchase copies of Circle City Steeples, with a portion of the proceeds going to support Indiana Landmarks’ Sacred Places Indiana program.
