Public Theater
4712 S. Prairie Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60615
4712 S. Prairie Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60615
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Additional Info
Firms: Grossman & Proskauer
Functions: Church
Previous Names: 20th Century Theater
Nearby Theaters
The 20th Century theater was opened in 1913, located in the Grand Boulevard neighborhood on Prairie Avenue at 47th Street. The theater was originally part of the Alfred Hamburger circuit. It was one of a series of theaters located near El stations designed by the architectural firm of Grossman and Proskauer. Others included the Morse and Panorama.
It was renamed the Public Theater in 1931 and suffered a fire in 1944. Since closing as a movie theater in 1952, it has received a new facade and has served since 1960 as the Christian Tabernacle Baptist Church.
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
The church site claims that Prairie Avenue has been renamed to honor the church pastor, but I didn’t find any evidence of that.
Pastor Woods spent a considerable amount of time pondering on a name for God’s church. The church became known, both in practice and in deeds, as Christian Tabernacle Church Baptist also dubbed ‘The Growing Church With the Family Spirit". The church’s’ motto is “GOD CAN DO ANYTHING BUT FAIL”. Early on, the Lord led Pastor Woods to 4712 S. Prairie Ave., later renamed to Maceo L. Woods Avenue, where his vision was born. Christian Tabernacle has become a lighthouse to lost souls seeking a better life, to those carrying on their Christian experience and to those coming as new converts and candidates for baptism.