Westminster Presbyterian Church 1624 NE Hancock Street A part of the Irvington Neighborhood since 1889

Westminster Presbyterian Church was an Irvington neighbor before the completion of this edifice in 1914.  Prior to that time, the congregation met in four other facilities:1889-1890 a lunch counter at Union and San Rafael, 1892-1894 a fire hall at Union near Holladay, and 1894-1914 a church at 10th and Weidler.  The current structure was designed in 1910 by Ellis F. Lawrence, the well-known Portland architect, who lived in the neighborhood.  (One of the homes designed by Lawrence was on the tour in 2005.)  Construction began in 1912 on land donated (according to local lore) by Gustav Freiwald, whose mansion stood at 15th Avenue and Schuyler (and today is the Lion and Rose Bed & Breakfast).

Westminster Presbyterian Church is especially important to the Irvington Community as it was here in 1965 that 400 concerned residents attended a community meeting to fight blight and crime -- a meeting that spawned the formation of the Irvington Community Association, the first neighborhood association in Portland.

In the sanctuary, the beauty of English Country Gothic architecture and seventy pews adorned with needlepoint cushions reflect the designs and colors of the four towering stained glass windows.  Church records are not clear about the artist for the stained glass windows.  The pulpit, lectern, and reredos (choir screen) were remodeled in the 1950's by Marjorie Wintermute.  She employed a modern minimalist style influenced by Pietro Belluschi, perhaps Portland's most notable architect, in whose office she had worked.  Belluschi is known in Irvington for his ultra-modern design for the Central Lutheran Church a few blocks away.