From the WGHF Archives: 02.26.15

The Windermere Union Church, affiliated with the United Church of Christ, stood at the intersection of Oakdale Street and East Fifth Avenue in this 1968 photograph. The congregation was originally housed in the 1890 schoolhouse located on Seventh Avenue until being offered a lot by the Windermere Improvement Company in 1919. The church building pictured here was constructed in 1923 under the direction of the pastor, the Rev. John Champion, and was dedicated in February 1924. In 2002, the congregation sold the property and bought a site on Gotha Road to construct a larger church and installed the original stained-glass windows in the new facility. The old building now serves as the Chapel Annex for First Baptist Church.

The Winter Garden Heritage Foundation, which seeks to preserve our heritage and architecture while creating new cultural experiences, is celebrating its third decade with the debut of its new History Research and Education Center.