Omega Seventh-Day Adventist Church

This bold place of worship stands at the nexus of Derby and Winthrop Avenues, inviting the neighborhood into its doors. Its neoclassical columns on all three visible sides and all-white exterior make it stand out in a streetscape populated by multi-family houses not in the same style or color. Though seemingly pristine when viewed briefly from the street, its deterioration is apparent upon closer inspection, likely due to both weathering and age. The wings on either side of the building were additions made in the middle of the last century. This building has always been a place of worship, and currently houses a Seventh-Day Adventist church. 

1^st Church of Christian Scientists (1910-1950)

Bikur Cholim Sheveth Achim (1953-1994)

Omega Seventh-Day Adventist Church (1994-present)

This building was the first on its site since it was an empty lot in 1901 (6). From 1911 to 1924 it appears there was an addition to the rear of the building to take up the remaining space in the back of the land plot. The Bikur Cholim Sheveth Achim synagogue purchased the property directly to the left of the building, 57 Derby, between 1954 and 1955, so the land plot grew, and wings were added to the left and right of the building (4 and 8). The parking lot likely also developed during this time, currently occupying the space between the main building and its left wing. The building has been surrounded by single-family homes and small shops since its existence (6, 7, 8, 9), but there is a concern from the current congregation about the spread of urbanism in the area. The area is far enough west to have been spared the high-rises and gentrified stores of places further east on Chapel Street, but there are two apartment buildings directly near the church that threaten the continuity of the quiet residential neighborhood. The current congregation is seeking to obtain historic status to protect the building from being demolished for development. 

This building has served as a place of worship for a few denominations throughout its existence. With the dense conglomeration of houses in the Edgewood and West River neighborhoods just west of downtown, it likely became necessary for the inhabitants of these areas to found places of worship of their own instead of constantly traveling to the center of the city. In the 1911 New Haven Atlas, it looks like the First Church of Christian Scientists and the Plymouth Congregational Church were the only places of worship in these neighborhoods west of downtown (9). The Plymouth Congregational Church was founded first, so perhaps the First Church of Christian Scientists was formed due to overflow of Plymouth, or perhaps in opposition to the church’s teachings. Whatever its initial purpose, the First Church of Christian Scientists occupied the building from its construction in 1910 until 1950 (4). The reason for their departure is unknown, but physical degradation is hinted at in the next tenant’s explanation of their occupation of the building: in the process of moving, they took up an interim location until their “present premises were ready for occupancy” (3). Considering that the next tenant, a Jewish Orthodox Synagogue by the name of Bikur Cholim Sheveth Achim bought the property in 1950 and did not appear in the city directory until 1953, need for physical repairs may be a plausible reason for the former tenant’s move and the 2-year vacancy (3 and 4).

The new congregation was formed from two existing synagogues in the New Haven area – Bikur Cholim and Sheveth Achim – and deemed necessary for both groups because of their decline in numbers, lack of funds, dislocations, and changes in immigrant laws (likely a reference to the Immigration Act of 1924, which restricted immigration of Jewish people) (3). Between 1954 and 1955 the synagogue purchased 57 Derby, the land immediately to the left of the building, and either rebuilt or repurposed it into a school. Though the Park family lived in 57 Derby for many years beforehand, the man who was presumably its patriarch died in 1952, leaving his widow and son, who was a cook at Yale, in the house by themselves. The family likely needed money after Mr. Park’s death, and it was convenient timing that the synagogue was also looking to expand its building space. 57 Derby was officially considered the Bikur Cholim Seveth Achim Hebrew School starting in 1955 and the address disappeared from the city directory altogether in 1981, when it was probably formally incorporated with 278 Winthrop (4).

The synagogue sold the building to the Northeastern Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists in September of 1994. The Seventh Day Adventists have occupied the church to the present day under the name Omega Seventh-Day Adventist Church. 

The church sits at the corner of its lot, facing the nexus of Monitor Square, Derby Avenue, and Winthrop Avenue, and commanding the residential area in which it is placed due to its sheer size and color. Monitor Square is directly across the street and likely is filled with parents and children after service, provided the weather is nice. Though the sidewalks are not clearly new, they are not falling into disrepair and can still be easily used by members of the community. Derby Avenue is a main thoroughfare to Westville, but it does not seem busy enough to cause a noticeable disturbance. Though Chapel Street and Derby Avenue have a few small shops here and there, this area is primarily made up of multi-family houses. However, directly next to the church and on the opposing corner are large apartment buildings that seem to threaten the peaceful neighborhood.

This grand, one-story building is a wood structure with a brick base. It is surrounded on 3 sides by massive columns, which conjure up images of the great temples and meeting spaces of Greece and Rome. There is a window directly above the main entrance which has an ornate metal structure covering it, vaguely reminiscent of a compass. There have been additions to each side of the building, clearly noticed because of their lack of grandeur. These additions are made of concrete blocks, which are brick-faced. Everything but the brick base and the gray doors to the wings is painted white, though the paint is starting to crack, chip, and discolor in some areas. There is a wheelchair ramp on the right side of the building constructed out of wood. On the left side of the building one column looks to be falling out of place, as there is rope tying it to the other columns and visible damage both to the top and bottom of the column itself. 

1.      City of New Haven, New Haven Neighborhoods Map. https://newhavenct.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Minimalist/index.html?appid=4db0c188c19845ee92a56da9dcf36446

2.      City of New Haven, 278 Winthrop Av. Online Assessment, 2016. http://gis.vgsi.com/newhavenct/Parcel.aspx?pid=22442

3.      Louis Godfried, 100^th Anniversary and Banquet to Honor the Cong. Bikur Cholim Sheveth Achim, 1984.

4.      New Haven Directory. New Haven: Price & Lee Co., 1910, 1950-55, 1995, 1997.

5.      The New Haven Preservation Trust, Historic Resources Inventory. 1983, 3970.

6.      Sanborn-Ferris Map Co., Insurance Maps of New Haven Connecticut, Volume 2, 1901, 161.

7.      Sanborn Map Company of New York, Insurance Maps of New Haven Connecticut, Volume 1, 1924, 39.

8.      Sanborn Map Company of New York, Insurance Maps of New Haven Connecticut, Volume 1, 1973, 39.

9.      Streuli and Puckhafer, Atlas of New Haven Connecticut. Walker and Puckhafer, 1911.