Christ Church Cambridge

Christ Church Cambridge is an active Episcopal church at 0 Garden St in Harvard Square. Peter Harrison designed its modest gray clapboard building in 1761 in the Georgian style, with Palladian influences. The church’s Revolutionary-era history gives a visit added context, while stained glass and the church’s peaceful setting offer details to take in indoors and out. You can also explore its library or attend a service; the congregation follows the Book of Common Prayer and welcomes contemporary forms of worship.

A church shaped by the Revolution

Peter Harrison designed Christ Church in 1761. Its gray clapboard exterior and Georgian form reflect the Palladian style he brought to colonial American architecture. Harrison also designed King’s Chapel in Boston.

The church’s congregation was mostly Tory during the American Revolution. Many members fled, and the building was used as a barracks during the Siege of Boston. Its organ was melted down for bullets. These wartime changes offer a direct connection between the church and the conflict around it.

Inside the church

Stained glass windows bring color to the interior, alongside the building’s historic architecture. Christ Church is an active Episcopal congregation that teaches from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, while also making room for contemporary approaches to worship.

The church has a library for visitors interested in further reading. Its community also holds a weekly Thursday dinner. The setting includes a landscaped garden, providing a quiet place outside the church.