The City Temple - Holborn Viaduct, London, UK - Wikipedia Entries on Waymarking.com

An inscription, cut into a stone pillar to the west side of the Temple, reads:

The City Temple
Memorial stone laid by
Rev Thomas Binney LLD
19th May 1873
Opened 19th May 1974

The Temple's website [visit link] tells us:

"City Temple, a historic Free Church on the western edge of the City of London, has its roots in the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. The traditional date of the founding of the church is 1640. However, some evidence suggests that the church could have begun as early as the 1560s. Puritans, who became known as Non-Conformists, because they refused to conform with the Book of Common Prayer, campaigned for the reform of the Church of England. They wanted the freedom to worship God in accordance with the Bible and the leading of their own consciences. It is the only Free Church in the City of London worshipping in its own building, regularly every Sunday.

CT has had a succession of famous ministers, from the Puritan Thomas Goodwin, chaplain to Oliver Cromwell, to the great Victorian preacher, Joseph Parker, and Leslie Weatherhead who led the church from 1936-1960.

City Temple was built on Holborn Viaduct in 1874 and developed as a classic city-centre 'preaching station'. It's grand design, layout and worship epitomised the metropolitan 'gathered church' model. This model thrived even after the Second World War, when the church was rebuilt and opened for worship in 1958, after having suffered bomb damage, and the 900-seat sanctuary was regularly filled to overflowing.

Following Weatherhead's ministry the congregation had been in numerical decline, but in recent years the church has become a growing, international fellowship, incorporating over 20 nationalities and enjoying a contemporary and charismatic worship style. It is committed to the City of London and its surrounding areas, continuing to cherish its history, but looking forward into the future that God has for it."

The building is Grade II listed with the entry at the English Heritage website [visit link] telling us:

"1873, by H F Lockwood, all but the north front and south-west corner rebuilt by Seely and Paget following war damage. Honey coloured stone. The north front has central 2 storeyed Palladian distyle portico in antis, with Corinthian order superimposed on Tuscan, and pedimented entablature with sculptured tympanum The flanking bays have channelled ground floor with vermiculated voussoirs to round-headed windows, and 1st floor with aedicular windows and crowning cornice. The right hand bay carries a lofty 2 stage tower, the lower stage having a Corinthian order of square corner columns coupled with half columns flanking round headed windows; the entablature including a frieze carved with wreaths and swags, the upper stage having diagonally projecting coupled Composite columns flanking round headed windows and supporting an octagonal drum surmounted by a copper cupola with gilded cross."