El Emmanuel Congregation Temple - 1912 

St. Andrewes African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church - 1949-2001 (razed in 2019) 

117 E. Rayen Ave. Yo., OH 44503

• Originally established as El Emmanuel Congregation Temple in 1904 by Russian Jewish immigrant families, located on 117 East Rayen Avenue.

• In 1912, the building was constructed in the Byzantine Revival style to serve as both a place of worship and a school for the congregation.

• The Emanuel Congregation School, founded in 1907, operated on-site, teaching Hebrew language, religious studies, and secular subjects until 1919, when growing enrollment prompted relocation to nearby school facilities.

• In 1949, the building was purchased by St. Andrewes African Methodist Episcopal Church, whose congregation traces its origins to 1869 after the Civil War.

• The church adopted the new name to reflect its relocated identity and opened the building for worship in December 1951.

• St. Andrewes AME Church served generations of parishioners at this location from 1951 until the building was sold in 2001.

• The building later changed hands, was abandoned in 2015, and ultimately demolished in 2019.

• The structure’s layered history embodies Youngstown’s evolving immigrant and African American communities and illustrates how sacred spaces are repurposed, adapted, and remembered over time.

• Source: History of Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley, J.G. Butler; Youngstown Vindicator