The building was designed by architect Gurdon P. Randall for the Union Park Congregational Church, founded in 1860, and was built between 1869 and 1871.

The Lemont limestone building, which has a slate roof, is nearly square in plan except for shallow transepts barely a few feet deep at the north and south sides.

The interior was designed by Randall in amphitheater style, with a nod to the sermon-centered Congregational service.

[1] Immediately adjacent to the south is the smaller Carpenter Chapel, a long rectangular space with a simpler plastered and wood-trimmed interior; its exterior is also of Lemont limestone and is built in a similar style.

Part of the main church building's roof and interior were severely damaged in the February 2, 2011 blizzard.