Congregationalists began operating a Sunday school in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood in 1854, and their efforts resulted in the creation of a church five years later.

[2] Designed by prominent Cleveland architect Sidney Badgley, Pilgrim Congregational cost approximately $150,000 to complete.

[3] It is a generally square building typical of the Richardsonian Romanesque style, distinguished by exterior elements such as prominent rose windows on the northern and eastern sides.

[2] At the time of construction, the church was deeply involved in social programs in the community; rooms such as recreation space for young men, a library, and a gymnasium take up two-thirds of the building.

[4] In 1976, Pilgrim Congregational Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, qualifying both because of its place in local history and because of its historically significant architecture,[1] which when completed was called an "epoch-making church building";[2] just four years after the building was erected, the plans had been used as an example of the latest ecclesiastical architecture at the Paris Exhibition at the turn of the century.