11 Dec 2025 Recent work unveils original facade of St. James African Orthodox Church
The Roxbury Action Program (RAP) has been working to restore and rehabilitate the 1910 St. James African Orthodox Church since acquiring the historic building from HBI in the summer of 2023. Prior to the sale, HBI had worked with the city to save the church from the threat of demolition in 2018. The scope of work RAP is now undertaking consists of the removal and abatement of asbestos siding, restoration of the historic exterior, waterproofing of new shingles, and masonry repointing to repair foundation deterioration.
As part of a two phased approach to reactivating the building, the first phase is focused on restoring and repairing the building exterior. In phase two, RAP envisions converting the church’s lower level into an Adult Day Health Program facility, while the upper level, formerly the sanctuary, will be repurposed as a combined office and public community event space. The Annex will serve as a multi-purpose area for human services and community activities, complete with office and storage spaces.
In 2020, Historic Boston contracted Wessling Architects, in conjunction with Hacin, to assess the historic exterior of the church to determine the conditon of materials that remained and inform potential avenues that could be pursued for restoration. With RAP’s continued removal of the exterior cladding, it became evident that the initial assessment of a quality and preserved underlying façade reflected the entire condition of the structure!
Director of the City of Boston’s Office of Historic Preservation, Kathy Kottaridis stated: “The revelation of St. James’s original siding is like opening a time capsule. For the first time in a century, we can see the craftsmanship, beauty, and style that shaped this building and the community around it. This small glimpse of its past is a powerful reminder of history long hidden in plain sight. We’re excited for the full restoration and reactivation of St. James; this is an inspiring harbinger of what’s to come.”
The 8000 square-foot wood frame building was designed by Bostonian architect Edward T. P. Graham, and was originally built for a Norwegian Evangelical congregation. In 1955, the church changed hands to the African Orthodox Church as the area became a concentrated center for African American residents. The neighborhood and church provided the perfect environment for the growing African Orthodox congregation, an off-shoot of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA ). Now, the Roxbury Action Program is writing the buildings next chapter, bringing it back to life for the communities it had long served.
Executive Director of Roxbury Action Program, Malcolm Wynn said: “We are extremely excited about the condition of the original shingles and very grateful to the Community Preservation Act Committee for financing this endeavor. The positive feedback we have gotten from neighbors and other community leaders has been encouraging. The collective work of Quock Associates, Scott Thomson (Hacin Architects), and their consultants, is moving this project along quite smoothly. Last but not least none of this would have been possible without the support of HBI leadership both past and present. We look forward to reactivating the church and bringing it back into service for our neighbors.”
Pictured in 2018 after Historic Boston Inc. had saved the church from demolition.
Pictured after siding removal in November 2025.
Pictured circa 1920.