Pacific Garden Mission is a

homeless shelter Homeless shelters are a type of homeless service agency which provide temporary residence for homeless individuals and families. Shelters exist to provide residents with safety and protection from exposure to the weather while simultaneously r ...

in the Near West Side section of

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, founded in 1877 by Colonel George Clarke and his wife, Sarah. Nicknamed "The Old Lighthouse", it is the largest homeless shelter in Chicago and among the oldest in the city, and, according to the PGM website, "is the oldest continuously operating rescue mission in the country." Among the converts to Christ from PGM's efforts are the famous evangelists

Billy Sunday William Ashley "Billy" Sunday (November 19, 1862 – November 6, 1935) was an American outfielder in baseball's National League and widely considered the most influential American evangelist during the first two decades of the 20th century. Bo ...

and

Mel Trotter Melvin Ernest Trotter (May 16, 1870–September 11, 1940) was the founder of the Grand Rapids, Michigan City Rescue Mission, which he led for more than forty years, becoming a leader in American fundamentalism during the first four decades of t ...

. In 1950, the Mission began production of ''

Unshackled! ''Unshackled!'' is a radio drama series produced by Pacific Garden Mission, in Chicago, Illinois, that first aired on September 23, 1950. It is one of the longest-running radio dramas in history and one of a very few still in production in the Un ...

'', a radio

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

tic series showcasing conversions to

Evangelical Christianity Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

. The show, recorded live at PGM, remains in production today and is translated into seven languages for international distribution. Pacific Garden Mission 1914

PGM's original location was at 386 S. Clark Street. In 1880, the mission moved to 67 E. Van Buren Street, in a location formerly known as the Pacific Beer Garden. The current name, Pacific Garden Mission, was adopted at that time; it was suggested by

evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...

D.L. Moody Dwight Lyman Moody (February 5, 1837 – December 26, 1899), also known as D. L. Moody, was an American Evangelism, evangelist and publisher connected with Keswickianism, who founded the Moody Church, Northfield School and Mount Hermon Scho ...

that the name of the former occupant be kept but with the word "Beer" dropped from the name. In 1923 the Mission moved to 646 S. State Street, just south of The Loop, following a shift in the location of Chicago's

Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...

. At that time, the area was known for its

hobo A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; and a bum neither travels nor works. E ...

jungles and

flophouse A flophouse (American English) or dosshouse (British English) is a place that offers very low-cost lodging, providing space to sleep and minimal amenities. Characteristics Historically, flophouses, or British "doss-houses", have been used for o ...

s. Due to large population growth in the neighborhood beginning in the 1990s and continuing through the 2000s, the City of Chicago filed suit against the Mission in the early 2000s in order to expand the undersized and outdated facilities of

Jones College Prep William Jones College Preparatory High School (commonly known as Jones College Prep) is a public 4-year selective-enrollment high school located in the Printer's Row neighborhood in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States. Jones is operated by ...

, a public high school located at 606 S. State Street, next door to Pacific Garden. The Mission signed an agreement with the city in December 2004 to move to a new location at 1458 South Canal Street, about one mile southwest of its State Street location. PGM's State Street building was slated for demolition to make room for the Jones expansion. Groundbreaking for the new PGM facility took place on November 16, 2005. The building, designed by Chicago architect

Stanley Tigerman Stanley Tigerman (September 20, 1930 – June 3, 2019) was an American architect, theorist and designer. Biography Early years Tigerman was born into a Jewish family, the only child of Emma (Stern), a typist for the federal government, and Sam ...

of Tigerman McCurry Architects, was completed in 2007, with the formal dedication October 13, 2007.

Notes

External links

Pacific Garden Mission official website
{{Coord, 41.8620, -87.6398, type:landmark_region:US-IL, display=title Evangelical Christian missions Homeless shelters in the United States 1877 establishments in Illinois Buildings and structures in Chicago Landmarks in Chicago