Quinn Chapel AME Church, also known as Quinn Chapel of the A.M.E. Church, houses Chicago's oldest African-American congregation, formed by seven individuals as a nondenominational prayer group that met in the house of a member in 1844. In 1847, the group organized as a congregation of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and named the church for Bishop William Paul Quinn. In the years leading up to the Civil War, the church played an important role in the city's abolitionist movement. The 1871 Great Chicago Fire destroyed the original church, and the congregation met for many years in temporary locations before purchasing the present site in 1890. The current structure, designed by architect Henry F. Starbuck and built in 1892 at 2401 South Wabash Avenue, is a reminder of the late 19th century character of the area. The church was designated a Chicago Landmark on August 3 1977, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 4 1979. The church is considered architecturally significant, and is found in such books as "Chicago Churches: A Photographic Essay" by Elizabeth Johnson (Uppercase Books Inc, 1999) as well as "Chicago Churches and Synagogues: An Architectural Pilgrimage" by George A. Lane (Loyola Press 1982).