First Church of Deliverance

CTL-E-0506 · Church · other · 1929

PROVISIONAL evidence grade of this record

Metropolitan Spiritual Churches of Christ congregation at 4315 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago (Bronzeville). Founded 1929 by Rev. Clarence H. Cobbs; pioneer of Black religious radio (1935) and television (1953); famed 200-member choir and gospel recordings; at its peak among the largest Black congregations in Chicago.

Notes

Merged into canonical KG 2026-10-03 from MUSIC-001, BMI-002, SCI-004; source entity IDs: CTL-DR-BMI-002:first-church-of-deliverance, CTL-DR-MUSIC-001:music-001-node-028, CTL-DR-SCI-004:first-church-of-deliverance; source research type(s): church, congregation.

Sources

Hamilton College eMuseum object record
City of Chicago Landmark Designation Report
Wikipedia biography of Clarence H. Cobbs
Preservation Chicago PDF ("People, Places and Things: First Church of Deliverance"); Wikipedia Cobbs
Preservation Chicago PDF
quoted in the City of Chicago Landmark Designation Report
https://ia600604.us.archive.org/21/items/CityOfChicagoLandmarkDesignationReports/FirstChurchOfDeliverance_text.pdf (primary source)
Wikipedia 'Clarence H. Cobbs' (accessed 2026-09-28), citing multiple published sources.
Wikipedia 'Clarence H. Cobbs,' citing published sources.
Wikipedia 'Clarence H. Cobbs,' citing published sources including Kenneth Morris's recollection.
Wikipedia 'Clarence H. Cobbs.'
Wikipedia (Clarence H. Cobbs)
Wikipedia; Let's Talk: Gospel Music Gold podcast (castbox.fm)
Discogs release 7950457 (catalog data)

Record CTL-E-0506 · CultureTechLens Knowledge Graph · evidence grade: PROVISIONAL · 14 sources (1 primary) · CTL research: MUSIC-001, BMI-002, SCI-004.
Directory: all entity records · the knowledge graph

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Cite as: CultureTechLens, “First Church of Deliverance (CTL-E-0506),” CultureTechLens Knowledge Graph, October 2026. https://culturetechlens.com/graph/entities/ctl-e-0506/

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The Abraham Lincoln Centre, Oakwood Blvd. and Langley Ave., Chicago (1913)Photo: Public Domain (1913), via National Park Service

The Wabash Avenue YMCA, ChicagoPhoto: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A greystone home converted to a church, South Side, Chicago, 1941Photo: Russell Lee, FSA-OWI, Public Domain, via Library of Congress

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