Many of the buildings I highlight here are abandoned. Now and then, though, a second-chance story catches my eye. Ruby’s Cafe & Bakery in downtown Anderson is one of those rare wins: the old 8th Street landmark could have easily faded away! Instead, it buzzes with life.
The site of Ruby’s Cafe & Bakery began life as Anderson’s First Christian Science Church. The congregation dates back to 18961. By 1908, its members had settled into a remodeled home at 122 West 8th Street2. As the city grew, though, so did the church: By the 1920s, the old house simply couldn’t keep up. Members voted to start over and build a proper new building on the same spot in 19273.
Anderson was booming with construction in 1927. As Indianapolis architect Everett Crabbe sketched plans for the new Christian Science church4, the rest of the city seemed to rise all at once. Crews were hard at work on the Beverly Terrace, Mainview, and Stebbing Apartments; excavation had begun for a new theater and storeroom on Columbus Avenue; and entire neighborhoods were taking shape as fresh houses filled the Colonial and Elmhurst additions5.
Built by Eshelman and Sons6, the $40,000 First Christian Science Church was designed to make an impression without towering over the block. The rectangular building featured a classic Colonial-style pediment supported by fluted Ionic columns, with variegated brick walls trimmed in stone that gave the façade texture and weight. Although it was modest in height, the sanctuary rose a story and a half inside and included a balcony. Crabbe’s plans created an airy interior that could seat about 450 worshippers7.
I’ll be honest: I don’t know much about Christian Science congregations, and I haven’t been able to pin down exactly when Anderson’s finally left their home on 8th Street. By 2008, though, the old church had traded hymnals for help-wanted ads. It housed a staffing center called Rush Temporaries8.
I’m all for repurposing old buildings, but hosting a temp agency felt like a pretty unceremonious second act for such a dignified structure. Still, Rush moved out, for better or worse, and the landmark sat empty for a time. Fortunately, its story didn’t end: In 2014, Judge Thomas Newman stepped in at auction and gave the abandoned church a second chance.
Instead of letting the grand old building slip into decay, Newman set out to reinvent it as a community hub9. A few years later, though, he sold the property to its current owners, who renamed it Building 22. Today, it houses Ruby’s Café & Bakery and the Hudson House Event Center10. Ruby’s opened its doors on November 4, 202311.
My mom had been to Ruby’s a time or two for coffee with friends. I’d never set foot inside, so we hit the place up for an early lunch not too long ago. The moment I crossed the threshold from the lobby, I just kind of froze. The old space was unmistakably a sanctuary. Some pews even still existed!
Elsewhere, the room was dotted with mismatched tables and chairs, each setup its own little island. Then there was the floor: every table tilted slightly toward what used to be the pulpit, a reminder that this had once been a place where all eyes faced forward. Clearly, the building hadn’t forgotten its first life- even if the coffee mugs and menus said otherwise.
Mom and I claimed a little table in the corner and started studying the menu. Baked goods like pies, cake balls, cookies, and other pastries called out and looked amazing, but they’d have walloped my blood sugar like a freight train. As tempting as it was to become momentarily comatose, I ordered a chef salad. Mom went full culinary adventurer and ordered a salad with candied pecans, shaved parmesan, sunflower seeds, chicken, and blueberry dressing.
Our waitress proved attentive and very personable. She checked in just enough to make us feel taken care of, but let Mom and me enjoy Ruby’s unique space by not hovering over us.
Our salads showed up lickety-split. Mine was supposed to come with boiled eggs, but Ruby’s was fresh out so I waved them off. Even without them, it hit the spot. I forgot to take a picture, but the veggies were fresh, the house-made ranch was excellent, and I’d forgotten what crisp red onions tasted like! It had been way too long since I’d seen that much green on a plate. Mom’s weird salad with thick blue cheese dressing was tasty, too, she said. Both came with an airy croissant.
After we wrapped up, Mom stopped at the bakery counter for some cookies and a pie. She told me the pie was rich, thick, and very chocolatey, while the Valentine sugar cookies were thick and soft with thin frosting that wasn’t too sweet. All in all, our visit to Ruby’s was a success!
I’ve stood in sanctuaries where the only sound is wind through broken glass. Walking into this one, though, I heard the opposite: forks clinking against plates, some friends laughing over coffee, and the hum of a place that’s alive again. Anderson’s old Christian Science church hasn’t forgotten what it used to be, but now its walls hold something just as meaningful. It’s proof that preservation doesn’t always mean freezing a place in time. Often, it means letting it breathe, adapt, and serve the neighborhood in a new way.
Sources Cited
1 First Christian Science Church, Anderson, Ind. (2008). Picturing Madison County. Indiana Memory. Web. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
2 Christian Science Church to Build Larger Edifice (1927, May 29). The Anderson Herald. p. 10.
3 Corner Stone Is Laid Today By Scientists (1927, September 15). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 8.
4 Christian Science Church to Build Larger Edifice (1927, May 29). The Anderson Herald. p. 10.
5 Weather Aids Construction Activity Here (1927, July 29). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1.
6 (See footnote 5).
7 (See footnote 3).
8 First Christian Science Church, Anderson, Ind. (2008). Picturing Madison County. Indiana Memory. Web. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
9 Editorial: Newman Center will serve community in many ways. The Anderson Herald-Bulletin. Web. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
10 De la Bastide, K. (2023, July 6). Couple plans bakery and cafe in downtown Anderson. The Anderson Herald-Bulletin. Web. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
11 De la Bastide, K. (2023, October 31). Rapid transformation for historic building. The Anderson Herald-Bulletin. Web. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
I walked past this place every day in 1965/66. My parents and grandmother operated the lunch counter at Strike-Mor bowling alley at 9th and Jackson, and we lived at 824 West 8th. Strike more was the smallest of bowling alleys in Anderson. I remember the juke box and the sounds of bowling. I have no idea what the histort of the place was. It another long forgotten Anderson landmark. I was surprised to read online that the Christian Science churches were the fastest growing denomination in America in 1925, By the end of WWII however they were in decline. I doubt they will last another 100 years
The Christian Science denomination seems weird, and I admit I haven’t researched it. I’ll need to look Strike-Mor up. I’m pretty knowledgeable about Anderson bowling alleys, but that one evades me!
I WOuld love to know the hitory of Strike More. iT dissapeared by 1980, probably even earlier
I’ll see what I can find!
Hmmm…is devil’s food cake on the menu? ;^)
You’ll have to stop by next time and found out!
This is one of the more interesting conversions. It reminds me of the old St. Joseph Catholic Church in downtown Indianapolis that was converted into a brewpub many years after being decommissioned.
I’ll have to look into that. Interesting.
It’s unfortunate that they removed the steeple. Is that a common thing when they’re repurposed? I’m thinking of that old church property on meridian across from the central library.