The congregation rebuilt the church between 1865 and 1872 as a wooden structure , under the lead of the architect Robert Vesey , the son of the abolitionist and church co-founder Denmark Vesey . After an earthquake demolished that building in 1886 , President Grover Cleveland donated ten dollars to the church to aid its rebuilding efforts , noting that he was " very glad to contribute something for so worthy a cause . " A Democrat , he also donated 20 dollars to the Confederate Home , a " haven for white widows . " The current brick and stucco building was constructed in 1891 on Calhoun Street . This and other post-Civil War black churches were built on the north side of Calhoun Street ; blacks were not welcome on the south side of what was known as Boundary Street when the church was built . The building was designed by leading Charleston architect John Henry Devereux , whose work was begun in the spring of 1891 and completed in 1892
an earthquake
1886 Charleston earthquake
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church