Zhushikou Protestant Church is located at the busy intersection of Zhushikou Xidajie and Qianmen Dajie.
The Qianmen Dajie road was the path taken by emperors on their way from the Forbidden City to the Temple of Heaven for imperial sacrifices at the Winter Solstice. Zhushikou, meaning Pearl Market entrance, dates from the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) when it was known as Pig Market. When the market closed in the Qing period (1644-1911) the name changed, but the pronunciation didn't. Pigs and pearls are homonyms; the written characters differentiate them.
Construction and expansion of the three-storey Methodist denomination edifice took place several times over a 17-year-period between 1904 and 1921. It was one of the first multiple storey buildings in south Beijing.
One of the unique features of the small church is that during religious services the congregation worships on three different floors simultaneously, linked together by an in-house video system.
