CHICAGO (AP) – Fire destroyed a landmark 1890 church Friday on the city’s South Side that played a major role in the development of gospel music in the 1930s.

No serious injuries were reported in the blaze that engulfed the Pilgrim Baptist Church. The roaring fire collapsed the church’s roof and gutted its inside.

Designed by the distinguished architect Louis Sullivan and his partner, the church was built from 1890 to 1891 and designated a landmark in 1981.

“It’s like hearing a close relative has died or a good friend. It’s heartbreaking,” said Ned Cramer, curator of the Chicago Architecture Foundation.

A crew was working on the church roof just before the blaze, but authorities did not know what sparked the flames, Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said.

The church had been undergoing $500,000 in renovations for about three years, and the work was almost done, said Robert Vaughn, chairman of the church’s trustees.

The building was originally a synagogue but had housed the church since 1922. During the 1930s, the congregation and its longtime music director, Thomas A. Dorsey, were instrumental in the development of gospel music. Among those who sang at the church was Mahalia Jackson, according to the Web site of the city Department of Planning and Development.

Sullivan and Dankmar Adler used the church to experiment with the features that made them famous – such as ornamental designs, vaulted ceilings and amazing acoustics, Cramer said. Adler’s father was the rabbi of the synagogue when it was designed.

“For Chicago to lose a landmark like this is irreplaceable. It’s devastating,” Cramer said.