...Community members donated their funds and skills to design and build a new facility... The new mosque officially opened in 2003....

Cincinnati has been home to Muslims from around the world for many years. For years, there was no formal organization serving the Muslims who came to study or settled in Cincinnati. Families would gather in each other’s homes for prayers and religious holidays. The first attempts to organize the community were made in the early sixties. Friday prayers were first established at the University YMCA, and then at the Wesley Foundation on Clifton Avenue.

Around 1968, a local Muslim family acquired a house at 2515 Fairview Avenue and converted it into a mosque. IAC was officially established in 1970. Students were able to walk from the university and neighboring hospitals to the mosque. The attendance at Friday prayers increased, children’s classes were established and volunteers from within the community led religious classes. During Ramadan, the community held nightly prayers as well as weekly dinners to break the fast.

During the seventies and eighties, the number of immigrants to Cincinnati increased, and the Muslim community multiplied. Within ten years, the community outgrew the facility on Fairview Avenue. In 1982, the IAC sold the Fairview mosque and purchased a larger facility at 3668 Clifton Avenue. The brotherhood that was established at the old facility continued to grow, as students at the University of Cincinnati were able to walk from campus and would come to socialize, share food, discuss religion and read Qu’ran. The weekend school and regular prayers continued.

As the community grew rapidly in the 90's, people often had to stand outside during Friday prayers and Eid prayers. When additional land around the mosque went up for sale, it was purchased and donated to the mosque. IAC also purchased land in West Chester and began building the Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati in West Chester, which opened in 1995.

In the early 2000s, the community recognized the need for a new center in Clifton, as the community had once again outgrown the old building at Clifton Avenue. Community members donated their funds and skills to design and build a new facility which would support the continued growth of the community. The new mosque officially opened in 2003.

Today, the mosque serves as a place of worship and community center for a culturally diverse community of Muslims from around the world.