The Church of St. Paul the Apostle is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

church on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

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.Lafort, Remigius.
The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. Volume 3: The Province of Baltimore and the Province of New York, Section 1: Comprising the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn, Buffalo and Ogdensburg.
'. (New York City: The Catholic Editing Company, 1914), p.363. It is the

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropo ...

of the

Paulist Fathers The Paulist Fathers, officially named the Missionary Society of Saint Paul the Apostle ( la, Societas Sacerdotum Missionariorum a Sancto Paulo Apostolo), abbreviated CSP, is a Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men founded ...

, the first order of Catholic priests founded in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

History and architecture

The parish was founded in 1858, and their original church was a simple brick structure built on part of the current lot, but the congregation soon outgrew it. A new Late Victorian Gothic Revival-style church was built between 1876 and 1884 designed by

Jeremiah O'Rourke Jeremiah O'Rourke, FAIA, (1833 – 1915), was an Irish-American architect known primarily for his designs of Roman Catholic churches and institutions and Federal post offices. He was a founder of the Newark-based architectural firms of Jeremiah ...

and Paulist priest George Deshon, a military engineer trained at

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, who took over the project six years into construction when O'Rourke died,, p.240 and probably simplified the design.

Isaac Hecker Isaac Thomas Hecker (December 18, 1819 – December 22, 1888) was an American Catholic priest and founder of the Paulist Fathers, a North American religious society of men. Hecker was originally ordained a Redemptorist priest in 1849. With the b ...

, who founded the Paulist Fathers, may have had a hand in its design as well, using the thirteenth-century

Cathedral of Santa Croce, Florence The (Italian for 'Basilica of the Holy Cross') is the principal Franciscan church in Florence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church. It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 meters south-east of the Duomo. The ...

as a model. The building utilized

Tarrytown Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hu ...

gray granite stones salvaged from the

Croton Aqueduct The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity fro ...

along with stones from other structures in Manhattan. The granite for the stone entrance steps was salvaged from the French Second Empire-style Booth's Theatre on Sixth Avenue at 23rd Street. The new building was dedicated on January 25, 1885, ''See also:'' but was still not complete at that time: the towers had yet to reach their final height, and much of the interior declarations were still to be installed. The church is known for its ecclesiastical art,Wilkins, Sharon. "At. Paul the Apostle, Church of" in , p.1141 and contains interior elements designed between 1887 and 1890 by

Stanford White Stanford White (November 9, 1853 – June 25, 1906) was an American architect. He was also a partner in the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, one of the most significant Beaux-Arts firms. He designed many houses for the rich, in addition ...

and many large decorated side chapels. Later stained glass windows were added by

John LaFarge John La Farge (March 31, 1835 – November 14, 1910) was an American artist whose career spanned illustration, murals, interior design, painting, and popular books on his Asian travels and other art-related topics. La Farge is best known for ...

. Other artists who worked within include

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he trav ...

Frederick MacMonnies Frederick William MacMonnies (September 28, 1863 – March 22, 1937) was the best known expatriate American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts school, as successful and lauded in France as he was in the United States. He was also a highly accomplishe ...

, and

Bertram Goodhue Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue (April 28, 1869 – April 23, 1924) was an American architect celebrated for his work in Gothic Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival design. He also designed notable typefaces, including Cheltenham and Merrymount for ...

, who is responsible for the floor mosaics. White and Goodhue also offered advice on design elements.

Lumen Martin Winter Lumen Martin Winter (December 12, 1908 – April 5, 1982) was an American public artist whose skills in sculpture, paintings, and works on paper, were widely known during his lifetime. His ability to master a wide range of media – including oil ...

's ''Angel of the Resurrection'' adorns Hecker's sarcophagus, located in the northeast corner of the nave. Other Paulist Fathers are entombed in crypt off a chapel on the lower level of the church. The ''New York Daily Tribune'' reviewed the architecture as "vast, plain, fortress-like in its solidity—almost repelling in the aesthetic cast without and within, yet it is the most August, unworldly interior of this continent." The church was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1991, and designated a New York City Landmark in 2013.Postal, Matthew A
"Church of St. Paul the Apostle Designation Report"

New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...

(June 25, 2013) A major renovation and restoration of the church was begun around 2000, and as of 2013 is still underway.

Parish

In 1858, the Paulist Fathers first took possession of a frame house containing a small chapel at 14 West 60th Street. The community's motherhouse is on West 59th Street, adjacent to the church. The present building dates from the 1930s. The life of the parish has mirrored the growth, decline and rebirth of the

Hell's Kitchen Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, 59th Street to the north, Eighth Avenue to the ea ...

neighborhood. In 1903 the 9th Avenue elevated train ran directly in front of the church. In 1925, the Paulists launched radio station

WLWL WLWL (770 AM) is a radio station broadcasting an urban oldies music format with an emphasis on beach music that is licensed to Rockingham, North Carolina, United States. While its effective coverage range is the Sandhills area of Central Nort ...

that operated from 1925 to 1937. The parish opened an elementary school in 1886 and a high school division in 1922. When financial issues forced the Archdiocese of New York to close the school, St. Paul's established pre-school centers funded by Project Head Start under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, providing students with free lunches and medical and dental care. The parish's last school closed in 1974. The parish went through a financially difficult period in the 1960s and 1970s, with the possibility of bankruptcy in 1973, and razing the church for an apartment building was briefly considered. The church sold the western part of their lot in the mid-1980s, and was able to build a new Parish Center at 405 West 59th Street by selling its air rights to enable the building of a 40-story apartment tower, which sits close to the church's south tower. Today, the parish, with five Masses each Sunday, has a large young professionals community and a Spanish-speaking community. "Apostolist" is the Young Adult Program at St. Paul's; the Young Adult Choir sings at the 5 p.m. Mass on Sunday. The Youth Ministry also sponsors a Food Bank Pantry. "Out at St Paul (OSP)" is the LGBTQ+ ministry of the parish. The "Mustard Seed Guild" supports orphanages in Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The parish also has an active conference of the

Society of Saint Vincent de Paul The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1833 for the sanctification of its members by personal service of the poor. Innumerable Catholic parishes have ...

. St. Paul's also hosts a bookstore and gift shop at the east end of the nave. St. Paul the Apostle serves as the parish for Catholic students at nearby Fordham University, the

John Jay College of Criminal Justice The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal arts ...

, and the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

. The large church basement has been used as a cafeteria for the parish school, a homeless shelter, soup kitchen, rehearsal space for

The Rockettes The Rockettes are an American precision dance company. Founded 1925 in St. Louis, they have, since , performed at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Until 2015, they also had a touring company. They are best known for starring in the ...

, and for boxing matches. From 1996 to 2003, it was the home of the multi-annual Big Apple Comic Convention.

Möller pipe organ

The current organ at The Church of St. Paul the Apostle is M.P. Möller Pipe Organ Company's Opus 9987, built in 1965. With 4,965 pipes, the instrument has 4 manuals (keyboards), 83 ranks, and 78 stops. Twelve of the stops are made up of pipework from the church's previous instrument,

E.M. Skinner Ernest Martin Skinner (January 15, 1866 – November 26/27, 1960) was an American pipe organ builder. His electro-pneumatic switching systems advanced the technology of organ building in the first part of the 20th century. Biography Skinner ...

Opus 544, built in 1925. The organ speaks from two different parts of the room, giving the effect of two instruments in one. At the front of the sanctuary, with large pedal towers that surround the high altar, sits the main organ. Perched on the south wall of the sanctuary is the nave organ. Both organs are playable simultaneously from one French-style console, built by the

Peragallo Pipe Organ Company The Peragallo Pipe Organ Company of Paterson, New Jersey, United States, was founded in 1918 by John Peragallo Sr., who, prior to founding the company, apprenticed with the E.M. Skinner Organ Company (now Aeolian-Skinner). A family company, Peragal ...

in 2000, which rests on a movable platform. Renowned organist

Virgil Fox Virgil Keel Fox (May 3, 1912 in Princeton, Illinois – October 25, 1980 in Palm Beach, Florida) was an American organist, known especially for his years as organist at Riverside Church in New York City, from 1946 to 1965, and his flamboyant "H ...

recorded ''The Christmas Album'' on the Möller Organ in 1965. By 2020 the Möller instrument was in need of restoration. In February 2021 the church acquired the historic

Roosevelt Organ Works Roosevelt Organ Works was an American manufacturer of pipe organs. It was founded by Hilborne Roosevelt (1849–1886) and his younger brother, Frank Roosevelt (1862–1895), in 1872. It operated in New York City, with branches in Baltimore and Ph ...

Opus 525 that had previously been installed at the former All Saints Church.

References

External links

Church websiteLibrary of Congress American Memory materials
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Paul the Apostle's Church, Manhattan 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Manhattan Gothic Revival church buildings in New York City Roman Catholic churches completed in 1884 Roman Catholic churches in Manhattan Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York Religious organizations established in 1858 Irish-American culture in New York City Lincoln Square, Manhattan 1858 establishments in New York (state) Paulist Order Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state)

History and architecture

Parish

Möller pipe organ

See also

References

Further reading

External links