A blog dedicated to photographs of churches and church architecture in the Rocky Mountain West.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Grant Avenue Methodist Church and Community Center, Denver Colorado
Another bad photograph taken from a moving car, this photograph depicts the Grant Avenue Methodist Church in Denver Colorado.
I don't know much about this south Denver Church, but it has apparently been donated to the community so that it now serves both as a Methodist Church and a Community Center. It was built in 1908.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church, and St. Cajetan, Roman Catholic Church, Denver Colorado
This is not a great photograph, as I only happened to notice the church in the forefront, which I otherwise had missed, when looking out a hotel window. It wasn't until I viewed the photograph that I realized there were two churches in the photo.
The near church is St. Elizabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church in downtown Denver. It borders the university, and was built between 1898 and 1902. It was originally a church that was the Roman Catholic church for German Catholics in Denver. It's built in the Romanesque style.
A church which is slightly deeper in the photograph, to the right of St. Elizabeth's, is St. Cajetan's Roman Catholic Church. This church was built in 1924 to serve the Hispanic community of Denver, replacing an older church also by that name. It is a Gothic architecture church.
The near church is St. Elizabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church in downtown Denver. It borders the university, and was built between 1898 and 1902. It was originally a church that was the Roman Catholic church for German Catholics in Denver. It's built in the Romanesque style.
A church which is slightly deeper in the photograph, to the right of St. Elizabeth's, is St. Cajetan's Roman Catholic Church. This church was built in 1924 to serve the Hispanic community of Denver, replacing an older church also by that name. It is a Gothic architecture church.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Unknown Church, Riverton Wyoming
Friday, April 22, 2011
St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Salt Lake City Utah
Salvation Army Church, Salt Lake City Utah
First Baptist Church, Salt Lake City Utah
First Presbyterian Church, Salt Lake City Utah
This is the First Presbyterian Church in Salt Lake City, Utah. This church, built from 1903 to 1906, is located directly across a side street from the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Madeline, with both churches facing Temple Street.
This church is modeled after Carlisle Cathedral in England, and is constructed out of native stone.
1900 through 1906 must have been an interesting time for those living nearby, as two very impressive churches were being built side by side during that period.
B'nai Israel Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah
This is the former B'nai Israel Temple in Salt Lake City. I don't know the date of the construction of this synagogue, but it's history is explained in the bottom photograph. Interestingly, it's located only one block away from the current St. Peter and St. Paul Orthodox Church, which was also built originally as a synagogue. Like Temple Emmanuel in Denver, this synagogue is no longer used as a synagogue. Unlike the Denver structure, however, this former synagogue is no longer a public building, but houses the offices of an architectural firm.
Perhaps displaying my ignorance on synagogue architecture, this is the third former synagogue I've photographed where I had no idea that I was photographing a building that had originally been a synagogue. These buildings all have the appearance of Orthodox churches to me.
Of some note, this particular synagogue was modeled after Berlin's Fasanenstraße Synagogue which was destroyed during the infamous Kristallnacht by Nazi thugs. For that reason, while it is nice to see that it is so well preserved, it is a bit sad to realize that it no longer serves its original purpose.
First Methodist (First Methodist Episcopal), Salt Lake City, Utah
This the First Methodist Church in Salt Lake City. Like Holy Trinity Methodist Church in Denver Colorado, it was originally a Methodist Episcopal Church. The church was built in 1906.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
St. Mark's Episocopal Cathedral, Salt Lake City Utah
This is St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Salt Lake City, Utah. This photograph happened to be taken on Tuesday of Holy Week, around noon, and obviously something was occurring at the Cathedral at the time.
Construction for this Cathedral started in 1870, and was completed in 1874. It sustained damage in a fire in 1935 but is in fine shape today.
An interesting item to note here is that dedicating Episcopal churches to St. Mark is apparently very common in this region. In addition to this Cathedral, Casper Wyoming has a substantial Episcopal Church by that name, and Cheyenne has a church that is a contemporary to this Cathedral also by that name.
Construction for this Cathedral started in 1870, and was completed in 1874. It sustained damage in a fire in 1935 but is in fine shape today.
An interesting item to note here is that dedicating Episcopal churches to St. Mark is apparently very common in this region. In addition to this Cathedral, Casper Wyoming has a substantial Episcopal Church by that name, and Cheyenne has a church that is a contemporary to this Cathedral also by that name.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Corpus Christi, Newcastle Wyoming
This is Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Church in Newcastle Wyoming. The church was built in 1951, but I otherwise do not know anything about this particular church. The architecture of this attractive Roman Catholic church is somewhat surprising.
The website for the churches served by this parish is here.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
St. Matthews Church, Gillette Wyoming
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Holy Rosary Catholic Church, Lander Wyoming
These photographs depict Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Lander Wyoming. The same grounds are the temporary grounds for the Wyoming Catholic College.
I am unsure when this church was built. A preserved 1928 corner stone for the original Holy Rosary church is preserved as a memorial, but obviously, this church was not built in 1928.
This church is a bit unique in that, while it is a Roman Catholic Church, it does feature an Eastern Rite Mass (Byzantine Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom) such as is used in Ukrainian Catholic Churches. This is done in order to accommodate Eastern Rite Catholics attending the College.
St. Stephens Mission, St. Stephens Wyoming, Wind River Indian Reservation
This photograph depicts the Roman Catholic Mission church at St. Stephens, Wyoming. The Mission itself, established by the Jesuits, dates to May 1884. The original church was destroyed by a fire in 1928, and I presume the current one was built shortly thereafter.
I'm not sure what this building was originally constructed as, or what its complete function is today, although it does house the post office at St. Stephens. It's next to the church.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
St. Louis Roman Catholic Church, Glenrock Wyoming
This tiny Roman Catholic Church is located in the small town of Glenrock Wyoming. The Parish Priest for this church is a Jesuit, which probably indicates that the parish is regarded as a mission parish in Wyoming.
The parish was founded in 1920. I am not sure if this particular church was the original church building, but it likely is.
Community Baptist Church, Glenrock Wyoming
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Seton Building, Denver Colorado
This building is named for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the Catholic saint strongly associated with charity. But I don't actually know what the building is. It clearly had a religious purpose, and may have been a convent for the Sisters of Charity. I suspect that this is the case, but I do not know for sure.
It no longer serves this purpose, however, and a plaque on the building indicates that it is now an art studio.
It's a pretty structure. The back of the building borders a parking lot, and from the back, when I first saw it, I mistook it for a Greek Orthodox Church.
Friday, March 11, 2011
A note on the photography
All the photographs here are in the nature of subjects of opportunity. I wanted to note that, as a lot of them are taken in poor light conditions, and are less than ideal in terms of their quality.
As in many instances the churches photographed here are ones that I rarely will encounter again, if ever, I take the photos when they present themselves. In terms of artwork, therefore, they aren't always so great.
Also, as those who have examined any photograph taken prior to the current date will note, many of these photographs were taken in the long regional winter of 2010-2011, so the weather they were taken in was dreary.
As in many instances the churches photographed here are ones that I rarely will encounter again, if ever, I take the photos when they present themselves. In terms of artwork, therefore, they aren't always so great.
Also, as those who have examined any photograph taken prior to the current date will note, many of these photographs were taken in the long regional winter of 2010-2011, so the weather they were taken in was dreary.
First Christian Scientist, Denver Colorado
This impressive structure is located in the Capitol Hill district of Denver Colorado. It has a Greek Revival style. I otherwise know nothing about it, including when it was built.
In this photograph, you can see the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the background, which is about one block away.
Holy Ghost Roman Catholic Church, Denver Colorado
This impressive church has an unusually long construction history. The church was started in 1924, but it was not fully finished until 1940.
The impressive church is an extremely active one, and is located in downtown Denver. Of all the Denver churches, it may be the one that is located the furthest downtown, although Holy Trinity Methodist might also make that claim.
As with Holy Trinity Methodist, it is hard to photograph as various tall buildings have been built near it. Indeed, Holy Trinity actually finds that a neighboring building was built around it.
A history of Holy Ghost can be found here.
Update
I recently was at a Sunday Mass at Holy Ghost, and took this photograph:
Holy Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, Denver Colorado
This is a very old Denver Church, being located right downtown, and having been built in 1887. It is a substantial structure.
It's also difficult to photograph, as it's nearly always in perpetual shade as very tall buildings have been built up around it. This is, unfortunately, compounded here as these photographs were taken on a very dreary day.
One item of note, the church declares that it is the Holy Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, but in modern terms it's usually called the Holy Trinity Methodist Church or the Holy Trinity United Methodist Church. This obviously indicates some change in how the Methodist church is conceived of during the past century, but I don't know what that is. Here the church is listed under its original name.
Holy Rosary Catholic Church, Denver Colorado
This church in North Denver is just off of Washington Street and just north of I70. I didn't realize it at the time I took the photograph, but St. Joseph Polish Catholic Church and Holy Transfiguration Russian Orthodox Church are within a three block distance of this one. Had I known that, I would have added them to the photographs as well.
This church was originally in a southern Slavic neighborhood of Denver and was built for the South Slav population there (explaining, I suspect, why there would be a Polish Catholic church just a block away). I am sure that this is no longer the population base of the church, but it is interesting to note that. The church was built in 1918, just after World war One.
A nice history of this parish can be found here.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
St. Francis Mission, Midwest Wyoming
This is the Roman Catholic Mission Church on Navy Row in Midwest Wyoming. The church is a Mission Church, and served by the the Priests at St. Anthony's church in Casper.
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