St. Michael's Church (Brooklyn)

St Michael's Catholic Church, officially the Church of St. Michael, is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Diocese of Brooklyn, located at 352 42nd Street at Fourth Avenue in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City.

St. Michael's Catholic Church
The Church of St. Michael
St Michael's Church, 2015
40.65132°N 74.00890°W / 40.65132; -74.00890
Address352 42nd Street at Fourth Avenue, Sunset Park, Brooklyn, New York City
CountryUnited States
DenominationRoman Catholic
Websitestmichaelssunsetpark.com
History
StatusChurch
Founded1870
DedicationSaint Michael
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architect(s)Raymond F. Almirall[1]
Architectural typeChurch
Style
Completed1905[1]
Administration
DioceseBrooklyn

Before the founding of St. Michael's parish in 1870, Catholics in the area had to travel to mass at either St. John the Evangelist at 21st St. or St. Patrick's in Fort Hamilton. The first pastor was Rev. Michael J. Hickey.[2]

The current church was built 1905, and was designed by noted church architect Raymond F. Almirall.[1] The exterior is in early Romanesque. Often referred to as Brooklyn's own "Sacré-Cœur", the domed tower once was the second tallest building in Brooklyn after the Williamsburg Savings Bank Tower, until a late 2000s high rise development claimed that title.

St. Michael's parochial school opened in 1886; it closed in 2005.

The comedy film Heaven Help Us (1985) was filmed in the neighborhood, using external and internal shots of the church and the now closed St. Michael's Parish School as the fictional St. Basil's Church and St. Basil's School, run by the factual Order of St. Basil.

References
  1. White, Norval; Willensky, Elliot (1978). AIA Guide to New York City (Revised ed.). New York: Collier Books. p. 424.
  2. Lafort, Remigius. "St. Micahel's, Brookly, N.Y.", The Catholic Church in the United States, New York. The Catholic Editing Company, 1914, p. 571Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
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