Hotel 46 - NYC Churches

 Hotel 46 - NYC Churches

NYC is full of beautiful, old buildings- all rich in history. The architecture of old, ornate churches is a favorite of ours. It is pretty amazing to see these gorgeous old buildings that were built prior to electricity. We try to stop and see a few when we are in new cities. The ones in NYC definitely did not disappoint. 

The history of Trinity Church dates back over 300 years in NYC. This particular church building is the third Trinity Church  building to be built in NYC.  The construction lasted from 1839 until 1846. Trinity held the record for the tallest building in the US until 1869. In 2019, the property and building were assessed at $6 billion.  

Unfortunately, Trinity was closed for restoration during our visit and we were unable to tour it. 

Grace Church has been an important part of NYC for over 200 years. Its first service was held in 1808 in their first building located 2 miles from this location. Ironically, the first Grace Church building was located at the current site of the Empire State Building. The new building was consecrated in 1846, however it was far less ornate than it is now due to financial restraints. Over time, the church evolved into the majestic beauty it is now. One thing I found interesting was the architect was 25 when he received the commission to design and build the church. His only prior project was to design a fountain, but he was the nephew of the land owner. 

St. Patrick's Cathedral, the largest Gothic Revival Catholic Cathedral in North America, is located in Manhattan. The cathedral occupies a city block, directly across from Rockefeller Center. Over 5 million people visit St Patrick's every year. Ironically, the Archbishop who proposed the Cathedral was ridiculed for the site he selected. It was considered too far outside the city, but he insisted that area would one day be the heart of the city, 

Construction on the Cathedral began in 1858.  Work was halted in the early 1860's during the American Civil War. The cathedral was completed in 1878.  

The Church has been victim to several bombings, bomb threats and vandalism. BLM has spray painted pro-BLM and anti-police slogans on the façade several times in recent years. It takes a horrid person to deface any church, but to deface this piece of magnificence and history is deplorable. 

These are all pictures of the inside of St Patrick's Cathedral. Remember, this was all built prior to electricity.  The Church is just breath taking. There are no words or pictures that do the cathedral justice. I was literally moved to the point of tears at the splendor and the presence of the Lord. I have never felt the presence of the Lord like I did here. I walked out of St Patrick's with tears rolling down my cheeks. Not much moves me to tears, but this church did.  

The Church of Saint Mary the Virgin is an Episcopal church in Midtown Manhattan. Construction was completed in 1895. It has the nickname of "Smoky Mary's" because of its "copious" use of incense during services. 

Catholic churches probably win the prize for the most elaborate, ornate, over the top churches in the world, but the Episcopalians have some pretty impressive contributions.  

This church shared a wall with the hotel where we stayed in NYC.