Chapel of St. Theresa–the Little Flower facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Chapel of St. Theresa–the Little Flower
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| Location | 58 Parsons Street Detroit, Michigan |
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| Built | 1926 |
| Architect | Donaldson and Meier |
| Architectural style | Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian, Romanesque Revival |
| Demolished | 2023 |
| MPS | Cass Farm MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 97001099 |
| Added to NRHP | September 22, 1997 |
The Chapel of St. Theresa–the Little Flower was a church building in Detroit, Michigan. It was located at 58 Parsons Street in the Midtown area. This building was also known as St. Patrick Church. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. The building was taken down in September 2023.
History of the Chapel
The St. Patrick Parish started in 1862. This was because many Irish Catholic people were moving to Detroit. The parish first built a small chapel. This chapel was later made bigger and became a church. St. Patrick's became one of the largest and richest parishes in Detroit.
In 1890, the church was named the main church, or "cathedral," for the area. It was renamed in honor of Sts. Peter and Paul. This was after the older cathedral church was given to a group called the Jesuits. In 1892, a school called the Sts. Peter and Paul Academy was built. It was on Parsons Street, a bit far from the main church.
By the 1920s, the streets around the main church were very busy. It was thought to be unsafe for children to walk from the school to the church for Masses. To fix this, the parish built the Chapel of St. Theresa, the Little Flower in 1926. It was named after a saint called Thérèse de Lisieux.
In 1938, the main church duties moved to another parish. St. Patrick's then went back to its original name. Over the years, the area around the old St. Patrick church became less active. More church events started happening at the chapel and school. By the 1980s, all activities had moved to the Parsons Street location. The old church building was given to a community group. It was left empty for many years, then damaged by vandals, and finally burned down in 1992.
Because fewer people were attending, the parish was closed on May 25, 2015. The church leaders hoped to use the building again in the future. This was because the area around it was starting to get new life. However, this did not happen. The Chapel on Parsons Street began to be taken down on September 22, 2023.
Building Style
The chapel was built in the Romanesque Revival style. This style looks back to old Roman buildings. It had a "basilica" shape, which is a long building with a main aisle. The chapel was made of red brick with light-colored stone details. It had a red tile roof.
The main entrance was set back into the building. It had two large arches. These arches were framed by square sections on each side. These square sections had stone porches on top. Each porch had a curved ceiling supported by four Corinthian columns. These columns had fancy tops. The roofs of these porches were also covered with red tiles.
Above the entry doors, there were small arched windows. Higher up, there was a small round window called a rose window. Above the porches, there were two small bell towers, called campanarios. Each of these towers held a bell.
See also
In Spanish: Capilla de Santa Teresa, la Pequeña Flor para niños
- Archdiocese of Detroit
