Tallest Churches/Religious Buildings in the western hemisphere

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...omeOfLight.jpg

That is magnificent!

[Nowhereman1280]

Bahai Temple is amazing. Sailing by it you could mistake yourself for being off the coast of India or Bangladesh or something.

Originally Posted by pj3000

^ Cool. Not really a church in the traditional sense, but a cool church nonetheless. I've seen that building before when I've been in Chicago, but figured it was just a Gothic-looking office building, not realizing it was an actual church as well.

Certainly not in the traditional sense, but very much a church in the Chicago sense. "This isn't an efficient enough land use here, lets sandwich 23 floors of office in the middle of it." Chicago certainly lives up to its reputation as an architectural showcase when it comes to churches.

Here's the tallest church in my area of Chicago:


flickr

St. Hyacinth Basilica

It is emblematic of Chicago's "Polish Cathedral" style of churches of which there are over a dozen around the city. It is also the biggest and most ornate example. I don't know the exact height, but I would imagine its in the 150 foot range. Not much compared to others in this thread, but its huge compared to the surrounding sea of frame houses and three flats. You can see it from just about any elevated location for miles around.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

Actually there's the Chicago Temple Building which is 568 feet tall. It's the tallest church building in the world.

Originally Posted by Nowhereman1280

Certainly not in the traditional sense, but very much a church in the Chicago sense.

Very cool building in my opinion, but definitely a building and not considered to be the tallest church in the world. Riverside Church is considered to be the tallest in the US and 3rd tallest in the New World.

Originally Posted by Nowhereman1280

Not much compared to others in this thread, but its huge compared to the surrounding sea of frame houses and three flats. You can see it from just about any elevated location for miles around.

That's the thing about these old neighborhood churches, they were intended to dominate their surroundings... they were the centers of the neighborhoods... basically the very reason the ethnic neighborhoods existed in the cities of the northern US. And that's what makes it such a shame when they are torn down. They truly represent the histories of our cities. I love those old Polish churches like the St. Hyacinth Basilica you posted. I spent my early years in an old Polish neighborhood in Erie, PA, that was dominated by Saint Stanislaus (not even in the top 10 tallest in the city, yet still imposing).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/catholicsanctuaries/

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by ColDayMan

2nd tallest church: St. Francis DeSales in East Walnut Hills at 230 feet.


http://urbanqueer.files.wordpress.co...pg?w=450&h=338

Love how this one is angled at the end of the street. Very cool old-school urban view.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by brickell

src: http://myconstructedreality.wordpres...egory/temples/

Beautiful in its simplicity. I love the contrast of the bright white with the greenery and blue skies of Florida.

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

source: me

This is just amazing, and otherworldly in a way. Ancient and spaceshippy trippy at the same time

[metafizarc]

Not the tallest church in N. America, but the tallest AIDS Memorial in the world.



(Designed by Philip Johnson, built 2000)

[metafizarc]

(Also the home of Philip Johnson's "Interfaith Peace Chapel" -2010)





Interfaith Peace Chapel on Skyscraperpage.com

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by brickell

For Miami I'm guessing the not very tall Cathedral of St Mary in Little Haiti. No idea how tall it is, but it's one of the few that stands out.

http://www.cathedralofsaintmary.com/ip.asp


src: http://www.exploring-america.com/mia...avel-guide.htm

I think it might actually be Gesu Catholic downtown. Not sure, but I think it's probably taller than St. Mary... but that's only based on my memory from personal observation.

Gesu Catholic Church - Miami, FL
Height??
Architect??
1925


http://www.123rf.com/photo_4063363.html

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by metafizarc

Not the tallest church in N. America, but the tallest AIDS Memorial in the world.

Originally Posted by metafizarc

(Also the home of Philip Johnson's "Interfaith Peace Chapel" -2010)

I think we already took care of the city of Dallas' tallest with the Cathedral Santuario de Guadalupe.

Let's keep it to tallest please, or else we will get every shrine, chapel, grotto, monument, etc.... and the whole purpose of the thread is lost.

[pj3000]

Saint Ignatius - San Francisco, CA
65m (213 ft)
Charles Devlin
1914


http://www.aviewoncities.com/gallery/showpicture.htm?key=kveus4256


http://www.terragalleria.com/california/picture.usca43347.html

[metafizarc]

Originally Posted by pj3000

Let's keep it to tallest please, or else we will get every shrine, chapel, grotto, monument, etc.... and the whole purpose of the thread is lost.

Sure. Not for nothing, but: as said, Cathedral of Hope's Bell Wall is the tallest religious structure of its kind.

[metafizarc]

[QUOTE=pj3000;5201992]Saint Ignatius - San Francisco, CA
65m (213 ft)
Charles Devlin
1914


http://www.aviewoncities.com/gallery/showpicture.htm?key=kveus4256

St. Ignatius Church of University of San Francisco... AWESOME! (my alma mater, too). love it. thanks

[Cirrus]

Here is Wikipedia's list of tallest churches in the US and Canada:
I'm sure it's incomplete. Also, it is only buildings that are predominantly churches, so that Chicago skyscraper isn't listed.
I made Canada red just so those would stand out.

1. St Joseph's Oratory - Montreal - 423 ft
2. Riverside Church - New York - 392 ft
3. St Patrick's Cathedral - New York - 339 ft
4. Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception - Washington - 328 ft
5. Cathedral of St Paul - Saint Paul - 307 ft
6. St James Cathedral - Toronto - 305 ft
7. Coral Ridge Presbyterian - Fort Lauderdale - 303 ft
8. National Cathedral - Washington - 300 ft
9. St Francis DeSales - Saint Louis - 300 ft
10.Cathedral of Hope - Pittsburgh - 300 ft
11.Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré - Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, Quebec - 300 ft
12.Washington Mormon Temple - Washington (Kensington, MD) - 288 ft
13.Cathedral of St Joseph - Hartford - 281 ft
14.St Peter Cathedral - Erie - 266 ft
15.Fort Street Presbyterian - Detroit - 265 ft
16.St Anthony's - Toledo - 265 ft
17.St Anthony of Padua - New Bedford, MA - 256 ft
18.Heinz Memorial Chapel - Pittsburgh - 256 ft
19.St Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran - Charleston - 255 ft

Interesting that only the Saint Louis one is west of the Mississippi. And that just barely.

[pj3000]

Saint Joseph - Oil City, PA
Height??
Architect??
Erected??


http://livecheapmakeartusa.blogspot.com/2010/10/day-in-oil-city-pa.html


http://www.flickr.com/photos/kilkennycat/

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by metafizarc

Saint Ignatius - San Francisco, CA

St. Ignatius Church of University of San Francisco... AWESOME! (my alma mater, too). love it. thanks

That church is incredible. I visited it once, felt like I was in Europe.

[volguus zildrohar]

Originally Posted by SkyscrapersOfNewYork

because...........its badass

Never heard the term 'badass' applied to a church. That made my day!

[LMich]

Islamic Center of America - Dearborn, MI (pop. ~100,000)

The dome is said to be 150 feet tall, and I've seen the minarets listed in passing as being 200 feet tall.


Just Us 3

[KevinFromTexas]

That one in Wilmette is beautiful, Steely!

This is the New Sweden Church in New Sweden, Texas. It's located about 25 miles northeast of downtown Austin. It's said to be the most photographed church in Texas.

This church is special to my family because my dad's family moved to the US from Germany in 1956. This church sponsored them, mostly helping them gather the documents and with providing them a place to live and work. The first house my dad lived in was across the street from the church in 1956. Both of my grandparents and an aunt and uncle are buried in the small cemetery on a hill overlooking the church.


New Sweden, Texas
New Sweden Church
104 feet tall
Built 1896

[KevinFromTexas]

Fredericksburg is a small German settlement about 80 miles west of Austin. It's filled with beautiful German influenced churches.

Fredericksburg, Texas
St. Mary's Catholic Church
Built 1906


http://zkahlina.ca/eng/2010/06/20/fredericksburg-texas/

Fredericksburg, Texas
Old St. Mary's Catholic Church
Built 1863


http://zkahlina.ca/eng/2010/06/20/fredericksburg-texas/

Fredericksburg, Texas
Holy Ghost Lutheran Church
Built 1893


http://www.flickr.com/photos/courtho...n/photostream/

Fredericksburg, Texas
Zion Lutheran Church
Built 1854

This is the oldest Lutheran Church in the Hill Country, and one of the oldest in Texas.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Zi...ran_Church.jpg

Fredericksburg, Texas
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Built 1870

From Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christi...iscopal_Church

The Christian Methodist Episcopal Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Methodism. The group was organized in 1870 when several black ministers, with the full support of their white counterparts in the former Methodist Episcopal Church, South, met to form an organization that would allow them to establish and maintain their own polity, that is, to ordain their own bishops and ministers without the necessity of them being officially endorsed or appointed by the white-dominated body. They called this fellowship the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, which it remained until their successors adopted the current name in the 1950s.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/texasma...n/photostream/

More on Fredericksburg's architecture.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archite...h-Besier_House

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by pj3000

Saint Joseph - Oil City, PA
Height??
Architect??
Erected??


http://livecheapmakeartusa.blogspot.com/2010/10/day-in-oil-city-pa.html


http://www.flickr.com/photos/kilkennycat/

Nice church, but a beautiful setting.