Church of the Sacred Heart

What was once a marvelous Romanesque revival church is now a boarded up and deteriorated sandstone masonry building located in the regressing Hill neighborhood. The front entrance is disrupted by the systematically dispersed window crevices that contain plain frames and elaborate stained glass. There is a notable entry tower with a semi-grand steeple and transepts, each containing a strengthening crossbar with intricate accents. Both sides of the church incorporate these narrow window frames further adding to the Romanesque architectural tradition. The church is currently vacant, but it still part of the larger, five building Sacred Heart Campus which includes the rectory, convent, school, and garage.      

Diocese of Hartford (1874-2018) Sacred Heart Parish (1874-2009)

Sacred Heart Church was built in 1854 in part of the gracious funding by Gerard Hallock and Thomas Trowbridge (1). The building served as the South Congregational Church until the mid 1860s before the Howard Ave. Congregational Church was built in its place (1). Throughout the 1900s, the building was a clearly established as an important center in the area (see picture captions in the 1886, 1901, and 1923 Sanborn maps below: 4,5,6).  

The property was abandoned after Sacred Heart Parish community was reassigned to St. Anthony Parish, now located on Washington Avenue, in September, 2009 (3). The property was sold to St. Martin de Porres Academy in 2009 (3). The two sites converged due to the decline in parishioners and to avoid the duplication of services (3). 

Since its establishment as a Congregational church in 1852, Sacred Heart church has continuously been in the private ownership of the diocese of Hartford (2). Father Stephen P. Sheffrey was the first pastor of the parish before then being passed down to Father John A. Mulcahy just six years later (2). Throughout its time as a holy site, Sacred Heart expanded its site due to popular demand and exceptional growth of the neighborhood by adding a rectory, convent, school, as well as a garage (3). It was Father John who agreed to the purchasing of more land along Columbus Avenue in order to establish a school and convent (2). After this purchase, the entire block began to densify and become a place of social gathering as well as education as seen in the Sanborn maps. In the maps, it is evident by the growth of houses (yellow buildings) that sprung up around the church that it was an important piece of the neighborhood’s social culture (4,5,6). There was an addition made to the church in 1888, the opening of a school in 1895 as well as a new convent in 1897 (2). There was a fire that engulfed the church in 1939 that required some restoration, but was not particularly substantial (2). 

The church did not necessarily have tenants, but it was the people that made up the parish that instituted the social climate. It was a place of gathering and a centralized establishment that drew a diverse group of people to a commonplace to worship and connect. For instance, during the 1890s, Father McKeon’s parish tallied close to 5,000 people (2). Throughout his pastorate, there were a plethora of activities that members of the parish could take part in including societies, clubs, sports, and missions (2). Each of these activities was open to a wide range of ages, created an inviting environment in the city’s social history and founded a welcoming presence that evoked the importance of community. The continuation of expansion of the Sacred Heart parish offers an interesting explanation to the social culture at the time, hinting at the popularity of the middle-class religious movement as well as its’ collaboration with education.  

It is unfortunate that the current structure appears to be uninviting and abandoned, a sharp contrast to what once stood as the empowering center of neighborhood gathering. Instead of being a building that was seen as an outreach to those around it, Sacred Heart Church is now an unattached and abandoned structure that has lost its powerful social importance within the community and influence over the neighborhood’s residents. The building provided a service that fulfilled member’s spiritual needs, but now sadly, has left the general neighborhood and the former members of its parish spiritually hungry.     

Sacred Heart Church is in a residential neighborhood with substantial family housing densely surrounding the property. The church compound is positioned on the southernmost edge of the Hill Urban Renewal area with the Lee High School to the north, Church St. Square Renewal space to the east, and the elderly residential area of Hill neighborhood to the west (1). From the pictures, it is obvious to see that there is serious deterioration of the neighborhood in general, as the houses surrounding the church are a mixture of small single, and multi-family homes. In addition, there is a decently busy business with a compact parking lot located across the street, however, for the most part, the area is a quiet neighborhood with few cars passing. There is a significant lack of green on the entire block and the sidewalks look considerably aged. The landscape is what one would typically imagine of an abandoned building; brown, uncut and, overall, neglected. 

Visually, Sacred Heart Church is a bold, 2.5 story building with a 3 story tower accented with a stone cross (1). In addition, there is an enlarged nook to hold a statue in the back of the church. The brickwork is made up of square-cut brownstones while the roof is lined with slate tile (1). The front exterior of the church has three tall, half-curved windows with embellished stained glass while the either side of the church has multiple, perfectly aligned window apertures where the braiding decoration is visible. It should be noted that the earlier cornice Italian-style molding was later altered to a plainer and timeless design in the early 2000s (2). The picturesque style of the church was still kept in mind as the add-ons were built to be a continuation of the Romanesque-style church. The church building design is practical, yet at the same time quite striking in its delivery.

1. Maynard, Preston. Historic Resources Inventory Building and Structures. 19 August 1980. Box 1871. New Haven Preservation Trust Archives from 1981, New Haven Museum, New Haven, CT. 20 February 2018.  

2.     “A Brief History of Sacred Heart Parish.” Saint Anthony Church, http://www.stanthony-church.org/history/a-brief-history-of-sacred-heart-parish

3.    Editor, Ed Stannard Register Metro. "Options for Sacred Heart Church are wrecking ball or rebirth (video)." New Haven Register. July 28, 2017. Accessed February 22, 2018. https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Options-for-Sacred-Heart-Church-are-wrecking-ball-11605092.php#photo-13461791.

4.    Sanborn-Ferris Map Co., Insurance Maps of New Haven, Connecticut Volume 2, 1886, 63.

5.    Sanborn-Ferris Map Co., Insurance Maps of New Haven, Connecticut Volume 3, 1901, 58.

6.    Sanborn-Ferris Map Co., Insurance Maps of New Haven, Connecticut Volume 2, 1923, 47.