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Exterior of the Church of the
Sacred Heart of Jesuss
NPS photograph by Jody Cook
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is not only important for
its unusually innovative revival architecture and the artistry of
its stained glass windows and wall paintings, but also for its role
as a religious and educational center for the Catholic community
of Atlanta for well over a century. The Church of the Sacred Heart
of Jesus is regarded as an important work of W. T. Downing, one
of the most notable southern architects of the early 20th century.
The church is a significant Romanesque Revival design in the context
of American ecclesiastical architecture of the period. There have
been no alterations since its construction in 1898, other than occasional
restorations of paint, changes in the high altar, and the refinishing
of the church towers. The land for the church was purchased by the
Marist Fathers of Jefferson College in Louisiana in 1897. The property
was transferred a few months later to the Marist Society of Georgia.
One year later, the church was dedicated by Bishop Thomas A. Becker,
Bishop of Savannah. In the 1960s, the ownership of the church was
transferred from the Marist Society of Georgia to the Archdiocese
of Atlanta.
Tripartite entrance to the church
with large rose window above
Courtesy of the Atlanta Urban Design Commission |
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The exterior is built of pressed brick and terra cotta with marble
embellishments. Its western facade is composed of two identical
towers flanking a central bay and portico containing a vestibule
and tribune. The long rectangular mass of the church contains a
nave flanked by side aisles and gallery which terminate at an apse.
This sanctuary is covered by a single pitched roof. The portico,
a tripartite entrance under a corbelled pediment and marble cross,
projects from the facade creating deeply recessed doorways. Arched
and circular windows light the tympanums above these doorways. Above
the entrance and gallery, the gabled bay containing a large rose
window supports a corbelled cornice and marble cross echoing that
of the portico. Along the side facades, seven strip buttresses rise
to a cornice and are contiguous with a corbel table. These buttresses
divide the basement floor and the two sanctuary floors into equal
bays containing round arch windows. The basement, half sunken into
the ground, is used for offices. When it was completed, Sacred Heart
was situated in a residential part of town and surrounded with large
trees. At the time, many people of Atlanta felt the church was being
built too far out of town to serve any useful purpose. Today, the
only grassy areas left are two small strips of courtyard on the
church's north and south sides.
Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is located at 353 Peachtree
St. in downtown Atlanta. It is open to the public during regular
church services; call 404-522-6800 or visit the church's
website for more information.
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