Whispers of history echo from the stones of St. Michael’s Church. This Episcopal church stands at 225 West 99th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. It graces Manhattan’s Upper West Side.
St. Michael’s Church has stood on this very site for two centuries. The parish was founded in January 1807. Back then, this area was the rural Bloomingdale District.
The current Romanesque building is actually the third St. Michael’s Church. It was built between 1890 and 1891. Robert W. Gibson designed it. St. Michael’s Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. On April 12, 2016, the church became a New York City landmark. This includes the parish house and rectory.
The first St. Michael’s Church was simple. It was a white frame structure with a belfry. Trinity Church pewholders wanted a closer place to worship. They had summer homes near the Hudson River. Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, Alexander Hamilton’s widow, was among the congregation.
A second, larger Carpenter Gothic building served from 1854 to 1891. The current building was dedicated in December 1891. It seats 1,500 people. St. Michael’s Church was built on ground formerly used as a cemetery. The decision was made not to disturb the graves.
Inside St. Michael’s Church, admire the Tiffany stained glass. Louis Comfort Tiffany designed seven great lancet windows. They represent St. Michael’s Victory in Heaven. He also created a marble altar. Twenty-five years later, Tiffany completed the Chapel of the Angels reredos mosaic. It depicts the Witnesses of the Redemption. Parishioners donated stained glass windows of various styles from the 1890s through the 1920s.
Notice the square Romanesque bell tower. It rises 160 feet. The church also features two tracker-action pipe organs. The Rudolph von Beckerath Organ Company of Hamburg, Germany, built them in 1967. St. Michael’s Church has fine acoustics.
St. Michael’s Church influenced New York City’s development. It founded at least six other New York churches. One was All Angels’ Church, first in Seneca Village. After the Civil War, St. Michael’s supported the Bloomingdale Clinic and other services.
In the 1980s, the congregation dwindled. By 1987, it grew again. Rev. Frederick Hill played a large part in that. St. Michael’s is known for its diverse programs and congregation.
Today, St. Michael’s Church thrives. It has many choirs and a Christian Formation Program. Social ministries serve the hungry, homeless, and ill. St. Michael’s partners with churches in South Africa and India.
Take a moment to appreciate the architecture of St. Michael’s Church. Consider its rich history and its ongoing impact. St. Michael’s Church is more than a building. It is a testament to faith. It is a landmark of community. It is a vibrant part of New York City.