Located on Ann Ave. in South St. Louis, St. Michael the Archangel Russian Orthodox Church is the only Russian Orthodox Church in St. Louis. The church was built in a modest design that incorporates domes, rounded ceilings and earth tones that give the church a cave like setting. Due to this constriction, St. Michael’s is not a very ornate church as apposed to others in the area.
The parish that would make up St. Michael’s was founded in October 1909 and was made up of immigrants from Austria-Hungary, Galicia and Russia who were seeking work in the mining areas of Illinois and Missouri with a few settling in St. Louis. At the same time, a house on 1125 Hickory Street was bought and converted into a house of worship. This house would be used until 1929 when, after a year of fundraising and construction, St. Michael the Archangel Russian Orthodox Church was dedicated. The church was built in the Byzantine style, a style that was prevalent in the eastern half of the Roman Empire. The interior of the church is rather simple in its design with rough plaster finishes, earth toned paints and similarly-hued stained glass. Although not as ornate as many of the other historic churches in St. Louis, St. Michael’s uses its minimalism to its advantage in order to create a worship space that is both inviting and intiment at the same time. This simple design was born out of a time when a revolution took place in Russia in 1917 and the Russian immigrants here in St. Louis were cut off from the mother church back home. The simple design of the church reflects the struggles that the church founders had in locating a new place to worship.
Today, the church serves not only ethnic Russians, but also English speaking members. St. Michael’s honors its Russian heritage yet services are conducted in English. Apart from being a place of worship, St. Michael’s is also a prominent landmark in St. Louis that has attracted many visitors. However, the church does not offer any tours, but it is still best to call ahead before going to visit so as to know when services are taking place at the church. Hampton Inn & Suites St. Louis South I-55 and Drury Inn & Suites Southwest are two hotels near St. Michael’s.
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