Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral (Chicago)

Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Cathedral and Rectory
Location 1121 N. Leavitt Street
Chicago, Illinois
Coordinates 41°54′6.98″N 87°40′54.77″W / 41.9019389°N 87.6818806°W / 41.9019389; -87.6818806Coordinates: 41°54′6.98″N 87°40′54.77″W / 41.9019389°N 87.6818806°W / 41.9019389; -87.6818806
Built 1903
Architect Louis Sullivan
NRHP Reference # 76000693[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP March 16, 1976
Designated CL March 21, 1979

Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Orthodox Church in America Diocese of the Midwest. It is one of only two churches designed by Louis Sullivan, one of the seminal architects of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is listed on the US National Register of Historic Places[1] and is designated a Chicago Landmark.[2]

History

The church was commissioned by a growing Orthodox community consisting of Russians, Serbs and Greeks of Chicago, Illinois, and stands within the neighborhood known today as Ukrainian Village. The founders of the church were immigrants from Carpatho-Ukraine, Galicia, and the Balkans. It remains one of only two Orthodox churches servicing the Orthodox-Christian community in Ukrainian Village. Construction work, partly financed by a personal donation of $4,000 (approximately $40,000 in 2014) from Tsar St. Nicholas II of Russia, lasted from 1899 to 1903. The church retains many features of Russian provincial architecture, including an octagonal dome and a frontal belltower. It is believed that the emigrants wished the church to be "remindful of the small, intimate, rural buildings they left behind in the Old World".[3] Archival references point to a small wooden church in the Siberian village of Tatarskaya as a particular inspiration for the final design.[4] To this traditional Russian basis of the overall design, Sullivan added decorative elements more characteristic of his own larger corpus of work, influenced by the Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts movements, as seen, for example, in the abstract decorative design over the western entrance to the church.

The church is highlighted in numerous books on church architecture, among them Chicago Churches: A Photographic Essay by Elizabeth Johnson (Uppercase Books Inc, 1999) as well as The Spiritual Traveler's Guide to Chicago and Illinois by Marilyn Chiat (HiddenSpring 2004). The church was consecrated by St.Tikhon of Moscow and was under the spiritual guidance of St. John of Chicago (Kochurov) during its early years.

The church was elevated to a cathedral in 1923, and stands today a member of the Orthodox community in Chicago. It serves as the cathedral church of the Orthodox Church in America with Archpriest John Adamcio as its dean.

Services

The Divine Liturgy is celebrated at 9:30 am on Sundays, following singing of the Hours from 9:10. The Liturgy is also celebrated at 9:30 on Feastdays. A Vigil is held at 4:30 pm on Saturdays, and at 7.00 pm on the eve of Feastdays.

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2007-01-23). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. ↑ "Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral and Rectory". Chicago Landmarks. City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Landmarks Division. Retrieved 2007-12-16.
  3. ↑ Marilyn Joyce Segal Chiat. Spiritual Traveler: Chicago and Illinois. ISBN 1-58768-010-6. Page 157.
  4. ↑ Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral, "Celebrating a Spiritual and Architectural Icon." Chicago (no publication date, but available from the cathedral as of January 2012).
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