Vision for the Restoration of St. Francis de Sales

Tower in Need of Repair The 300-foot spire pierces the skyline

Symbol of Noble Aspirations

For one hundred years, the silhouette of St. Francis de Sales has been a distinctive mark on the skyline of South St. Louis. While the surroundings of the church have been refashioned over this time span, the 300-foot tower has remained a steadfast symbol of tradition and of hope, pointing skyward, as if conveying the noble aspirations of generations of St. Louis inhabitants.

Thanks to the integrity and beauty of its architecture, St. Francis de Sales has earned a place in the prestigious National Register of Historic Places. It is, however, the human stories etched into the bricks of St. Francis de Sales which have made it imperative that this monument of hopes and dreams be preserved.

This Is the Story of St. Francis de Sales

In 1867, St. Francis de Sales Church was formed out of the spiritual needs of a burgeoning German immigrant community. Seven German dairymen purchased a tract of land on which to build the new church. With the laying of the first cornerstone on September 15, 1867, St. Francis de Sales began to serve as a spiritual and social anchor for a community of immigrants in their new homeland.

Over the next 40 years, a generation of new Americans built this church as they forged a hopeful future in their new country. They first added a school, then a convent, then started to plan the next phase: a grand church which would be compatible with the expression of eternal truth. Every step of the way they made sacrifices to reach their goal, for the records showed that their dream was always just beyond their material means. The tornado of 1896 destroyed part of their dream, but they continued their pursuit.

Immigrants Built It in the Spirit of Tradition for Tomorrow

Magnificent interior Magnificent interior with soaring ceilings

As the community grew and prospered, the parishioners planned to expand St. Francis de Sales. With a typical, traditional Catholic outlook on the Eternal, mere expansion in size was not what they had in mind, but grandeur. The new church was not to be a monument to honor themselves, but to honor someone greater themselves - God.

For this they reached back to the old country, where Christian tradition flourished and sustained Western civilization for tens of centuries. In 1894, a German architect in Berlin was engaged to produce plans for the building of a new church, based on the Gothic Revival style.

In this bright and hopeful New World, they looked to the timeless traditions of the Old World, not to live in nostalgia, but to build a future on solid truths. St. Francis de Sales was built in the spirit of Tradition for Tomorrow.

Fourteen years later, the brand new church was finished, and dedicated for its sacred use on November 26, 1908. This marvelous church would prove to stand the test of time.

Children Are the Future of the Community

On the day the very first Holy Mass was celebrated in 1867, three babies were baptized at St. Francis de Sales. The second building which was erected after the church was a school for the children of the community.

The focus on children and their future has been an integral part of St. Francis de Sales, right up to the present day. Children were a primary concern of the community at the inception of this church, and they are still a primary concern for this church today.

Skyline of St. Louis The skyline of St. Louis

Today, the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales is still the embodiment of revered traditions of the past and the bold hopes of the future, because our children deserve nothing but the best.

St. Francis de Sales is Grand Again

In the latter part of the 20th Century, the dream faded for a time with the shifting demographics in the surroundings of St. Francis de Sales. For 40 years, even as the vision of grandeur dimmed and blurred, the founding traditions of St. Francis de Sales never died; the beating heart never stopped beating within the brick walls which were built with love and hope.

At the turn of the 21st Century, tradition is coming home to St. Francis de Sales. In its physical and its spiritual essence, the vision of grandeur is being rekindled: from the vestibule down the long aisle to the High Altar; from the classic stained glass windows to the frescoes dulled by time; from the sacristy for the clergy to the school rooms for the children; and from the spacious apses to the tip of the spire. Solemnity, beauty, and tradition are being uncovered as the restoration of St. Francis de Sales begins.

Just as the church was dedicated in 1908 to a bright and hopeful future, St. Francis de Sales makes new commitments to serve the future of its community. Just as the church was built on timeless tradition in 1908, it will once again be rooted in tradition as it reaches for new horizons in the 21st Century.