Holy Corners District Neighborhood in Saint Louis-St Louis MO-Holy Corne rs Church Churches

The Holy Corners District Neighborhood in Saint Louis earned its name through the construction tendencies of the town. Many similar buildings tend to occupy set neighborhoods - Victorian homes here, brick colonials there, condo complex just yonder. In the Holy Corners area, the similarity is not with construction type but with building use. The area is home to several churches of all denominations, built within sight of each other.

Generally accepted as being bounded by the visual limitation of a person standing at Kingshighway and Washington, the churches and former churches offer a variety of architectural styles. Doric, Corinthian, and Ionian columns are all on display, as is a variety of steepling and cross-topping motifs. While there are no guided tours, visitors are encouraged to stop by each attraction.

The Angelic Temple of Deliverance is the former Temple Israel, and features heavy Corinthian columns. St. John's United Church of Christ offers school care and a specialized black box theater inside for community performances. A spare Scientology church sits next to a Methodist church, and the Tuscan Temple brings a Doric columned finish to the group.

Also noteworthy in the Holy Corners area are some former religious buildings. The Saint Louis Public Schools Recruitment office was part of the Temple Israel House before becoming a high school and then being converted to offices. The Washington Apartments building neighbors three churches and was a meeting place before being converted into condominiums in 2007.

To have so many religious buildings so close together is rare, and design students often visit the area for school studies and projects. Developers have also been targeting the region, and several developments will be moving forward for multi-use buildings and apartment complexes in currently vacated properties. The gentrification project has many coming to see what Holy Corners looks like now to understand what it will be in the future or to consider it as a potential new home.