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The parish of Saints Peter and Paul was founded in 1849 as the second German Catholic church on the South side. The present Grafton limestone building, consecrated on December 12, 1875, is the third on this site. It was designed on the grandest possible scale by New York architect Franz Georg Hempler, with a length of over 200 feet and a tower more than 200 feet high, still one of the tallest in the city. The design is that of a German High Gothic "hall church," the side aisles being almost as high as the main nave, creating light and soaring space.
The church once seated three thousand people, but the seating was redesigned in the present circular configuration in 1984 by Michael Hughes. The new baptismal pool in the nave was dedicated Easter, 1993. The stained glass comes from Innsbruck, Austria, and the oil paintings used as stations of the cross are from the Beuron School of South Germany. The buildings of the rectory, former school, and convent occupy the rest of the block, in European fashion.
The Chamber Chorus has performed once at this venue, giving its French Christmas program in 1993, excerpts of which are included on its first compact disc, Choral Masterpieces.
Notes by Esley Hamilton and Philip Barnes