Polish cathedral churches generally have large amounts of ornamentation in the exterior and interior, comparable only to the more famous
Churrigueresque or
Spanish Baroque style.[2] The decorations used reflect the tastes of the
Polish immigrants to these regions in both the symbols and statuary of
saints prominently displayed throughout. Additionally there is a heavy proclivity towards ornamentation drawn from the
Renaissance and
Baroque periods as well as modeling designs after famous churches in
Poland.[3] The claim of different 'architectural styles' of Europe ascribed to these churches is misleading, as most of them are already labeled by
art historians as examples of
Eclecticism and
Historicism, characterized by the various
architectural revivals found in styles of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These churches exhibit a mixture of architectural traits from numerous past eras characteristic of Europe and the Americas.
A unique synthesis
Skerrett says Polish churches surpassed other immigrants' churches in size. Their style promoted the immigrants' vision of Polish identity.[4]
Kantowicz writes in The Archdiocese of Chicago: A Journey of Faith: "The preference of the Polish League for
Renaissance and
Baroque forms seems more clear cut. The glory days of the
Polish Commonwealth came in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries when it formed the largest state in
Europe… The architectural style of Chicago's Polish churches in
Chicago reflect this, particularly the magnificent edifices of Worthmann and Steinbach built along
Milwaukee Avenue on the
Northwest Side, reflected the renaissance glory of
Polish Catholicism".
Peter Williams in his book Houses of God: Region, Religion, and Architecture in the United States on p. 179 writes,"[I]n
Detroit and
Chicago especially, a distinctive genre of church building emerged among Polish communities, the "Polish cathedral." Where most Catholic churches were built in grander or humbler variations and
Gothic and
Romanesque themes popular across the country, the ambitious
prelates in the
Great LakesPolonias often chose to make monumental statements in the Renaissance style of their mother country. The scale of these structures was often enormous, both in the great size of these parishes and the episcopal ambitions of their clerical leaders... Still visible from the freeways, many of these "cathedrals" such as
St. Stanislaus Kostka in Chicago now serve
African-American or
Latino constituencies while others have been closed by their archbishops as no longer economically viable.
The churches are major tourist attractions in Chicago, with tours devoted exclusively to them.[5][6] In May 1980 the
Chicago Architecture Foundation's ArchiCenter held an exhibit on these treasures titled Chicago's Polish Churches.
Many of
Chicago's
Protestant elites criticized these stylistically grand churches as "ostentatious" in comparison with the "plainer" style in vogue for Protestant houses of worship.[9] Catholic hierarchs such as
John Lancaster Spalding, the first Bishop of
Peoria, responded by comparing the churches that the immigrants financed to the
pyramids of Egypt that were built by slaves.[9]
The need for identity was evident in the unique architecture of the Polish cathedral style. It was often associated with the religious order of the
Congregation of the Resurrection, in addition to the architectural styles of the
Renaissance and
Baroque periods.[10][11] Both in scale and scope, these edifices were attempts to contradict the marginal status of
Polish immigrants in society. As a stateless people whose culture was systematically attacked in its homeland during the years of
partition, they also had a low economic rank in the industrial centers to which they had immigrated at the turn of the century.[12] The construction of these churches greatly influenced the development of neighborhoods that surrounded them. World views that the Polish immigrants from the
Old World retained, and their creative assimilation into the
New World, shaped the landscape of the rapidly growing industrial regions to which they immigrated.[13]
List of churches built in the Polish cathedral style
^Williams, Peter W., "Houses of God: Region, Religion, and Architecture in the United States" pp. 157, 179–180 University of Illinois Press; Reprint edition (2000)
^"Polish churches along the Kennedy Expressway" by
Lilien, Marya, pp. 18–29, Spring 1980
^The Archdiocese of Chicago: A Journey of Faith by Kantowicz, Edward pp. 27–29, Booklink, Ireland 2006
^SKERRETT, Ellen. "Parish and Neighborhood in Polonia". Sacred Space. Catholicism, Chicago Style. p. 153. In terms of sheer size and monumentality, Polish Catholic churches on the Near Northwest Side surpassed the parish churches constructed by most
German,
Bohemian and
Irish congregations. The architectural style promoted by the
Resurrectionists used
Renaissance and
Baroque forms molded to distinctively promote their vision of
Polish history and identity.
^Chicago's Polish Downtown Victoria Granacki in association with the Polish Museum of America pp. 7–11, 14–16, 18–23 Arcadia Publishing 2004
^Williams, Peter W., "Houses of God: Region, Religion, and Architecture in the United States" p. 178 University of Illinois Press; Reprint edition (2000)
^
abCatholicism, Chicago Style by Skerrett, Ellen; Kantowicz, Edward R.; and Avella, Steven M., p. 147, Loyola University Press, 1993
^Ethnic Chicago: A Mulicultural Portrait edited by Melvin G. Holli and Peter a'A Jones, pp. 178–9, 595–6, William B. Eerdman's Publishing Company, 1995
^Swiderski, Klara and Robert, "Basilica of St. Hyacinth: Inside Religion", pp. 3–8, Ex Libris Galeria Polskiej Ksiazki, 2005
^Piatkowska Danuta Polskie Kościoły w Nowym Jorku (The Polish Churches of New York [in Polish]), pp. 19–27, 559–61, Wydawnictwa Swietego Krzyza, 2002
^Catholicism, Chicago Style by Skerrett, Ellen; Kantowicz, Edward R.; and Avella, Steven M., pp. 139–40, 146–50, 152–62, Loyola University Press, 1993