One of the painted churches of Fayette County, Texas, St. John the Baptist Catholic Church rises over the small community of Ammannsville, settled by Czech immigrants in 1870. This beautiful Gothic Revival church was built in 1917, the third such edifice to be built upon the site, the first having been destroyed in the 1909 hurricane and the second devastated by a fire.
The interior of the church is painted and is considered to be more purely ornamental than the other churches in the group. The stenciling, infill, freehand work and marbling techniques is believed to have been done by a European drifter.
The sanctuary is dominated by one hue, a warm pink, with contrasting colors of blue and green.
In the midst of the blaze, villagers risked their lives and rushed into the burning building to rescue some of the statues which still stand today inside the church.
Many of the early settlers of this area are buried in the adjoining cemetery.
Ammannsville is an unincorporated community with only a few remaining buildings. Its post office closed in 1906 before the church was even constructed.
14 comments:
it is so amazing to me that looking at the outside of these churches they look like every day normal churches from that time period. but the inside is AMAZING. the ceilings are mind blowing. i do love the outside though, it is so pretty
wow, that is an impressive church! that first shot is AWESOME!
i wish you'd share with
www.inspiredsundaymeme.blogspot.com/
just too darn pretty not to!
The sky was a perfect background for that first shot. Awesome!
The artwork inside is beautiful.
A truly fascinating post! Your photos are magnificent!
Wow so beautiful church!
Nice church but the sky in that first shot is amazing.
Loved every picture in this post, Kathy! Really, really nicely done!
Have a Beautiful Day!
Peace :)
Beautiful colors in the first image.
What an amazing structure and very beautiful inside and out. The first photo is breathtaking.
That sky only adds to your exterior image.
I love the interior of this church. It's gorgeous!
Such a stunning church! Wow...love your photos!
The exterior of the church does not give a clue about the magnificent interior. What an amazing work of art!
Glad you showed us the inside as well as the outside!
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