Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel

230-236 East 90th Street
Thomas H. Poole
1886-87

The rapid development of Yorkville following the arrival of elevated trains can be traced directly through the construction of Catholic churches in the area. These included St. Monica’s (founded 1879), St. Jean Baptiste (1882), St. Joseph’s (1888), St. Elizabeth of Hungary (1891) and St. Stephen of Hungary (1902). The Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel was one of the grandest, occupying an imposing building clad with Vermont marble. The design was called “thirteenth century English Gothic” by The New York Times and features crenellations and polygonal turrets. The heaviness of the rough-faced upper story is relieved by a giant stained glass window with delicate Gothic tracery, and the refined lower stories are clad in smooth ashlar stonework. The adjacent rectory was designed at the same time by Thomas H. Poole, a congregant who designed several Catholic churches in New York City. If you need a place to rest and reflect at the end of your tour, Ruppert Park (named after the brewery that once stretched from East 90th to 94th Streets) is located across the street.

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