St. Mary’s Church, Rectory & Parish Hall, Staten Island
Address: 347 Davis Avenue
Constructed: 1905
Architect: Frank Wills
LPC Action: Public Hearing 9/13/1966; 9/9/1980
LPC Backlog Hearing: Removed from the calendar without prejudice
This complex of buildings, all built at separate times, is unified in style. The church building was built first, in 1853, at a time when there was architectural reform in the Episcopal Church. Designs were modified to reflect the English countryside, composed in Gothic forms. The architect of the church, Frank Wills, was considered the master of ecclesiastical architecture in this style. Together with his partner, Henry Dudley, the pair designed several churches across the country. This is the only church of its kind on Staten Island.
The complex of buildings forms a distinct sense of place on a grassy corner lot. The construction uses traditional methods such as buttresses and utilizes natural materials like wood and fieldstone, collectively lending a picturesque experience not found elsewhere in New York City