St. Augustine’s, Being Destroyed

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I had wanted to keep this a secret as long as possible, but judging by how many photos I’ve seen of people posting views of the interior on the Internet, it’s no secret that one of the most amazing churches in St. Louis has been abandoned, trashed, looted and left to collapse due to water permeation.

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The bastards have ripped off a ton of the copper on the roof, destroying huge amounts of slate shingles, allowing water to go straight down into the walls.

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The church has finally been secured by plywood, though I’m sure that too will be ripped off soon, too. The front door had stood open for most of the last six months.

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I met the son of the pastor of the church, which now meets in a house, one day last year when he was out front mowing the lawn. He was devastated by the sacrilege, and so am I.

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8 Comments Add yours

  1. Bob says:

    Absolutely heart-breaking to watch the ongoing destruction and deterioration. Thanks nevertheless for documenting it and informing us.

  2. Yakov says:

    This is crazy! How can this be happening? What about american laws? Doesn’t this building have any status of a protected object? There got to be some regulations concerning architectural heritage in your country, as far as I understand.

  3. bob says:

    I hate to see this but feel it’s past the point of being saved. I would love to see pictures of the interior before it disappears .

  4. Ben says:

    It seems so strange to see it standing alone. It was once part of a thriving community. I graduated from the grade school in 1953. I served as an altar boy in that church. My friends will be shocked at that piece of information! So many memories of a far different time.

  5. Molston Hound says:

    A long time ago when I was little my mom told me a Priest was murdered in that church. Smothered to death. Anyone know about this?

    1. Chris Naffziger says:

      I think you might be thinking of St. Joseph downtown; the priest there was murdered back in the 60s or 70s. I did hear from a volunteer at the archdiocese that one of the main reasons St. Augustine was closed was due to a series of burglaries.

      1. Deacon Jim Easterwood says:

        The first to go are the parisherns with few left to sustain the church it becomes over whelming to keep it alive such a shame

  6. Dogman says:

    I tried to buy it 6years ago and it was bad shape. ONCE THE HOSTRICAL SOCIETY GERS A HOLD OF IT. THE BUILDING is doomed. Because the historical people get money for it and spend money on something else.

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