It’s bad. Fire struck the former St. Mark’s Roman Catholic Church at the northwest corner of Page Boulevard and Academy Avenue in the evening of January 23, just as the city was facing a major snow storm.
Looking back at previous visits I had made, the first time in July of 2018, then in November of 2020, and finally in May of 2022, the church was already in bad shape. Looking at Google Street View, which has a recent drive-by from October of 2025, the church had already possibly seen substantial collapse of its vaulting.
Looking in the front door (for God’s sake, stop going in collapsed, fire-damaged buildings, people!), I could see that there was almost complete destruction of the church’s interior that could not be blamed on the fire from a week or so ago.
The despoliation of this church happened quickly; judging from Google Street View images I analyzed, the congregation that last occupied the building dissolved or moved sometime between August of 2012 and September of 2014, as evidenced by when the maintenance of the lawn stopped.
The roof of the office wing or rectory had already collapsed before the fire, though some of the timbers look charred.
What a beautiful building, and what a shame it has come to this.
St. Mark’s was open here from 1893 to 1992, and then closed. It was designed by the famed architecture firm of Barnett, Haynes and Barnett. The church’s name, an important one since St. Mark is one of the Four Evangelists, did not go unused for very long in the Archdiocese and was soon adopted to a church at 8300 Morgan Ford Road in Affton in 2003. In 2018, that parish was closed, and in the same year the St. Mark name now moved to a combination of three other parishes in Lemay.
The Rev. John J. Dillon was responsible for organizing the parish in 1893 and later erecting the current building. I would hate for him to see what has happened to his church.
It is a beautiful church. I live a few blocks away and hope it is not destroyed or leveled. I don’t know what could be done. Has skateliborious looked at other churches they could convert? So sad so many churches are burning and disappearing.
Suffering the fate of many former Catholic parishes in the “Rome of the West”.
It’s pitiful that so many churches have closed. I can imagine how proud the founders of these parishes were to construct such beautiful structures, and welcome people into their new parishes. I feel the Archdiocese owes it to the community to keep these parishes alive. I once heard that a priest must conduct mass even if there is only one person present. I cannot imagine that these parishes were completely empty when they closed. In fact, I know of many parishes that have closed in recent years that were still quite active & functioning. But, only the parishes with the wealthiest parishioners seem to avoid the For Sale sign. Coincidence??Nothing good comes from an abandoned building. Sad to see another one go to waste. Stay tuned for a vacant lot, followed by a bland box containing a cannabis shop on that corner!