St. Ann's Church Complex - Woonsocket, Rhode Island
Posted by: BruceS
N 42° 00.439 W 071° 30.108
19T E 292823 N 4653616
Historic former Catholic Church now art center in and social building in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Waymark Code: WM4ZMW
Location: Rhode Island, United States
Date Posted: 10/18/2008
Views: 12
The St. Anne parish was founded in the 1891 and its first church was a simple building with church, convent and school all in the same building. The present St. Ann parish church was built between 1913 and 1917 for the parish of mostly French Canadian immigrants. The church designed by Walter F. Fontaine in a modern French Renaissance style. During the 1920 over 40 stained glass windows design and built by French artists were installed. The interior walls, vaults, and ceilings of the church were completely covered in fresco paintings by Guido Nincheri, a native of Florence.
The parish added a convent in 1925 and a parish house in 1936 both also designed by Fontaine.
In 2000 the Diocese of Providence announced the closure of St. Ann's and an effort was made to save the building. That effort resulted in the formation of the St. Ann Arts and Cultural Center. The center holds various social events, banquet facility to preserve the historic building and its art.
Street address: 84 Cumberland Street Woonsocket, Rhode Island
County / Borough / Parish: Providence
Year listed: 1982
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1900-1924, 1925-1949
Historic function: Religion
Current function: Recreation And Culture, Domestic
Privately owned?: yes
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
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