St. Frances Cabrini Church, Catholic church building in Gentilly, New Orleans, United States.
St. Frances Cabrini Church was a modernist Catholic church in Gentilly, New Orleans, built from 1963 and designed by Sidney Folse Jr. of Curtis and Davis. Three sets of pews radiated from the sanctuary under arched pre-stressed thin-shell concrete canopies, each with its own entrance, echoing the parish's original Quonset hut. It seated 1500 people, all within 100 ft (30 m) of the altar, and its concrete spire rose 135 ft (41 m), carrying a cross visible across the parish.
The Archdiocese of New Orleans bought land in Gentilly in 1952 and built St. Frances Xavier Cabrini School before commissioning Curtis and Davis to design the church, dedicated in 1963 by Archbishop John Patrick Cody. Floodwaters from the London Avenue Canal breach damaged it in 2005, and it was demolished in 2007; Holy Cross High School was later rebuilt on the site.
The parish name commemorates St. Frances Xavier Cabrini's 1892 visit to New Orleans, where she worked to counter hostility and prejudice against Italian immigrants after the 1891 lynchings. The church's three arched concrete canopies echoed the Quonset hut that served as the first parish church.
The building suffered severe damage from Hurricane Katrina floodwaters in 2005 and could not be restored. Today only the memory of this place remains, as the structure was demolished in 2007.
The building's design by the architectural firm Curtis and Davis earned recognition from the Louisiana Architects Association for its forward-thinking approach. This award highlighted the innovative way the architects solved the challenge of creating a modern worship space.
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