The Sacred Heart Cultural Center was a Catholic Church. It’s now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s built with stunning period architecture that leaves visitors in awe at the spectacular features integrated into the buildings design.
The building features 15 unique styles of brickwork, 94 stained glass windows, towering twin spires, a barrelled ceiling with intricate detailing on the interiors, and Italian marble altars.
The first bricks were laid in 1897 sourced from South Carolina. The church was officially opened in 1900. To think it took just three years to have all the details intricately designed in that time is a marvel in itself.
The Church was operational from 1900 to 1971 when it was closed with the reasons being cited as “a number of factors”. The building lay vacant for 16-years before the Peter S. Knox family rescued it from years of vandalism. The building has undergone remarkable renovations to restore it to its former glory. It was reopened as a Cultural Center in 1987.
The Sacred Heart Church is open to the public, and it can also be booked for special events such as wedding ceremonies. Throughout the year, the renovated building hosts a number of events ranging from tea parties in the gardens, to silent movie nights, art exhibitions, and various other cultural activities such as ballet performances, and it’s also used by the Augusta Players, and the Symphony Orchestra Augusta.
Even on approach to the building, the level of detail in the brickwork is astounding. Once inside, the calibre of details in inscriptions, the stained-glass windows, inscribed barrel ceilings and the multiple altars in the main church hall are a marvel to see.
The building itself is truly majestic, and well worth stopping by to have a look at. Guided tours are available daily, or, for a fee, an audio version is available at the gift store. The audio tours give you historic information as you walk around the building, and there’s some storytelling weaved in too.
Whether you take a self-led tour, audio, or guided tour, the sights alone are worth stopping by for.