BROOKLYN NAVY YARD — A MAJESTIC GOTHIC REVIVAL CHURCH dating from 1877 is part of the cohort receiving the New York Landmarks Conservancy’s 2026 Lucy G. Moses Award for outstanding architectural preservation projects.
Mary of Nazareth Parish-Sacred Heart Church, near the Brooklyn Navy Yard, was designed by Thomas F. Houghton, a former chief draftsman for Patrick Keely, the leading 19th-century architect of Catholic churches. This house of worship exemplifies Gothic Revival religious architecture, with robust brick masonry walls, limestone accents, clerestory (upper part of the church nave/sanctuary) windows, decorative wood framing and stained glass windows.
Like many historic religious buildings that were community anchors during a time of growing Catholic immigration, this church has since deteriorated. The parish, determined not to face closure, hired the firm Zaskorski & Associates Architects AIA to perform the restoration, particularly on the envelope of the building.
The restoration involved rebuilding the front facade and side brick masonry parapets, removal of original bluestone/limestone copings and replacement with matching cast stone, and the repair and rebuilding of the wood frame, clerestory and stained glass windows and front-entrance wooden doors.
The Conservancy wrote, “In an age when many historic churches face deferred maintenance or closure, this project illustrates successful, faith-driven preservation — blending architectural expertise with community commitment to safeguard New York’s rich ecclesiastical legacy.”
✰✰✰
