History

Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church has been the historic center of Orthodoxy in Upper Manhattan since 1931. The community's roots in Washington Heights reach back even further, when Rev. Kanellos Kanellopoulos began holding services in various locations under the name Pantanassa the Virgin Mary, serving the Greek immigrants who had made the neighborhood their home. The Washington Heights Hellenic Orthodox Church, Inc. was officially incorporated by the State of New York on June 25, 1931. That same year, the Very Reverend Archimandrite Vasilios Lokis arrived and formally organized and named the parish Saint Spyridon. In January 1935, Archimandrite Lokis celebrated the first Divine Liturgy in the new parish, and later that year the church was consecrated by Archbishop Athenagoras, who would go on to become the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

In the mid-20th century, Washington Heights was home to a substantial Greek immigrant population, and Saint Spyridon grew into one of the largest and most vibrant Greek Orthodox parishes in New York City, at its peak serving more than 1,000 families. The current Byzantine Revival church building at 124 Wadsworth Avenue was dedicated on September 8, 1952 by Archbishop Michael of America, while the original building was demolished during construction and the congregation worshipped at the nearby Ft. George Presbyterian Church. The modern facade features Byzantine-Romanesque tiered arches, and the interior is one of the most elaborately decorated Orthodox church interiors in the United States, its walls and ceilings covered in traditional iconography created largely by Georgios Gliatas, a student of the celebrated Greek iconographer Fotis Kontoglou. Additional Byzantine-style woodwork was carved in the 1970s by Konstantinos Pylarinos.

The parish also operated the adjacent Saint Spyridon Greek-American School, which was established and incorporated in 1931 alongside the church and at its height housed one of the largest Pre-K programs in New York City, graduating students who went on to attend prestigious specialized high schools and achieve success across many fields.

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, which destroyed Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in the collapse of the South Tower of the World Trade Center, the displaced parishioners of Saint Nicholas worshipped at Saint Spyridon, a gesture of solidarity that underscored the church's place at the heart of Greek Orthodox life in New York. The church subsequently underwent an extensive restoration project that took more than two years to complete, renewing its celebrated interior for a new generation. Today, Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church stands at 124 Wadsworth Avenue in Washington Heights as a parish of the Direct Archdiocesan District, continuing to welcome the faithful of Upper Manhattan and all who seek to encounter one of the most beautiful Orthodox churches in America.