Parish History

Before the turn of the century , thousands of immigrants from Eastern Europe began to arrive in the Port of New York in the 1820s. The immigration brought thousands to Castle Garden Immigration Center in the 1850's, and by the time Ellis Island opened in 1892, thousands of new immigrants came from all parts of Europe especially from Russia and the old Austrian-Hungarian empire. These immigrants brought with them a rich heritage, traditions and customs and above all their strong religious beliefs in the Russian Orthodox faith which was celebrated for almost a thousand years, in old Russian and other Slavic countries. 

The first church was built in 1893. Through the efforts of Father Alexander Hotovitzky, land was secured, and services were held in a house chapel. The parishioners built the church and the congregation at that time was comprised of Russian and Greek Ancestry.

Saint Nicholas church was consecrated on October 10, 1903, by the Bishop of the Aleutian Islands and North America Tikhon. Both Patriarch Tikhon and Father Hotovitzky were canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church (in 1989 and 1994 respectively).

Copyright 2004, Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church