The Art & History Crawl: A glimpse of Buffalo’s history through stained glass

Buffalo is known for its fresh water, its architecture, its park system. But did you know that it is also known as a stained glass center? That’s right. The reason is partly due to the world-class historic churches adorned with stained glass windows by Louis C. Tiffany and John LaFarge. This fact alone is part of why the Stained Glass Association of America (SGAA) now calls Buffalo House.

Today, the Downtown Family of Parishes and Explore Buffalo are preparing to show the public exactly what Buffalo means to the world of stained glass. On Sunday, June 9, the community is invited to a “Church Tour” that will highlight the six amazing shrines that pay homage to the stained glass window.

Learn how the early parishioners built these amazing architectural structures that became a place of worship for a variety of ethnic communities.

The churches participating in this spectacular tour are: Saint-Sacrement, Notre-Dame du Perpétuel Secours, Saint-Antoine de Padua, Saint-Joseph Cathedral, Saint-Louis and Saint-Michel. The churches will offer a total of 24 different visiting slots starting at 11:30 a.m. and ending at 6:30 p.m., with each tour lasting 45 minutes. Explorers are invited to move from church to church (on foot, by bike, by car, etc.) because visiting times are strategically staggered. In the end, it is possible to visit the six churches throughout the day.

For anyone interested in attending, there is no registration. However, there is a tour plan available at each of the churches, municipal library branches, as well as at Explore Buffalo, and below with a QR code.