The building was originally constructed in 1898 as St. Francis Xavier Church to serve the local French-speaking Catholic immigrant community of mill workers. The Norman Gothic Revival church is recognized as one of the finest and most elaborate designs of Timothy O’Connell, a prominent and prolific architect in the northeast at the turn of the 20th century. The Catholic parish closed in 2003, and the building was sold to the Coptic Orthodox Church in 2009 to serve a growing immigrant community of Egyptian refugees. Since the Egyptian Revolution in January 2011, the Coptic Church has seen a great influx of congregants leaving Egypt and seeking asylum in the United States.

According to the congregation, today, St. Mary and Archangel Michael “remains serving the immigrant community as a symbol of Christianity and community service.” The congregation provides many critical services to the immigrant community, such as legal aid, English as a second language classes, and free health clinics. It assists refugees in finding employment and housing. In addition to the refugee outreach, the church operates as a venue for youth programming, community lectures, concerts, and an Egyptian festival.

The congregation has been making substantial investments in restoring the church since buying the property in 2009. A National Fund grant of $250,000 with over $1 million in matching funds raised by the congregation stabilized and restored the exterior masonry, repaired the roof, and prevented water infiltration into the building. St. Mary and Archangel Michael hopes that this completed restoration will allow the congregation to continue to expand and support the community for future generations.

St. Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church courtesy St. Mary and Archangel Michael Coptic Orthodox Church