Old Christ Church, Articulo 123

The Old Christ Church is a ruin on the very western edge of the City Center. The Church was irreparable after the 1985 earthquakes. It briefly housed a small museum documenting the British presence in Mexico. It was paid for by the US embassy and so was known as the British-American Museum (Museo Británico Americano).

The first Anglican cathedral in Mexico, it went up between 1893 and 1895. Protestant churches were only really permitted with the ascent of President Porfirio Díaz. The Anglican church had been active in Mexico since 1847, and this was at last a permanent home. It remained so until 1970 when a new Cathedral was begun in Lomas de Chapultepec. The parish only finally moved there in 1984, just one year before the devastating earthquakes.

One of the most representative examples of late 19th-century Neo-Gothic architecture, the building was the work of architect Charles Eamer Kempe. The church can be understood as having accompanied British capital that the Díaz administration actively sought at the time. In effect, a considerable population of British citizens made Mexico City their home.

The church also provides a suitable, rather haunting charm to the street and neighborhood. It’s long been known for a few late night taco stands standing practically in the shadow of the church.