Tradition says that Greenville’s priest, Father Paul John Korstenbroeck, who had studied architecture in his native Holland, helped design this tan brick Gothic Revival church, one of the finest in the Delta and considered the “Mother Church” for Delta Catholics. Whether or not Korstenbroeck had a role in the design, German-born, New Orleans-based Brune certainly specialized in the design of Catholic churches. This church shows German influence in its three-tiered tower at the facade’s center, which features a pointed-arched portal, a rose window, and pinnacles leading the eye to the tall octagonal spire. Inside, the nave with side aisles is enriched with a rib-vaulted ceiling and stained glass by the Emil Frei studio.
The Tudor Revival First Baptist Church across the street at 407 Main was completed in 1955. The Beaux-Arts classical Hebrew Union Temple (1906; 504 Main) by Harry A. Overbeck is similar to his design for Temple B’nai Israel (ND25) in Natchez.