The congregation hired the Detroit architecture firm of Donaldson & Meier to design the church, and the cornerstone was laid on September 6, 1885.

[3] Father Damien was canonized as a Catholic saint in 2009, the tenth person recognized by the church in the United States.

The other two buildings - the rectory and parish hall - have been altered substantially, and no longer resemble their original form.

[4] The church is a brick Gothic Revival structure in a crucifix form, with an apse at one end and a tower with tall steeple on the front facade.

A large double window with pointed arch containing two vertical stained glass panels is above the entry.

The nearby convent is an austere Collegiate Gothic three-story building with minimal cut stone detail around the door and window openings.