Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral (Houston) - History

History

The first Orthodox church in Houston was built in 1917 on Walker Street in the downtown area. In 1950, the church had to move due to city construction and because the parish had outgrown its old building. A new church was built on Yoakum Street in the Neartown area. The church was completed in 1952. A community hall named for longtime parishioner S.P. Martel was built next door to the church and still serves the community.

In 1960, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America created Archdiocesan districts to better serve the Greek Orthodox faithful throughout the country and Houston was assigned to the 8th Archdiocesan District which was served by a bishop in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1967. the seat of the bishop for district 8 was moved to Houston, and Bishop Iakovos of Catania arrived in Houston and consecrated Annuciation Church as his new Cathedral. At that time, the diocese included most of the states in the Great Plains and Rocky Mountain region and larger parishes in Dallas, Denver, Kansas City, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, Shreveport and Tulsa. The Dean of the Cathedral was Fr. Nicholas Triantafilou, who served as priest in Houston from 1965-1991.

In 1967, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Church of the Annunciation, the community hosted a "Greek night." The following year saw the institution of an annual Greek Festival to celebrate Greek culture, food and Orthodox life. In 1970, the parish founded the Annunciation Orthodox School with classes for students from kindergarten through 8th grade.

In 1972, a new bishop was assigned to Houston: Bishop John of Thermon, who was consecrated a bishop in Houston. In 1974, Bishop John moved the see of the Diocese to Denver, Colorado where it has remained ever since. The church in Houston continues to be called a cathedral, however, consistent with the longstanding tradition of many denominations.