Architect John Welch was commissioned to design the church after a fire in 1887 destroyed much of the structure.

Welch drew inspiration from the churches built during the Italian Renaissance, particularly those in Modena and Verona.

The current interior decoration is the fourth reworking of the inside of the church. The Romanesque design and elaborate plasterwork were completed in 1915.

Almost all of the stained glass was produced for the church by the Tiffany Studios of New York. The first pair of lancet windows were installed in 1897. The Rose Window was given by the children of the Sunday School at the time of the rebuilding in 1890. It is 28 feet in diameter and one of the larger windows of this type in Brooklyn.

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission considers the Church to be "one of the grandest 19th century ecclesiastical buildings in Brooklyn" and in 1981 designated it as a landmark.