St. John Cantius Roman Catholic Church 'Most Beautiful In America'

(CBS) -- Faced with extinction in the 1980s, St. John Cantius Roman Catholic Church, has made a remarkable comeback.

This week, the 118 year-old baroque beauty in the Goose Island neighborhood at 825 N Carpenter St, was named "The Most Beautiful Church in America" in a national online contest.

In the late 1980s, the church had only 40 members and one Mass on Sunday.

The church was in pretty bad shape, but has since been restored.

So has the membership, which now has about 1,500 registered families.

"Beauty is universal and is appreciated by everybody," said Father Joshua Caswell.