The Reformed population of Szentes increased significantly in the 19th century. Consequently, in 1871, the presbytery deemed it necessary to build a new church in the Felsőpárt district, as it was too far from the Reformed Great Church in the town centre. Of the 10 designs submitted, the plan by József Dobovszky was accepted; he had also designed the Reformed churches in Ráckeve and Tiszakécske, amongst others. The contract for the building work was awarded to Lajos Oláh, a master builder from Szentes, whilst the contract for the other construction work went to Pál Szatmári, a master carpenter from Szentes. The bells, the stained-glass windows and the altar furnishings were donated to the church by wealthy families from Szentes. In keeping with tradition, the town presented the church with the tower clock.
The consecration of the church took place in 1914 amidst spectacular festivities. The exterior façade of the church is of brick construction, adorned with architectural elements of artificial stone. The rectangular nave is flanked by two side aisles, with a tower on the main axis incorporating the recessed main entrance doorway. The carved pulpit, the altar and the baptismal font are situated in the semicircular apse at the end of the nave. The artificial stone elements of the church’s exterior façade, the balustrade of the gallery and the interior furnishings all display a motif system drawn from folk decorative art. The Reformed church built in Felsőpárti represents the Art Nouveau architecture of the turn of the century.
The tower of the church, situated on the corner of Vörösmarty and Jókai Streets, is the same height as that of the Great Church, 43 metres, of which the wall is 26 metres, the spire 14 metres, and the finial and star 3 metres. An interesting feature of the clock is that although the dials are above the bells, the clock mechanism itself is situated beneath them. Stair towers run along both sides of the tower. Its transept has a trapezoidal closure. Its windows have semicircular or circular arches.
The interior’s value lies in its clarity. Every architectural element radiates purity and tranquillity, a sentiment reinforced by the whiteness and austerity of the walls. The space is covered by a Rabitz ceiling with pointed-arch coffers. Tasteful majolica decorations can be seen on the balustrade of the gallery resting on iron pillars. The organ was built by József Angster in 1928.
