The stone church of St. Hugo of the Hills Parish was erected by the late Theodore F. MacManus, advertising executive, Catholic writer and social commentator and Mrs. MacManus on their family estate, Stonycroft, after the death of two of their sons. In addition to becoming the permanent parish church of Bloomfield Hills, it was to become a memorial to their two sons, Hugo and Hubert, and the final resting place of the family. By direct Papal dispensation, St. Hugo's contains a crypt where Theodore and Alice MacManus, their sons, Hugo, Hubert and John, a son-in-law, Alexander Toluboff and a great grand daughter, Jane, are interred.

Permission to build the church was received from Bishop Michael J. Gallagher and Arthur Des Rossiers was chosen as the architect. Construction began in 1931 with formal dedication taking place on June 28, 1936.

The family crypt lies directly under the vestibule of the church. The floor is of stone and the ceiling of wood timbers, roughly sawn and supported by circular stone pillars. Walls are of fieldstone from the MacManus estate.