St. Mary's Catholic Church (Massillon, Ohio) Explained

St. Mary's Catholic Church
Location:206 Cherry Rd., NE, Massillon, Ohio
Coordinates:40.8022°N -81.5228°W
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Marker:religious-christian
Mapframe-Zoom:12
Mapframe-Caption:Interactive map showing the location for St Mary’s Catholic Church, Massilon
Architect:Leon Beaver
Architecture:Gothic Revival
Added:April 16, 1979
Area:Less than
Refnum:79001952

St. Mary's Catholic Church is a historic Catholic church building in the city of Massillon, Ohio, United States. Constructed in 1876 for a congregation composed largely of European immigrants, it has been named a historic site. The parish remains an active part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown.[1]

History

The origins of St. Mary parish lie among numerous Germans and Irish who settled in Massillon in its early years and built a small house of worship on Cherry Road in the 1840s. This building stood until 1875, when it was destroyed so that the present church might occupy its location; it was built in 1876.[2] The designer was Leon Beaver, a Dayton architect. He was assisted in design and in stonecarving by Massillon resident John Verment, who later designed St. Joseph's Catholic Church elsewhere in Massillon.[3]

Structure

Built primarily of sandstone, St. Mary's is a high Gothic Revival structure with a facade of two nearly identical towers and a Latin cross floor plan. The entire building measures from north to south and on the sides. Sculptures are placed in small alcoves on the second stories of the towers and at the peak of the front gable, while windows and belfries occupy the higher stories of the towers. The main entrance comprises three adjacent portals underneath a large rose window at the center of the facade. Both the buttresses and the corners of the towers rise to decorative finials, while a large cross crowns the front gable.[4]

National shrine of St. Dymphna

In addition to its usual functions as a parish church, St. Mary's houses a shrine to St. Dymphna,[5] a medieval Irish virgin martyr,[6] although the shrine needed a complete reconstruction after being destroyed in a 2015 fire.[7] The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in early 1979, qualifying because of its historically significant architecture. It is one of four Massillon churches with this designation, along with First Methodist Church, John Verment's St. Joseph's Catholic Church, and St. Timothy's Episcopal Church.

2015 fire and repairs

In 4 August 2015, a fire destroyed the chapel that contained the Shrine of St Dymphna within St. Mary's Catholic Church, as well as the parish's baptistry.[8] [9] The fire may have been caused by a woman who was given permission by the priest to stay after Mass and take photographs of the church.[10] Following the fire, the neighboring St. Paul's Lutheran Church held a prayer service, which was officiated by the clergymen of St. Mary's Catholic Church and St. Paul's Lutheran Church.[11] [12] The same St. Paul's Lutheran Church offered its church to the congregation of St. Mary's Catholic Church while the latter community's church building was being repaired.[13] The Catholic Exponent, the official publication of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown commented on the situation, stating that:

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://www.doy.org/index.php/parish-directory?catid=7&start=12 Parishes - Stark
  2. Owen, Lorrie K., ed. Dictionary of Ohio Historic Places. Vol. 2. St. Clair Shores: Somerset, 1299-1300.
  3. Knapp, Amy. "Architect Left Mark on Massillon, Historic Church. The Independent, 2010-07-18. Accessed 2015-01-02.
  4. , Ohio Historical Society, 2007. Accessed 2010-02-18.
  5. Nix, Katie. "Massillon Church Celebrates Lesser-Known Saint", Akron Beacon Journal, 2014-05-15. Accessed 2015-01-02.
  6. Kirsch, Johann Peter. "St. Dymphna." Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 5. New York: Appleton, 1909.
  7. Lambo, Ann-Margaret. "Lutherans Offer Practical Help to Massillon St. Mary in Wake of Fire to Historic Church", The Catholic Exponent, 2015-08-14. Accessed 2015-09-15.
  8. Web site: Fire at historic Massillon church damages room that holds national shrine, official says. Fox News. 4 August 2015 . English. 15 September 2015. A fire at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Massillon damaged a room inside the historic church that houses a national shrine, according to Sr. Kathy Longheier. The baptistry, where baptisms are held, houses St. Dymphna and Sr. Longheier also said about 300 electric candles are stored in that room..
  9. Web site: Lutherans offer practical help to Massillon St. Mary in wake of fire to historic church. Lambo. Ann-Margaret. 14 August 2015. Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown. English. 15 September 2015. On the parish website, Father Gretchko noted that the Shrine of St. Dymphna and the baptistry were lost, but “the good news is the church itself was spared..
  10. Web site: Fire destroys chapel at Massillon's St. Mary Church. Knapp. Amy. 4 August 2015. The Repository. English. The priest said he had allowed a woman to remain in the church after Mass to take pictures. Shortly after is when saw the smoke..
  11. Web site: Crowd gathers to pray for St. Mary Church. Grazier. Steven M.. The Independent. English. A flock of people gathered Tuesday evening at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Massillon, across the street from St. Mary Catholic Church, to pray for the ministry after St. Mary and its St. Dymphna shrine were damaged earlier in the day. The Rev. David R. Saylor, St. Paul’ pastor, and The Rev. Ed Gretchko, pastor of St. Mary, officiated the service, which lasted approximately one hour and was attended by about 200 people. Churchgoers sang hymns, and the reverends read scripture and offered words of encouragement..
  12. Web site: St. Paul's Lutheran to host prayer service for St. Mary's. 4 August 2015. The Independent. English. 15 September 2015. A service will be held at 7:30 tonight at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 127 Cherry Road NE, to pray for the ministry of St. Mary’s Catholic Church after a fire at the historic church earlier Tuesday. A freewill offering will be received to help the church. The Rev. David R. Saylor, St. Paul’s pastor, and The Rev. Ed Gretchko, St. Mary’s pastor, will officiate..
  13. Web site: Officials seek woman last seen in St. Mary's Church before fire. 14 August 2015. The Repository. English. The church remains closed as restoration work is underway, the Rev. Ed Gretchko said. St. Mary parishioners began holding services at neighboring St. Paul Lutheran Church this week. “We are looking forward to our first weekend over there,” he said. Mass will be at 4:30 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 a.m. and noon Sunday. Gretchko said during the past week, restoration crews began deep cleaning the inside of the church including vestments, carpeting, cushions, kneelers and the pews, the nave, walls, tin ceiling and more..

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