| St. Mary Mother of the Redeemer Church | |
|---|---|
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St. Mary Mother of the Redeemer Church |
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| Basic information | |
| Location | Norwalk, Ohio |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Year consecrated | 1894 |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Church |
| Status | active |
| Heritage designation | Irish |
| Leadership | Father Francis Speier |
| Website | http://www.stmarynorwalk.org |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) | William P. Ginther |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Architectural style | Gothic |
| Direction of façade | East |
| Groundbreaking | May 29, 1889 |
| Completed | 1894 |
| Construction cost | $35,000.00 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | ~425 |
| Dome(s) | half |
| Spire(s) | 1 |
| Materials | Sandstone |
Saint Mary Mother of the Redeemer Church is a parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo. The current church is located at 38 W. League Street, Norwalk, Ohio.
Contents |
The first Catholic Church built in Norwalk was St. Peter's in 1841. It was located on west Main Street. Prior to the building of St. Peter’s church, the people of Norwalk had to attend Mass at St. Alphonsus, in neighboring Peru. St. Alphonsus had been established about 1828. (See website of St. Alphonsus...http://www.historicstalphonsus.org)
There were mainly two different ethnic groups of Catholics in Norwalk prior to the building of St. Mary's and St. Paul's Roman Catholic church: German and Irish. Shortly before the first railroad was built through Norwalk, which was in the early 1850’s, there was a large influx of Irish people into Norwalk. They came to work on the railroad. Most of the newcomers settled in the northwest section of town, and attended Mass at St. Peter’s. Separate services were held in English and German for the two nationalities attending the church. The English speaking Catholics wished to have a parish of their own and so on October 12, 1853 a tract of land was bought on Milan Avenue at what is now the corner of St. Mary’s Street and Milan Avenue.
As a result, the German Catholics remained at St. Peter's until their population grew to where they could no longer use St. Peter's church. They moved to build a new church in the later 1890s under the patronage of St. Paul the Apostle.
| Current Pastor
Father Francis Speier |
St. Mary Rectory |
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As of the 2003 church census, there were 1010 members in the church. The church itself has a regular capacity of 425 people.
In 2004, St. Mary was twinned with a new parish, St. Anthony in Milan Ohio.(See St. Anthony's website...http://www.milanstanthony.org) Its ties with its previous sister church of 35 years, St. Alphonsus in Peru, Ohio, was broken by the Toledo Diocese in a mass "restructuring" of the diocese. The two parishes share a priest, Father Francis Speier.
Mass times are as follows...
January through June Mass Schedule
July through December Mass Schedule
Below is the shorter, timeline version of the History of St. Mary Church. The complete history can be found on St. Mary's website. The history there also contains hundreds of photos to back up the words of the story. http://www.stmarynorwalk.org/history.htm
1850's- There was a great influx of Irish people into Norwalk to work on the railroad. Most of the newcomers settled in the northwest section of town. The attended Mass at St. Peter's on West Main Street. Fr. Ponchell, pastor of St. Peter's conducted separate services in English and German for the two nationalities attending the church. In the end he decided that another church should be built.
1856- The English speaking Catholics organized under the patronage of Mary, The Mother of Our Redeemer. A brick church was built at the corner of Milan Avenue and St. Mary's Street at the cost of $8,000.
1860- Fr. Ponchell died at the age of 35 without seeing the completion of his church. It was his request that he be buried under the church he worked so hard to build. Fr. John Quinn was appointed as the new pastor.
1861- Completion of the church under Fr. John Quinn.
1862- Construction begins for Parochial Residence on the southeast corner of St. Mary's Street and Milan Avenue.
1864- Fr. Thomas Thorpe was appointed pastor.
1865- Construction completed for Parochial Residence, at a cost of $3,000. A school was built at the rear of the church at a cost of $4,000. There were eighty students at the start of the new school year.
1868- Fr. Thomas Halley was appointed pastor.
1869- A Bell was purchased for the church weighing 3,100 lbs. and costing $1,400.
1875- Our growing parish was in need of a larger church and school so land was bought at State and League Streets for $3,800.
1878- A two story brick school was built measuring 60 ft. by 40 ft. and cost $8,000. There were four large rooms on the first floor, and a large hall on the second floor. Church services were still held on Milan Avenue.
1885- Fr. Charles Chevraux was appointed as pastor.
1886- The Sisters of St. Joseph were put in charge of the school. The attendance at the time was one hundred children.
1889- St. Mary's church was too small and was no longer centrally located, the congregation decided it was time to build a new and larger church. In the spring of 1889, plans were prepared by William Ginther of Akron. In April, plans were approved by the Bishop, The cornerstone was laid on September 22, 1889.
1897- Fr. James Quinn was appointed pastor.
1900- Fr. Francis Malloy was appointed pastor.
1904- Fr. P.J. Quinn was appointed pastor.
1907- Fr. Quinn undertook the building of a new pastoral residence next to the church at the cost of $15,000.
1910- Fr. Joseph O'Keefe was appointed pastor.
1912- A new bell weighing 2,000 lbs. was purchased after the old bell cracked. Electric chandeliers were also installed in the church.
1913- The two-story school was condemned and torn down. At this time students were sent to public schools.
1914- Fr. P.J. Clancey was appointed pastor.
1917- Fr. Charles Gardner was appointed pastor.
1919- A two room wooden school was built at the cost of $10,000, and was run by the Sisters of St. Dominic.
1933- Fr. John Malone, a member of the parish, was ordained in June. He offered his first Mass at St. Mary's on June 11, 1933.
1935- Sisters of Notre Dame took charge of the school.
1936- Fr. Thomas Quinlan was appointed pastor.
1937- Fr. Charles Sanger, of St. Mary Parish, was ordained in May, and Reverend Carmen Nardecchia also from the parish was ordained in May 1938.
1951- Mary Ellen Frey entered the convent of the Sisters of St. Dominic in Caldwell, New Jersey.
1952- The Church was rewired and new lighting fixtures were installed at the cost of $4,000. The estate of Mary Sattig left a 109-acre farm on Lover's Lane Road and $7,000 to the parish.
1953- Fr. Thomas E. Reynolds was appointed pastor. Renovation to the church began, including the closing of five sanctuary windows and the removal of the decorative wainscoting below the windows.
1957- Ground breaking for the new school took place in May. The new building contained five classrooms and a multipurpose. The total cost of the building was $240,000 and was dedicated in June 1958.
1963- A gymnasium was added to the school which measured 50 ft. by 100 ft.
1964- A new rectory was built at the cost of $50,000.
1965- The old rectory was remodeled into a convent for the Sisters of Notre Dame.
1970- A four room addition was made to the school at the cost of $100,000. Saint Alphonsus Parish became a sister parish of St.Mary's.
1972- Fr. Bertrand Schenk was appointed pastor.
1977- Fr. J. Howe was appointed pastor. Storm windows were installed on the church windows, and the window frames were painted at the cost of $25,000. The sacristy was remodeled and the steeple was re-slated at the cost of $2,747.
1982- A new electronic organ was installed at the cost of $25,000. The Diocesan RENEW program began at St. Mary's. The church underwent needed repairs, including sandblasting and tuck-pointing, the cost of all repairs totaled $86,000.
1983- Fr. Raymond Fisher was appointed pastor.
1987- Fr. Herbert Willman was appointed pastor.
1988- Fr. Michael Schelling was appointed pastor. Jack Bleile was ordained as permanent deacon in December.
1989- Sisters of Notre Dame began living at St. Paul's in the fall. The convent was renamed the Century House, and was used as a meeting and conference facility.
1991- Work began on the stained glass windows in church. The north transept window was restored and re-leaded at the cost of $18,230. Plans for the church renovation proceeded.
1993- Five sanctuary windows were reopened and restored at the cost of $61,385.
1994- Fr. Nelson Beaver was appointed pastor.
1996- Renovation of the church began. The interior of the church was repainted and new flooring was installed. The sanctuary area was made smaller to make room for the choir on one side and the baptismal font and flexible seating on the other side. Benches were refinished at this time. The total cost of the renovation was $255,000.
2001- The church was air conditioned at the cost of $69,000.
2002- A new playground and Enrichment center were installed and a committee was appointed by the Leadership of the parish to study Stewardship. After meeting for several months it was decided that St. Mary's would become a Stewardship parish.
2003- The Church roof was replaced at the cost of $55,000.
2004- Fr. Francis Speier was appointed pastor. St. Mary's was twinned with St. Anthony's in Milan.
2005- The school roof was replaced and during the summer of 2005 at the cost of $70,000. A steering committee was formed to study the future of Catholic Education in the Norwalk area. The decision was made to turn the St. Mary's Campus into the Early Childhood Center, which would include Preschool, Kindergarten and after care for the Norwalk Catholic School.
2008- The former Covent, known as the "Century House", was torn down. Its upkeep was no longer an option and it was no longer used for anything in the parish.
2010- The Church carpet was replaced and the Sanctuary Platform was reconfigured. St. Mary's celebrated it's 150th anniversary as a parish.