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St. Mary's Catholic Church
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Front and side of the church
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| Location: | 317 N. New Jersey St., Indianapolis, Indiana |
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| Area: | less than one acre |
| Built: | 1910 |
| Architect: | Hermann Gaul |
| Architectural style: | Late Gothic Revival |
| Governing body: | Private |
| NRHP Reference#: | 77000020[1] |
| Added to NRHP: | November 9, 1977 |
St. Mary's Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic church in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is built in the Gothic Revival style modeled after the Cologne Cathedral in Germany. The church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The church was established in 1858 as St. Marienkirche to serve the growing population of German Catholics who were making their home in Indianapolis.
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The Reverend Peter Leonard Brandt arrived from Vincennes, Indiana, in 1856 to establish a congregation among the German Catholics of Indianapolis. St. Mary's was their first church, completed in 1858. Priests conducted services in latin and sermons in German and retained Old World traditions. After the neighborhood become commercial, the congregation purchased property at New Jersey Street and Vermont Street. That is where they built the present church, which was under construction from 1910 to 1912. Architect Hermann Gaul, a native of Cologne, Germany, designed the church. The design Gaul used for St. Marienkirche was inspired by the Cologne Cathedral.[2]
Gargoyles decorate the façade of the church at the entry portal and towers. On the north side, a stained-glass window depicts St. Boniface, the saint who converted the Germans to Christianity. On the south side, another window depicts St. Henry, the “church builder.” The interior has many statues and a apse with skylights.
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