Holy Ghost Catholic Church (Dubuque, Iowa) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Holy Ghost Catholic Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Rear-view of Holy Ghost Church
Location in Iowa Show map of Iowa Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	2887-2921 Central Ave. Dubuque, Iowa
Built	1916 (church)
Architect	Martin Heer Guido Beck
Architectural style	Romanesque Revival Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals
MPS	Dubuque, Iowa MPS
NRHP reference No.	11000661
Added to NRHP	September 15, 2011

Holy Ghost Catholic Church is a special place of worship in Dubuque, Iowa, USA. It's a Catholic parish, which means it's a local community of people who go to church there. This church is part of the larger Archdiocese of Dubuque. The church building, along with its school, rectory (where priests live), and convent (where nuns live), became a historic district in 2011. This means these buildings are important because of their history.

The Story of Holy Ghost Church

Elementary school next to church.

Why the Church Was Built

The Holy Ghost parish started in 1896. This happened because many people were moving to the northern parts of Dubuque. Another church, Sacred Heart Church, was already there. It had a big new building built in 1888 that could hold 1,100 people. But even with this large church, there were still too many people for it to serve. So, the Holy Ghost parish was created to help the growing community.

Growing the Parish

First, a building was constructed that served as both a church and a school. This was located on what is now Central Avenue. After a few years, a much larger church building was built right next to the first one. This new church was designed by an architect named Guido Beck.

Schools Joining Together

In July 2001, something big happened for Catholic schools in Dubuque. Wahlert High School and all the Catholic elementary schools and early childhood centers joined together. They formed a new system called Holy Family Catholic Schools. Because of this, several older schools closed down. These included Holy Trinity, Nativity, Sacred Heart, St. Joseph Key West, St. Joseph The Worker, St. Mary's, and St. Patrick's. Today, besides Holy Ghost, the other elementary schools that are still open are Resurrection Elementary School, St. Anthony Elementary School, and St. Columbkille Elementary School.