St. Lawrence Catholic Church (Stangelville, Wisconsin) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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St. Lawrence Catholic Church
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| Location | Stangelville, Wisconsin |
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| Built | 1892 |
| Architect | Jon Paulu (church), W. E. Reynolds (rectory) |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival (church), American Foursquare (rectory) |
| NRHP reference No. | 89000056 |
| Added to NRHP | February 21, 1989 |
St. Lawrence Catholic Church is a historic church building in Stangelville, Wisconsin. It is a very old and beautiful place. On July 1, 2000, the St. Lawrence church group joined with two other groups. They formed a new group called St. Therese de Lisieux, located in Denmark. This new group still uses the St. Lawrence church building for services today.
Contents
A Look Back: Church History
Early Settlers and the First Church
The area around Stangelville was settled by many people from a country called Czechia (formerly Bohemia). These Czech immigrants started arriving in the mid-1800s. Around 1855, a group of Czech people called the Chodové came to the Franklin area.
In 1862, something amazing happened. A tree fell on six Czech workers, but no one was hurt. People thought this was a miracle! The next year, in 1863, a man named June Mathias Nemetz gave three acres of land. Soon after, a simple church made of logs with a cedar roof was built there. The first house for the priest, called a rectory, was finished in 1882. A new rectory was built in 1905.
Building a New Church
The first log church became too small as more people joined. So, the church leaders asked Jon Paulu, an architect from Milwaukee, to design a new, bigger church. Construction on the new brick church began in 1892. It was finished in 1894.
The church continued to grow and was a very important place for local Czech families. The Czech language was used for teaching religion until 1930. Church services in Czech were held even into the 1940s.
Merging Parishes
By 1996, fewer people lived in the area. So, St. Lawrence church joined with another church group, St. Joseph-St. John of Pilsen. In 1998, these two churches, along with St. Hedwig in West Kewaunee, started to share the same leader. Finally, on July 1, 2000, all three church groups officially joined together. They became the parish of St. Therese de Lisieux.
Church Architecture and Design
Outside the Church
The current St. Lawrence church building was started in 1892 and finished in 1894. The priest's house (rectory) was added in 1905. The church is built with cream-colored bricks on a strong foundation made of fieldstone (natural stones).
The building is 50 feet wide and 100 feet long. It has a very tall steeple that reaches 150 feet into the sky. The roof is steep and has a pointed shape called a gable. This style is known as Gothic Revival, which looks like old European cathedrals.
Inside the Church
The inside of the church is beautifully decorated. You can see detailed wood carvings, painted patterns called stencils, and colorful stained glass windows. The ceiling is vaulted, meaning it curves upwards, reaching 35 feet high in the middle.
An altar, which is a special table used in services, was hand-carved by Fr. Adalbert Cipin in 1875. It was brought to St. Lawrence and is still used in a small side chapel today. The main altar is over 30 feet tall! Several other side altars were carved by Joseph Svoboda from Kewaunee. These altars are in a style called Perpendicular Gothic.
In 1912, William Scheer from Appleton painted beautiful pictures called frescoes. These frescoes show scenes from the life of Christ. In 1957, another Czech church painter, Louis Shrovnal, carefully restored them. The entire church complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. This means it is recognized as an important historic site.
