St. Mary's Catholic Church (Massillon, Ohio) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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St. Mary's Catholic Church
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Front of the church
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 Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
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| Location | 206 Cherry Rd., NE, Massillon, Ohio |
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| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1876 |
| Architect | Leon Beaver |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 79001952 |
| Added to NRHP | April 16, 1979 |
St. Mary's Catholic Church is a special old church building in Massillon, Ohio, in the United States. It was built in 1876 for a group of people, many of whom were immigrants from Europe. This church is now known as a historic site, which means it's an important place from the past. The church community, called a parish, is still very active today and is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown.
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The History of St. Mary's Church
St. Mary's Church began because many German and Irish families moved to Massillon a long time ago. In the 1840s, they built a small church on Cherry Road. This first building was used until 1875. It was then taken down to make space for the church you see today, which was finished in 1876.
The main person who designed the church was Leon Beaver, an architect from Dayton, Ohio. An architect is someone who plans and designs buildings. John Verment, who lived in Massillon, helped with the design and carved some of the stone. John Verment later designed another church in Massillon called St. Joseph's Catholic Church.
What Does the Church Look Like?
St. Mary's Church is mostly built from sandstone, which is a type of rock. It's designed in a style called Gothic Revival. This style often features tall, pointed arches and detailed decorations.
The front of the church has two tall towers that look almost the same. The church building itself is shaped like a Latin cross when you look at it from above. It measures about 185 feet (56 meters) from north to south and 85 feet (26 meters) from side to side.
You can see sculptures in small spaces, called alcoves, on the second levels of the towers. There's also a sculpture at the very top of the front roof. The towers have windows and bell towers, called belfries, higher up. The main entrance has three doorways close together, and above them is a large, round window called a rose window. The decorative supports on the outside walls, called buttresses, and the corners of the towers have fancy tops called finials. A large cross sits on top of the front roof.
The Shrine of St. Dymphna
Besides being a regular church for its community, St. Mary's also has a special place called a shrine dedicated to St. Dymphna. She was a young Irish woman from the Middle Ages who was honored as a saint. This shrine had to be completely rebuilt after a fire in 2015.
The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. This means it's recognized as an important historical building because of its unique architecture. St. Mary's is one of four churches in Massillon with this special honor. The others are First Methodist Church, St. Joseph's Catholic Church (which John Verment designed), and St. Timothy's Episcopal Church.
The 2015 Fire and Repairs
On August 4, 2015, a fire badly damaged the chapel inside St. Mary's Catholic Church. This chapel was where the Shrine of St. Dymphna was located. The church's baptistry, where baptisms take place, was also damaged. The fire might have started because a woman was allowed to stay after a church service to take pictures.
After the fire, the nearby St. Paul's Lutheran Church held a prayer service. Leaders from both St. Mary's and St. Paul's led this service together. St. Paul's Lutheran Church also offered their building to the people of St. Mary's so they could continue their services while their church was being fixed.
The Catholic Exponent, a newspaper for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Youngstown, wrote about how helpful St. Paul's was. Father Ed Gretchko, the pastor at St. Mary's, shared how kind St. Paul's had been. He said that the pastor from St. Paul's, Rev. Saylor, offered help right away. Father Gretchko was given a key to the Lutheran church and could use its lights, air conditioning, and other things. He felt very grateful for their generosity during a sad time.
