St. Mary's Church (Adair, Missouri) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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St. Mary's Church
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St. Mary's Church in April, 2007.
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 Location in Missouri
Location in the United States
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| Location | On MO 11, Adair, Missouri |
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| Area | 4 acres (1.6 ha) |
| Built | 1904-1905 |
| Architect | John Barker |
| Architectural style | Romanesque |
| NRHP reference No. | 74001069 |
| Added to NRHP | December 16, 1974 |
St. Mary's Church is an old Catholic church in a small place called Adair, Missouri. It's about 12 miles northeast of Kirksville. This church is a great example of Romanesque Revival architecture, which is a style that looks back to old Roman buildings. What makes it special is that it's one of the very few wooden buildings in this style still standing in the United States. The church was built in 1904. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, which means it's recognized as an important historical site. Today, a group called Friends of St. Mary's takes care of the church. They are a non-profit organization working to preserve it.
Contents
Church History: St. Mary's Story
Early Days of the Church
The St. Mary's Church building you see today is actually the third church built in Adair. It was made to serve the Catholic families who moved there. The first Irish Catholic settlers arrived in eastern Adair County in the early 1840s. Many more came later, especially because of the Great Famine in Ireland.
The very first church services were held in a private home in Adair in 1844. Father McNamee would travel to the village on horseback from Edina, Missouri. He would bring his portable altar with him. In 1860, the first Catholic church was built. It was a simple building made of rough logs. Father Ryan was the first priest assigned to this church.
This log church was replaced in 1869 with a simple wooden building. The village and the church community kept growing through the late 1800s. By 1900, people realized they needed a bigger and stronger church building.
Building a New Home for Worship
The current St. Mary's Church was built between 1904 and 1905. John V. Barwarth from Edina, Missouri, oversaw the construction. It cost $10,000 to build. Because Adair was in a remote area, most of the building materials had to travel a long way. Lumber and other supplies were brought by train to Baring, Missouri. Baring is several miles east in Knox County. From there, wagons hauled the materials to Adair.
The new church was built on the same land as the old one. The old church building was moved a short distance away. It was then used as a school. On June 15, 1905, a special dedication ceremony was held for the new church. Archbishop John J. Glennon led the ceremony. Many Catholics from across northeast Missouri attended. Even some non-Catholic neighbors came to celebrate.
Inside and Outside the Church
When it was finished, the new church was about 88 feet long and 52 feet wide. It had two main towers, one on each corner of the front. The tower on the northwest side was the bell tower. It was 12 feet square and originally 90 feet tall. However, a big storm later damaged it badly. After repairs, it was rebuilt to its current height of 50 feet.
The tower on the southwest side is shaped like an octagon. It is 40 feet tall. It has round arch openings and supports in the Corinthian style. A dome sits on top of this tower. A special feature of the octagonal tower is a statue called The Sorrowful Mother. People believe it is one of only three copies of this statue in the United States. The original statue is in Rome, Italy.
Inside, the church has a large main worship area called a sanctuary. There are also two small rooms called vestries. The ceiling and many of the inside walls are covered with pressed tin in a Florentine style. The floor is made of yellow pine wood. A curved balcony overlooks part of the sanctuary. This balcony provided extra seating when needed. A few years after the church was built, beautiful lighting fixtures with Tiffany designs were added to the sanctuary.
Decline and Saving the Church
St. Mary's Church and the town around it continued to grow for the first 20 years of the 1900s. Adair had many businesses that served local farmers. The town had over 400 people, and a Catholic school was built.
However, the years after World War I and then the Great Depression were tough for both the town and the church. Many young people started leaving farms for jobs in cities. Because fewer children were in the area, the Catholic school closed in 1925. Cars became more common, and roads improved in rural Missouri. This meant families could easily drive to bigger towns like Baring, Edina, and Kirksville to shop. These towns also had their own Catholic churches. People could go to morning Mass in a bigger town and then shop before going home.
By 1942, only about 30 people were part of the St. Mary's church community. In 1958, St. Mary's became a "mission" church. This meant it was managed by Mary Immaculate Church in Kirksville. In December 1972, with fewer than twenty adult members left, most of them elderly, all Masses at St. Mary's were stopped for the winter. They never started again. The church's rectory (the priest's house) was sold in 1973. It looked like the church might be lost forever.
But a small group of former church members and other people interested in history decided to fight to save the unique church. They asked to have the building placed on the National Register of Historic Places. On December 16, 1974, their request was approved! The next May, a non-profit group called Friends of St. Mary's Church of Adair, Missouri, Incorporated was formed. Their goal was to preserve and restore the church. On July 12, 1976, the Diocese of Jefferson City (Missouri) officially gave the church to this group.
Since then, the Friends of St. Mary's group has worked hard to maintain the church. They do some restoration work when they have enough money. They hold different fundraisers to support their efforts. Today, regular church services are not held there. The building is only open to the public for special events or by making arrangements beforehand.
