St. Paul's Reformed Church (Navarre, Ohio) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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St. Paul's Reformed Church
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Front and side of the church
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 Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
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| Location | 9669 Erie Ave., SW, Navarre, Ohio |
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| Area | 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) |
| Built | 1913 |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 06000318 |
| Added to NRHP | April 26, 2006 |
St. Paul's Reformed Church is an old church building near Navarre, Ohio. It's in Stark County, Ohio, in the United States. This church started way back in the 1830s. Even though the church group isn't active anymore, the building itself is still standing. It's now known as a special historic site.
Contents
A Look Back: Church History
How St. Paul's Church Began
Long ago, around the 1810s, a German Reformed church group was active in Bethlehem Township. St. Paul's Church officially started in 1835.
The First Building and What Happened Next
The very first church building was built in 1845. It stood for almost 70 years! Sadly, that building burned down in 1913. But the community didn't give up. They built the church you see today on the exact same spot.
Exploring the Church Building
What Does It Look Like?
The church building is made of brick. It has a special style called Gothic Revival. The roof is covered with stucco, and the bottom part, called the foundation, is a mix of brick and concrete.
Special Features of the Church
The church sits on a small hill. You can walk up stairs to the side or the front of the building. The main door is in a tall, square tower. This tower has narrow, pointed windows called lancet windows on its second floor.
The main part of the building is shaped like a rectangle and has a pointed roof, known as a gable. The outside walls have brick supports called buttresses. These supports divide the walls into different sections, or "bays." Some bays are narrow and continuous. Others are wider and have large, pointed windows called ogive windows, along with smaller rectangular windows.
The Church and Its Community
A Busy Place in the Past
In the early 1900s, St. Paul's Church was a very important place. It was the center of social life for a small community nearby called Smoketown. Hundreds of people were members of the church.
Changes Over Time
Over the years, both the Smoketown community and the church group became smaller. All the businesses in Smoketown eventually closed. The church group itself stayed active into the 1990s, but it is no longer meeting regularly.
By the late 2000s, only one former member was still helping out. This person used church money and their own money to keep the building in good shape. Even though the church wasn't used for regular services, it was still used for special events like weddings sometimes. The church cemetery is also still taken care of by the local township.
A Historic Landmark
In 2006, St. Paul's Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This is a list of places that are important to history. The church was chosen because of its special and historic architecture. It is one of four historic places near Navarre on this list. The others are the Loew-Define Grocery Store and Home, the Rochester Square Historic District, and the Stahl-Hoagland House.
