The Stone Church

History:
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St. Mary, Rockport
Stone Church
Age of the Streetcar
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Fr. Calvey
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Depression Years
Youth Organizations
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Parish Cemetery
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Aspects of Parish Life
Pastorate of Fr. Kelly
Hunger Center
Changing Needs
R.C.I.A.
Pastoral Council
Reaching Out
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Year of Celebration
Parish Leaders
Daughter Parishes

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Church sanctuary, circa 1905 By the end of the 19th century, the parish buildings were beginning to show signs of wear. The school, which had not been as well built as the church, was deteriorating especially fast.

Enrollment began to drop as Catholic families started living in the areas of Rockport Township that now make up Lakewood, Rocky River and Fairview Park. Many of these families chose to send their children to neighborhood public schools rather than travel a long distance to the parish school -- especially one in such bad shape.

The school closed for four months in 1892 due to low enrollment. By 1894, the number of students dropped to 15, and the school closed again. This time, it wouldn't re-open for another six years.

While a new schoolhouse may have helped lure students back, the parish faced a more pressing problem in the form of the church structure. Parish families were larger and the church was now too small for the congregation.

When planning began for a larger church in 1890, there were about 50 families in the parish. A parish fair in 1892 raised $1,051 for the building fund. Moral support came from Bishop Ignatius Horstmann, who remarked on the need for both a larger church and a larger school when he presided over confirmation the following year. In 1896, he asked the people to build large for the future.

One of the reasons for the bishop's comment was the advent of the electric railway.

Stone church, dedicated 1898 The new church would be built along the route of an interurban railway extending down Rocky River Drive, from Berea to Lorain Street. Since this was one of the main routes into Cleveland, parishioners wanted to build an impressive structure. They took the bishop's advice and decided on a stone structure that would be twice the needed size to accommodate the envisioned growth of the parish.

The parish had purchased an acre of land on the north side of the frame church from the Mangan family in 1895. Over the next dozen years there was an almost endless series of fairs, box lunches and other functions, including a concert and an oyster dinner, to raise funds for the project.

With Henry J. Hanks as architect and E.F. Gaertner as builder, construction began in August 1896 and the foundation was completed to the water table by winter. Besides their fund-raising efforts, parishioners helped in the actual construction of the new building. Terence Campbell and others used their horses and wagons to haul sandstone from the Berea quarries. John Lavelle and many others helped in the excavation and other jobs. Neal Norton, an engineer, helped lay the foundation.

Parishoners donated their labor to help build the stone church
Bishop Horstmann laid the cornerstone on May 2, 1897. The homilist was Fr. Patrick O'Brien, who had served as pastor from 1873 to 1875. The church was enclosed by November, and a concert was held inside in October 1898. The pastor, Fr. Joseph Hoerstmann, with the permission of the bishop, dedicated the church at the 10:30 Mass on Christmas 1898.

Although the frame church had been torn down, it didn't go to waste. Its wood was used to build new sheds for teams of horses, and a stage in the basement of the stone church was created with old flooring and joists. The communion rail and two columns were used for ornamentation.

Many donations were made by parishioners during construction and over the next few years. Several statues given at this time are still in use in the church or school -- for example, those of St. Anthony, St. Patrick and the Sacred Heart.

While the parish was enjoying the use of its new church, the school building remained a problem. The school re-opened in September 1900 with the Sisters of St. Joseph as the teachers. However, the school building was in such bad condition that it could no longer be used. Over the next 14 years a variety of places were used for classroom space, including the church sacristy and basement. In September 1904, Alice Steese became the parish teacher and organist. Minnie Kohnz succeeded her in both positions in January 1907.

In November 1903 Fr. Hoerstmann became the full-time pastor of St. Ignatius Parish after what must have been a very tiring year. He had spent the previous year as pastor of St. Patrick's and St. Mary's while founding St. Ignatius.

Fr. George Reber, who served as pastor from 1907 to 1910, was the last non-resident pastor of St. Patrick's. During his tenure, the first daughter parish was founded -- St. James in Lakewood. At that time the parish's northern boundary was moved south from the lake to Madison Avenue and the southern boundary was moved to Five Points.