St. Remy's Catholic Church
Encyclopedia
St. Remy's Catholic Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in Russia
, Ohio
, United States
. Built in 1890, it continues to house an active parish
, and it has been recognized as a historic site
because of its architecture.
-speaking Catholics began to settle in southwestern Shelby County and nearby northeastern Darke County
in 1823; in their earliest years, these people were served by an itinerant priest, Father Navarron. In 1839, a parish was created for these settlers and dedicated to St. Valbert
; its first building was located 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Versailles
. When the priests and nuns of the Society of the Precious Blood
began to settle in western Ohio in the 1840s, St. Valbert's became a mother church for the Society. The parish was split three ways in 1846: the members to the west of St. Valbert's became part of Holy Family parish
, while the members to the southeast became part of St. Remy parish; the remaining members of St. Valbert's erected a new building in the village of Versailles in 1864, at which time it was rededicated to St. Denis
.
Russia's first settler built his house in the village in 1853; he was followed by many more settlers by the end of the decade. Many of these early settlers had migrated from the Russian Empire
; upon seeing the site for the first time in the winter, they were struck by its resemblance to the Russian steppes
and named the village for their former home. The members of St. Remy's constructed a church in the new village in 1854; built of logs, it was dedicated by Archbishop John Baptist Purcell
on June 15, 1854. Growth soon necessitated its replacement; the resulting large brick church was built in 1869. As the parishioners continued to multiply, this structure too became insufficient for their numbers, and the third and present structure was erected in 1890.
style of architecture, but its tower
displays the Gothic Revival
style. In the early 20th century, it was rated as one of the most beautiful churches in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati
and one of its purest examples of Romanesque Revival architecture. The structure rests on a stone foundation with a basement. Sandblasted brick walls, which rise to multiple gable
s, are topped with a slate roof
. The interior is lit by many stained glass
windows along both sides. In 1954 and 1976, the church was extensively modified: a vestibule
was added to the front, blocking the original facade
, and the original altars
and statues were destroyed or heavily changed.
Architectural historians have classified the Precious Blood-related churches of western Ohio into four generations. The churches of the first generation, which were typically small log structures, have largely disappeared; only St. John's Church in Fryburg to the northeast has remained without significant changes. The churches of the second generation are generally small and simple brick structures, most of the churches of the third generation are large Gothic Revival buildings with extensive ornamentation, and the churches of the fourth generation exhibit a wide range of styles, including Italianate
and Romanesque Revival. Although it is primarily a Romanesque Revival structure, St. Remy's falls within the period of the third generation, which includes churches built between 1885 and 1905.
because of its architectural significance. Thirty-two other properties, including twenty-five other churches, were listed on the National Register at the same time as part of a multiple property submission of properties in western Ohio related to the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. Among these thirty-two other buildings were two other churches and three other related buildings in western Shelby County. The tall Gothic Revival towers featured by many of these churches has caused this region of western Ohio to be nicknamed the "Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches
."
Today, St. Remy is an active parish of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. It is clustered with St. Louis parish
in North Star
and St. Nicholas parish
in Osgood
. The entire cluster is part of the Sidney Deanery
.
Russia, Ohio
Russia is a village in Loramie Township, Shelby County, Ohio, United States. The population was 551 at the 2000 census.-History:Russia was founded by Lewis Phillips, who purchased and platted the land where the village now sits. Phillips' house, built in 1853, was the first house in Russia; other...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Built in 1890, it continues to house an active parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
, and it has been recognized as a historic site
Historic site
A historic site is an official location where pieces of political, military or social history have been preserved. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have recognized with the official national historic site status...
because of its architecture.
Parish history
FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
-speaking Catholics began to settle in southwestern Shelby County and nearby northeastern Darke County
Darke County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 53,309 people, 20,419 households, and 14,905 families residing in the county. The population density was 89 people per square mile . There were 21,583 housing units at an average density of 36 per square mile...
in 1823; in their earliest years, these people were served by an itinerant priest, Father Navarron. In 1839, a parish was created for these settlers and dedicated to St. Valbert
Saint Waldebert
Waldebert , , was a Frankish count of Guines, Ponthieu and Saint-Pol who became abbot of Luxeuil in the Benedictine Order, and eventually a canonized saint in the Roman Catholic Church, like several among his kinsmen who protected the Church, enriched it with lands and founded monasteries.Like his...
; its first building was located 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Versailles
Versailles, Ohio
Versailles is a village in Darke County, Ohio, United States. It is the only village in Wayne Township. The population was 2,589 at the 2000 census. The proper local pronunciation of the name is "Ver Sales", with the accent on the second syllable.-History:...
. When the priests and nuns of the Society of the Precious Blood
Missionaries of the Precious Blood
The Missionaries of the Precious Blood form a community of priests and brothers within the Latin Church, one of the 23 sui iuris churches which make up the universal Catholic Church. The Society was founded by Saint Gaspar del Bufalo in 1815...
began to settle in western Ohio in the 1840s, St. Valbert's became a mother church for the Society. The parish was split three ways in 1846: the members to the west of St. Valbert's became part of Holy Family parish
Holy Family Catholic Church (Frenchtown, Ohio)
Holy Family Catholic Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in Wayne Township, Darke County, Ohio, United States. Located in the unincorporated community of Frenchtown, it houses an active congregation, and it has been accorded historic site status because of its well-preserved Gothic Revival...
, while the members to the southeast became part of St. Remy parish; the remaining members of St. Valbert's erected a new building in the village of Versailles in 1864, at which time it was rededicated to St. Denis
Denis
Saint Denis is a Christian martyr and saint. In the third century, he was Bishop of Paris. He was martyred in connection with the Decian persecution of Christians, shortly after A.D. 250...
.
Russia's first settler built his house in the village in 1853; he was followed by many more settlers by the end of the decade. Many of these early settlers had migrated from the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
; upon seeing the site for the first time in the winter, they were struck by its resemblance to the Russian steppes
Eurasian Steppe
The Eurasian Steppe is the vast steppe ecoregion of Eurasia in the Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands Biome. It stretches from Hungary to Mongolia...
and named the village for their former home. The members of St. Remy's constructed a church in the new village in 1854; built of logs, it was dedicated by Archbishop John Baptist Purcell
John Baptist Purcell
John Baptist Purcell was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Cincinnati from 1833 until his death in 1883, and was elevated to the rank of Archbishop in 1850.-Biography:...
on June 15, 1854. Growth soon necessitated its replacement; the resulting large brick church was built in 1869. As the parishioners continued to multiply, this structure too became insufficient for their numbers, and the third and present structure was erected in 1890.
Architecture
St. Remy's Church is built primarily in the Romanesque RevivalRomanesque Revival architecture
Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
style of architecture, but its tower
Steeple (architecture)
A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...
displays the Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
style. In the early 20th century, it was rated as one of the most beautiful churches in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati covers the southwest region of the U.S. state of Ohio, including the greater Cincinnati and Dayton metropolitan areas. The Archbishop of Cincinnati is Most Rev...
and one of its purest examples of Romanesque Revival architecture. The structure rests on a stone foundation with a basement. Sandblasted brick walls, which rise to multiple gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
s, are topped with a slate roof
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
. The interior is lit by many stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows along both sides. In 1954 and 1976, the church was extensively modified: a vestibule
Vestibule (architecture)
A vestibule is a lobby, entrance hall, or passage between the entrance and the interior of a building.The same term can apply to structures in modern or ancient roman architecture. In modern architecture vestibule typically refers to a small room or hall between an entrance and the interior of...
was added to the front, blocking the original facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
, and the original altars
Altar (Catholicism)
In the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church, the altar is where the Sacrifice of the Mass is offered. Mass may sometimes be celebrated outside a sacred place, but never without an altar, or at least an altar stone.-Precedent:...
and statues were destroyed or heavily changed.
Architectural historians have classified the Precious Blood-related churches of western Ohio into four generations. The churches of the first generation, which were typically small log structures, have largely disappeared; only St. John's Church in Fryburg to the northeast has remained without significant changes. The churches of the second generation are generally small and simple brick structures, most of the churches of the third generation are large Gothic Revival buildings with extensive ornamentation, and the churches of the fourth generation exhibit a wide range of styles, including Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
and Romanesque Revival. Although it is primarily a Romanesque Revival structure, St. Remy's falls within the period of the third generation, which includes churches built between 1885 and 1905.
Recent history
A 1977 architectural survey ranked the church's exterior in good condition and its interior as being endangered by modifications. In 1979, St. Remy's Church was listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
because of its architectural significance. Thirty-two other properties, including twenty-five other churches, were listed on the National Register at the same time as part of a multiple property submission of properties in western Ohio related to the Missionaries of the Precious Blood. Among these thirty-two other buildings were two other churches and three other related buildings in western Shelby County. The tall Gothic Revival towers featured by many of these churches has caused this region of western Ohio to be nicknamed the "Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches
Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches
The Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches is a rural region in the western part of the U.S. state of Ohio, centered near Maria Stein in Mercer County. Its name is derived from the dense concentration of large Catholic churches that dominate the area's architecture...
."
Today, St. Remy is an active parish of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. It is clustered with St. Louis parish
St. Louis' Catholic Church (North Star, Ohio)
St. Louis' Catholic Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in North Star, Ohio, United States. Constructed in the early twentieth century, it is one of the newest churches in a heavily Catholic region of far western Ohio, but it has been recognized as a historic site because of its unique...
in North Star
North Star, Ohio
North Star is a village in Darke County, Ohio, United States. The population was 209 at the 2000 census.-History:North Star was platted in 1852 along the road between Greenville and Celina, approximately midway between the two cities...
and St. Nicholas parish
St. Nicholas' Catholic Church (Osgood, Ohio)
St. Nicholas' Catholic Church is a historic Roman Catholic church in Osgood, Ohio, United States. Built in the first years of the 20th century, it houses one of the newest parishes in a heavily Catholic region of far western Ohio, but it has been recognized as a historic site for its...
in Osgood
Osgood, Ohio
Osgood is a village in Darke County, Ohio, United States. The population was 255 at the 2000 census.-History:Osgood was founded in the 1880s. While its earliest settlers were primarily Protestants, a Roman Catholic parish was erected in the village in 1906. Today, St...
. The entire cluster is part of the Sidney Deanery
Deanery
A Deanery is an ecclesiastical entity in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of a Dean.- Catholic usage :...
.