Stephen were replaced by cathedral style windows depicting narratives from the bible as well as Christian figures and symbols. In 1906, the original stained glass windows found in St. Date: 1890 Stained Glass: Christ at the Marriage Feast at Cana. Source: Photograph courtesy of Cleveland State University Special Collections. The cost of the tower addition was estimated at $18,000.00. Original plans for the church included a large steeple, but such structures were prohibited at the time of its construction. Stephen Roman Catholic Church was embellished with an imposing Gothic-style square bell tower. Date: 2011 Saint Stephen Illustrated With Steeple, Ca. Source: Image provided by The Center for Public History and Digital Humanities, Cleveland State University. Stephen Tower The St Stepehn church tower dominates the main entrance from West 58th Street. Masses are still held in German the first Sunday of every month. Stephen's expanded its ministry to be inclusive of new Catholic settlers in the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood in 1970, the church became the headquarters for a Hispanic ministry. While maintaining a variety of organizations and societies associated with German heritage, St. Boniface to form Metro Catholic Parish School in 1988. The elementary school was consolidated with St. Peter's High School the following year to become Erieview Catholic High School for girls. The high school was consolidated with Lourdes Academy in 1970 to form Lourdes-St.Stephen's High School for girls, which merged with St. Due to a combination of the pressures for Germans to assimilate following the World Wars and the general exodus of more prosperous residents from the area, much of the German and Catholic population disappeared from the surrounding neighborhood. Stephen's, like many other urban Catholic churches in Cleveland, found itself facing a shrinking congregation and declining enrollment in its schools throughout the second half of the 20th century. Enrollment in schools continued to increase through the mid century, and a ten-room addition to the original school was completed in 1952. To meet the educational needs of the growing parish and surrounding German community, a new brick school house was opened in 1897 and construction of a high school was completed in 1916. Stephen's was home to the largest number of German Catholics in Cleveland. The present church was completed and consecrated in 1881.īy the turn of the century, St. Initially delayed due to the Panic of 1873 and the economic depression that followed, finances to resume construction on the church were in part gathered by the mortgaging of personal properties by parishioners. The parish continued to grow, and the cornerstone for a new St. A two-story building was constructed in 1869 that housed both a school and church. Mary's of the Assumption of Mary Church on West 30th Street, and was organized to serve the German-speaking residents west of West 44th Street. The parish was founded in 1869 in response to the growing German population on Cleveland's West Side. Many were professionals and skilled craftsmen, and Cleveland's German population quickly became one of the most influential and prosperous ethnic groups. While many of Cleveland's German inhabitants arrived from within the United States, other Germans immigrated from their homeland for reasons including religious persecution, political unrest, and economic depression. They remained the largest ethnic group settling in the city until the mid 1890s. In 1860, residents of German descent constituted one third of Cleveland's population. Stephen Roman Catholic Church is a reflection of the German parish that funded and built the church. Included on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, its spacious inside is adorned with intricately carved alters and statuary, stained glass windows, and ecclesiastical artwork. Stephen Roman Catholic Church, located on West 54th Street near Lorain Avenue, is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful interiors in Cleveland.
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