St. Mary's Catholic Church (Fredericksburg, Texas)

St. Mary's Catholic Church

St. Mary's Catholic Church in 2010
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website http://church.stmarysfbg.com/
Architecture
Style Gothic Revival
Administration
Diocese Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio
Area less than one acre
Built 1906
Built by Wagner, Jacob
Architect Dielmann, Leo M.J.
Part of Fredericksburg Historic District
MPS Churches with Decorative Interior Painting TR
NRHP Reference # 70000749 (district)
83003143 (TR)[1]
RTHL # 14697
Significant dates
Added to NRHP October 14, 1970 (district)
June 21, 1983 (TR)
Designated RTHL 1995

St. Mary's Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic church at 306 W. San Antonio in Fredericksburg, Texas.

History

Old St. Mary's Church (1863) in 2010

Old St. Mary's

The first Catholic church in Fredericksburg was a log house built in 1848.[2] In 1861 it was replaced by a stone building, completed in 1863.[3] Now called Old St. Mary's, since 1906 this building has served several purposes, including as a schoolhouse.[4] Its place in the history of German immigration to Texas lead it to be listed as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1994.[4]

St. Mary's today

By 1901 the church building was too small for the congregation.[5] A new church was designed by San Antonio architect Leo M.J. Dielmann[5][6] and built by contractor Jacob Wagner in 1906.[2] The current St. Mary's contains many Gothic features such as buttresses, trefoil motifs, and a corner tower rising high above the roofline.[3][5] The interior contains extensive painting and murals, including on the organ pipes and ceiling vaults,[3] leading to its inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places as a painted church. It is also part of the National Register's Fredericksburg Historic District,[3] and a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.[5]

The current campus also includes Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church at 302 East College Street. Originally opened in 1919, it was closed in the 1940s, then reopened as a mission of St. Mary's for Spanish speakers in 1983.[7]

References

  1. ↑ National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 Knopp, Kenn. "A Short History of New St. Mary's Church". The Painted Churches of Texas: Echoes of the Homeland. Sacred Ground. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Kennedy, Carol; Flory Butler, Linda; McCann, Marianne (1983). "Churches in Texas with Decorative Interior Painting – National Register of Historic Places Thematic Nomination" (pdf). Texas Historical Commission. pp. 30–32. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  4. 1 2 "Old St. Mary's Church (Die Alte Kirche)". Texas Historic Sites Atlas. Texas Historical Commission. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "St. Mary's Catholic Church". Texas Historic Sites Atlas. Texas Historical Commission. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  6. ↑ "A Guide to the Leo M. J. Dielmann Papers, Drawings, and Photographs, 1847-1961". Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
  7. ↑ "Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church". St. Mary's Catholic Church (official website). Retrieved 2013-11-08.

Coordinates: 30°16′37″N 98°52′35″W / 30.27694°N 98.87639°W / 30.27694; -98.87639

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