Lourdes Grottoes and others

A recent article in ArtNet examines the tradition of grottoes in the Midwest, highlighting an exhibition at Wisconsin's John Michael Kohler Arts Center, "A Beautiful Experience: The Midwest Grotto Tradition."

The article notes that grottoes are often constructed from materials found locally, and that is certainly the case in Northwest Ohio, where there are several replicas of France's Lourdes Grotto made from tufa rock, related to the limestone formations found around the Great Lakes.

A 2020 Ohio Magazine article tells how Toledo Bishop Karl Alter was inspired to build a Lourdes Grotto in Genoa after his visit to France in 1932. (St. Bernadette Soubirous, seer of Lourdes, was beatified in 1925 and made a saint in 1933.)

Other grottos in the area can be seen at Sorrowful Mother Shrine in Bellevue, Tiffin Franciscans grounds, Sylvania Franciscans grounds, Grand Rapids' Nazareth Hall (no longer church-related), St. John the Baptist in Glandorf, Holy Rosary in East Toledo (now closed), and a small indoor grotto at St. Mary's in Sandusky.

If you know of others in the area, please add them in the comments.