Storm Damage - St. Mary Norwalk

In the recent storms that moved their way through Ohio, Norwalk was hit particularly hard, with many damaged buildings and homes. The First Baptist Church (Oasis of God) had one of it's turrets blown off (see picture from wkyc.com). It was reported that winds of up to 100 mph blew through the area.


St. Mary's in Norwalk was also damaged. Much of the masonry at the top of the tower was disturbed. Some even fell to the ground and onto the church roof, causing damage to the roof and plaster ceiling inside. The damage is severe enough that the streets surrounding the church are closed in case of further structural failure, and all masses and other events have been moved to the school gym. See the Norwalk Reflector article below:

http://www.norwalkreflector.com/article/3743856

Interestingly enough, this is not the first time the steeple has suffered wind damage. A wind storm in the 50's damaged the original ornamentation at the base of the steeple. See the below blog post for a picture.

http://catholictoledo.blogspot.com/2007/04/st-mary-norwalk_20.html

Plans for the future of the steeple and tower are to be determined. See below for pictures of the exterior damage. Note the masonry that is shifted, missing or pulling away from the structure. Extensive interior damage was also noted by engineers. I do not have any pictures of interior damage at this point in time.

I will post an update once further plans are outlined. Until then, updates of the situation can be followed on the parish's Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Mary-Mother-of-the-Redeemer-Catholic-Church/188089864270

(Photo: Mike Doughty)

(Photo: Mike Doughty)

(Photo: Janotta & Herner)

(Photo: Janotta & Herner)

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In other news, this is what it looks like when a steeple starts to come down:

St. James Catholic Church, Chicago IL. (After a long delayed promise of posting, here is one picture. I will make a detailed post when demolition is completed.)

Believe it or Not.....

This was a church. St. James' Parish, in the Old South End, rented this building until they could afford to build. Ten to one, they even made the interior look good.

Oddly enough, I can see it from the back porch. My pastor had told me about it a good while ago, but couldn't remember anything about it, except that it had been painted powder blue the last time he noticed. A couple weeks ago, he gave me a ride back from Mass and decided to look for it.

St. James, Old South End

St. Joseph, Maumee

Photo: Toledo-Lucas County Public Library

St. James, Old South End

St. James School, Old South End

St. James School merged with Immaculate Conception and SS Peter and Paul, to form Queen of Apostles. The building is now used by Head Start.

The decorative brickwork, around the main entrance, is unusual for this type of building.

The Gothic lettering on the stone sign is even more unusual.

St. James, Old South End

A closed parish. Nothing fancy, but it was servicable.

The building was constructed, I believe, in 1913.

I haven't seen a picture of the interior, but I've been told it was very nice. The "people's altar", made by parishioners and one of the best I've seen, and the statue of the parish patron, are at Immaculate Conception.