St. Stephen's Episcopal Church (Newton, Iowa)

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St. Stephen's Episcopal Church
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, Newton, Iowa.jpeg
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Location223 E. 4th St., N.
Newton, Iowa
Coordinates 41°42′4″N93°3′0″W / 41.70111°N 93.05000°W / 41.70111; -93.05000 Coordinates: 41°42′4″N93°3′0″W / 41.70111°N 93.05000°W / 41.70111; -93.05000
Arealess than one acre
Built1881
Built byDavid S. Strover, builder
Joe Stevens, carpenter
Architectural style Carpenter Gothic
NRHP reference # 77000523 [1]
Added to NRHPSeptember 22, 1977

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church is an historic Carpenter Gothic style Episcopal Church church building located in Newton, Iowa, United States. Completed in 1881, it was built by the contractor David S. Strover and master carpenter Joe Stevens. On September 22, 1977, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It serves a parish church in the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa.

Carpenter Gothic architectural style

Carpenter Gothic, also sometimes called Carpenter's Gothic or Rural Gothic, is a North American architectural style-designation for an application of Gothic Revival architectural detailing and picturesque massing applied to wooden structures built by house-carpenters. The abundance of North American timber and the carpenter-built vernacular architectures based upon it made a picturesque improvisation upon Gothic a natural evolution. Carpenter Gothic improvises upon features that were carved in stone in authentic Gothic architecture, whether original or in more scholarly revival styles; however, in the absence of the restraining influence of genuine Gothic structures, the style was freed to improvise and emphasize charm and quaintness rather than fidelity to received models. The genre received its impetus from the publication by Alexander Jackson Davis of Rural Residences and from detailed plans and elevations in publications by Andrew Jackson Downing.

Episcopal Church (United States) Anglican denomination in the United States

The Episcopal Church (TEC) is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion based in the United States with dioceses elsewhere. It is a mainline Christian denomination divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church is Michael Bruce Curry, the first African-American bishop to serve in that position.

Newton, Iowa City in Iowa, United States

Newton is the county seat of and most populous city in Jasper County, Iowa, United States. Located 30 miles (48 km) east of Des Moines, Newton is in Central Iowa. As of the 2010 Census, the city population was 15,254. It is the home of Iowa Speedway, Maytag Dairy Farms, and the Iowa Sculpture Festival.

Contents

History

The parish was formed on December 1, 1867, by the Rev. W. T. Currie from St. Paul's Church in Durant. It was incorporated the following year. Prior to this, worship services were held occasionally in the Jasper County Courthouse and in Union Hall. Some of the services were conducted by Iowa's first bishop, Henry Washington Lee, who encouraged the mission work in Newton.

St. Pauls Episcopal Church (Durant, Iowa) United States historic place

St. Paul's Episcopal Church is a parish church in the Diocese of Iowa. The church is located in Durant, Iowa, United States. The church building and parish hall have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1985.

Durant, Iowa City in Iowa, USA

Durant is a city in Cedar, Muscatine, and Scott counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 1,832 at the 2010 census.

Property for the church was bought by Thomas Arthur for $825. [2] David S. Stover designed the church and Joseph Stevens was responsible for construction, which began in 1871. The church was completed in 1874, with the exception of the bell tower. The first liturgy was celebrated in the church on April 19, 1874, by Rev. J. Sanders Reed of Des Moines. The building is Carpenter Gothic in design. The stained glass windows are a combination of English, Victorian and Arts-and-Crafts. The organ was bought by Col. Ryan, Thomas Arthur, and Lena Clark for $700. It was first used on Christmas 1874. It is the oldest church in continual use for worship in Newton. [3]

Des Moines, Iowa Capital of Iowa

Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857. It is on and named after the Des Moines River, which likely was adapted from the early French name, Rivière des Moines, meaning "River of the Monks". The city's population was 216,853 as of the 2018 population estimate. The five-county metropolitan area is ranked 89th in terms of population in the United States with 655,409 residents according to the 2018 estimate by the United States Census Bureau, and is the largest metropolitan area fully located within the state. A portion of the larger Omaha, Nebraska metropolitan area extends into three counties of southwest Iowa.

Stained glass decorative window composed of pieces of coloured glass

The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensional structures and sculpture. Modern vernacular usage has often extended the term "stained glass" to include domestic lead light and objects d'art created from foil glasswork exemplified in the famous lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany.

By 1878 the parish had been reduced to 30 communicants. Between 1878 and 1911 the parish was too small to support a priest. With the exception of weddings and funerals, services were not being held. There was also no resident priest during the Great Depression. Rev. Joseph Gregori began to revitalize the parish beginning in 1949 and it became an independent parish in 1962. The education wing was completed the following year. The tower base, which serves as the narthex, was originally on the northeast corner of the main facade. It was moved to the other side in the 1960s and the second level of the tower and the spire were added at that time. They were part of the original plan for the church, but were not built because of a lack of funds. [3]

Great Depression 20th-century worldwide economic depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression that took place mostly during the 1930s, beginning in the United States. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations; in most countries, it started in 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s. It was the longest, deepest, and most widespread depression of the 20th century. In the 21st century, the Great Depression is commonly used as an example of how intensely the world's economy can decline.

Narthex

The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex was a part of the church building, but was not considered part of the church proper.

Facade Exterior side of a building, usually the front but not always

A facade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually the front. It is a foreign loan word from the French façade, which means "frontage" or "face".

Architecture

The sanctuary measures 52 by 32 feet (15.8 by 9.8 m), and the education wing is 53 by 50 feet (16 by 15 m). [3] The exterior is of the entire complex is covered with board-and-batten siding. Even though the education wing was added almost 90 years after the sanctuary they conform stylistically. The window openings and the entryways feature pointed arch windows. The exception is a round arch over the entry into the education wing. Other architectural elements include short buttresses and small brackets beneath the narrow eaves. A small chancel extends off of the back. The altar, pews, choir stalls, and stained glass windows are from the early years of the church.

A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (sideways) forces arising out of the roof structures that lack adequate bracing.

Chancel space around the altar of a traditional Christian church

In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary, at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. It is generally the area used by the clergy and choir during worship, while the congregation is in the nave. Direct access may be provided by a priest's door, usually on the south side of the church. This is one definition, sometimes called the "strict" one; in practice in churches where the eastern end contains other elements such as an ambulatory and side chapels, these are also often counted as part of the chancel, especially when discussing architecture. In smaller churches, where the altar is backed by the outside east wall and there is no distinct choir, the chancel and sanctuary may be the same area. In churches with a retroquire area behind the altar, this may only be included in the broader definition of chancel.

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References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ↑ "Larry Ray Hurto. A History of St. Stephen's Church". St. Stephen's Church. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Florence Treloar. "St. Stephen's Episcopal Church". National Park Service . Retrieved 2018-10-14. with photos
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