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710 W Main St.

Project Overview

Architect: George P. Standuhar         Year Built: 1901       Architectural Style: Gothic Revival

 

Architectural Description

710 W. Main is a Gothic Revival church, currently St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church, which was built in 1901. The church was built at a grand scale and stands prominently in the neighborhood with its thick masonry walls. The church is constructed of red brick and has a limestone base. The most prominent feature of the church is the steeple, which sits adjacent to the nave of the church. The steeple soars above the rest of the church and sits on a square tower base. The corners of the tower are accented by thick buttresses. Thin limestone banding divides the tower up horizontally into sections. The roof line of the steeple is unique and consists of small steeply pitched gable roofs placed side by side around the tower to create a zigzag formation. The nave of the church has a steeply pitched gable roof. A smaller round tower echoes the steeple and balances the main façade of the church. The main entrance to the church consists of a pointed arch which sits below a gable detail. All of the windows on the church are pointed arch casement windows with detailed stained glass. The muntins of the windows are painted white, which provides a beautiful contrast to the red brick façade. The long façade of the church has smaller cross gable roofs along the side which are divided into bays by thick brick buttresses. Thin limestone banding accents the cornice of the church.
 

Historical Description

St. Patrick's was an off-shoot of St. Mary's Church in Champaign, which was established in 1856, the first Catholic parish in Champaign County. In May 1901, John L. Spalding, first bishop of the Peoria diocese, purchased a site at Main and Busey for the new parish and appointed Rev. John H. Cannon of Gibson City as its first pastor. Plans for the new permanent brick church were let out and a contract was signed on July 17, 1901 by architect George P. Standuhar, who specialized in Roman Catholic churches. The general contractor was Nicholas Juhl. The new St. Patrick's Church was dedicated on May 24. 1903. The church and rectory were built for a total of $56,000. In 1976 the church was placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings. A major renovation and redecoration of the church was finished on time for the 75th anniversary celebration on May 21, 1978.

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- Last Modified -November 17, 2014 - 1:57pm
- Author - admin