St. George Catholic Church

-“Old St. George”

Image taken by/property of Matthew Stoll

Background• 1814 – First Catholic Service in Cincinnati

OTR

OTR

• 1819 – First Catholic Church in Cincinnati

Background image courtesy of Cincinnati Area GIS: http://cagisonline.hamilton-co.org/cagisonline/index.html

Background• 1814 – First Catholic Service in Cincinnati• 1819 – First Catholic Church in Cincinnati• Current Site of St. Francis Seraph:

Image retrieved from: http://www.stfrancisseraphschool.org/st-francis-seraph-church

Background• 1814 – First Catholic Service in Cincinnati• 1819 – First Catholic Church in Cincinnati

• 1850 – Promoted to Archdiocese• 1821 – Diocese of Cincinnati established

The Roman Catholic Dioceses of Ohio

Image retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cincinnati_Catholic_map.png

Roots• 1868 – St. George Parish formed– 2-story building with chapel and school– Same year the Diocese of Columbus is established

Image retrieved from: http://tctphotos.blogspot.com/2009_11_01_archive.html

Roots• 1868 – St. George Parish formed– 2-story building with chapel and school– Same year the Diocese of Columbus is established

• 1874 – St. George Catholic Church dedicated– Designed by Samuel Hannaford (heard of him?)– Romanesque Revival styled

• 1895 – 700 member families, High School classes offered for the first time

Image taken from: Williams, Caroline. "The Spires of Saint George." Cincinnati - Steeples, Streets, and Steps. Burlington, KY: Penandhoe, 1963. 52-53. Print.

Image taken from: Illustrated Business Directory and Picturesque Cincinnati. 1896. Print.

St. George Catholic Church School

• 1914 – School built across the street– Jacobethan style

St. George Catholic Church School

Image retrieved from: http://home.fuse.net/ndacincy/ndacincysites.htm

Monastery/Rectory Addition

• 1928 – New addition dedicated– Romanesque style– Original Church building is now Catholic Teacher’s

College

Image retrieved from: http://libraries.uc.edu/libraries/arb/exhibits/stgeorge/historicimages.html

Image retrieved from: http://libraries.uc.edu/libraries/arb/exhibits/stgeorge/historicimages.html

Changes

• 1947 - Catholic Teacher’s College moved out. – St. George’s original home was demolished and

replaced by a parking lot• Meanwhile UC expanded EAST into Corryville,

demolishing everything in its path

Background image courtesy of Cincinnati Area GIS: http://cagisonline.hamilton-co.org/cagisonline/index.html

Background image courtesy of Cincinnati Area GIS: http://cagisonline.hamilton-co.org/cagisonline/index.html

Background image courtesy of Cincinnati Area GIS: http://cagisonline.hamilton-co.org/cagisonline/index.html

1957Image retrieved from: http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=AB&Dato=20090529&Kategori=NEWS01&Lopenr=905290802&Ref=PH

1966Image retrieved from: http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=AB&Dato=20090529&Kategori=NEWS01&Lopenr=905290802&Ref=PH

1970Image retrieved from: http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=AB&Dato=20090529&Kategori=NEWS01&Lopenr=905290802&Ref=PH

Changes

• 1947 - Catholic Teacher’s College moved out. – St. George’s original home was demolished and

replaced by a parking lot• Meanwhile UC expanded EAST into Corryville• New structures built:

Daniels Hall

Morgans, Scioto, and Sawyer Halls

Dabney Hall

French Hall (photo shows more recent addition/renovation)

Image retrieved from: http://magazine.uc.edu/explore/living_dining/daniels.html

Image retrieved from: http://www.magazine.uc.edu/explore/living_dining/dabney.html

Image retrieved from: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Residence_halls,_Scioto_Street,_UC.jpg

Image retrieved from: http://www.greatdegree.com/schools/University-of-Cincinnati-818.html

Sigma Sigma Commons

Dabney Hall

French Hall

Edwards Center

Morgans Hall

Scioto Hall

Sawyer Hall

Sander Dining Hall (e.g. 45 West Charlton, African American Cultural and Resource Center, sketchy computer lab building)

Ferocious Bearcat Statue

Sander Hall

FUTURE

FUTURE

FUTURE

FORMER

FORMER

Original Church Building

Image taken from: Giglierano, Geoffrey J., Deborah A. Overmyer, and Frederic L. Propas. "Tour 11: Corryville." The Bicentennial Guide to Greater Cincinnati: A Portrait of Two Hundred Years. Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati Historical Society, 1988. 206. Print.

So, why were St. George Church and its school the only structures saved?

• 1970s – Only 60 resident families– However…… Church was thriving– UC Students, Faculty, and Staff– UC Newman Center combined with St. George

Church

Image retrieved from: http://www.preservationnation.org/magazine/2005/todays-news/st_george.html

Image retrieved from: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=15191.0

Image retrieved from: http://www.building-cincinnati.com/2010/08/old-st-george-hotel-proposal-needs-65k.html

Corryville Catholic School• 1977 – Number of catholic school children in

uptown area was low• St. George, St. Monica, Holy Name, Assumption,

Sacred Heart, St. Andrews Church Schools combined to form Corryville Catholic School

• St. George building used because of location, condition, and space

Corryville Catholic School

Image retrieved from: http://www.corryvillecatholic.org/work.html

Back to St. George Church

• 1989 – Archdiocese of Cincinnati experiencing PRIEST SHORTAGE

• Decided to merge St. George and St. Monica parishes

• Heavy opposition, both parishes lost many members

• Final mass in St. George on July 27th, 1993• St. Monica/St. George and UC Newman Center

are now located in St. Monica Church building on McMillan Street

Image retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:St_Monica_St_George.JPG

“Old St. George”

• 1993 – Christian Ministries Center – Coffee shop and community center– “Old St. George”

Image retrieved from: http://libraries.uc.edu/libraries/arb/exhibits/stgeorge/historicimages.html

Old St. George

• 1993 – Christian Ministries Center – Coffee shop and community center– “Old St. George”

• 2004 – CMC bankrupt• 2004 – UC purchased building– Walgreens offered to buy and demolish the building– UC said NO

• 2005 – UC sells building to the Clifton Heights Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation (CHCURC) for $1.6 million

Old St. George

Image retrieved from: http://www.soapboxmedia.com/features/0322uptownsrenaissance.aspx

The Fire

• February 1st 2008-One of the two spires catches fire

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MwTmtmlnDE – Channel 5 Story

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRnMELS-YyE – Raw Footage

• Fire caused by an exposed light bulb igniting nearby combustible materials

Image retrieved from: http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20080203/NEWS01/802030331/Old-St-George-can-saved

Image retrieved from: http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20080203/NEWS01/802030331/Old-St-George-can-saved

Image retrieved from: http://www.libraries.uc.edu/libraries/arb/exhibits/sacred_spaces/old_st_george.html

Image retrieved from: http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-23418-old_st_george_continues_to_decay.html

The Future• Yes, it was insured, and yes, CHCURC has the

money and has not spent it on anything else• Full Restoration to original state• Designation National Historic Landmark (in the

same league as Music Hall, Union Terminal, Carew Tower, Spring Grove, etc.)

• Boutique Hotel, restaurant/brewery

Matt Bourgeois-

“We are still pursuing the adaptive reuse of the church site as you described it from the News Record article. We are much further along from when that article was written but still a ways away from being able to say it’s definitely happening.”

We’re not in the safe zone yet…. We need your help!!

Works Cited• Bourgeois, Matt. "Old St. George Church." Message to the author. E-mail.• Giglierano, Geoffrey J., Deborah A. Overmyer, and Frederic L. Propas. "Tour 11: Corryville." The

Bicentennial Guide to Greater Cincinnati: A Portrait of Two Hundred Years. Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati Historical Society, 1988. 206. Print.

• Illustrated Business Directory and Picturesque Cincinnati. 1896. Print.• Lemaster, Kevin. "Panel to Discuss Future of Old St. George." Building Cincinnati. 27 May 2008. Web. 10

Nov. 2011. <http://www.building-cincinnati.com/2008/05/panel-to-discuss-future-of-old-st.html>.• "Old St. George: St. George Catholic Church - Cincinnati, OH." National Trust for Historic Preservation. 15

June 2005. Web. 10 Nov. 2011. <http://www.preservationnation.org/resources/case-studies/historic-houses-of-worship/old-st-george.html>.

• Smiddy, Betty Ann. "The Legacy of Samuel Hannaford." Selfcraft.net. 2006. Web. 10 Nov. 2011. <http://www.selfcraft.net/Hannaford/>.

• Stephens, Sarah. "Old St. George Church." CityBeat. 20 Feb. 2008. Web. 10 Nov. 2011. <http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-3899-old-st-george-church.html>.

• Tansey, Eira. "Old St. George: 1868-2008." UC Libraries | University of Cincinnati. 2008. Web. 10 Nov. 2011. <http://www.libraries.uc.edu/libraries/arb/exhibits/stgeorge/index.html>.

• Bowie, MD: Heritage, 1994. Print. • Williams, Caroline. "The Spires of Saint George." Cincinnati - Steeples, Streets, and Steps. Burlington, KY:

Penandhoe, 1963. 52-53. Print.