Saint Mary Catholic Church

The first Catholic Church in the area was the Church of the Nativity at the corner of Third and Madison Streets dedicated on December 24, 1844. In 1852 it was decided to divide the congregation by language. Father Francis Karge led the German speaking congregation at the Church of the Nativity until July 1870. The English speaking congregation built a church at Sixth and Gay Streets. The land at Fifth and Market Streets was purchased in 1859 at a cost of $2520. The most Reverend Rosecrans, Bishop of Columbus, laid the cornerstone of St. Mary of the Annunciation Catholic Church, on May 9th, 1869. The church was dedicated on July 31st, 1870 at a cost of $50,000 at that time. The inside of the church features many examples of workmanship of the church’s German ancestry.

The steeple was added in 1895 and is the tallest structure in Portsmouth and is 216 feet high. The gold plated cross at the top of the steeple is 8 feet in width by 10 feet in height. The clock was installed in 1909 in the four openings which were provided for when the structure was built.

The solid butternut main altar was imported from Germany circa 1880. During the early years it was painted white. In 1962 Father Charles Jones organized a group of parishioners who with various tools dismantled the altar piece by piece and refinished it to its natural butternut color. The two side altars created from the old confessionals match the design of the main later. The altar of celebration was built from the base of one of the side altars. In the center of this altar lies something very sacred to the congregation, an altar stone; underneath the small square of marble fitted into the table lies a relic from one of the saints.

The large painting in the center above the main altar depicts the annunciation to Mary by the Archangel Gabriel. The mural painting on the left is of the Immaculate Conception. The mural painting on the right depicts Mary's assumption into Heaven. All the paintings are on canvas. The four circular mural paintings around the dome are frescoes of the four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John portrayed by the traditional animal symbols. The lamb represents Christ, the Son of God.

The Fourteen Stations of the Cross, a lasting remembrance of the passion and death of Christ, were imported from Germany. The stations are molded in one piece of terra cotta and the intricate frames which were hand carved by German ancestors to match the gothic design of the altar. The names of the original donors are carved at the bottom of each station and the description of the station is in German. The stations were cleaned and repainted by Wanda Switalski around 1985.

The Bells of St. Mary's consist of a matched set or "peal" of three and were cast in Baltimore by the McShane Bell Company in 1895. The largest bell, "St. Peter" measures 53 inches across the base and weighs 3000 pounds; the principle or "Prime" tone is E and was a gift from the St. Peter's benevolent society - an organization very active during the 1890's and early in to the 19th century. The next bell is "St. George" weighing 1500 pounds and is 41 inches in diameter; the prime tone is G and was donated by the Knights of St. George. The smallest bell, weighing 900 pounds with a diameter of 34 inches has a prime tone of B. The Wehrle family of Newark, Ohio presented this bell to the parish. When the great bells ring in unison, the great musical harmony matches the grace and beauty of St. Mary’s.

The statue of St. Joseph and the nativity set were refinished in 1994 and Mary in 1995. The Pieta, the Cross and the statue of St. Anthony were placed in the vestibule area during a renovation of the church.

The priceless stained glass windows were executed by Frank Zinser of Riordan Art Glass in Cincinnati, Ohio and were installed around 1906. The inscriptions at the bottom note the contributions of societies and individuals toward these windows. The south side windows portray the engagement of Mary and Joseph, the annunciation, the visitation, the birth of Jesus and the presentation in the temple. The north side windows feature the holy family, the crowning of Mary, St. Dominic, St. Peter and the finding of Jesus in the temple. Above the main door one observes the baptism of Jesus; the disciples at Emmaus grace the north door; the window above the south door is a repentant sinner. In the middle Ages, when most people couldn’t read or write, they learned the story through the viewing of the stained glass windows.

In 2003 an interior restoration project began consisted of painting the interior walls and ceiling, refinishing the doors, wainscoting and pews, and angel murals were applied to the ceiling. The total cost of the project was almost $1 million dollars donated by parishioners.