History of St. Joseph's Church

Even before the town of Elkader was laid out and named for the brave Arab Chief, Amir Ab Del Kader, religious services were held for the Catholics by an Irish missionary priest.  He traveled by horseback from Holy Cross to surrounding mission parishes offering mass on alternating Sundays in Elkader, Guttenberg, Garnavillo, and other parishes.

The first Mass was celebrated at this location in the mid 1840’s in a log cabin that was located where the Elkader Post Office now stands. The first Baptism recorded here was in 1855.  Visit this page to view a list of St. Joseph's pastors, associate pastors, and pastoral associates through the years.

The first resident pastor was Rev. Peter McGinnis who took charge in 1856.  His first action was the purchase of land.  Soon after began the erection of the first rock church from limestone, quarried on the hill behind the church.  That early church was a large building for so few members (36’ by 80’with 20’ high walls). It was 1858 before the roof was completed.  The congregation had to stand or kneel on the dirt floor, because the interior was not finished until later.  As time went on, the furnishings were added. The wooden main altar and the pair of side altars were tall and ornate.

At that time, the church grounds were completely enclosed with horses and a cow grazing within the fence.  The horses were used to pull the pastor’s buggy, and the cow provided the pastor’s milk.  There were no gates, so the parishioners had to enter the grounds by crossing the stiles.  Later the church fence was removed and the grounds were circled with a wrought iron fence and rows of pine trees.
Three large brass bells, cast in Cincinnati and weighing 5,400 pounds, were purchased for $1,800 in 1876.  At that time, “there was not a larger or better set of bells anywhere in the states,” stated a newspaper clipping of that time. A separate belfry was built on the church grounds to house the bells.  On the largest bell, the names of 72 donors were inscribed.  Today’s value of these bells exceeds $130,000, and bells the size of the largest are no longer cast in the United States!  The three bells were eventually transferred to the belfry of the new church.

In 1887, Father J.F. Reilly was transferred from McGregor to Elkader.  During this time, a sanctuary and sacristy were added to the church with seating capacity for 100.

By 1897, St. Joseph’s parish had outgrown the “Rock Church.”  After months of discussion, the majority of parishioners agreed to erect a new church.  Thomas Byrnes, builder of the Elkader Keystone Arch Bridge and the Bayless Hotel, was awarded the contract for the erection of the new church without decoration and furniture at a price of $12,000.  On April 24, 1898, the Cornerstone was laid.  The building was dedicated on Thanksgiving Day, 1900.

The old “Rock Church” has been redecorated, and is still used today as the Parish Hall for dinners, social events, and meetings.  It has been recently renovated (2019) with updated lighting and HVAC and serves as the center for many of our parish events.

The present Gothic style structure was constructed of solid stone taken from the quarry on the hill behind the church.  Limestone and dolomite were used for the trimmings.

The dimensions of the main body of the building are 50’ by 85,’ and the total length is 104,' including the sanctuary.  The steeple above the bell reaches 142’ to the top of the cross.  The Gothic vaulting in the interior is supported by two rows of ornamental columns.  These columns were originally marbleized.  Between the columns on the vaulted ceiling were large circular oil paintings of various saints.  During the 1960 renovation, major pieces of the church’s original furnishings were removed.  At that time, the interior was plastered with kalloite and finished with artistic fresco painting.  The roof and spire were covered with the best quality Pennsylvania black slate. In the 1980s the roof was replaced completely with new black slate.

The inside woodwork and furniture were yellow pine and oak finished in their natural color.  The ornate high altar and the two side altars were removed from the “Rock Church” and moved to the new Gothic structure.  Two sacristies were built.  In the beginning, the sacristies were connected by a walkway behind the high altar.  In 1998, the walkway was removed, and the back high altar was moved to the back wall and the original three step platform to the altar was removed. Over the years, the high altar was cut down to what it is today.  The original seating capacity was 500, exclusive of the gallery for the organ and choir.  Pews were replaced in 1997, and the seating is now about 300.

A few years ago, the original blue prints of the interior of this church were found in the attic of a house in Elkader.  The house had been originally owned by John Schneider, who was the chief carpenter for the interior of the church.  They were in excellent condition and color.

In the 1998 church renovation, the woodwork was stripped, the interior painted, and some of the original furnishings were restored.  Other pieces were found and used in other ways.  Parts of a confessional were returned and are now on the back wall of the choir loft where they are used as an ornate stand for the Sacred Heart statue.  The hanging brass sanctuary lamp was returned and again hangs in front of the tabernacle.  The gates from the communion railing have been used as ornate tops for two side tables near the church entry. 

The old “sedalia” or bench for the priest and servers became the presider’s chair.  The pulpit, baptismal font, and ambry (storage case for the holy oils) are all new, but every effort was made to retain the Gothic design.  All the work was done by woodworkers who were members of the parish.

In 1998 John C. Kaiser Company, Dubuque, Iowa, was selected to redecorate the interior of this wonderful church. Of special interest is the way the beautiful stations and statues were shaded to enhance the gold and brown in the stained glass windows.  The result of these changes in the interior of the church is that they look like they belong.

Thirty-three stained glass windows add more splendor to the church.  Constructed of glazed cathedral glass, they have withstood the extremes of Iowa climate since they were installed in 1897-1898.  Coming from all walks of life, the donors came from Germany, Luxemburg, Ireland, and Prussia.  In the fall of 2001, it was discovered that the lead used to attach the pieces of glass together was falling apart causing the glass to crack.  In 2005, the parish council decided to start the window project.  The Stained Glass Window Committee was given the task to raise the funds needed to complete the project.  $82,500 was awarded by the State Historical Society, and $118,899 was raised throughout the summer of 2006.  Work began in August 2006 with Kevin O’Brien of Rolling Stone, Minnesota awarded the project.  The 33 stained glass windows were removed to his shop for rebuilding.  Looking for the “brown” to match the original glass, Kevin traveled to the glass'manufacture in Indiana; it was still in business 101 years later.  They created it for us.  “As I review the projects that I have done, this is the most memorable and significant,” Kevin O’Brien, March, 2007.  Rededication of the stained glass windows took place on July 17, 2007.
 

St. Joseph Catholic Church continues to be a house of prayer and sacred space for worship.  For a complete listing of the priests and pastoral associates of St. Joseph Parish, please visit this page.