HOLY GHOST CATHOLIC CHURCH

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HOLY GHOST CATHOLIC CHURCH. The site of Holy Ghost Church and school was once occupied by the GLAB BREWERY which stored its product in caves it created along Central Avenue betwen 30th and 31st STREETS. (1) Holy Ghost Parish along Central Avenue includes the Italian-Basilica-style church and bell tower, several red brick buildings to the south and Holy Ghost school, constructed in 1957, to the north. At the base of a steep bluff is a curving grotto, shrine and stations of the cross constructed by parishioners Merlin and Althea Freiburger and others. Between 1993 and 1996, these people attended early morning Mass and then spent the day working on their creations. (2)

The history of the parish began in the late 1890s as German immigrants settled in Dubuque's north end. Due to the rapid growth of population in SACRED HEART CHURCH, the Most Rev. John HENNESSY in 1896 created a new parish, Holy Ghost. The first pastor for the new parish was Right Rev. Msgr. F. X. Feurstein, then pastor of St. Mary's Church in Cascade. (3) The land for the church and school was purchased for $12,800. Architectural plans were drawn by Martin Heer.

On June 3, 1896, the cornerstone was laid and the dedication of the completed building was made on December 20. A combined church and school was planned so that the entire building might be used in the future solely for school purposes. The building also contained the living space for the Sisters who taught the school that opened on January 4, 1897, with an enrollment of 102 students, a number that more than doubled by 1903.

In 1905 Rev. William Wierich was appointed pastor and led the parish for twenty-six years. The growing needs of the school and the need to provide the Sisters with a more comfortable home led to the construction of a new building at a cost of just over ten thousand dollars. In 1915 work began on a new church that was dedicated on July 4, 1916. Designed by Guido BECK in the Italian Basilica-style, the church was constructed in the form of a cross. While the designer of the church is well-known, the designer and creator of the window was unknown in 2023. There is a small chance it may have been KEY CITY DECORATIVE GLASS WORKS, a local firm that manufactured glass for window sashes and doors. It's considered more likely that the windows came from another studio and Key City may have done the leading and installation. Faced with the high cost of construction, stained glass windows came after other expenses were covered. In 2001 Father David Schatz and a committee produced a booklet of stories associated with the windows including the religious symbols of the saints and the rose window. (5)

The sanctuary, repainted and re-carpeted around 2004, could seat five hundred. Paintings by Austrian immigrant and artist Joseph WALTER decorated the interior. In 2004 the only work of his remaining in the church was a circular painting of God, the Creator decorating the center of the sanctuary ceiling. Many of his works were painted over in the late 1950s and early 1960s. (6) More than fifty stained glass windows in two tiers surround the room.

During the GREAT DEPRESSION, Holy Ghost Credit Union was formed to assist parishioners with their financial obligations. (7)

The Holy Ghost parish celebrated its Golden Jubilee on December 8, 1946 when there were 3,388 parishioners and 522 students. By the late 1960s those numbers had nearly doubled with the parish having 6,000 members and one of the largest elementary schools in Iowa.

Both the number of parishioners and the school enrollment began to drop in the 1980s. As the city expanded to the west, the trend continued. (8)

In July 2001, WAHLERT CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL and all Dubuque Catholic Elementary Schools and the Catholic Early Childhood Centers, joined to become a system called Holy Family Catholic Schools. This resulted in the consolidation of and closing of several long time schools, including Holy Trinity, Nativity, Sacred Heart, St. Joseph Key West, St. Joseph The Worker, St. Mary's, and St. Patrick's. Besides Holy Ghost, the other remaining elementary schools were Resurrection Elementary School, St. Anthony Elementary School, and St. Columbkille Elementary School.

In 2004 while the parish population had declined, there were still nearly 125 Eucharistic ministers to distribute communion at weekend Masses and to parish members unable to attend church. (9)

In July 2007 the Holy Spirit Pastorate was established to combine the parishes of Holy Ghost, HOLY TRINITY CATHOLIC CHURCH, and SACRED HEART CHURCH. In July 2011 the three parishes became Holy Spirit Parish. (10)

The 1987 through 1993 Dubuque City Directory listed 2917 Central.

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Source:

1. Barton, Thomas J. "Adam Glab," Tri-States' German Heritage, Telegraph Herald, June 7, 2018, p. 67

2. Nevans-Pederson, Mary, "'Blue Collar' Holy Ghost," Telegraph Herald, August 28, 2004, p. 1

3. Riehl, Christian (Director of Publication), Archdiocese of Dubuque, Iowa 1837-2012, France, Éditions du Signe, 2011, p. 163

4. Ibid.

5. London, Michelle, "Tales in Stained Glass," Telegraph Herald, January 7, 2023, p. 7A

6. Ibid.

7. Riehl

8. Riehl

9. Nevans

10. Riehl