St. Mary's Church is a historic Roman Catholic parish church located at 371 South Main Street in the borough of Wharton in

Morris County, New Jersey Morris County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, about west of New York City. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county was the state's List of counties in New Jersey, tenth- ...

, United States. The parish was founded in 1845 and serves the communities of Wharton,

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

, and Mine Hill Township. It is part of the Diocese of Paterson. The

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

stone church was designed by architect

Jeremiah O'Rourke Jeremiah O'Rourke, FAIA, (6 February 1833 – 22 Apil 1915), was an Irish-American architect known primarily for his designs of Roman Catholic churches and institutions and Federal post offices. He was a founder of the Newark-based architectural ...

and built from 1872 to 1873. Listed as Saint Mary's Roman Catholic Church, it was added to the

New Jersey Register of Historic Places The New Jersey Register of Historic Places is the official list of historic resources of local, state, and national interest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The program is administered by the New Jersey's state historic preservation office wit ...

in 1997. The church buildings and grounds were added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2023.

History

In 1845, St. Mary's became the first Roman Catholic parish established in the northwestern section of the county. The area had several iron mines, access to coal and markets via the

Morris Canal The Morris Canal (1829–1924) was a toll road, common carrier Anthracite, anthracite coal canal across North Jersey, northern New Jersey that connected the two industrial canals in Easton, Pennsylvania across the Delaware River from its weste ...

and later the

Morris and Essex Railroad The Morris and Essex Railroad was a railroad across northern New Jersey, later part of the Main line (railway), main line of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. History The M&E was incorporated January 29, 1835, to build a line from ...

, and an extensive iron industry. The iron mining attracted immigrants from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, many of whom were Catholic and needed a church closer than

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

, over away. Father Louis Dominic Senez, from St. Vincent Martyr in Madison, having served the Dover area since 1844, decided that it needed its own parish. The first church, a wooden building with

Greek Revival style Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

, was built 1845–1846 and located across U.S. Route 46 from the current church. After the end of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, there was an increase in mining activity and employment in the area. In 1868, the parish purchased where the current church is located. Father Pierce McCarthy, recognizing that the congregation needed a larger church, organized efforts to build a new one. Irish-American architect

designed the new church, having already designed several for the Diocese of Newark. The cornerstone was blessed on

Ascension Day The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ (also called the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday) commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It ...

, May 9, 1872, and the completed church dedicated on

All Saints' Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the Church, whether they are know ...

, November 1, 1873. On January 16, 2021, Father Lemmuel Camacho was installed as pastor.

Description

Architect O'Rourke designed the church using

and

High Victorian Gothic High Victorian Gothic was an eclectic architectural style and movement during the mid-late 19th century. It is seen by architectural historians as either a sub-style of the broader Gothic Revival style, or a separate style in its own right. Prom ...

styles. He was influenced by the works of the English designer A. Welby Pugin and the

Decorated Gothic English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed a ...

style. Parishioners collected the stones used to build the church from the iron mines where they worked. According to historian Brian Regan: The rough-cut building stones are hard metamorphic rock with a bluish gray color. Red sandstone was used for the trim. The windows have decorated

tracery Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support th ...

. The interior features an open timber roof and stained glass windows. In 1997, the parish received funding from the

New Jersey Historic Trust The New Jersey Historic Trust was created by the State of New Jersey in 1967 to preserve New Jersey's historic resources. The Historic Trust's executive director is Dorothy P. Guzzo. Funding programs available through the New Jersey Historic Tru ...

to assist in restoring and conserving the exterior of the historic church based on the architect's original plans.

Historic district

St. Mary's Church Historic District is a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

encompassing the church buildings and grounds along County Route 634 (South Main Street) bounded by

U.S. Route 46 U.S. Route 46 (US 46) is an east–west U.S. Highway completely within the state of New Jersey, and runs for . The west end is at an interchange with Interstate 80 (I-80) and Route 94 in Columbia, Warren County, on the ...

(West Blackwell Street) and St. Mary's Street in the borough of Wharton. It was added to the

on April 3, 2023, for its significance in art and architecture. The district includes six

contributing buildings In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

, featuring the church and

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

, and one

contributing site In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distr ...

, the church grove, featuring the Spring Brook. The two and one-half story rectory was built in 1899 and designed by architects Benjamin J. Schweitzer and Julius J. Diemer with

Châteauesque Châteauesque (or Francis I style,Whiffen, Marcus, ''American Architecture Since 1780: A guide to the styles'', The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 1969, p. 142. or in Canada, the Château Style) is a revivalist architectural style based on the ...

architectural style. The parish purchased land for the church grove in 1868. According to the registration form, it adds a "picturesque, Romantic ethos and feeling" to the grounds. The district also includes a convent (built in 1915), school (1954–1955), sister's house (1881), and barn (1868). The convent is now a multipurpose facility. The sister's house is now known as the Religious Education Center. With accompanying 59 photos File:St. Mary's Rectory, Wharton, NJ.jpg, St. Mary's Rectory File:The Grove at St. Mary's Church, Wharton, NJ.jpg, St. Mary's Grove

Cemetery

St. Mary's Cemetery is located nearby on Hurd Street in Mine Hill Township and extending into the town of

. It was established in 1874, and extended in 1903. The churchyard from the first church is also located in Mine Hill Township, across U.S. Route 46 from the current church in Wharton. It was established by Father Senez in 1846. St. Mary's Cemetery, Mine Hill Township, NJ.jpg, St. Mary's Cemetery Former Cemetery of St. Mary's Church, Mine Hill Township, NJ.jpg, Churchyard of first St. Mary's Church

References

External links