Historic Catholic Churches of Cincinnati

Part VIII: Beyond Cincinnati, 1940 – 1969

A nine part Sunday series on the still remaining and architecturally significant Catholic churches of Cincinnati from 1840 - 1969.

This series is an attempt to document every historic Catholic Church remaining in Cincinnati. This is not a list of every church, nor is it a history of each Parish. It is simply to serve as a reference for the date of dedication, the architect and style of the church buildings themselves. Included are those that I find to have architectural or historical merit from the Catholic Church’s earliest beginnings in Cincinnati to those churches built just after Vatican II.

Again, the architecture of Cincinnati Catholic churches from about World War II takes a decidedly modern turn. But here we see the rise of new parishes beyond the city limits as people begin to move from the inner city out to the suburbs. The histories of many of these parishes are, in many cases, only from post World War II. Few I would define as historic or worthy of mention however there are a few examples that should be mentioned.

Here too are some church complexes that eventually were completed during this time period that in many cases were begun decades earlier. Entire master plans for a school, rectory, and church were completed and constructed as funds were available. A “temporary” church or multi-functional space was completed and eventually it was scheduled to be replaced by a much larger church. Or in the case of All Saints for example, it was simply added on to over the years to accommodate a growing parish.

It should be noted that the St. Louis firm Maguolo & Quick established a Cincinnati office in the 1950’s and eventually L. P. (Larry) Cotter became the managing partner. He would eventually form his own firm and continue to design a number of area churches.


St. Margaret – St. John
Original Name: St. John Vianney
Mariemont/Columbia Township – 4448 Berwick
Dedicated: 1950
Architect: George McDonald
Style: Colonial Revival
Closed in 2008; used as a chapel for St. Margaret – St. John

All Saints
Montgomery – 8939 Montgomery Road
Dedicated: 1952; Addition, 1962
Architect: Maguolo & Quick; Addition, Edward J. Schulte
Style: Modified Romanesque Revival - Modern

St. Dominic
Delhi – 4551 Delhi Pike

Dedicated: 1957
Architect: Albert V. Walters
Style: Modified Georgian Revival

St. Vivian
Finneytown – 7600 Winton Road
Dedicated: 1957
Architect: Maguolo & Quick
Style: Modern

Our Lady of the Rosary
Greenhills – 17 Farragut Road
Dedicated: 1958
Architect: A. J. Martina
Style: Modern

St. Margaret Mary
North College Hill – 1830 West Galbraith Road
Dedicated: 1960
Architect: Robert L. Holtmeier
Style: Modern

St. Therese the Little Flower
Mt. Airy – 5560 Kirby Avenue
Dedicated: 1961
Architect: Elmer Schmidt
Style: ModernThe Master Plan included current school, convent and auditorium, dedicated in 1929 by Edward J. Schulte & Robert Crowe, which served as the church until 1961.


Corpus Christi
New Burlington – 2014 Springdale Road
Dedicated: 1961
Architect: Gartner, Burdick, Bauer-Nilsen
Style: Modern

Our Lady of Visitation
Middle of Nowhere – 3172 South Road
Dedicated: 1962
Architect: Elmer Schmidt
Style: Modern

St. Saviour
Rossmoyne – 4136 Myrtle Avenue
Dedicated: 1963
Architect: Maguolo & Quick
Style: Modern

St. Aloysius Gonzaga
Bridgetown – 4366 Bridgetown Road
Dedicated: 1963
Architect: L. P. Cotter and Associates
Style: Modern

St. John the Evangelist
Deer Park – 7121 Plainfield Road
Dedicated: 1938-41, Old Church and addition, 1967, Current Church
Architect: Edward J. Schulte, Old Church; L. P. Cotter & Associates, Current Church
Style: Modern Master Plan included the current gymnasium completed in 1938 that served as the church until 1967.


St. James of the Valley
Wyoming – 411 Springfield Pike
Dedicated: 1969
Architect: Edward J. Schulte; L. P. Cotter & Associates (Robert Christian) after death of Schulte in 1967.
Style: Modified Romanesque Revival - Modern Master Plan included the current gymnasium completed in 1940 that served as temporary church until 1969.


St. Gertrude
Madeira – 6551 Miami Avenue
Dedicated: 1969
Architect: Edward J. Schulte
Style: Modern

St. Bartholomew
Springfield Township – 9375 Winton Road
Dedicated: 1969
Architect: Robert L. Holtmeier
Style: Modern

References and the map Historic Catholic Churches of Cincinnati of every church mentioned in this series will be included in Part IX.

Next Sunday, June 7
Part IX: Conclusion

Last Week: Part VII