Saint Joseph

Catholic Church

The Oldest Catholic Church of Saginaw Valley, established in 1850
 

St. Joseph Church

1005 Third Street     Bay City, Michigan 48708

Phone: (989) 895.5783  Fax: (989)895.8837  Email: stjosephbcm@att.net

OUR CHURCH

The existing church at 1005 Third Street, Bay City, is the third for St. Joseph, a Neo-Gothic style structure designed by local architects Pratt & Koeppe.  The initial effort to build the church began in 1893 when Reverend Roth circulated a subscription among the parish, although it was not until some thirteen (13) years later that construction actually began.  Work on the church began in May 1906 and was substantially completed by the end of 1907; however, the interior was not finished until 1911 when the church was consecrated.  Although the interior has been redecorated several times, most notably after Vatican II, and the steeple rebuilt following a 1987 lightning strike, St. Joseph church remains largely unaltered.

                In detail, St. Joseph is typical of many turn of the century churches, having a three-aisle basilica floor plan without transepts and a singular offset corner tower that provides a prominent accent for the unornamented front gable The church features a full basement with a tall foundation of rusticated square limestone blocks that lift the church above the surrounding grade.  A canted watercourse of finished Berea limestone provides a gentle transition from the foundation to the vitrified red brick exterior.  For the most part the brick elevations are plain and unornamented.  Limestone is used sparingly to trim the rose window and roofline parapet of the front façade, and to accentuate the thrust blocks of the buttresses. 

                Along the side elevations the buttresses carry the load of the roof structure, but unlike their earlier designs the architects used steel roof trusses, a feature they introduced to the Bay City area with this building (Bay City Tribune 6/10/1906). 

                The steel roof trusses provided for a wider nave, fifty-eight (58) feet from inside wall to inside wall, without intermediate columns that would have obstructed views of the altar.  The roof was originally finished in slate, but later replaced with asphalt shingles.  The four stage corner tower and spire, originally rising to a height of one hundred  fifty one (151) feet but rebuilt following the 1987 fire to a height of one hundred thirty five (135) feet, is of similar construction with brick trusses tapering as they rise upward to the enclosed belfry and wood-frame spire .

The front elevation is asymmetrical in design, with three prominent porches set against the flat unembellished brick background of the front gable and accentuated with the massive corner tower.  The three porches are of identical design, paired rectangular doors with colored glass transom recessed into a pointed arch frame.  A decorative fleur-de-lis emphasizes the steeply pedimented limestone surround while flanking ornamental finials, resting on Romanesque pilasters and capitols, provide a framework against the brick background .  Although the front elevation has good proportions and scale, the positioning of the right/east porch at the base of the tower provided for an offset distance between the three porches that is not immediately apparent. 

                The left/west porch, which the architects tried to accentuate unsuccessfully with a singular unornamented pointed-arch window, and the central porch, accentuated with a colored glass rose window, are aligned with their respective interior aisles, but the right/east porch is not.  It leads through the narthex and opens to the nave behind the block of pews along the east wall, a small distraction few notice. 

The four stage tower is handsome in design and scale, the decorative brickwork of the third level providing a pleasant contrast to the unornamented brick surface of the adjacent front gable and accentuating the fanciful roofline of the enclosed belfry and tall pointed spire.  The design of the fourth stage is rather unusual among local churches in that instead of tall complimentary corner finials the architect introduced a horizontal roofline cornice that distracts from the vertical accent of spire and abruptly terminates the strong vertical lines of the tower.  The top stage of the tower has been attributed to a Flemish influence but is perhaps best described as typical of eclectic Victorian design. 

                 Inside, the three porches open onto the narthex. Although it originally measured fifty-eight (58) wide and seventeen (17) feet deep, the narthex has been reduced by the partitioning of a reconciliation room to the left/west of the central passage and a vesting room to the right/east.  At this time the left/west passage into the nave was closed and replaced with a display cabinet.  A narrow hall between the three passages was retained.  The walls are paneled in oak while the groined ceiling vaults are wet plaster.  The original mosaic tile floor was recently replaced with larger fax granite tile.  These alterations were designed and installed with great respect for the church.  At the base of the tower, aside the left/east passage to the nave is an open staircase that leads up to the gallery and continues upward to the belfry.

                From the narthex the central doors open unto the central aisle of the spacious nave/auditorium .  Measuring fifty-eight (58) feet wide and seventy-eight (78) feet in length, the rectangular nave has a symmetrical basilica floor plan with three aisles diving the pews into four groups.  The steel roof trusses hidden above the plaster ceiling provide for a clean span between the walls without intermediate columns that would block the view of the sanctuary from various locations.  Without intermediate columns and ceiling vaults to define the aisles and establish scale the spaciousness of the nave could have been overwhelming.  Instead the architect defined the nave by expressing the five (5) bay structures along the walls, each approximately eighteen (18) feet wide, with shallow pointed arch vaults outlined with ornamental ribs that spring from slender pilasters with Romanesque capitols.  The pilasters are decorative but they indicate the position of the exterior buttresses and the roof trusses above, the latter defined by thin ornamental ribs that transverse the cathedral ceiling. 

                Originally the ceiling was finished with decorative stenciling that accentuated the vaults and ornamental ribs.  In each bay beneath the pointed arch vault are paired lancet windows, having colored and painted glass of various designs, set in larger pointed arch frame.  The original oak wainscoting and pews survive, the later providing for six hundred fifty (650) worshippers. 

                Although there are no true transepts, on either side of the nave toward the front toward the sanctuary a narrow passage behind paired pointed arches and singular stout columns provides access to small entrance vestibules. At the rear of the nave overhanging the auditorium is the gallery.  Originally it provided seating for an additional one hundred fifty (150) worshippers, but today it is limited to the choir and organ.  Above the gallery the southern orientation of the rose window provides for generous illumination.

                The sanctuary measures fifty-eight (58) feet wide and ten (10) feet deep with the semi-circular apse measuring thirty-two (320 feet wide and thirty (30) feet deep.  Although the sanctuary is located under the same spacious ceiling as the nave, it has a raised floor, and was originally separated from the auditorium with a marble communion rail.  The rail was removed following Vatican II, but portions were incorporated into the base of the new main altar.  Aside the existing main altar are two smaller altars, both of which are original, set against blind pointed arches.  The statue of Mary is to the left/west with the statue of Joseph to the right/east, both having been hand-carved by an artist in Bolzano, Italy.

Behind the main altar in the apse is the reredos, originally an elaborate Victorian fixture, but replaced following Vatican II with a simpler design depicting the Risen Christ.  Set behind a large tympanum pointed arch, the semi-circular apse features individual pointed arch clerestory windows set in shallow vaults and accentuated with ornamental ribs and decorative stenciling.  Behind the apse a narrow enclosed passage or ambulatory connects two sanctuaries located behind the side altars.   The larger sanctuary to the left/west is used today for the Adoration Chapel while the right/east sanctuary is used today as the Saints Room, housing the statues removed following Vatican II.

BIOGRAPHY OF PRATT & KOEPPE, ARCHITECTS

                 The growth of the Saginaw Valley lumber industry in the years following the Civil War attracted builders and architects to Bay City, including Leverett A. Pratt.  Born December 16, 1849 in Scio, Allegheny County, New York, Pratt worked as a carpenter but had no formal education in architecture.  In 1869 he moved to Bay City with his parents.  Pratt initially found work as a master carpenter, establishing himself as an architect in 1872 (Bay City Daily Journal September 19, 1872). 

                Pratt was only twenty-two when he opened his office but the need for architectural services was so great that the community overlooked his youth.  In 1874, Pratt donated his services to design a small simple church for the society of St. Stanislaus, two hundred Polish families who had recently immigrated to Bay City.  The project brought numerous commissions for rural churches, township halls and local residences, requiring the assistance of architect Walter Koeppe, who joined the firm in 187.  Koeppe was noted for his drawing skills and beautiful renderings, but Pratt was the leading partner, having the political and social connections that secured commissions.

                In 1883, lumberman Henry W. Sage hired Pratt & Koeppe to supervise the construction of Sage Library in West Bay City, designed by Charles Babcock, Dean of Architecture at Cornell University.  The library received extensive publicity, most of which incorrectly identified Pratt & Koeppe as the designers.

                Commissions followed for several prominent churches, most being in Bay City, including St. James (1886, non-existent); Westminster Presbyterian (1886, non-existent); First Presbyterian (1891, 850 Center Avenue); Broadway Baptist (1892, 1100 Broadway); and St. Stanislaus (1892, 915 North Grant Street).  Among other important projects were the Bay City Hall (1897, 301 Washington Avenue) and the Bay City Masonic Temple (1892, 700 North Madison Avenue, both considered among the finest examples of Richardson Romanesque architecture in Michigan

                The turn of the century brought commissions for several simpler churches of red brick trimmed in stone, including St. Paul Lutheran (1905, 6094 West Side Saginaw Road; St. Joseph (1906, 1005 Third Street); Visitation (1906, 1106 State Street); St. Anne (1916, Linwood); and St. John the Evangelist (1917, Essexville)

                When Walter Koeppe retired and returned to his native Germany in 1912, the firm was reorganized as Pratt, Bickel & Campbell, an association that lasted until 1915 when Mr. Pratt retired.  Although he continued to take on occasional commissions, Pratt occupied most of his time visiting and corresponding with family and friends, managing his extensive interests in local real estate and keeping involved with the local Masonic Temple, having served as Commander of the Bay City Knights Templars.

                Leverett Pratt died at his Bay City apartment on November 26, 1924 and was buried at Elm Lawn Cemetery. (Bay City Tribune November 27, 1924).  Although Pratt and Koeppe designed several hundred buildings, most being in Bay City, only a few drawings and documents survive.

Dale Patrick Wolicki, Architectural Historian

Bay County Historical Society

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