{"nrhp_refnum":"74000508","name":"Grand Island Shrine","other_names":["Little Shrine at Sycamore, The"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"8 mi. S of Colusa on CA 45","address_restricted":false,"city":"Colusa","county":"Colusa County","state":"CA","lat":39.11562316800007,"lon":-121.93716027499994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1974-12-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A very small brick chapel known as \"The Little Shrine at Sycamore,\" on State Route 45 about 8 miles south of Colusa, Colusa County, California, built in 1883 by Father Michael Wallrath.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is a unique example of vernacular or folk architecture, a small Gothic brick structure standing in an open barley field. It also marks the site of the first Mass in Colusa County in 1856 and has been used for worship and pilgrimage since 1883.","narrative":"Standing alone in an open barley field off State Route 45 south of Colusa, this tiny brick chapel measures roughly 10 by 14 feet and is crowned by two buttressed towers topped with wooden crosses. Father Michael Wallrath built it in 1883 from leftover bricks he had kilned for the Colusa church, and dedicated it to Our Lady of Sorrows. Its walls are 12 inches thick, with a vaulted masonry roof held by iron tie rods and a Gothic arched doorway. The site matters for architecture, as an example of vernacular building, and for religion. Local Catholic families on Grand Island heard the first Mass in Colusa County here in 1856, and a mission cross later marked the spot. Mass has been said at the shrine regularly since the chapel was built, and visitors from across the United States and Canada have signed its register. A bronze plaque placed in 1957 commemorates the first Mass.","period_of_significance":"19th Century","architect_builder":"Father Wallrath (architect-builder)","architectural_style":"Vernacular or folk architecture with Gothic details","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as good and unaltered on its original site; the form states it is unoccupied but still used for Mass and visits, and its doors are always unlocked.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.811803-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/74000508.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000508/0d2217815a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/74000508/0d2217815a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Ian Poellet","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand_Island_Shrine_1_-_Colusa_County_California.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Ian Poellet</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand_Island_Shrine_1_-_Colusa_County_California.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858498","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Island_Shrine","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14682056"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/colusa-county/grand-island-shrine-74000508/"}