{"nrhp_refnum":"76001490","name":"Maria Stein Convent","other_names":["Maria Stein Shrine","Shrine of the Holy Relics"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"St. John's and Rolfes Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Maria Stein","county":"Mercer County","state":"OH","lat":40.41578492100004,"lon":-84.47601021422005,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-05-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Religion"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Catholic convent complex near Maria Stein, Mercer County, Ohio, founded in 1846 by the Fathers and Sisters of the Precious Blood. Its brick and frame buildings date from the 1840s to about 1910.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the convent is significant chiefly because it has survived, in continuous operation since 1846, when most communal establishments fail. It became the most important American effort of the Precious Blood fathers and sisters, especially after receiving the relics of the saints in 1872. It remains a working community in largely the same buildings and way of life as at its founding.","narrative":"Maria Stein Convent, in Mercer County, Ohio, is a religious community founded in 1846 by the Fathers and Sisters of the Precious Blood, a missionary group from Germany and Switzerland. Its buildings include a brick residence of 1848, St. Joseph's Building, a gatehouse of 1849, a timber hog barn dated to 1845, and farm buildings from about 1890 to 1910. The heart of the complex is the Gothic revival convent with its Adoration Chapel and Relic Chapel of 1890, built of local brick with sheet-metal ornament and stained glass. A novitiate wing followed in 1892. The Relic Chapel houses relics of the saints brought from Europe and delivered to the convent in 1872. The convent was once the congregation's motherhouse. The nomination values it above all for continuity: a working community, supported by about 205 acres of farmland, that has carried on in much the same buildings and manner since its founding.","period_of_significance":"1846-c. 1910","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Gothic revival (the 1890 convent and chapels)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Continuously operating as a convent since 1846; many buildings are still used for original purposes, some farm buildings are used for storage, and some are abandoned.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.721332-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/76001490.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001490/7d3e4d02ae-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001490/7d3e4d02ae-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Rfgagel","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maria_Stein_Shrine_of_the_Holic_Relics_2009.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Rfgagel</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maria_Stein_Shrine_of_the_Holic_Relics_2009.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71985899","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_the_Holy_Relics","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7504081"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/mercer-county/maria-stein-convent-76001490/"}