{"nrhp_refnum":"80003199","name":"St. Thomas Aquinas Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"130 N. 5th St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Zanesville","county":"Muskingum County","state":"OH","lat":39.94301401000007,"lon":-82.00648707999994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-03-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Gothic Revival Roman Catholic church of smooth-dressed ashlar sandstone at 130 N. Fifth Street in Zanesville, Muskingum County, Ohio. Its cornerstone was laid in 1842 to plans by architect Patrick Keely.","why_significant":"It is the oldest Roman Catholic church building in Muskingum County and one of only two 19th-century stone churches in Zanesville. It is also a locally built example of ecclesiastical Gothic Revival architecture. The parish dates from 1819 and has served local Catholic families since the church opened.","narrative":"St. Thomas Aquinas Church, at 130 N. Fifth Street in Zanesville, is a rectangular Gothic Revival church built of smooth-dressed sandstone. Its cornerstone was laid on St. Patrick's Day in 1842, and the first Mass was said that Christmas. Brooklyn architect Patrick Keely donated the plans, William Grinsley built the church, and a local Quaker donated the stone from his quarry. The parish traces back to 1819, when a priest said Mass in a local tavern, and a lot was donated in 1823 by John Simon Dugan. The building has lancet-arched openings, buttresses with pinnacles, and a tower bay with a belfry and clock. A 1914 tornado blew off the spire. Inside, a groined vaulted ceiling rises over a nave arcade. It is the oldest Catholic church building in the county and one of two 19th-century stone churches in the city, which makes it a significant remnant of Zanesville's architectural heritage.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899 (specific date 1842)","architect_builder":"Patrick Keely, architect; William Grinsley, builder","architectural_style":"Gothic Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in excellent condition and occupied as a religious building; altered with a rear addition, a wheelchair ramp and removal of the original altar and statuary.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:12.218155-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/80003199.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003199/fdd683df9e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80003199/fdd683df9e-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"User:Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Thomas_Aquinas_Church,_Zanesville.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">User:Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Thomas_Aquinas_Church,_Zanesville.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"07000025","name":"Muskingum River Navigation Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/muskingum-river-navigation-historic-district-07000025/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71990755","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Thomas_Aquinas_Church_(Zanesville,_Ohio)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7591911"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/muskingum-county/st-thomas-aquinas-church-80003199/"}