St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church
Why it's listed
St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church occupies a corner lot at Fifth and Market Streets in Portsmouth, Ohio. Dedicated in 1870, it is a rectangular brick building on a cut stone foundation with a slate gabled roof and tall lancet stained glass windows set between buttressed bays. A rectory completed in 1871 is attached to the rear. The steeple, added in 1895, rises 216 feet and remains a landmark, and a town clock was installed in 1909. Inside, a Gothic butternut altar imported from Germany in 1880, terra cotta stations of the cross, art glass windows, a 54-light brass chandelier and oil paintings survive largely original. The church is regarded as the city's most outstanding example of Germanic Gothic Revival. It also reflects the German Catholic immigrants who left the Church of the Nativity in 1852 to form their own parish and built this church in the 1860s.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the church is significant mainly for its architecture, calling it perhaps the most outstanding example of Germanic Gothic Revival in Portsmouth in size, scale and unaltered historic fabric. Its largely original 19th-century interior adds to that value. To a lesser extent, it is tied to the German Catholic immigrants who formed the parish in 1852.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 79001940, listed August 24, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 5th and Markets Sts, Portsmouth |
|---|---|
| County | Scioto County |
| Listed | August 24, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79001940 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1864-1869-1870 |
| Architectural style | Germanic Gothic Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Marked as occupied, in religious use, privately owned; the parish has recently restored parts of the interior, including plaster, paint and the nave paintings. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 38.73430, -83.00218 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
Religious properties are listed for their architectural or historical significance, not their religious use. Listing is honorary and does not restrict the congregation's use of the building. The federal rehabilitation credit is generally unavailable unless part of the building is income-producing; some state programmes and preservation grants do cover religious buildings. Federal funding or permits trigger Section 106 review.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 79001940.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7590119
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.