Sunday, December 7, 2014

St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, Casper Wyoming




This large Roman Catholic Church is located one block from St. Mark's Episcopal Church, the First Presbyterian Church, and the St. Anthony's Convent otherwise pictured on this blog. Built in the late teens and completed in 1920, funds to construct the church were raised from the parishioners.  The church was formally dedicated by Bishop McGovern on August 15, 1920.  The church rectory is next to it, and can be seen in the bottom photograph. To the far right, only partially visible in this photograph, is the Shepherd's Staff, the church offices.

This church served as the only Roman Catholic church in Casper Wyoming up until 1953, when Our Lady of Fatima was opened. The church also currently serves the St. Francis Mission in Midwest Wyoming.


St. Anthony's was recently updated (Spring 2014) to include a Ten Commandments monument.

My parents were married in this church in 1958 and I was baptized here.

The church has, within the entryway, a memorial to its parishioner's killed during World War Two.

I've noticed that this particular entry had tended to remain in the top three of the most observed entries on this blog, not that there's a lot of traffic on this blog. My theory is that people are hitting it looking for the Parish website. That being the case, you can find the parish website by hitting this link here.

 
Epilog:

St. Anthony's recently received a new set of steps. The old cement was decaying after a century of use.  So, as a result, the front of the church now has a slightly different appearance.






Updated:  December 7, 2014. 

Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Casper Wyoming

Our Savior's Lutheran Church is on the same block as the First Baptist Church, also pictured on this blog. This is the smallest of the downtown churches, with an interior area that is relatively small in this traditionally styled church.

The church was built in 1950, one year after the First Baptist Church on the same block. This construction is late compared to other downtown Casper churches.





In 2014 this church added a sculpture, as part of a Boy Scout Eagle Scout project which is a Maltese Cross if viewed from the side, but is the Ichthys symbol if viewed straight on. Very nice addition.

Many years ago I defended a lawsuit in which a bicyclist was injured when the cap came off of his mountain bike shocks while riding down the stairs that are on the back of this church. The defendant was a bicycle shop, not the church.

Updated:  December 7, 2014.

St. Anthony's Tri-Parish School, Casper Wyoming




This is not a church, but it is a school that includes a chapel. This is the current St. Anthony's Tri-Parish school, a grade school and middle school.

The original St. Anthony's School was located in the downtown area of Casper, but that school, having been built in 1927, was worn out by the 2000s. The new school, built with substantial private donations, is a much more modern school and quite a bit larger. Located on the grounds where Our Lady of Fatima Church is located, this structure is an impressive modern school.


The photo above is the old school, which is no longer used.


Cornerstone at the old St. Anthony's school with the phrase "For God and Country" in Latin. This also gives the year of construction, 1927, but that is difficult to see in this photograph.



Peace pole at the old St. Anthony's school.

Updated:  December 7, 2014.

Friday, November 7, 2014

St. Anthony's of Padua Catholic Church, Cody Wyoming




This is St. Anthony's of Padua Catholic Church in Cody Wyoming. This Catholic Church is the largest parish in the United States, in geographic extent, as it covers over 6,000 square miles of territory.  The Romanesque style church was built in 1954, replacing an earlier church.  It's one of two Catholic Churches named for St. Anthony's of Padua, the other church so dedicated being located in Casper.

Sunday, September 28, 2014

Japanese Church of Christ, Salt Lake City Utah



This is the Japanese Church of Christ in Salt Lake City,. This is a Presbyterian and United Church of Christ church in what was formerly "Japantown" in Salt Lake City. The church was built in 1924.

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Salt Lake City Utah



This is Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Salt Lake City. This Greek Orthodox Cathedral was built in 1923, and is located in downtown Salt Lake.

The Cathedral is one of two Greek Orthodox churches in Salt Lake, both of which are part of the Metropolis of Denver. Salt Lake has at least three other Orthodox churches, however, including a Russian Orthodox Church and a Antiochian Orthodox Church. The Greek Orthodox Church in Salt Lake City also has a school.

Of interest, two of the three Greek Orthodox Churches in nearby Wyoming, which are also part of the Metropolis of Denver, are named Holy Family, including the church in Casper.


Monday, September 15, 2014

Thursday, September 11, 2014

St. Paul's Newman Center, Laramie Wyoming.



This is St. Paul's Newman Center in Laramie Wyoming. This large church and Newman Center office is fairly difficult to photograph, due to the vegetation, and its long length.  It's located directly across the street from the University of Wyoming dorms on Grand Avenue.

Zion Lutheran Church, Laramie Wyoming


This is Zion Lutheran Church in Laramie Wyoming.

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Friday, August 1, 2014

St. Josephs Old Cathedral, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma



This is St. Joseph's Old Cathedral in Oklahoma City, a Catholic parish church at the present time, having gone to parish status in 1931 after a new cathedral was built.  The church was built in 1905.  Like the First Church, a block away, it was heavily damaged in the Murrah Federal Office bombing.

First Church, Oklahoma City



The First Church in Oklahoma City is so called as it was the first church established in Oklahoma City. The original wooden structure, very much added to and changed over the years, was first set out in 1889.  The Church is a United Methodist Church, and was directly across from the site of the Murrah Federal Building bombing, in which it was heavily damaged.

Saturday, May 24, 2014

Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, Rock Springs Wyoming.


This is Our Lady of Sorrows in downtown Rock Springs, Wyoming.  The Romanesque church was built in 1932, replacing an older Catholic Church that had served the English speaking community in Rock Springs.


Badly photographed ornate entry way to Our Lady of Sorrows.


Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, Rock Springs Wyoming


Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church is located one block from St. Cyril and Methodius Catholic Church in Rock Springs in what was probably an ethnic neighborhood at the time the churches were built.  In addition to having a sizable Slavic Community, Rock Springs had a sizable Greek community as well, both drawn to the area in the early 20th Century by coal mining.

Sts. Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church, Rock Springs Wyoming


This Romanesque church was built in 1912 after a protracted period of time in which efforts were made to build a church specifically for the Catholic Slavic population of Rock Springs, which was quite pronounced at the time. The church was named after brothers Cyril and Methodius who had been the evangelists to the Slavs.  The first pastor was Austrian born Father Anton Schiffrer who was suited to the task given his knowledge of Slavic languages.

Private Chapel, Pathfinder Ranch, Wyoming


Private churches or chapels were once common in England, but they're rare in the United States, and particularly rare in the Western United Statas, but here's an example, a private chapel on the large Pathfinder Ranch in Natrona and Carbon Counties, Wyoming.


These photographs were taken from just off the highway, when I had to stop to make a cell phone call, and are taken with two different lenses, one being the Pentax lens my K-x came equipped with, and the other being a Vivitar telephoto lens built for a Pentax film camera. Pentax digital DSLs will use the old Pentax bayonet mount lenses if the camera is set on the manual settings.