Welcome to St. Boniface Church. Founded in 1836, we are the oldest extant Catholic church in Louisville. The orginal church stood on the site of the parking lot and school. In 1898, St. Boniface got permission to build the present, larger church building.
This walking tour will help to point out the many historic items
that were transferred from the old church. We hope you will find
this interesting.
As you enter the vestibule, you see three, brass light fixtures. These and the three above the front steps of the church are from the original church and, if you look closely, you can still see the gas key used to light the fixture. When installed, all lights were gas and electricity.
On the left wall, you see the large crucifix bought in 1924 and on the
right, the pew rent board. At that time, the church took up no collections and was supported by pew rent - with the most expensive rent being at the front of the church.
Entering the center doors of the vestibule, the first thing you see is
the marble baptismal font. Made in Italy in 1918, it is a memorial for a
priest's first Mass. The glass sculpture which serves as the bowl was made by the son of a parishioner and was a generous gift.
To your right, you see the stature of St. Theresa of the Little Flower. On the outside east wall is the statue of the Sorrowful Mother bought by Father Lucas in 1875 and made in Munich. Also lining the east and west walls are the 14 Stations of the Cross. They were added in 1910 and made by the Louisville firm of Lausberg and Macke.
The windows are among the most beautiful stained glass in Louisville. They were made in Munich in 1898 and 1899 especially for St. Boniface by the Royal Bavarian Art Insitute.
From the rear east side going toward the altar are:
- Saints Margaret and Colette
- Saints Louis and Elizabeth
- Saints Henry and Antoinette
- Our Lady of Lourdes
From the west side, going toward the rear of the church are:
- Sacred Heart and Saint Mary Margaret
- Saints Nicholas and Otto
- Saint Dominic
- Saints Peter Baptist and Francis Solanus
The large west transept window depicts Jesus and the children in the center and Saints Rose of Lima and Clare in the smaller ones.
The large west transept window depicts Saint Francis receiving the
Portiuncula Indulgence in the center and Saints George and John the Baptist in the smaller ones.
Standing under the window on the west side you see the statute of St. Anne and, by the doors, the statue of St. Rita given in 1922.
Moving up the center aisle, you can see the statues in the transepts; on the east, the Sacred Heart of Jesus and on the west, St. Anthony of Padua, bought in 1875 and made in Munich.
From the center aisle, at the foot of the communion steps, you see
three altars made for the church in 1898 and 1899 by the Lausbuerg and Macke firm. On the west side altar is a statue of St. Joseph in the center, flanked by St. Francis of Assisi and St. Paschal of Baylon. On the east side altar is the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary flanked by St. Aloysius and St. Philomena. On the main altar are the statues of Saints Peter and Paul and at the top, St. Boniface.
The statues of St. Joseph, the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saints Peter and Paul were made in Munich in 1857 and brought over from the old church. Also in the sanctuary are the angels and candelabra, the latter marked with dozens of bees on the brass stands. The candelabra date from about 1860 and there are photographs of them in the orginal church when they held candles. They were later lit by gas, then electricity. The present altar, chairs and ambo were made by Weberding Co. in 1998.
To the left of the sanctuary is the Friar's Chapel. This was used by
the Franciscan Friars for almost 100 years to pray their office. Today it is used for small Masses, weddings and various events. The choir stalls were used by the Franciscans to pray. The stalls were handmade in Louisville and held together by wooden dowels. The seats fold up so the friars could rest and support themselves on the side of the stalls. Three oil on canvas paintings on the wall were above the side altars in the orginal church. Two of them, St. Anthony and the Blessed Mother, are signed and dated 1865.
To the right of the sanctuary is the sacristy. The magnificent cabinets were made by G. Bittner of Louisville in 1899.
From the sanctuary, you will notice the organ gallery. This great pipe organ is the second or third largest in the Louisville Archdiocese. About half the pipes are from 1890 with one set from the 1854 John Koehnke organ.Originally in one case in front of the widow, the organ was divided in 1919 to let light and air into the choir. The organ was repaired and enlarged in 1977.
Audible but not visible are the bells in the west tower. They were
purchased in 1865 by Father Anselm for the original church and rehung in the tower in 1900.
We hope you have enjoyed the tour and will join us for Liturgy on
Sunday. For more information on the church, please call the parish office at 584-4279.
INTERESTING FACTS:
The interior length of the church is 154 feet; the width, 65 feet; and
the height, 55 feet. The tower rised to 185 feet to the cross.
The High Altar was given by the St. Ann Ladies Society and cost
$4,000 in 1900. Today it would cost?
The organ cost about $8,000 in 1890. Its replacement value today is
about $450,000.
The entire cost of the church and furnishings was $75,000 in 1900. It
is irreplaceable.
In 1900, it took 1,100 bulbs to light the church. Today we use about
150.
Have you noticed the beautifully detailed model of our St. Boniface church on display in the back? If not, it is well worth your while to take a look. This was created in the spring of 2004 by Frank Weber.
The late Frank Weber completed the model in two months time. It is actually the second model of St. Boniface as he felt the first had some imperfections leading him to construct another one. He has also made models of St. Joseph’s in Butchertown and St. Vincent de Paul Church in New Hope, KY, home of his wife, Dorothy.