Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches

The Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches is a rural region in the western part of the U.S. state of Ohio, centered near Maria Stein in Mercer County. Its name is derived from the dense concentration of large Catholic churches that dominate the area's architecture. These and other buildings were constructed by the Society of the Most Precious Blood under the oversight of the missionary priest Francis de Sales Brunner. Under his leadership, the Society founded many churches and schools in the region, as well as several seminaries.

The earliest buildings from the mid-19th century were mostly small wooden or simple brick structures. Most of these were replaced in later construction periods; only two from this generation are still in use as churches.

Many of the massive Gothic revival churches that remain today were built in the late 19th century and early 20th century by Anton DeCurtins or his descendants. The churches of the region have changed little since the early 20th century, and only one new parish has been established since 1925.

Historic buildings

In 1976, many churches in the Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches were added to the National Register of Historic Places, along with a small number of church-related buildings. These buildings are detailed in the chart below; each is listed under the name by which it appears on the Register.

	Name	Patron	Date	Location	County	Photograph
1	Botkins Elementary School	N/A	1921	Botkins: Main St.	Shelby	100px
2	Cassella Catholic Church and Rectory	Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary	1858	Marion Township: State Route 119 in Cassella	Mercer	100px
3	Chickasaw School and Rectory	N/A	1904	Chickasaw: Maple St.	Mercer
4	Coldwater Catholic Church Complex	Holy Trinity	1899	Coldwater: E. Main and 2nd Sts.	Mercer	100px
5	Egypt Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Joseph	1887	Jackson Township: junction of Minster-Egypt Rd. and State Route 364 at Egypt	Auglaize	100px
6	Glynnwood Catholic Church	St. Patrick	1883	Moulton Township: 6 miles northeast of St. Marys on Glynnwood Rd. in Glynnwood	Auglaize	100px
7	Gruenwald Convent	N/A	1854	Marion Township: 0.5 miles south of Cassella	Mercer	100px
8	Holy Family Catholic Church	Holy Family	1866	Wayne Township: State Route 185 at Frenchtown	Darke	100px
9	Holy Rosary Catholic Church	Holy Rosary	1867	St. Marys: junction of E. Spring and S. Pine Sts.	Auglaize
10	Immaculate Conception Catholic Church Complex	Immaculate Conception	1903	Celina: Anthony and Walnut Sts.	Mercer
11	Immaculate Conception Rectory at Botkins	Immaculate Conception	1887	Botkins: 116 N. Mill St.	Shelby
12	Maria Stein Catholic Church and Rectory	St. John the Baptist	1889	Marion Township: St. John's Rd. and State Route 119 in Maria Stein	Mercer
13	Maria Stein Convent	N/A	1846	Marion Township: St. John's and Rolfes Rd. in Maria Stein	Mercer	100px
14	Minster Elementary School	N/A	1904	Minster: Lincoln St.	Auglaize	100px
15	Philothea Catholic Church and Priest House	St. Mary	1871	Butler Township: Philothea Rd. in Philothea, between St. Henry and Coldwater	Mercer	100px
16	Sacred Heart of Jesus Rectory	Sacred Heart of Jesus	1911	Van Buren Township: State Routes 29 and 119 at McCartyville	Shelby	100px
17	St. Aloysius Catholic Church	St. Aloysius	1875	Marion Township: U.S. Route 127 and State Route 274, west of Carthagena	Mercer
18	St. Anthony Catholic Church, Padua	St. Anthony	1869	Washington Township: State Route 49 and St. Anthony Rd. in Padua	Mercer
19	St. Augustine Catholic Church	St. Augustine	1848	Minster: N. Hanover St.	Auglaize
20	St. Bernard Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Bernard	1906	Burkettsville: Main St.	Mercer	100px
21	St. Charles Seminary and Chapel	St. Charles	1906	Marion Township: 0.5 miles south of Carthagena, off U.S. Route 127	Mercer	100px
22	St. Francis Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Francis	1906	Granville Township: Cranberry and Ft. Recovery-Minster Rd. in Cranberry Prairie	Mercer	100px
23	St. Henry Catholic Church	St. Henry	1897	St. Henry: Main St.	Mercer	100px
24	St. John Catholic Church and Parish Hall	St. John	1850	Pusheta Township: southwestern corner of Schlemel and Van Buren Sts. in Fryburg	Auglaize	100px
25	St. Joseph Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Joseph	1866	Recovery Township: Sawmill and St. Joe Rds. in St. Joe	Mercer	100px
26	St. Joseph Catholic Church and School	St. Joseph	1899	Wapakoneta: 309 S. Perry St.	Auglaize	100px
27	St. Louis Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Louis	1914	North Star: east of U.S. Route 127	Darke
28	St. Michael Catholic Church Complex	St. Michael	1849	Fort Loramie: State Route 705 east of State Route 66	Shelby	100px
29	St. Nicholas Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Nicholas	1907	Osgood: State Route 705 and Washington St.	Darke	100px
30	St. Patrick Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Patrick	1915	Van Buren Township: Hoying and Wright-Puthoff Rds. in St. Patrick	Shelby
31	St. Paul's Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Paul	1889	Gibson Township: junction of Sharpsburg and Meiring Rds. in Sharpsburg	Mercer	100px
32	St. Peter Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Peter	1904	Recovery Township: St. Peter and Philothea Rds. in St. Peter	Mercer	100px
33	St. Remy Catholic Church	St. Remy	1890	Russia: Main St. and Russia-Versailles Rd.	Shelby	100px
34	St. Rose Catholic Church Complex	St. Rose	1892	Marion Township: Main St. in St. Rose	Mercer	100px
35	St. Sebastian Catholic Church and Rectory	St. Sebastian	1904	Marion Township: Sebastian Rd. and State Route 716A in Sebastian	Mercer	100px
36	St. Wendelin Catholic Church, School, and Rectory	St. Wendelin	1870	Recovery Township: Ft. Recovery-Minster Rd. and Township Line in Wendelin	Mercer	100px

Further reading

• Lamott, John H. History of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati: 1821-1921. New York and Cincinnati: Pustet, 1921.