From the Archives – Hidden Gems

Hidden from the usual flow of people in and out of the Basilica of Saint Mary are two window features located in the north tower, leading up to the choir loft. The windows were added by Father Henry J. Cutler (Saint Mary’s pastor, 1891-1915) when the tower was constructed in 1896. In addition to adding touches of beauty to the stairwell, the windows were designed to provide natural light in the tower before electric lighting was introduced in the church.

A round window depicts a quatrefoil motif. It appears to be a more contemporary replacement of an earlier window that would have dated to the 1896 construction of the tower. Also in the stair tower are four narrow, lancet windows. Less than one-foot wide, they consist of banded, diamond- patterned stained glass.

— Kitty Guy, Parish Historian

In 2020, to commemorate the 225th anniversary of our parish, we started “From the Archives” as a weekly feature online and in our bulletin to spotlight the history of Saint Mary’s. Due to its popularity, we are continuing the series. An archive of the features is located here.