Sacred Heart Church - Dayton, Ohio

 One of Dayton's oldest Catholic parishes, St. Joseph's Church was established in 1846. The lack of space in that church prompted some of the members to leave in July 1883 and establish Sacred Heart Church under the leadership of St. Joseph's associate pastor, Hugh McDevitt, the congregation rented a meeting hall while waiting for the construction of their building. Land for the present church was purchased for $19,000, and William Henry Elder laid the cornerstone in June 1888. Exterior work was completed in the following year, and by 1893, construction was close enough to completion that the congregation could begin worshipping in their building. The building was consecrated by Bishop Maes of Covington in November 1895; construction had cost approximately $100,000. In 1902, the interior was decorated by one of Cincinnati's prominent artists, Charles Svendsen (1871-1959), who painted eleven religious oil paintings on canvas for the church. ( eight of those still remain). For many years, the parish flourished, reaching a membership of five hundred families by 1909,  but its membership had subsided by 1996. Five years later, a Vietnamese-speaking Catholic parish began using the building. Designed by Charles Insco Williams. Architectural Style-Romanesque, Queen Anne. Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on October 22, 1987. GPS: 39.75777°N, -84.19524°W.