St. Mary and Joseph Catholic Church

St. Mary and Joseph Catholic Church was built in 1871 and is a striking example of Gothic Revival architecture. Its most prominent feature is the large tower that reaches a height of 212 feet. Other notable features include buttresses, lancet windows, and a pointed arch main entrance. The church is one of two churches comprising Holy Family Parish, which belongs to the Diocese of Davenport (the other church is Sacred Heart Church). St. Mary and Joseph was established in the 1990s when St. Joseph Church and St. Mary of Assumption Church merged.

Missionary priest John George Alleman organized the first Catholic church in Fort Madison, St. Joseph's Church, in 1840. Over time, the parish grew to include a school, convent, rectory, and a chapel. The second church building was erected in 1847 and used until 1886 when the third and last parish church was built, which now appears to be a wedding venue.

St. Mary of the Assumption, the second Catholic church in Fort Madison, was erected in 1871. Plans to establish a second church was introduced in 1857 but the Civil War and opposition from some members of the community delayed the project for many years. Initially, the church had 1,000 members but that number rose to 2,500 by the early 1890s. The large size of the congregation prompted the establishment of Sacred Heart Church in 1893. In its early years, the congregation of St. Mary's consisted of primarily German immigrants.

In the 1990s, a variety of demographic trends and the lack of priests in the diocese forced the St. Mary's and St. Joseph's to merge in 1996. Holy Family Parish was established in 2007. St. Mary and Joseph Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 under its original name, St. Mary the Assumption Church.

Bowers, M. H. "St. Mary of the Assumption Church." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. February 8, 1980. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/4a25ee7e-2f9f-4926-9727-4678a6a4d68e.

Faulkner, Chris. "St. Joseph's Catholic Church to close its doors after Nov. 17 Mass." Fort Madison Democrat. November 15, 2007. http://www.mississippivalleypublishing.com/daily_democrat/news/st-josephs-catholic-church-to-close-its-doors-after-nov-17-mass/article_5ed12d66-74c3-58e2-8cd4-eb71ff8b8a5d.html.

Schmidt, Madeleine M. Seasons of Growth: History of the Diocese of Davenport. Davenport, Iowa: Diocese of Davenport, 1981.