" I BELIEVE THAT I AM WHERE THE LORD WANTS ME AND DOING WHAT I THINK HE WANTS ME TO DO AT THIS TIME , ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO RAISING MY FAMILY AND RESTORING ST . IRENAEUS CHURCH .”
- Matthew Gabbard
NAMED AFTER A BISHOP , BUILT IN WARTIME
St . Irenaeus Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in January 1997 . It was named for the bishop of Lyon , a leading Christian theologian of the second century known for his refutation of gnosticism .
The initial foundation work for the church was started in 1861 , the same year that the Civil War began and just 26 years after the town of Lyons in which it would sit was established .
Early parishioners would complete most of the construction of the 130-foot by 60-foot building by 1871 at a cost of $ 45,000 , or what would today be about $ 1.1 million .
The imposing Gothic structure was built with limestone rock hauled by horse-drawn carts from local quarries while other stones were brought down the river from farther north .
The uneven spires of French design on the building ’ s exterior , with the north spire reaching 130 feet high and the south standing at 166 feet , were the last parts of the building to be put into place in the later 1880s .
In 1896 , the St . Irenaeus Calvary Cemetery was started which , in 2021 , was the location of 2,290 registered burials , including that of the church ’ s first priest . It is said that Father Frederick Cyrillus Jean was buried in a direction that differs from the norm .
Early St . Irenaeus churchgoers were of the largely Irish and German population of Lyons at the time , its German parishioners would decide to move to what would become St . Boniface Church that was built in 1908 on Pershing Avenue .
RENOVATIONS AND A REVERSAL
St . Irenaeus Church was modernized in 1947 and the interior of the church and rectory covered in PermaStone . Wooden beams were painted onto the ceiling , even though the actual support of the structure ’ s ceiling is provided by buttresses along the church ’ s exterior , and electrical improvements allowed for the hanging of copper and bronze Gothic chandeliers and the installation of lighted neutral-colored Stations of the Cross .
The church ’ s high-arching east-facing doorway measuring 24 feet in height and 12 feet in width was stoned in and the entire interior of the church was reversed to face westward by 1907 to better accommodate the church ’ s aging parishioners .
In 1973 , the church was hit by a tornado that knocked off the cross at the top of the north spire . A year later , it was replaced with an added interior steel beam .
Ten years later , a storm ripped off the old glass coverings of windows on the west side of the church , and plexiglass was later installed over these windows . A year after the storm , the original woodwork of the roof that had been damaged was replaced with steel sheeting .
Vinyl siding was added to the bell towers for extra protection from the elements of weather in 1982 , and a gas line was installed to run steam heat units .
CONSOLIDATION AND DEPARTURE St . Irenaeus became one of five churches used by Catholic parishioners in Clinton until they consolidated in 1990 . The 100-year-old St . Patrick Church was demolished in 2005 as a result of the consolidation , followed by the demolition of St . Mary Church that had been built in 1884 .
The St . Irenaeus parish tried , unsuccessfully , to find a buyer of their church building after forming a property abatement committee in November 2007 and the building faced potential demolition as well until the Clinton County Historical Society purchased it in June 2010 . It was bought from the Prince of Peace parish that stipulated that its future use would not be for any “ sordid purposes .”
The Historical Society registered the building with the state of Iowa as an LLC , then did the best it could in the following years to fund all of the building ’ s needs , maintenance problems , and the $ 16,000 restoration of 14 of the church ’ s 23-foot-high windows , until contacted by Matthew .
PARISH FAMILIES BACKING THOROUGH RECLAMATION
As of late February , Matthew had reached about $ 1.4 million of the project ’ s estimated $ 2 million total cost , funded in full by families belonging to the parish , and utilizing only local labor .
Outside , prior to landscaping , 800 square feet of brick from the double-walled chimney were knocked down over the course of five days . Both spire crosses were brought down to be repainted . A total 173 sheets of plywood , followed by 3,460 burnt sienna-colored shingles , were nailed onto the roof and spires .
Inside , an Allen C-6 organ was installed in the choir loft on the day after Maximilian died so that it would be ready for his funeral services held there at the church soon after .
A false ceiling over the basement and the coal dust-covered sawdust that had been stuffed between it and the floor of the sanctuary above was removed . The floor of the sanctuary took over 20 volunteers only three hours on one Saturday to be ripped out , and new hardwood flooring has been installed in its place .
Electrical work has been done , as well as ductwork and the installation of two new HVAC units .
The sanctuary ’ s interior has been painted , the new altar installed in six pieces , and new fans sit just under the over- 40-foot high peak of the ceiling .
In late February , Matthew was working to replace all the doors .
“ I ’ m not one to cut corners ,” he said .
FUTURE HOME OF SOCIETY OF SAINT PIUS X
Once completed , St . Irenaeus , the oldest Catholic church in Clinton , will be the 104th chapel of the Society of Saint Pius X .
Though he ’ d known about the SSPX for more than 25 years , Matthew started going with his wife and eight children to its chapels only about six years ago .
“ We have always had a love for the traditional form of the Liturgy and the traditional catechisms of the Catholic faith ,” he said . “ We were seeking a well-ordered place where we
18 CLINTON MAGAZINE | SPRING 2024