Cathedral of St. James, South Bend
New impetus for a church began in 1867, when the Rev. Frank M. Gregg, rector of St. Paul's, La Porte, visited during the summer and conducted services on Sunday afternoon at Shively Hall. As winter approached, Bishop Upfold dispatched the Rev. Richard Brass of St. Paul's, Mishawaka, to hold services in the afternoons at the Dutch Reformed Church, a half block north of the present Cathedral. Brass organized St. James Episcopal Church informally on 15 December 1867, appointing a committee to act as a vestry that included Hiram Doolittle as senior warden, George S. Reed as junior warden, and C. W. Guthrie, S. R. King, George W. Matthews, Dwight Deming, and Col. Norman Eddy. The name of St. James was chosen three days later.
Bishop Joseph Talbot, Bishop Coadjutor of Indiana, visited South Bend in the fall of 1867 and again in February 1868. He recruited a Nashotah House graduate, the Rev. George P. Schetky of St. John's Church, Philadelphia, to be the first rector in July 1868. On 6 July, the informal vestry, never properly organized, petitioned Upfold for "approval, consent, and permission" to formally organize the parish of St. James according to diocesan canons. Permission was granted three days later, and the first official vestry was formally seated on 28 July at a meeting in the director's room of the First National Bank.
Despite Schetky's best efforts, the new parish got off to a shaky start, and by October, the vestry voted that it was "inexpedient to continue the effort to maintain an Episcopal Church in this city." Schetky resigned in January 1869, lamenting in a letter his "regret for which language has no expression for the sad results of this reserved attempt to establish and build up the Church in this growing city." The vestry still praised him for his efforts. Later that year, the Rev. Frank Gregg of La Porte returned to South Bend to see what could be done for the fledgling church, and despite the fact that services were poorly attended, he resolved to build a church edifice as a way of firming up its presence. A small women's group had continued to meet in private homes, and the spark for the church had refused to die. Accordingly, the congregation built a small wood frame chapel on Wayne Street east of Lafayette Boulevard for $2,200 under the direction of Gregg, J. Beeson Brownfield, S. R. King, and C. W. Guthrie. Services began under Gregg's direction in September, but he soon departed, and Bishop Talbot sent the Rev. William Richmond as a missionary in 1870 with the understanding that the congregation could not guarantee his salary. Richmond reorganized the parish and had a new vestry elected on 10 April 1871. C. M. Heaton became senior warden and Hiram Doolittle was junior warden. The first Sunday School class was confirmed by Bishop Talbot on 12 May 1871, and the number of communicants increased from 16 to 36. A Sunday School picnic, the first of the parish, was held on 6 July.
Believing that the location of this first church was not suited for its growth, the vestry decided in 1872 to move the building to the northwest corner of Lafayette and Jefferson boulevards after purchasing a lot with a small brick house (used as a rectory) for $5,400. On 20 February 1873, the church reopened and a cabinet-style pipe organ was installed at a cost of $400. In November 1877, Bishop Talbot returned for a visitation, confirming four and ordaining the Rev. Alfred T. Perkins, who became the new rector.
St. James continued to struggle for a number of years, but Bishop David Knickerbacker, Talbot's successor, refused to allow the parish to close. Schuyler Colfax, the Vice President of the United States under Ulysses S. Grant, was a member of the congregation and gave it an important level of support. When he died in 1885, his family presented the church with a processional cross in his honor. In 1891, the Rev. Augustine Prentiss became rector at a salary of $1,300 a year, and he brought much-needed stability. The vestry decided in September 1892 to build a new church, and Corwin B. Van Pelt, the junior warden, was authorized to purchase a lot on the west side of Lafayette Boulevard between Washington and Colfax streets. Mrs. Marian Van Pelt gave much of the money for the construction. The congregation under the leadership of Prentiss's successor, the Rev DeLou Burke, broke ground on 1 June 1894, and the cornerstone was laid just over a month later on St. James Day, 25 July. The South Bend Daily Times reported: "The St. James Episcopal Church congregation on this St. James Day have every reason to be proud and thankful over a result of long years of effort to give that congregation a church structure commensurate with the needs of Episcopalians of South Bend and in every way an architectural ornament of our city."
The new Gothic Revival brick edifice, located at 117 North Lafayette Street, was designed by the architectural firm of Austin & Parker and held its first service at midnight on Christmas Eve, 1894. The following day a Christmas service was held at 10:30, and a dedication service was conducted on 13 January 1895. Burke's successor, the Rev. Francis Milton Banfil, a New Hampshire native, served as rector from 1898 to 1909, and during his tenure the pledge system of envelopes was adopted, the mortgage reduced, and many fine pieces of furniture and art were added to the parish. He left in 1909 after suffering a nervous breakdown.
More improvements followed in the mid-twentieth century. In 1929, the parish completed its first parish hall, known as Cathedral Hall, in the undercroft of the church. The Bishop White Memorial Chapel, later known as the Chapel of the Holy Angels, was remodeled in 1944, as was the baptistery, given in memory of the Rev. Lawrence Cecil Ferguson, who served as rector from 1928 to 1942.
St. James did not become the cathedral of the diocese until 1957 during the episcopate of Bishop Reginald Mallett. When the diocese was founded, Trinity Church Michigan City was designated the cathedral on 25 April 1899. However, the first bishop, John Hazen White, found himself at odds with Trinity's vestry over a number of matters, leading to his decision to move to South Bend in 1912 (when he served as rector of St. James) and split his time there and at his lakeside home at Wawasee. On 4 November 1917, Trinity Michigan City ceased to be the cathedral, and for many years the diocese was effectively without one. Under White's successor, Bishop Campbell Gray, plans were drawn up for a new cathedral in Mishawaka, but due to the onset of the Great Depression, all efforts to raise money for construction were shelved. St. Paul's Mishawaka served as the pro-cathedral during Gray's episcopate, but that designation would survive only a few years into his successor's epsicopate. Bishop Mallett decided to move his residence from Mishawaka to South Bend in 1946, purchasing with a combination of his own and donated funds a house at 2117 East Jefferson Street. Four years later in 1950, he announced that St. Paul's Mishawaka would no longer serve as the pro-cathedral. While he did not affix blame on St. Paul's, Mallett clearly preferred South Bend as his See city.
In 1956 at an Annual Council Meeting in South Bend, Mallett announced that he had accepted the offer of St. James Parish to become the new cathedral. The vestry of St. James had purchased the United Fund Building next door in 1953 and began converting into potential office and educational space for the diocese. It became known as Cathedral House. Mallett was enthroned at the new cathedral on 20 January 1957, and the Very Rev. Robert F. Royster was made the new dean. The St. James Building was purchased in 1962 as a gift from Mrs. Leon B. Slaughter, and the interior was extensively renovated in 1964 after a gift from Mr. and Mrs. Bert K. Patterson.
Since the 1960s, the cathedral has undergone a number of other renovations, including a significant project in 2010 under Dean Brian Grantz. In 1990, under the episcopate of Francis Gray, the Rev. Sarah Tracy and several other women of the parish envisioned a new outreach ministry by creating a day shelter for women and children in need, a place to stay warm in winter and cool in summer. Called St. Margaret's House, the project began in the cathedral basement but eventually expanded until the diocese acquired an adjacent building and leased it to St. Margaret's House. It became an important ministry in South Bend and received ecumenical support from the Catholic Sisters of the Holy Cross. Four deans, the Rev. Robert Bizzaro, the Rev. Frederick Mann, the Rev. Martin Yabroff, and the Rev. Brian Grantz, all made major contributions to the life of the cathedral and to the growth of St. Margaret's House. In 2018, during the episcopate of Bishop Douglas Sparks, the old office building was gutted and refurbished to accommodate a newly renovated office to better serve the needs of the growing diocesan staff.
Bibliography:
Robert J. Center, Our Heritage: A History of the First Seventy-five Years of the Diocese of Northern Indiana (South Bend: Diocese of Northern Indiana, 1973).
Anonymous, "A Short History of St. James Cathedral," typescript, undated.
Clergy:
Richard Brass, 1867
George Patterson Schetky, 1868-1869
Frank Mark Gregg, 1870
William Richmond, 1870-1877
Alfred Thomas Perkins, 1877-1879
Francis B. Dunham, 1881-1884
John Plummer Derwent Llwyd, 1885
Frederick Towers, 1885-1887
Frederick Thompson, 1887-1890
Augustine Prentiss, 1891-1892
DeLou Burke, 1893-1896
William Charles Hengen, 1897-1898
Francis Milton Banfil, 1898-1909
Walter Simon Howard, 1910-1912
Bishop John Hazen White, 1912-1920
Howard Russell White, (vicar), 1912-1920
Robert James Long, 1920-1923
John Maurice Francis, 1923-1928
Lawrence Cecil Ferguson, 1928-1942
Don Herbst Copeland, 1943-1953
William Paul Barnds, 1953-1956
Robert Frank Royster, 1956-1969
Robert Ayres MacGill, 1970-1975
Robert Bizzaro, 1975-1992
Frederick Earl Mann, 1993-2004
Martin Irving Yabroff, 2004-2007
Brian Glenn Grantz, 2008-
"A Look Back: Cathedral of St. James," South Bend Tribune, 6 April 2015
Parish Register, 1868-1900
Parish Register, 1868-1900 (alternate digitizing)
Parish Register, 1899-1937
Parish Register, 1899-1935 (alternate digitizing)
Parish Register, 1937-1942
Parish Register, Index of Communicants
Parish Register, 1943-1953
Parish Register, Marriages, 1949-1989
Parish Register, Confirmations, 1950-1986
Parish Register, Baptisms, 1953-1989
Parish Register, Marriages Index, 1931-1939
Parish Register, Burials, 1962-1988
This page references:
- Rev. Walter S. Howard, Dean and Associate Rector at Trinity Michigan City, 1898-1905, later rector of St. James South Bend and St. Thomas, Plymouth
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little, Richard Morrisroe and wife Sylvia, service honoring Jonathan Daniel, 2016
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, honorary canons, Tina Velthuizen, Henry Randolph, Ted Neidlinger, 13 Dec. 2014
- Dean Robert Royster, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, and wife Floy
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordination of Rev. Gordon Olston, 1946
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Sparks, Rev. Joel Steiner, and Bishop Little, 23 Dec. 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, drawing1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, installation of Rev. Robert Royster by Bishop Mallett
- Bishop Reginald Mallett with children at the Cathedral of St. James, Mite Box offering, ca. 1960
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Easter vigil in nave 31 March 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Joel Steiner ordination 2, 23 Dec 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Winter Walk, 19 Feb. 2018, Bishop Gray, Karen Gray, Sylvia Little, Bishop Little
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Pete Buttigieg Chasten Glezman wedding, 16 Jun 2018, with Bishop Sparks and Brian Grantz
- Rev. DeLou Burke, rector of St James, South Bend, and St. Paul's, Mishawaka
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Rev. Brian Grantz, Ashes to Go, 14 Feb. 2018
- Dean Robert Bizzaro, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1983 Convention
- Rev. Frank M. Gregg, rector of St. Paul's, La Porte, and organizer of St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Peg Pitre and Rev. Joseph Illes, 28 Jul. 2019
- St James Episcopal Church, South Bend, 1920s, later Cathedral
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, baptism on Pentecost, 20 May 2018 with Brian Grantz
- Dean Robert Bizzaro, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1970s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, 24 Dec. 2017
- Charles Boynton, Diocesan Chancellor, St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ceremony honoring Wyatt Mick, with Brian Grantz, Bishop Gray, Bishop Little, Mick, Mrs. Mick, Bishop Sparks, 8 Oct. 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 2016, exterior
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Rev. Amy Beverage Peeler, Bishop Little, and Rev. Jenifer Woodruff Tate, 1 Apr 2016
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, nave 1960s
- Dean Robert Royster with Congressman John Bradermas, and Lester Fox, opening of REAL Services, 1966, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1989, Bible Study group
- Rev. John P. D. Llwyd of St. James, South Bend, 1880s
- Cathedral of St. James altar and chancel window
- Rev. Don H. Copeland portrait, St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, border crisis discussion, 29 Jul. 2019
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, 1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Sparks at Easter, 1 Apr 2018
- Charles Boynton, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend
- St. James Episcopal Church, South Bend, 1880s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordination of Thomas Adamson and Joshua Nelson, 24 June 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little, Rev. Thomas Adamson, Rev. Joshua Nelson, Bishop Sparks, 23 Dec. 2016
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Francis Gray and Karen Gray 50th anniversary, 21 Feb. 2015
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, baptismal font, 1960s
- Dean Fred Mann, Cathedral of St. James. South Bend 1990s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Sunday School, 1950s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1989, worship service with Fr. Jeffrey Lee
- Rev. William Charles Hengen, St. James, South Bend
- St. James Episcopal Church, South Bend cornerstone laying 1894 sepia
- Ordination of Rev. Gordon Olston, St. James, South Bend, with Olston, unidentified, Bishop Reginald Mallett, and Rev. Don H. Copeland, 1946
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Pete Buttigieg Chasten Glezman wedding, 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, 1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Easter vigil 31 March 2018
- Dean Robert F. Royster, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Joel Steiner ordination, 23 Dec. 2017
- Bishop Edward Little at Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, with Gift Painting of Christ the Bridegroom
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordination ceremony of Thomas Adamson and Joshua Nelson, 24 Jun 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordinations of Dustin Fecht and Terri Bays to diaconate, 22 Dec. 2011
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little, Rev. Thomas Adamson, Rev. Joshua Nelson, Bishop Sparks, 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, chrism mass with Bishop Little, 28 March 2015
- Cathedral of St. James, chancel, 1960s
- Rev. Robert Ayres Macgill, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend
- St. James, South Bend members serving picnic, about 1947
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, parishioners outside, 1968
- Rev. Lawrence Cecil Ferguson of St. James, South Bend
- St. James, South Bend, Rev. Lawrence C. Ferguson greeting choir 1930s
- St. James Episcopal Church, South Bend cornerstone laying 1894 black and white
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Pete Buttigieg Chasten Glezman wedding 2, 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, 1960s
- St. James Episcopal Church, South Bend, exterior, 1930s
- Bishop Edward Little at the Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, with Rev. Brian Grantz
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Shortcakes on the Blacktop, 9 Jun 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little, Brian Grantz, and confirmands, 25 March 2012
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little, Brian Grantz and confirmands, 10 May 2015
- Dean Robert Royster in Washington, D.C., 1950s, with ministers and Vice President Richard Nixon 1
- Rev. Don H. Copeland, St. James, South Bend
- Dean Brian Grantz and wife Tamisyn, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior 1968
- St. James Episcopal Church, South Bend, postcard, ca 1910-1920
- Mariam Van Pelt, wife of Corwin B. Van Pelt of South Bend, who gave the money for the first church
- St. James, South Bend, with high wheel bicyclist, ca. 1890
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, installation of Robert Royster, 1956
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, interior 1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, vigil with Bishop Sparks, 31 March 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1980s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, doors, 23 Dec. 2017
- Bishop Edward Little at the Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, with Rev. Amy Beverage Peeler and Rev. Jenifer Woodruff Tate
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Douglas Sparks, 27 August 2016
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Little and Rev. Terri Bays, 24 Jul 2012
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Winter Walk, 19 Feb. 2018, with Bishop Sparks
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, exterior, 10 May 2015
- Dean Robert Royster in Washington, D.C., 1950s, with ministers and Vice President Richard Nixon 2
- Rev. Lawrence Cecil Ferguson, St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, group of unidentified women, 1950s
- Dean Robert Royster, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1968
- Rev. Alfred T. Perkins of St. James, South Bend, younger man photo
- Rev. Don H. Copeland, St. James. South Bend, in pulpit 1
- St. James, South Bend, Easter 1930, with Sumner Ferguson as acolyte
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Sparks and Brian Grantz, 10 May 2018
- Swinging Holy Cross Monks, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1970s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, vigil procession, 31 March 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Exterior Doorway
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordination of Joel Steiner, with Bishop Sparks, 23 Dec. 2017
- Bishop Edward Little at the Cathedral of St. James 2016
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordination of Anne Kimberly Wietstock with Bishop Little, 22 Dec. 2012
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, March against Gun Violence, 24 March 2018, with Bishop Gray
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Bishop Sparks and congregation 6 Jan 2019
- Gathering of ministers with Dean Robert Royster and White House, 1950s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1989, front view
- Rev. Richard Brass, rector of Trinity Michigan City and St. Paul's Mishawaka
- Rev. Alfred T. Perkins of St. James, South Bend, older photo
- Rev. Don H. Copeland, St. James. South Bend, in pulpit 2
- St. James South Bend, Confirmation class 1947 with Bishop Reginald Mallett
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Ascension Day service, 10 May 2018
- Swinging Holy Cross Monks, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1970s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, March against Gun Violence, 24 March 2018
- Diocesan Convention, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Worship Service, 1970s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Brian Grantz, 9 Dec 2017
- Rev. Gerhard Niemeyer, deacon of Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, and wife Lucie
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Canon SuzeAne Silla, Bishop Little, Canon Hugh Page and wife Jacquetta, Oct 2015
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, congregation, 28 April 2013
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, March against Gun Violence, with Matthew Cowden, 24 March 2018
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, unidentified with Bishop Sparks, 6 Jan 2019
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend unidentified women 1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1989, side view
- Rev. Francis B. Dunham, rector at St. James, South Bend, with wife Susan and children
- St. James, South Bend, choir at Easter 1891 with Rev. Augustine Prentiss
- Rev. Don H. Copeland and Rev. Gordon R. Olston, St. James, South Bend, 1946
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Acolytes in procession, 1970s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Pentecost, 20 May 2018 chancel
- Dean Robert Bizzaro, Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1970s
- Charles Boynton, Diocesan Chancellor, St. James, South Bend
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, Evensong, 9 Dec 2017
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, luncheon, 24 Oct 2015
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, ordinations of Jen Coe Fulton, Jim Stanley, and Susan Tiffany, 14 Feb. 2014
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, LGBTQ March 9 Jun 2019
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, congregation, 6 Jan 2019
- Dean Robert Royster, Cathedral of St. James, with unidentified, 1960s
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, 1989, sign
- Rev. Augustine Prentiss, rector of St. Paul's Mishawaka, St. John's Elkhart, and St. James South Bend, 1884
- Rev. George P. Schetky, first rector of St. James, South Bend
- Institution of Rev. Don H. Copeland as rector of St. James, South Bend, by Bishop Campbell Gray, 1943
- Cathedral of St. James, South Bend, aerial photo, 1960s