The term Basilica is a Greek derivation from "Basileus" meaning a royal or kingly building. A Catholic Basilica can only be so named by special Papal edict, as is the case of St. Francis in Dyersvile. St. Francis was not named a Basilica until the late 1950's and is one of only 53 Basilica's in the United States. Iowa has one other located in Des Moines.
At the time this Basilica was built only the Archdiocese of Dubuque existed in the area. It was also during this time that it was split and the Sioux City Diocese was created on the other side of Iowa.
Basilica Statistics:
Spires:
1. Height of each is 212 feet. Being the tallest structure in the area the spires can be seen from miles around.
2. Base is 20 feet square.
3. The diameter of the clock face is 6 feet.
4. The gold leaf crosses are 6 feet 8 inches wide and 14 feet high.
Exterior Building:
1. Exterior dimensions are 70 x 175 feet.
2. Height of the church is 76 feet.
3. Height of the side walls is 40 feet.
4. There are 64 burnt colored Cathedral windows in the church.
Interior of the Building:
1. Seating capacity is 1,200 people. Total parishoners is around 5,000. Dyersville's population is only about 4,000 people.
Construction Costs:
1. Original construction cost was approximatley $100,000.
2. The south entrance includes a lift to make the church handicap accessible was installed in the late 1980's at a cost of $130,000.
Chronology:
1506 to 1552 - St Francis Xavier, the patron saint of the church, was born of noble descent in Navarre, Spain. He was an early Jesuit and missionary in the Far East. his missionary journeys extended from India to Japan. There is a window depicting St. Francis preaching to the Indians.
December 3, 1552 - St. Francis Xavier died at the age 46 on the Island of Scancion, off the coast of China.
June 1, 1833 - The Black Hawk Purchase was signed and white settlers were allowed in an area 40 to 50 miles west of the Mississippi River.
1837 - The first whites settled near Dyersville.
1846 - First Bavarians settled in the area of present day Dyersville.
1848 - A young Englishman with determination, leadership skills and means settled in the area with his family.
1850's - A wood carved statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is created and is presently the oldest artifact in the church. The statue is located on the north side of the sanctuary.
1850 - James J. Dyer established a settlement which soon became known as Dyersville. Under his leadership an intensive building program was initiated. At the time the rapidly growing population proved yet too small and weak to support such a inflationary program.
1856 - The Catholics were granted their first Mission Pastor.
1857 - The nation wide panic compounded problems and dealt a serious blow to the enterprising English pioneers who had committed their resources in this development program. This resulted in the settlers relinquishing the ownership, at a monetary loss, to the growing population of frugal German Catholics. This resulted in Dyersville evolving from a promising English Protestant settlement to a strong American German Catholic Center it is today.
1858 - Dyersville's first small, 2nd floor, Catholic Church was located 2 blocks east near the river. Today, located above on the underside of the balcony ceiling of St. Francis Basilica is a stylized Greek cross that is a reproduction of the 1858 decoration from the first Catholic Church.
1862 - Construction of the first Catholic in Dyersville church was completed.
1869 - Size of first Catholic church had to be doubled.
1870's - In front of the 1897 Altar of St. Joseph, and the Holy Family is the oak Baptismal font is created in the 1870's. The font was recently re-finished by a parishioner. Near the baptismal font is the Easter (or Pascal) Candle stick. This is a turn-of-the-century piece. Two others like it, but gilded, are in Good Shepherd Church, Beverly Hills, CA. During the Easter season, this candle stick is kept next to the pulpit.
1873 - The wood carved crucifix from the old St. Francis Xavier Church, which formerly stood to the south of the Basilica was created. The crucifix now above the Altar. The crucifix was made by an early parishioner from a walnut tree on his farm.
To the left of the pulpit is an 1873 statue of the parish patron, St. Francis Xavier. Above, is the Basilica Coat of Arms.
The statue of St. Anthony of Padua is created in 1873 and currently stands to the left of the Blessed Virgin’s Altar.
1880 - The Catholic population of Dyersville was outgrowing the enlarged church.
1887 - Construction of the present Basilica started.
The ornate, brass Sanctuary Lamp is created which hangs in the center of the sanctuary. Proclaiming the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the tabernacle. To the front of the sanctuary is the recent smaller altar of marbleized wood, so Mass may be celebrated facing the people.
June 3, 1888 - Cornerstone was laid.
December 3, 1889 - The new St. Francis Catholic Church was dedicated by Bishop Hennessy of Dubuque. an estimated 6,000 people attended. Many came on special excursion trains.
1889 - The 64 stained glass windows and transoms are installed. Ten of which contain pictures of the life of Christ and His saints the rest are made up of geometrical designs. Beginning from the back, on the right or north side wall are: St. Joseph and the Child Jesus working; St. Francis of Assisi receiving the stigmata and St. Helen; St. Boniface baptizing the Germans after cutting down their sacred tree; and near the front St. John Berchmans and St. Aloysius Gonzaga.
Beginning on the left or south side wall, from the back are: St. Stanislas Kostka receiving Communion from an angel; St. Kunegunda and Our Lady of Consolation, the patroness of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg; St. Francis Xavier (This window is interested for a number of reasons. The last window on this side, near the front depicts St. Philomena and Mary Immaculate.
The stained glass window depicting St. Francis Xavier shows him with an 1889 hair, mustache and beard style and shows St. Francis preaching to Native Americans.
1897 - At the back of the Basilica, to the left and right of the center aisle are two confessionals, built by the Dubuque Altar Company and carved out of butternut wood was installed.
The Altar of St. Joseph, and the Holy Family which is 36 feet high and 15 feet wide was installed.
1900 - In the central niche of the 1897 Altar is the 1900 Bavarian wood carving of the Holy Family with an angel presenting a small church to the Infant Jesus. Surrounding this niche are four oil paintings. The top two (left to right) are the Betrothal of Mary and Joseph, and the Flight into Egypt. The bottom two (left to right) are the Holy Family at Work, and the Death of St. Joseph.
1904 - 1905 - All the Decorative Painting in the church was done by Alphonse and Lottie Brielmaier, a brother and sister team of artists from Milwaukee. The central figure, representing the Lamb of God, is surrounded by celestial angels. To the right are the saints of the Old Testament and to the left are the saints of the New Testament.
1905 - The painting of the Last Supper on the balcony front, done by Lotie Brielmaier, formerly hung above the High Altar.
The Corpus Christi Chapel is built. The chapel is located 1 block south and 4 blocks west of the Basilica, at the end of 3rd Ave. and Avenue W. The chapel was built for Benediction durion the once-ayear Corpus Christi procession.
1906: In the south, across the central part of the sanctuary, to the left of the altar the Pulpit was created and installed. Carved of butternut, it features statues on the base of early Christian writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter, Paul; and 5 Doctors of the Western Church, Ambrose, Jerome, Gregory, Augustine and Thomas Aquinas.
1926 - The statue of St. Therese of Lisieux, the “Little Flower" was placed.
The Basilica of St. Mary's in Minneapolis aws the first church in the United States to be raised to the rank Of a Minor Basilica.
1930 - The Decorative Painting that was done in 1904 - 1905 was “touched up” or partially covered.
1955 - The Decorative Painting that was done in 1904 - 1905 was again “touched up” or partially covered.
The consecration ceremony took place. The twelve candle brackets and gold painted cosses seen at eye level along the interior walls identify this as a consecrated church. The candles and crosses were blessed with Holy Oils, symbolic of the teaching of the twelve apostles. To qualify for consecration a church must be debt free and the main altar must be based n a solid foundation resting on the ground. Before a church can become a Basilica it must have the status of a consecrated church.
May 11, 1956 - The church was raised to the rank of a Minor Basilica by His Holiness, Pope Pius XII. This was the centennial year of the first mass in Dyersville.
Quote from Pope Pius XII: "Sacred for its works of religion and renowned for the nobility of its structure is the church of St. Francis Xavier in the Archdiocese of Dubuque...by virtue of these letters we elevate in perpetuity the Church>>>situated in Dyersville, Iowa...to the honor of a Minor Basilica..."
November 8, 1956 - Conferring of the honor took place amid great solemnity and with a large number of parishioners and distinguished guests attending.
1959 - At the back of the sanctuary, toward the Choir Loft, the Rose Window, with its Native American designs was installed in recognition of the Indian habitation in the area 150 years earlier. It replaced a conventional church window on which the frame work became deteriorated.
July, 1971 - The second organ, replacing the original is a 37-rank Wicks Organ was installed. It is a custom made instrument designed for the Basilica by the Wicks Organ Company of Highland, Illinois. It was designed keeping in mind the size of the church and the acoustical qualities of the building.
1989 - A new entry is erected through the south entrance in honor of the centennial year of the Basilica. This entry includes restrooms, lifts for handicapped persons, and a new window of St. Francis Xavier. Also, along the new entry walls are photos of previous pastors of the parish, antique processional lanterns and banners, and plaques of donors and memorials.
When the south entrance was added it included a new lift for handicap accessibility. the lift was installed at a cost of $130,000, a hundred years before the church was built for only $100,000.
1995 - The corpus Christi Chapel is completely restored and renovated. The priest who donated the statue of the Madonna and Child for the chapel naked it, "Our Lady of Dyersville".
1997 - The statue of St. Therese of Lisieux the “Little Flower" was restored for the centenary of the saint’s death, and pope John Paul II gave her the title, “Doctor of the Church.”
1998 - The center aisle is restored and installed. This the first floor of its kind in the nation to combine the new technologies of epoxy based terrazo, computer generated water jet laser cutting for brass molds. The symbols in the floor, from the back of the church, three shields of the coats of arms of: The Archdiocese of Dubuque, Pope Pius XII, the Basilica and the Papal Insignia of the Tiara and Keys. the story reads from the back to the front of the church as: Here in the Archdiocese of Dubuque Pope Pius XII named St. Francis Xavier Church a Basilica, making it a Papal Church.
2000 to 2001 - The interior decoration was completely repainted and restored and new 24 carat gold leaf and sliver leaf was applied.
The Decorative Painting that was done in 1904 - 1905 was then completely restored.The original design and colors remain unchanged.
As the readers can see the history of this church and the history of Dyersville are both very extensive and important. It is up to the readers to determine if this history is good or bad.
This blog author, though not an overly religious person and not Catholic appreciates this beautiful church because of its history and artistic beauty. The blog author has had the pleasure of visiting the Basilica twice. Both times on RAGBRAI. The first time was in 2007 when Dyersville was an overnight town. At that time he did not have his and therefore could not take photos. The second was this year on RAGBRAI XXXVIII, which took place this past July. When he found out Dyersville was going to be a pass through town he made it a point to take his camera and take photos of this beautiful building and its treasures.
St Francis Xavier Basilica
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