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Story Courtesy LouAnn Schindler Summerland Advocate The story of families, faith and perseverance is woven into the fabric of St. Peter de Alcantara Church in Ewing. Parishioners hope those stories - along with the church's neoclassical architecture - will help land the church and rectory on the National Register of Historic Places. Becky Kaczor said she and Greg Ramold approached the church council about pursuing the designation. They enlisted Ramold's niece, Megan, who gathered data, compiled the initial application and contacted a historic preservation firm from Lincoln. Recently, Melissa Dirr Gengler and Elizabeth Chase of HRG, Inc., visited Ewing to create a historical timeline and photograph architectural features that could strengthen the application. Gengler said the church's history will play an important role. Ewing historian Butch Rotherham shared that history. In 1884, a priest from Atkinson traveled to Ewing by train. "He would stay at the J.P. Spittler house and have Mass there," Rotherham said. The first Catholic church in Ewing was built north of the current location, where the Dierks family home now stands. "It was just a little church," Rotherham added. By June 1886, Father Ferdinand Lechleitner founded St. Peter's Parish, relying on John Spittler and Casper Kuhbacker to handle parish business. As the congregation grew, a new church was built where Bauer Homes now stands. In 1903, John N. Funk and M.T. Sanders, church trustees, purchased the land for $150. The property became part of the Omaha Diocese under Rev. Richard Scannell, bishop of Omaha. A stone parish house followed a year later, built with blocks made at Sanders Mill by area youth. When Ewing's population expanded again, parishioners laid the cornerstone for the present structure in 1913. The church and rectory were completed in 1918. Local families contributed to construction - John Sanders supplied nails, hinges and hardware; Henry Pruden and George Walters handled masonry; and Ewald and Ernest Spahn dipped shingles in creosote. Families including Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Bauer, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Spittler, Evo Vandersnick, Casper Kubacher and Frank Bauer donated the stained-glass windows, which were made in Europe. Then there's the story of the church bell. In 1901, after Theresa Spittler's death, her name, date of death and a Latin phrase were engraved on the bell at the Bauer Homes site. When the new church was built, parishioners faced a challenge installing the bell in the completed tower. According to Rotherham, George Latzel constructed a scaffold and pulley system to hoist it into place. Gengler outlined the next steps in the nomination process. A draft application will be reviewed by the State Historic preservation Office and a state board that meets three times a year. She expects the nomination to be considered at the board's May meeting. Once approved, the nomination moves to the National Park Service in Washington, D.C. "They will give the final listing and it will be in the national register when it's formally listed. They have 45 days to do that once they receive the nomination," Gengler said. "If all goes well, the process should be completed by the middle of July." Two key components make up the application: a physical description and narrative of the building, and a statement of significance explaining how it fits the register's mission. Generally, churches are not listed for religious reasons because the program is federally funded. "In this case, architectural merit is considered," Gengler said. "Anyone can walk in, whether you're Catholic or not, and look and see this is clearly a beautiful building. It's lovely on the outside, and you walk in, the windows are pieces of art. The Stations of the Cross are beautiful. Someone took a lot of time to coordinate the details." Another strength of the application is the church's role as a social and community hub. "It tells the story of the community development, stories from parishioners who have grown up in this church," Gengler said. "It's a point of community pride and center for activity."
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