'Fortunate they've lasted': Sharon Moravian Church plans to restore stained glass windows

Jon Baker, The Times-Reporter
·2 min read
A stained glass window at Sharon Moravian Church, Wednesday, June 14.
A stained glass window at Sharon Moravian Church, Wednesday, June 14.

WARWICK TOWNSHIP — Keeping a historic structure properly maintained can be an expensive proposition, a situation that the members of Sharon Moravian Church near Tuscarawas are familiar with.

The church has launched a fundraising campaign to repair the structure's 11 stained glass windows, which are believed to date back to the late 1800s. The windows have holes and cracks in them.

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"They aren't really obviously bad, but when you start looking at them close, you can start to see the cracks and bulging," said Bill Westbrook, president of the church trustees.

Added member Francis Picchetti, "We're very fortunate they've lasted this long. They take some really good weather."

Restoration comes with a hefty price tag

Restoring them will not be cheap. Westbrook said each will cost around $9,000 to repair, and it will take another $20,000 for new storm windows.

The congregation is working with Radiant Arts of Beach City to get the project done.

Bill Westbrook talks about the need to fix or replace aging stained glass windows at Sharon Moravian Church, Wednesday, June 14.
Bill Westbrook talks about the need to fix or replace aging stained glass windows at Sharon Moravian Church, Wednesday, June 14.

Because of the expense, church leaders have decided to restore one window at a time and then do subsequent windows as money becomes available. Currently, Sharon Moravian has about $10,000 in the stained-glass window fund, enough to do one window.

Church officials have known for quite some time the windows needed repaired. They first considered it in 2016. The price quoted then was about $6,000 a window, "and everybody about fell over then. I would sure like to have that price now," Westbrook said.

However, the project was put on hold when it became necessary to repair the steeple on the 166-year-old structure. Repair work was completed two years ago.

Sharon Moravian Church was founded in 1815

Sharon Moravian Church is one of the oldest congregations in Tuscarawas County, having been founded in 1815. A log church was built in 1817 and added on to in 1839. Eventually, the congregation outgrew that building and built the current brick structure in 1857 at a cost of $5,700 ($199,000 in 2023 dollars). The foundation stones came from a quarry in Newcomerstown. They were transported up the Ohio & Erie Canal by canal boats and then dragged across the fields to the church site. The bricks were fired in a kiln just north of the site. The original windows were of plain glass.

The new church was topped by a steeple 148 feet high. The steeple came down in a storm on April 19, 1871, and was replaced with the current, much lower steeple.

In May, the church was presented a historic marker by the Tuscarawas County Heritage Home Association.

How to help with restoration of windows

If anyone would like to make a donation to help repair the windows, they can send a check to Sharon Moravian Church, 4776 Moravian Church Road SE, New Philadelphia, Ohio 44663, and mark it for the stained-glass window fund.

Reach Jon Baker at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Sharon Moravian Church raising funds to restore stained-glass windows