Did you know that the story of St. Stephanus in Essen involves not one, but two church buildings? The former St. Stephanus Church stood in Holsterhausen. It played a significant role in the community. Let’s delve into its past.
St. Stephanus began its journey in 1914. The mother parish of St. Mariä Empfängnis bought land. In 1927, the Kirchbauverein was founded. The building was doubled in 1928.
Emil Jung, a master builder, designed the first church. Construction started in 1929. By October 19, 1930, it was blessed. The church could seat around 1000 people. Interestingly, the street An St. Stephanus was created from Windmühlenstraße.
Listen to this unique detail. The bells for St. Stephanus arrived by train. On September 19, 1930, they were unloaded at Essen Rüttenscheid station. Festively decorated carts transported the bells to the church. There were four bronze bells. The largest was 1.35 meters tall. The others measured 1.20 meters, 0.95 meters, and 0.85 meters. They were tuned to cis², e², fis², and gis². The bells were consecrated on September 21, 1930.
Thanks to donations, St. Stephanus acquired a high altar. A baptismal font, confessionals, and pews completed the interior.
Tragedy struck during World War II. On October 25, 1944, a bomb attack severely damaged St. Stephanus. By December 12, 1944, it was destroyed.
But the community’s spirit was strong. St. Stephanus rose again. Emil Jung and Josef Wingenfeld designed a second church. It was built on the old foundations between 1952 and 1954. On September 19, 1954, it was consecrated. In the 1970s, the facades were clad in manganese-colored clinker.
In 2009, the church was deconsecrated. This was part of a restructuring within the Essen diocese. The final service took place on April 6, 2008.
The Serbian Orthodox community had used the church since 2003. But they could not take over the church. In 2011, the building was sold to the Heimstatt Engelbert Foundation. It now belongs to the Franz Sales Haus. The planned conversion was not financially viable. Therefore, demolition began in early 2018. On April 28, 2018, the church tower was demolished.
St. Stephanus became a canonical parish in 1951. However, on April 1, 2004, the parish was dissolved. The parish area was assigned to St. Mariä Empfängnis. Then, on April 1, 2008, it became part of the newly founded St. Antonius parish.
Let’s talk about the organ. In 2009, it was removed and moved to the Holy Family Church.
The church received four new bells in 1968. In 2009, they were taken to Vilnius, Lithuania.
The windows were made by Wilhelm de Graaff in 1954. They were destroyed during demolition.
In 2010, the altar from St. Stephanus was moved to the parish church of St. Chrysanthus and Daria.
Here is a curious fact. Since April 2021, a 1:25 scale model of the church can be seen. It is made of concrete, steel and stainless steel. It is part of the Neustadt installation. Marta Dyachenko and Julius von Bismarck created it for the Emscherkunstweg. It stands at the eastern end of Landschaftspark Duisburg Nord.
So, while the physical St. Stephanus is no longer here, its story remains. It tells of community, resilience, and faith. It reminds us that even in demolition, memory persists.