06/04/2026
The History of the Stained Glass at St Boniface Church
St. Boniface is fortunate to have all our large stained-glass windows—twelve in total—made by the Von Gerichten Art Glass Studio. In 1866, when our church was finished, simple stained glass panels were installed. Then in 1894, it is noted that a new set of fine stained-glass windows were donated by individuals and groups at St. Boniface.
The Von Gerichten Brothers:
Ludwig von Gerichten was born in the Rheinpfalz region of Germany in 1873. In 1887, at the age of 14, he immigrated to the United States to join his father, Jacob, and his older brother, Theodore. Shortly thereafter, they settled in Cincinnati, Ohio, where Ludwig was an apprentice at the Riordan Stained Glass Studio. The brothers moved around a few times but eventually settled in Columbus, Ohio in November of 1893.
These brothers were extremely successful in Columbus, winning many top honors at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, MO. About fifteen years later, in 1914, the von Gerichten brothers opened up a studio in Munich, Germany. While Theodore spent much of his time in the Columbus studio, Ludwig was primarily in the Munich Studio.
The von Gerichten Brothers were among the most famous artists in the glass business. Together they created approximately 1,800 windows for about 850 churches in the United States. A majority of these works of art were created in the Columbus studio. Some churches in the United States saw German workmanship as superior to that of American workmanship, so they specifically requested that their windows be created at the Munich studio. As you might imagine, there were extra shipping costs associated with ordering stained glass windows from Germany. In the breakout of World War I, there were significant delays in shipment of stained glass due to the British Blockade which continued until 1921. A church in Kingston, New York ordered their windows in 1914 and did not receive them until late 1921.
In reality, there was very little difference in the quality of workmanship in the windows between the Columbus and Munich studio. The Columbus studio was known for its specialty of painted garments and the Munich studio was known for its texture of skin and color. Both of these studios employed German craftsmen. Some of these craftsmen include head designer Jacob Renner, and art glass craftsmen Joe Durr and Max Frank.
When a church expressed interest in purchasing Von Gerichten stained glass windows, a company representative would travel to the church and meet with the congregation’s representatives to discuss window patterns and scenes. A drawing of the proposed window would be created. Back in the Columbus office, an employee would use a pricing formula to figure the cost of the window.
Once the congregation approved the price, work began on the windows. Large sheets of paper were spread on work tables in the studio. Outlines of each individual piece were drawn similar to a large puzzle. Glass, which they purchased from glass manufacturing companies, was cut into pieces, then placed together on top of the paper. These pieces of glass were then secured into place with pieces of lead, called canes. The Von Gerichten studio purchased the glass they use from several companies, including Blenko Glass Company of Milton, West Virginia and the Gahanna Sanctuary. Much of their glass was sourced from America’s oldest art glass company, the Kokomo Opalescent Glass Co of Kokomo, Indiana. Von Gerichten used a technique familiar to stained glass craftsmen called ‘plating’ which means having multiple layers of glass in a window, creating a unique effect of depth and color.
Although not all of the 1,800 Von Gerichten stained glass windows still exist today, the majority of the windows still exist where they were originally installed. The Von Gerichten Art Glass Studio closed their doors in 1938 after the death of Theodore von Gerichten.
The back of the church on the south side:
1. St. John the Baptist baptizing Jesus
2. St. Anne, her daughter Mary, and a Guardian Angel
3. The Holy Family
4. St. Peter and St. Paul, the pillars of the Church
5. The Prodigal Son
Sanctuary:
6. St. Mechtilde of Helfta (Hackeborn)
7. St. Margaret Mary
The back of the church on the north side:
8. St. Elizabeth of Hungary
9. St. Veronica and St. Vincent de Paul
10. The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin
11. St. Cecilia and St. Boniface
12. The Good Shepherd
