The House That Galion Built
The
building that houses the Brotherhood was built by J.S.Boyd in 1930 and
is important to the City of Galion because of its history and
architecture. The Boyds owned Galion Ironworks,
which made road-building equipment from the late 19th century until the
mid 1970's. The company became internationally famous for its expertise
and its products were found even in Russian and China. The giant steam
shovels and other equipment used to construct the Panama Canal were
designed and made at Galion Ironworks. Altogether, the Boyd Family
built four houses, three still in existence. St. Theodore House is
federal in style with details taken from Mt. Vernon and Tidewater
Virginia and has a classic roofline crest in the Chippendale Manner.
There is also a stable built to match the house. The grounds were
extensive and were designed and maintained by an English gardener.
There were horses, the stable to house them, orchards and large
vegetable and flower gardens.
The home remained in the Boyd family through the mid-fifties when it was acquired by North Electric
for its president Mr. Tucker. The Tuckers made some structural changes
to the house, divided and sold much of the property and cut down the
apple orchard. There are now eight acres in the present estate.
In
the mid-sixties, William and Castella Gledhill, owners of Gledhill Road
Machinery, purchased the property, becoming the third and final town
leaders to live in the estate. Mr. Gledhill loved the gardens and Mrs.
Gledhill (who passed away just a few months ago) added many touches to
the house. They lived quite happily here until Mr. Gledhill passed away
in the mid-nineties. The house sat empty for about 7 years until the
monks purchased it in 2000 bring a new purpose and life.
Since
moving in, the Monks have fashioned a chapel (located in the largest
room of the house, the old recreation room on the lower level) and have
begun to restore the interior and exterior. On the grounds, the Boyds
are remembered by the standing High Cross in the midst of what remains
of the formal hedges of the old English Garden. The Gledhills are
commemorated by a section of the yard where there is a round flowerbed
begun by Bill Gledhill shortly before he died and continued by the
monks. In this part of the garden is also located a small shrine to St.
Andrew the Apostle in memory of Andrew Wigton who passed away in July
of 2004. Along the driveway into the property is a small shrine to the
Mother of God “keeper of the Gate”. Other shrines are planned as time
and funds allow. The Monastery grounds are open to visitors from 9:00
am until 5:00 pm on most days.
