Click on the pictures
for a larger view
This window was redone some time in 1996 or 1997 because it was ready to
fall out. Most of the large stained-glass windows of this type were put in
during the construction boom of big churches around 1895. Acid rain has
pretty much decimated all of the windows like this because no one thought
about protecting them with a layer of glass on the outside.  A strong gust of
wind would have pulled it right out of the opening.  The wood was so rotten
you could poke your finger into it. Moss Art glass of Anderson, Indiana was
the leaded glass restoration contractor on this job. My company made the
new window frame.
No blueprint existed and one could not be made because the
window was out of square by quite a bit because of settlement of
the building. Since I had to fit the opening as it currently was, we
could not make a square and true new window.  The first step was
to decide how to get the frame, crooked as it was, out so that we
could use it for a pattern to build the new window.  We decided to
cut it up into chunks small enough to let down to the ground with a
small block and tackle.  After we cut the first one, we found out that
they were going to have to be quite a bit smaller because they
weighed much more than we thought they would.
We decided to make the window the same as I made my custom doors by using a plywood core. I connected the pieces of plywood together to
use as the core of the window and for my pattern.  I then laid out all the pieces of the old window on the plywood and traced around them as
best I could.  It was really going to be pure luck if I laid it out exactly as the old window had set in the opening, but I could not think of another
option. Because the window was 18 foot tall and was going to be impossible to set in the opening in one piece, we next had to decide how the
new one was going to be set in place. The original window had been set in place with a crane and then the masonry was built around it.  I
decided to put it back together basically the same way as it was taken apart in manageable pieces using a modified mortise and tenon. This
way, we could make up everything in the shop and be able to paint it before installation. By leaving out strategic small pieces, we would have
only minor painting to do on the job site after fastening these pieces in place. The pictures from this point on pretty much show the progression
that had to be followed in order to make what would be a magnificent window when finished.
The first two pictures to the right are of a window I made
around 1985 or 1986. I only had to make the top half of this
window  (above the three circles) because it had  been
taken out to install a fire escape for the choir loft sometime
in the past. This portion of the window was reinstalled during
a major renovation of the Church, so I was lucky enough to
have a blueprint for this project which made it much easier
to build.  The third picture is of an original window which sits
right next to this one to give you an idea of what it originally
looked like. The doors, door jamb and transom were made
at the same time to replicate the main entry doors on the
church for this added addition.  These doors are a perfect
example of why I do not make custom entry doors anymore.  
No one has thought to maintain them over the years. The
church is losing what was a large investment when they
were installed and will be an even larger investment when
they have to replace them. The main entry doors are in the
same condition.