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as lack of other egress from the loft in case of fire). When I visited in 1993, my understanding was that it was suffering from the constant traffic. Barbara Hershey implied the same when she stated, “It still functions, though people aren’t allowed to go up it very often” (Bobbin 1998). It would thus appear that the Loretto staircase is subject to the laws of physics like any other.
The other mysteries that are emphasized in relation to the stair are the identity of the carpenter and the type of wood used. That the latter has not been identified precisely means little. The piece given to a forester for possible identification was exceedingly small (only about ¾– inch square by 1/8–inch thick) whereas much larger (six–inch) pieces are preferred by the U.S. Forest Service’s Center for Wood Anatomy (which has made many famous identifications, including artifacts taken from King Tut’s tomb and the ladder involved in the Lindbergh kidnaping) (Knight 1997). The wood has reportedly been identified as to family, Pinaceae , and genus, Picea —i.e., spruce (Easley 1997), a type of “light, strong, elastic wood • ” often used in construction (“Spruce” 1960). But there are no fewer than thirty–nine species—ten in North America—so that comparison of the Loretto sample with only two varieties (Easley 1997) can scarcely be definitive.
As to the identity of an obviously itinerant workman, it seems merely mystery mongering to suggest that there is anything strange—least of all evidence of the supernatural—in the failure to record his name. As it happens, however, the identity of the enigmatic craftsman has finally been revealed. Credit for the discovery goes to an “intrepid and highly respected amateur historian” named Mary Jean Cook. She learned of a “hermit rancher,” Francois–Jean “Frenchy” Rochas, who lived in “godforsaken” Dog Canyon, nine miles from Alamogordo. Learning thathe had left behind a collection of “sophisticated carpentry tools,” Cook searched for his death notice, which she found in the January 6, 1896, issue of The Santa Fe New Mexican. It described Rochas’s murdered body being found at his isolated rock cabin and described him as “favorably known in Santa Fe as an expert worker in wood.” He had built, the brief obituary noted, “the handsome staircase in the Loretto Chapel and at St. Vincent sanitarium.”
Cook suspects the legend of St. Joseph began with the sisters at the Loretto Academy, “probably in response to questions from their students.” However, she observes that “it wasn’t until the late 1930s—when the story appeared in Ripley’s… Believe It or Not! —that the story became an icon of popular culture. Although some rued the debunking of the pious legend, Archbishop Michael Sheehan promised, ”It will always be referred to as a miraculous staircase. It was an extraordinary piece to have been done in its time” (Stieber 2000).
References
Albach, Carl R. 1965. Miracle or wonder of construction? reprint from Consulting Engineer , Dec., n.p.
Bobbin, Jay. 1998. The staircase. Review in TV Topics, Buffalo News , April 12, 1, 24–25.
Bullock, Alice. 1978. Loretto and the Miraculous Staircase . Santa Fe, N.M.: Sunstone.
Dietz, Albert G.H. 1991. Dwelling House Construction , 5th ed. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Easley, Forrest N. 1997. “A Stairway From Heaven?” Privately printed.
“Interior Decoration.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
Knight, Christopher. 1997. Just what kind of wood. ? Wall Street Journal , Oct. 22.
Locke, Jim. 1992. The Weil–Built House , revised ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin.
Loretto Chapel, n.d. Text of display card, photographed by author, 1993.
“Spruce.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
“Stair.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
Stieber, Tamar. 2000. Loretto staircase mystery unravels. New Mexico magazine . Jan., 62–66.
Chapter 7
Flying Saucer “Dogfight”
Did an extraterrestrial
The other mysteries that are emphasized in relation to the stair are the identity of the carpenter and the type of wood used. That the latter has not been identified precisely means little. The piece given to a forester for possible identification was exceedingly small (only about ¾– inch square by 1/8–inch thick) whereas much larger (six–inch) pieces are preferred by the U.S. Forest Service’s Center for Wood Anatomy (which has made many famous identifications, including artifacts taken from King Tut’s tomb and the ladder involved in the Lindbergh kidnaping) (Knight 1997). The wood has reportedly been identified as to family, Pinaceae , and genus, Picea —i.e., spruce (Easley 1997), a type of “light, strong, elastic wood • ” often used in construction (“Spruce” 1960). But there are no fewer than thirty–nine species—ten in North America—so that comparison of the Loretto sample with only two varieties (Easley 1997) can scarcely be definitive.
As to the identity of an obviously itinerant workman, it seems merely mystery mongering to suggest that there is anything strange—least of all evidence of the supernatural—in the failure to record his name. As it happens, however, the identity of the enigmatic craftsman has finally been revealed. Credit for the discovery goes to an “intrepid and highly respected amateur historian” named Mary Jean Cook. She learned of a “hermit rancher,” Francois–Jean “Frenchy” Rochas, who lived in “godforsaken” Dog Canyon, nine miles from Alamogordo. Learning thathe had left behind a collection of “sophisticated carpentry tools,” Cook searched for his death notice, which she found in the January 6, 1896, issue of The Santa Fe New Mexican. It described Rochas’s murdered body being found at his isolated rock cabin and described him as “favorably known in Santa Fe as an expert worker in wood.” He had built, the brief obituary noted, “the handsome staircase in the Loretto Chapel and at St. Vincent sanitarium.”
Cook suspects the legend of St. Joseph began with the sisters at the Loretto Academy, “probably in response to questions from their students.” However, she observes that “it wasn’t until the late 1930s—when the story appeared in Ripley’s… Believe It or Not! —that the story became an icon of popular culture. Although some rued the debunking of the pious legend, Archbishop Michael Sheehan promised, ”It will always be referred to as a miraculous staircase. It was an extraordinary piece to have been done in its time” (Stieber 2000).
References
Albach, Carl R. 1965. Miracle or wonder of construction? reprint from Consulting Engineer , Dec., n.p.
Bobbin, Jay. 1998. The staircase. Review in TV Topics, Buffalo News , April 12, 1, 24–25.
Bullock, Alice. 1978. Loretto and the Miraculous Staircase . Santa Fe, N.M.: Sunstone.
Dietz, Albert G.H. 1991. Dwelling House Construction , 5th ed. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Easley, Forrest N. 1997. “A Stairway From Heaven?” Privately printed.
“Interior Decoration.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
Knight, Christopher. 1997. Just what kind of wood. ? Wall Street Journal , Oct. 22.
Locke, Jim. 1992. The Weil–Built House , revised ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin.
Loretto Chapel, n.d. Text of display card, photographed by author, 1993.
“Spruce.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
“Stair.” 1960. Encyclopaedia Britannica .
Stieber, Tamar. 2000. Loretto staircase mystery unravels. New Mexico magazine . Jan., 62–66.
Chapter 7
Flying Saucer “Dogfight”
Did an extraterrestrial
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