Browse Items (254 total)

“When Father John J. Hanley became pastor in 1887, he saw to the building of a three-story frame school and convent, which was known as Saint Xavier’s for many years. Cedar Rapids Sisters of Mercy staffed the school until 1940; then the Dubuque…

“When John Plettchette died in 1859, he left six acres on condition that a church be built within two years. When Bishop Clement Smyth did not send a priest on the grounds that there was no church, John Heles and Joseph Friedman assumed leadership…

“Under the leadership of Father James Nelson, the parish built a gothic style brick church in 1901 to seat 500. It was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title The Immaculate Conception, which is inscribed to the cornerstone. During the…

"Father David J. Lonergan arrived in November of 1890 to found the parish, staying in the Gordon home until a residence could be provided. Pastor and parishioners chose high ground on the Military Road, near the small town of Fillmore and about eight…

"Saint Mary’s of Hanover and Saint Mary’s of Dorchester in Allamakee County have been joined by only eight miles of road, and they had a common pastor until 1915. In the beginning the pastor of Lansing, Father William Jacoby, celebrated Mass in a…

"Probably no other parish in the nation can claim the distinction of Saint Patrick Parish at Hampton. For three years it was served by two priests who were father and son, Father Patrick J. Norton and his son, Father Claude B. Norton. Hampton is the…

"Saint Mary Parish began with the French Catholics who settled in Clayton County as early as 1833, and missionary priests celebrated Mass and the sacraments whenever they came to the village. The first German families arrived in 1845. Guttenberg…

"When Greene began to thrive in the 1870s because of the railroads, the Catholic settlers were no longer satisfied with Mass in homes or halls and traveling four miles to Saint Mary’s in Coldwater. They were eager for a church of their own. In 1878 a…

"Immaculate Conception Parish began with the town of Gilbertville, which was then called Knox. Several young men, pleased with the banks of the Red Cedar River in Black Hawk County south of Waterloo, laid out the town site in 1854. The Catholic…

"The Church of Saints Peter & Paul in Story County, north of Ames and a few miles west of Gilbert, is on the Story County side of the county line. About half the parish lies across the county line in the Diocese of Sioux City and Boone County.…