USA > Indiana > History of the Catholic church in Indiana, Volume I > Part 27
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IN THE STATE OF INDIANA.
Very Rev. Michael O'Reilley, of Valparaiso, bought for the con- gregation John G. Earle's picture gallery, which, by him and his successors, was gradually transformed into the present beautiful St. Bridget's church. Father O'Reilley was pastor of the congrega- tion until October, 1875. After him Rev. Francis Xavier Baum- gartner, resident pastor of Turkey Creek, had charge of the con- gregation from 1875 to 1881; Rev. H. M. Roth from 1881 to 1883; then again Rev. F. X. Baumgartner, who remained until 1885, being followed by the Rev. Joseph Flach, now pastor of Dyer, Ind., who remained until 1888. He was succeeded in August of the latter year by the Rev. Charles V. Stetter, D. D. The membership numbers at present about 200, and the Word of God is preached to the people both in English and German. Services are held the third Sunday of every month-the Monday after the fourth Sunday-and every Saturday.
Lake Station is at present also attended from Turkey Creek. Most Catholics having moved away, the few still remaining attend church in Hobart, although they have service in their own church a few times a year.
HUNTINGBURG, DUBOIS COUNTY.
St. Mary's Parish (Church of the Visitation, B. V. M.). - It is claimed that the first mass recited in St. Mary's parish October 20, 1859, was by Rev. Bede O'Connor, O. S. B. In August, 1860, the corner-stone of the new church was laid by Rev. Isidor Hobi, O. S. B. The Church of the Visitation of the B. V. M. was visited by the pastor of Ferdinand in 1865 and 1866, and also from 1873 to 1876. In 1868, it was attended from Jasper twice each month, and after that year, to 1873, from St. Meinrad. In 1869 the trid- uum was preached by Fathers Matthias and Painer, of Teutopolis, Ill. Father Fidelis, O. S. B., previous to 1869, had much to do with establishing the congregation in St. Mary's parish. The church records of St. Mary's give the roster of priests in charge of the parish, from 1869, until the present, as follows: From March, 1869, to November, 1870, Rev. H. Hug; November, 1870, to February, 1873, Rev. Eberhard Stadler; February, 1873, to April, 1876, Rev. Maur Helferich; April, 1876, to October, 1878, Rev.
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Caspar Seiler; October, 1878, to May, 1881, Rev. Kintrup; May, 1881, to December, 1886, Rev. Placidus Zarn. Under the adminis- tration of Father Zarn the present church-edifice was erected. From December, 1886, to November, 1890, Rev. Cyrin Thomas was the pastor, and then Rev. Aug. Falley, the present pastor, was placed in charge; Rev. Caspar Seiler acted as pastor and teacher after he established the first Catholic school in the parish, which numbered from twelve to twenty pupils. The school is conducted in the old church-building just north of the church-edifice, and the attendance numbers 133, under charge of five Benedictine Sisters.
The congregation of St. Mary's at present numbers ninety families. Father Falley has had charge of the congregation for seven years and six months, and, as he is of a genial and cordial nature, has won the love of his people, as well as the non-Catholics in the parish. When he assumed charge of the parish there was a debt on the church property of $7, 800, and during his pastorate he has reduced this debt $3,800, beside keeping up the schools and the general church expenses. The congregation is in a peaceful and contented state, and the religious bodies of the parish are all in a healthy condition. The value of the property of St. Mary's parish is valued at $20, 000.
HUNTINGTON, HUNTINGTON COUNTY.
St. Mary's Church stands to-day a monument of the benefi- cence of the late John Roche, who was born in county Wexford, Ireland, and died in Huntington, Ind., in October, 1894. His sister, Miss Bridget Roche, however, is to be credited with the honor of having presented this magnificent structure to the parish, deriving the means from the estate of her deceased brother. The corner-stone of the building was laid October 11th, 1896; by Bishop Rademacher, and the edifice completed and dedicated on the day above mentioned, it being one of the most imposing church struc- tures in the state. The building is sixty-eight and one-half feet in width and 147 feet in length. The main tower is 130 feet high, while the smaller tower is nearly ninety-four feet above the founda- tion. The center of the ceiling in the nave is fifty-seven feet from the floor, and from the floor to the bridge of the roof is seventy
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IN THE STATE OF INDIANA.
feet. The interior view is like a dream and is the artist's ideal. To the appreciative observer it is like a place of enchantment, a scene which appeals to one's loftiest emotions and yet suggests solemn and silent admiration. Its high columns of polished gran- ite, its graceful arches and artistic architectural curves, glittering altars, statuary in colors, and painted domes which seem to open into the very stars of the firmament, all blend in harmony sub- lime and make the beholder wonder whether he is really in Hunt- ington or. not.
C. R. Noel, of Chicago, with five assistants, did the fresco- ing, the base of which is a peculiar shade of drab which blends into light blue, pink with gold touchings, the effect being cheerful and yet mellow. In the ceiling around the ventilator are transfer portraits of St. John with an eagle, St. Matthew with an angel child, St. Luke with an ox and St. Mark with a lion. A magnifi- cent painting in the dome over the sanctuary is the "Immaculate Conception." The Blessed Virgin is floating among fleecy clouds through which cherubs are peeping. The combination of colors in this piece is exquisite. "The Tomb," "Flight Into Egypt " and the "Crucifixion " are large paintings just over the sanctuary, which are strong in color and show well from the auditorium.
The fourteen events of the cross, which are usually paintings seen on the side walls of Catholic churches, are in statue form, executed in colors and hung in handsomely carved oak frames. They are " Jesus Condemned to Death," "Laden with the Cross," "Falls the First Time," "Meets His Holy Mother," "Simon Helps Jesus Carry the Cross," "Veronia Wipes the Face of Jesus," ". Jesus Falls the Second Time," "He Consoles the Weep- ing Women," "Falls the Third Time," "Stripped of His Gar- ments," "Nailed to the Cross," "Dies on the Cross," "Taken Down from the Cross," "Laid in the Sepulchre." While this statuary is not of large size, it was made in Germany and is an exhibition of high art and very impressive. But the climax of fine statuary can be seen in the five altars, which are known as the " High Altars," "The Sorrowful Mother," "The Sacred Heart," "St. Joseph," "The Blessed Virgin." They are life size and so realistic that many who look upon thein are lost in reveries, and
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indeed so pathetic is the scene of the "Sorrowful Mother " that more than one who gaze upon it are moved to tears. At the base of the "High Altar" is a representation of Christ and the apostles at supper, all in statuary, even to the dishes on the table. This large statuary was made in France, and to an artist is of marvel- ous beauty. The confessionals, two in number, are of carved oak and of handsome design. The pulpit shows skilled workmanship . and is movable, a track being laid on the floor upon which it can be rolled to the center or left at the side of the auditorium. It is provided with a sounding board which materially aids the speaker in making himself heard distinctly in all parts of the auditorium.
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Heat is provided by steam radiators supplied by boilers in a - separate building some distance from the church. It will furnish heat both for the church and the school-building.
The congregation of St. Mary's comprises eighty-three Eng- lish-speaking families and the school attendance is' 130, under five Sisters of Providence-the school building being situated on War- ren street, at the back of the church edifice. The pastoral resi- dence is of pressed brick, is 62 x 30 feet, two and one-half stories high, and is located in one of the most popular parts of the city, south of the church-building. The sodalities attached to the con- gregation are the Living Rosary society and numbers 105 married ladies; the Young Ladies' sodality numbers forty-four; the Young Men's sodality, thirty-eight; the Married Men's sodality, sixty; the Boys and Girls' society, eighteen, and the Conference of St. Vin- cent de Paul society, twenty-seven.
SS. Peter and Paul's Congregation. - The Catholic pioneers who had settled in Huntington county before the year 1857 were first occasionally visited by priests residing in Fort Wayne, in most cases by Father Julian Benoit. the late prominent vicar-general, and by Father E. M. Faller, now pastor in New Albany. , A little later they were regularly attended from LaGro by Father Ryan. Fran- cis Lafontaine, principal chief of the Miami tribe of Indians, who died April 13, 1847, and is buried in the Catholic cemetery at Huntington, had donated, for the benefit of the congregation, one square, on which first a log house for divine service was erected.
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IN THE STATE OF INDIANA.
Rev. Dr. A. Schippert was the first resident priest. He stayed from March, 1857, until August, 1858. Rev. Schippert was a native of the kingdom of Wurtemberg and a convert from Luther- anism. In a railroad wreck one of his legs became fractured, and the permanent injury resulting therefrom made missionary labor impossible. Divine . Providence procured for him a position as teacher of the French language at a young ladies' academy in Inns- bruck, where the present pastor of Sts. Peter and Paul, then a student, sometimes saw him limping on the sidewalk toward his school.
The immediate successor of Father Schippert was Rev. Fred- erich Fuchs, born in Muenster, the capital city of Westphalia. Before he was received into the diocese of Fort Wayne, he had been a successful worker in the city of Cincinnati, where his talent and zeal are held in grateful memory up to this day. No sooner had Father Fuchs received his pastorate than he opened a paro- chial school in the same frame building and the same room where divine service was being held. He also succeeded in erecting a priest-house, being glad, as he used to say, that at last " the fox " had found shelter. After a stay of five years he left Huntington for Klaasville, in Lake county, to see if his seriously afflicted health could be recuperated in a steadier climate. This hope was not realized, as Father Fuchs died only a few weeks later. His remains were interred in the Klaasville cemetery. Delegates were sent from Huntington to have the earthly remains of their beloved pastor brought to their town; yet the good people could not be prevailed upon to part with what was left of one whom they had learned in so short a time to love dearly and to esteem highly.
From the end of August until the beginning of December, 1863, Rev. Martin Kink had charge of the congregation as acting pastor. In later years he returned to Bavaria, his native country, where he died a few years ago after a protracted corporal and mental disease.
In December, 1863, Rev. Jacob Mayer was appointed pastor of SS. Peter and Paul's. He built a large church at a cost of about $30,000, of which sum he left $9, 564 to his successor to pay. Father Mayer worked with indefatigable zeal five years in Hunt-
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ington, until August, 1868. He was then transferred to Logans- port, where he started a German congregation.
The next pastor was Rev. George Steiner, born in New Ulm, Bavaria, April 13, 1836. He at once entrusted Sisters of Notre Dame, Milwaukee, with the charge of the parochial school, com- pleted the church steeple, and, in 1873, built a large and substan- tial school-house, together with a Sisters' convent, at a cost of $17,000. He suffered a hemorrhage of the lungs whilst chanting at the cathedral during holy week in 1876. He never regained his health, but after four years of patient lingering died June 1, 1880, and was buried on the day following in Albuquerque, N. Mex., whither he had gone in search of health. Father Steiner had resigned his pastorate in the beginning of January, 1880, and Rev. J. H. Hueser became his successor. In later years Bishop Dwenger honored the congregation by raising the pastor to the position of an irremovable rector. The congregation had deserved such an honor, as they had erected fine church and school build- ings under Fathers Mayer and Steiner, and shown the same good spirit under Father Hueser, who, from 1880 to 1897, spent $77,042 by way of current expenses, $14,238 in discharge of old debts and interest, and $37,921 for repairs and improvements, so that the expenses in all amounted to $129,201. The principal improve- ments are two furnaces for church, for $700; high altar, for $2, 300; three bells, for $1, 350; renovating and frescoing church, for $6,000; new priest-house, for $9,000; new organ, for $3,700; ten painted glass windows, from the Tyrolese Art Glass company, for $5, 140; tuckpointing church and veneering its foundation, for $1, 300; new cemetery, for $3,350. The present debt of the congregation amounts to $3,600.
The number of families attending SS. Peter and Paul church is about 200. The following societies and confraternities are rep- resented: Holy Angels' Little sodality; Young Men's St. Francis de Sales sodality; The Children of Mary (the Young Ladies' sodal- ity); the archconfraternity of Christian Mothers; St. Joseph's society of Men; the Sacred league; the Third Order of St. Francis of Assisi; the Benevolent legion, and the Knights of St. John.
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IN THE STATE OF INDIANA.
INDIANAPOLIS, MARION COUNTY.
Assumption Church, at Indianapolis, was organized in 1894, with a congregation of sixty families, and was dedicated August 12, 1894, by Rt. Rev. Bishop Francis Silas Chatard. It is a frame structure, 40 x 100 feet, has a seating capacity for 450 persons, and cost about $6,000. Dr. E. J. Brennen was the donor of the stations of the cross; Joseph A. Rink presented the altar, and M. O'Connor and others contributed the vestments. The erection of the church, parsonage and school-edifices was' superintended by the present worthy pastor, Rev. Joseph F. Weber, who now has in his care a congregation of 120 families. The school-building is 60 x 70 feet in size, is two stories high, with a basement, and has a seating capacity for 220 pupils, the present enrolment being 253, who are under the instruction of six Sisters of St. Benedict. The church property is in the western part of the city and meas- ures 320 feet frontage, with a depth of 160 feet.
Rev. Joseph F. Weber was born in Ripley county, Ind., Feb- ruary 6, 1865, a son of Frank and Josephine (Hamerley) Weber, the former of whom was born in Germany and the latter in the United States-the father being now a retired merchant and hav- ing his home with his son, Rev. Joseph F. In his youth, Father Weber attended the Jesuit college at Cincinnati, Ohio, three terms, or until he was seventeen years of age, and then entered St. Mein- rad's college, in Spencer county, Ind., where he finished his studies, and was ordained priest June 19, 1889, by Bishop Cha- tard. He was then appointed assistant at St. John's church, Indi- napolis, where for five and a half years he ably and zealously per- formed the functions pertaining to his position, and was then placed in charge of Assumption parish, where his labors have been crowned with blessed results, as recorded above. -
St. Anthony's Church. - Ground was broken for the construc- tion of this edifice August 14, 1890, and the corner-stone was laid by the Rev. F. H. Gavisk, September 16, 1890. The church- building was blessed February 1, 1891, by the Right Rev. Mgr. Aug. Bessonies, V. G., assisted by Revs. Gavisk and Dowd, and
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after the dedicatory services, solemn mass was celebrated by the Very Rev. Anthony Scheideler, V. G. Father Gavisk preached a very appropriate sermon on the occasion, taking for his text the words of the Psalmist, "I have rejoiced to-day to go into the house of the Lord," thus closing the ceremonies.
St. Anthony's church-building is valued at $8,000. Since its érection a rectory, valued at $4,000, has been built, and also a Sisters' residence, which cost about the same amount. The paro- chial school, in the basement of the church, is in charge of the Sisters of Providence, six in number, the first superioress, Sister Charlotte, having been prominently identified with the educational work of the diocese of Vincennes for many years, and being still at the head of the school. The pupils number about 150, are instructed from the primary to the seventh grade, and are edu- cated in vocal and instrumental music, church history, catechism, etc., beside the ordinary common-school studies. The congrega- tion has grown from sixty to 200 families, under the administra- tion of Rev. Francis B. Dowd, the present pastor, whose piety and eloquence have bound them together in peace and harmony, and who never tires in his labors for their spiritual and temporal welfare.
St. Bridget's Church, in the northwest portion of the city of Indianapolis, was founded by a body of Catholics who had been members of St. John's congregation. The ground on which the church parsonage and school now stand was bought in April, 1879, for $3,600, and on the 22d day of June, in the same year, the cor- ner-stone of the sacred edifice was laid, and the church blessed January 1, 1880. It is an ornament to the portion of the city in which it stands; its ground measurement is 106 x 44 feet and the cost of its erection was fully $11,000. At that time the congrega- tion numbered about 140 families, who were placed under the care of the Rev. Daniel Curran, its first and only pastor to the present time. Father Curran has had many difficulties to contend with, but he has labored faithfully and energetically and has built up the congregation substantially. For the first two months of his incumbency he lived in the vestry-room of the church, then for (304)
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IN THE STATE OF INDIANA.
about eleven months in the house of the bishop, then rented a cot- tage near the church, and finally, in December, 1881, took pos- session of the parsonage, which had been erected for the modest sum of $1,000.
Father Curran, in July, 1880, induced the Sisters of St. Fran- cis, of Oldenburg, to secure teachers for his school and also to erect a building suitable for school purposes. This building, which is complete in every respect, cost not less than $11,000, and was finished and blessed January 2, 1881. The Sisters of St. Francis, now in charge, number nine, with Sister Helena as directress, and the enumeration of scholars is 266; there is, beside, attached to this church, a school known as St. Ann's, attended by sixty colored pupils, who are also in charge of the Sisters of St. Francis. The instruction in these schools is thorough and comprehensive, and includes lessons in music, both vocal and instrumental.
Rev. Daniel Curran is a native of Ireland, was born in Crusheen, county Clare, September 9, 1841, and came to Amer- ica with his parents in 1850. He was ordained priest at Indian- apolis, by Bishop de St. Palais, September 6, 1874, and had his first mission at Greensburg, Decatur county, Ind., where he remained until July 28, 1877, when he was called to Indianapolis by the Very Rev. August Bessonies, administrator of the diocese, and here was assistant at St. John's church until appointed by Bishop Chatard to his present charge.
The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the convent of the reverend Franciscan Fathers connected therewith are located at the corner of Union and Palmer streets, Indianapolis. The parish consists of those German families which live south of McCarty street, and at present it is the largest German parish in the city of Indianapolis.
The Rev. Father Simon Siegrist, rector of St. Mary's church, several years before his death, earnestly desired that the reverend Franciscan Fathers, whom he held in high esteem, should conie to Indianapolis to take charge of St. Mary's church. His request, however, could not be granted. In the course of time the Right Rev. Bishop de St. Palais found it necessary to establish another
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German parish in Indianapolis. St. Mary's congregation becom- ing too large, its boundaries lying too far apart, and the church being too small, Father Siegrist again urged that the Franciscan Fathers should come to Indianapolis. Finally, at the chapter of the Franciscan province of the Sacred Heart in St. Louis, it was decided to permanently establish a house of the order, and so organize a new German parish in Indianapolis.
July 14, 1875, the first five Fathers came to Indianapolis, namely: Rev. Fathers Alardus Andrescheck, Vincentius Halfas, Pau- * cratius Schulte, Arsenius Fahle and Francis Moenning. Their first home was in the old academic building at the corner of Cap- itol avenue and Georgia street. They set to work at once. In August, 1875, the entire block on the northwest corner of Union and Palmer streets was purchased for the new congregation. The place has 420 feet front and is 182 feet deep. The erection of a large house, to be used as a church, school and convent, was begun immediately. On September 19, 1875, the corner-stone was laid with imposing ceremonies. The Very Rev. Bede O'Connor, O. S. B., then vicar-general of the diocese, held the panegyric in Ger- man and English. These were his last sermons, for a short time afterward he died suddenly.
December 25 of the same year, the completed building was dedicated and the Fathers took possession of it. The second story was partly used as a church, the first story as a school, while the third story was practically the convent.
The little parish hardly numbered sixty families. These, however, showed their good will by holding together and making heroic sacrifices to keep up church and convent. Frank Adler presented a bell, and Charles Wagner, then a young man, took the task upon himself of collecting money for another. The good women of the parish, also, did much to embellish the interior of the little church. Rev. Father Alardus was very zealous in advancing the congregation, and to instil into the hearts of his people love for their little church.
In 1877 Rev. Father Alardus bade farewell as pastor of the Sacred Heart church, and Rev. Father Ferdinand Bergmeyer, O. F. M., was appointed as his successor.
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During nine long years, this reverend Father labored zealously for the welfare of the congregation, which greatly increased in membership every year. It was soon noticed that that part of the monastery which was being used as a church could not accommo- date all the faithful. But it was too difficult to begin the erection of a new church. The Fathers, at the beginning of their career in Indianapolis, had to struggle with many obstacles. The grounds on which the church and convent were built cost $10,000, but when the monastery was being built unscrupulous contractors seriously deceived them. The purchase of another plat of ground, for a new school-building, turned out to be a fraud. The debts of the congregation, therefore, accumulated largely, and in 1876 they reached the enormous sum of $35,000. The Fathers worked strenuously to diminish this sum, and several times they made col- lections from other parts for this purpose. When, therefore, in 1882, the debts were as yet quite large, and, on this account, the people did not dare to begin the erection of a new church, Rev. Father Ferdinand informed his congregation that the Franciscan order would take care of the balance of the debt. A subscription list, toward the building of a new church, was started at once. The delighted people immediately signed over $6,000 for promoting this purpose.
The venerable Brother Adrian, O. F. M., who has become widely known, from his designing the plans and conducting the erection of more than 100 magnificent church-buildings in all parts of the United States, was called upon to prepare plans and specifi- cations for a new church. The structure was to be in Gothic style, and in the form of a cross, having a length of 168 feet and a width of eighty-eight feet in the transept, and sixty-four feet in the aisles. As the means of the congregation, however, were quite. limited, it was decided not to build the entire church at once, but only a portion, and to complete the edifice later on, as means would permit. Accordingly, only the sanctuary and a portion of the nave were built, the whole being 118 feet long by eighty- eight feet wide. July 8, 1883, the corner-stone was laid by the St. Rev. Bishop Francis Silas Chatard, amid a great throng of people, numbering some 15,000. The work on the building was
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