Religions in Portage County

The Religions of Portage County

Catholic Churches

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This particular report is being written mainly as an assignment from Dr. Maurice E. Perret, but the author hopes that it will be of some help to any person who may want to know, for curiosities sake or for any other reasons, the history of the churches in Portage County.

Due to the lack of the means of transportation, the author was forced to concentrate the majority of’ the paper on the churches around the city which are within easy reach. Information on some churches in the county could not be obtained. The author had written a letter to each particular minister of all the churches in existence in the county outside the city. But somehow, through negligence or forgetfulness on the ministers’ part, replies from some churches were not received. Because of these reasons, the history and description on some of these churches are not as complete or satisfactory as their counterparts in the city.

The author relies heavily on conversations with every ministers and nuns he could get hold of’, on letters, especially that of Miss W. M. Wysocki, and newsletter being sent from some pastors, and on the following books for materials and references: The History of Portage County, Volume 1, published in 1919; Our County Our Story by Mr. Malcolm Rosholt; The Stevens Point Daily Journal; Early History of Amherst; the publications on the Diamond Jubilee occasions of St. Stephen’s, St. Peter’s and St. Martin’s at Ellis, and the Millennium of Christianity in Poland published in 1966.

The author would like to thank the followings for making this paper possible: the Rev. V. H. Holtan, the Rev. Stanley Lightfoot, the Rev Conrad L. Kimbrough, the Rev. Thomas E. Mullen, Sister Eulodia and Sister Jane Francis, and a very special thank to the Rev. A. P. Tidemann who gave up five hours of his precious time driving the author around most of the eastern portion of the county.

This problem concerning the religions of Portage County can almost be based solely on the different ethnic backgrounds of its residence. In order to deal with each particular religion, the paper will be divided into many segments, each dealing with one religion. Otherwise the paper will be of great confusion to anyone who attempts to read it.

(A brief history of Portage County was included in this paper. We have edited it out. -- Webmaster)

Catholicism is undoubtedly the most predominant religion of all, and it is therefore appropriate to discuss it first. Because it is such a large denomination, the majority of the paper will be devoted in discussing it. As have been noted in the introduction, the problem can almost be based solely on the ethnic backgrounds of the people. As was also said, more than half of the population in Portage County is of Polish ancestry and almost everyone, with a few exceptions, are Catholics. In order to make it more clear and easier to understand the process of the development of the Catholic religion in Portage County, it will be better if we go back and examine the history of Polish migration to the county.

Most of the Polish emigrants to Portage County came from German-Poland, that is Prussia, especially from the districts around Poznan and Danzig. Immigrants from this area were apt to speak some German and it also appears that on first arriving in the United States they considered themselves a trifle above their compatriots who may have come from Russia or Austrian-Poland. This was a natural assumption because Germany under Bismarck had risen to a first-class power in Europe within the space of a single decade.

It is generally agreed that Michael von Koziczkowski was the first Polish immigrant to settle in Portage County in 1857. On the strength of letters written to friends and relatives in Poland, Koziczkowski induced others to come to Portage County. Most of the Polish newcomers settled in the towns of Sharon and Stockton and formed a colony where they could be neighbors to one another. Out of this nucleus grew the most important Polish-American agricultural settlement in Wisconsin. Among the newcomers were Joseph Denckee, Joseph Platta, John Scendas and others. But the Civil War discouraged large scale migration among Europeans to America and it was not until after the 1870’s that the number of Polish immigrants increased to a point where it could be said that they were definitely making up a separate ethnic community in the county.

One hundred and seventeen years ago, a small group of pioneer families took preliminary steps towards organization of a parish out of which grew eighteen congregations to serve thousands of Roman Catholics today in Portage County.

The first Catholic mass was celebrated for the Catholics, mostly Irish and German, in Stevens Point in May, 1853 in a school house on Clark Street. During the following years Father Godfrey of St. Marie, from Green Lake County, attended the spiritual wants of the Catholics in Stevens Point. Mass were celebrated in different homes of Mrs. James Barnett, Mr. Brabant, Mr. Mat Simmons and others. Later they rented a shop from, Martin Perkins on North Second Street where mass was celebrated for sometime. In 1856, when the Catholics in Stevens Point became more numerous, funds were raised to purchase a sit and build a church. An acre of land was bought at the corner of Clark and Cross streets, and the Catholic community began immediately to erect there a church they named St. Stephen’s. Father McGee was its first pastor.

In 1860, Rev. John Polack became the pastor. He was the first Polish priest in Stevens Point, and probably was the first Polish priest in the United States. He was born of noble parents in Poland in 1818, but came to this country because of the difficulties with the Prussian Administration in his native land. He did much to encourage the Polish people to settle in Portage County. While serving at St. Stephen’s from 1860 to 1862, he also presided over the congregation at St. Martin’s in Ellis.

On January 12th, 1866, The Rev. M. Schwebach, having been appointed pastor at this time, bought two lots of land at the corner of Clark and Pine streets, moved the priest house from where the first church was built and erected the present St. Stephen’s

Under the pastorate of the Rev. Nicholas July, which began in 1874 and continued for thirteen years, the congregations of St. Peter’s was formed in 1876, St. Joseph’s in 1885 and later St. Mary’s of Custer. Their memberships were detached from St. Stephen’s.

Father Hogan came here on December 13th, 1919, and preparation for a new church was begun. The cornerstone was laid on October 17th, 1920 and the basement altar was used for mass on Christmas Day of the same year. The superstructure was completed and mass was celebrated for the first time on October 28tn, 1923. The present stone church, the third built by the congregation, was a departure architecturally from most Catholic churches. It follows the pattern of Norman Gothic.

A citywide system of parochial schools, mainly of Roman Catholic denomination, originated with the first parochial grade school established in 1873 in connection with St. Stephen’s Church.

The present pastor of the church is the Rev. Thomas E. Mullen with the Rev. Joseph M. Irvin as his assistant.

In 1857, Peter Eiden, a German immigrant, donated a piece of his claim for the site of a church to be built to accommodate the needs the Catholics, mostly German and Irish, who found it hard to walk to St. Stephen’s to worship. Thus St. Martin’s was built in that same year, It was a building made of hued logs, a structure twenty by thirty foot with the logs and lumbers donated by these sincere people. A box stove was used for heating. By 1865, this building was too small to accommodate the ever increasing number of worshippers, so the congregation decided to build a bigger church in 1866 which still stands today. The congregation was composed of German, French, Irish and Polish immigrants. The church is relatively simple with wooden frame. It can seat a maximum of about a hundred people. The present pastor is the Rev. Stanley Andrzejewski.

By 1863, the number of Polish families at Ellis rose to forty-four, and crowded St. Martin’s to overflowing. They petitioned Bishop Henni of Milwaukee to permit the organization of a Polish congregation. The Bishop approved heartily and sent them the Rev. Banaventure Buczynski the following year.

Father Buczynski helped organized a new church called St. Joseph’s, on a site not far from St. Martin’s

The main cultural bulwark of the Polish newcomers to the county was the Catholic church. It gave the people a sense of belonging to a continuous culture which had been interrupted briefly by the transition to America and to help bridge the gap between the old and the new in their lives. The center of this Polish culture was at Polonia because the largest congregation of Polish Catholics developed there, and because it was the heart of the Polish farming community.

Sacred Heart Church at Polonia originated in 1864 as a result of a split in St. Joseph’s Church at Ellis because of frequent disturbances of the peace and rowdyism in adjacent saloons. Part of the congregation at St. Joseph’s agreed with their pastor, the Rev. Joseph Dabrowski, to leave the church and build a new one a mile and a half to the east near a new post office called Polonia. St. Joseph’s then became known as the "condemned" church and eventually closed.

Unfortunately, the church was destroyed by a fire in 1875, but work commenced within a few months on a new and larger church which, though in use before 1884 was not completed until that year. This second church, built of local stone and capped by parallel steeples, served until 1902 when it was replaced by a larger structure, strongly reminisced the European cathedrals, and reputedly to be the largest rural Catholic church in the United States. Standing near the apex of the terminal moraine, it could be seen for many miles in all directions. On St. Patrick’s Day, 1934, it was struck by lightning and partially burned. As a result it had to be razed and was replaced by the modern building which was located on the opposite side of the street facing north. Its present pastor is the Rev. Joseph J. Schulist.

This next paragraph will be devoted to discuss about Father Dabrowski who had done so much for the Catholics in the county. Born in Lublin, Poland, in 1842 he joined a regiment of students and faculty, he himself being a student at the University of Warsaw, to fight against Russia for Polish freedom in 1863. When the uprising failed, he escaped from Poland to Switzerland where he managed to complete his studies at the University of Lucerne. With the persuasion of Bishop Melcher of Green Bay he came to the United States in 1869. Father Dabrowski had not been long in the United States when he realized that education was the greatest need of his scattered, isolated and religion-famished brethren. Soon after dismantling St. Joseph’s in "Poland Corner" he set aside the largest room in his rectory for a school. He himself taught most of the subjects and printed most of the books. He requested that the Felician sisters were sent to help teach the pupils, and overjoyed when five sisters showed up.

Almost from his first moments in this new land, Father Dabrowski saw the great need for Polish priests in the United States. Polish immigrants were coming in by the thousands and had no priests to care for their spiritual needs. American bishops were constantly appealing to Cardinal Ledochowski, Prefect of the Propagation of faith in Rome, to send Polish priests to America. The Cardinal proposed that the bishops start a seminary for the training of Polish priests. It fell to Father Dabrowski to start this seminary. In 1882, the Felician Sisters moved to Detroit and father Dabrowski asked to leave Polonia and go with the sisters as their chaplain. Detroit then became the locale of his greatest accomplishment, the founding of Sts. Cyril and Methodius Seminary for the training of Polish priests

Despite the dishonor which fell to St. Joseph’s Church at Ellis Street, it was nevertheless the first Polish Catholic church established in the county. The second Polish Catholic congregation was established in 1874 by the Rev. Joseph Dabrowski who was sent back to Portage County to establish yet another Polish Catholic Church. As many farmers lived to the north of the city and had no nearby place of worship, the new church was built in the town of Hull, about four miles north of Stevens Point. This was named St. Casimir’s Church, popularly called "the Chapel" because of its small size and dimension. This church still exists today with the Rev. F. J. Bzostowicz as pastor.

As Stevens Point was growing larger, and embraced a sizeable Polish population, Bishop Henni sent Father Bogacki here in June of 1876 to organize a third Polish Catholic church. At a meeting attended by about fifty Polish families, it was agreed that a new parish, to be called St. Peter’s, would be built. In August 1876, work was started on a church structure, which cost $3,000. This was a wooden, frame building that was improved and remodeled in later years to become a fine substantial structure. Father Lex was the pastor from 1884 to 1888. During that time he improved the church immensely, veneering the wooden structure with brick and renovating the exterior. He also instituted the first parochial school in St. Peter’s history. In. 1887, he purchased a wooden public school building from the city, along with four lots on Washington Avenue for $l,000. He then arranged with the Sisters of Notre Dame in Milwaukee to teach and operate the school. The building was on story high and provided three classrooms. A fine home for the sisters was erected at a cost of $2,400 in 1890. Two lay teachers were hired in 1895 when the sisters relinquished operating the parish school. But in 1896 the Sisters of St. Francis in Milwaukee took over the school until some years later when the organization of St. Joseph’s convent in Stevens Point was completed and the sisters took over the teaching chores.

Catastrophe struck on the 18th of October, 1896. A fire broke out and consumed both the church and the rectory. The school building was temporarily used to conduct services, until the new church was completed on December 19th, 1897 at the cost of $24,000.

Early in 1901, plans were made for a celebration of the Silver Jubilee. The parish, surviving what proved to be the most turbulent twenty-five years in its history, now owned a new church, a three room wooden school building attended by 241 pupils, a brick home for the sisters who taught in the school, and St. Peter’s cemetery near the river. During that year, the membership embraced 434 families Under the system of membership at that time, the head of the family paid an annual pew rental, the others in the family unit having no obligation to contribute toward the upkeep of the parish if under twenty-one years of age.

Father Pescinski, who came here in 1896, accomplished much during his twelve years with the congregation. He felt that the Catholic school was a very important part of the spiritual welfare of a parish, and with this in mind, he was continually working to organize an order of Polish school sisters who could teach in the various schools of Polish parishes, including St. Peter’s.

Through the untiring efforts of Father Pescinski, Bishop Messmer of Green Bay gave permission for the organization of a community of Polish nuns, the Polish School Sisters of St. Joseph’s. A motherhouse was built in Stevens Point, on Maria Drive, in 1901 with Sister M. Felicia as the first Mother Superior. These sisters taught, and still do, at St. Peter’s School, and in several other parochial schools in Polish communities throughout the United States.

In January of 1904, at the annual meeting, the committee recommended that the parish undertake to construct a new twelve classroom school on the site of the old one. The cost was estimated at $15,000, with a capacity of about 600 students. The new school was dedicated on May 31 7th, 1905.

The parish continued to grow during this period so that by 1914, the seating in the church was inadequate. It was decided then to enlarge the church. The work was completed the next year at a cost of $14,600.

At the annual meeting in 1931, it was again voted to construct a new school building, on the corner of Fourth Avenue and First Street, with the total cost approaching $150,000. Ground was broken on June 25th, 1931 and was dedicated January 3rd, 1932. During the construction, Father Chylinski, the pastor then, could be seen at the site daily, consulting with the contractors, and watching closely the various phases being completed. Construction was carried out to the north of the old school so classes were not discontinued. After the new school was completed, the old structure was razed to make space for a playground. The Boy Scouts of America established a troop in St. Peter’s in May 1937.

Its present pastor and assistants are the Rev. Stanley Andrzejewski and the Rev. John Wisneski and the Rev. John Hodges respectively.

In 1883, the Rev. Nicholas July, pastor of St. Stephen’s, advised with the approval of the Bishop of Milwaukee, that the Germans established their own parish. In the late 1870’s and 1880’s, immigration from Germany, especially from Austria-Hungary, was heavy and rapidly increasing. They were soon joined by immigrants from Bavaria and Silesia.

Few of these immigrants could speak fluent English and they wanted a place to worship where they could have sermons in their own language. A committee of German-speaking Catholics took the initiative and called a meeting of interested persons to form the new parish of St. Joseph’s. Among the leaders were John Frohnauer, Mathias Adams, Mathias Trummer and Joseph Harrer

Two lots of the Warren forty, at the northeast corner or Wyatt Avenue and Jefferson Street, were selected for the new church, and work was begun in July, 1884. The dedication took place on November 16th, 1884.

The first church was a crude attempt at Roman style. Although it was the intention to cover the 40 by 75 foot structure with brick veneer, the project was never realized. The first resident pastor of St. Joseph’s was the Rev. A. Dambacher, who served from November 1886 to March 1867. But during his brief pastorate, a small ramshackle rectory was built to which every succeeding pastor added his "mite" for which reason it was known among the clergy as the "Extension hotel".

In January 1889, Father Stemper took over the pastorate and promptly organized a school. At first it was a German language school. Some of the parishioners preferred English to be taught, but the majority believed that the parish school was built to perpetuate the German tongue. At first, the parents paid tuition for their children in the school, which was operated by the Franciscan sisters of Holy Family in Manitowoc until the Sisters of St. Francis took over the school in 1900. In January 1906, Father Ehr, who came in 1902, called a meeting at which the parishioners voted for a free school

In 1900, St Joseph’s parish suffered a set back from which it never fully recovered. The Old Wisconsin Central Railroad transferred its repair shops, in which a great majority of St. Joseph’s parishioners were employed, to North Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Thus more than eighty families were compelled to sell their little homes at a great sacrifice and move to North Fond du Lac, there being few industries in the city of Stevens Point in which they could find work. The little church that had been overcrowded and of which every available inch was occupied at all services was almost completely abandoned. The attendance at the school dropped from 170 pupils in 1900 to 70 in 1909.

Despite the almost irretrievable loss and with but 75 poverty stricken families left, the parish had progressed slowly but surely. In 1903, the old rectory was completely renovated, remodeled and equipped with modern conveniences. But again disaster struck the parish at dawn on October 26th, 1915, when a fire broke out and the building was totally destroyed. But plans were immediately started for a new church, which was completed in 1917 at a cost of $34,000. Both the interior and exterior architecture are unique and artistic.

In 1925, parishioners established a school building fund, but it made little progress. It was not until 1940 before the way was cleared for the beginning of a new school. A cemetery was started during the pastorate of Father Stemper, North of Main Street and east of the North Frontenac Avenue. Father Finucan is its present pastor, with the Rev. James Barney as his assistant.

As early as 1910, Bishop Fox of the Green Bay Diocese, commissioned the Rev. Michael Klosowski, then chaplain at St. Michael’s Hospital in Stevens Point, to explore the possibilities of organizing a second parish here for the Polish speaking people. But it was not until 1916 did the project begin to take form. A site on North Fremont Street was chosen for the new church. The Rev. Anthony Malkowski of Crivitz was appointed its first pastor. About 600 families, most of them from St. Peter’s, were listed in the new congregation, which was named St. Stanislaus by the Bishop. Until 1918, when the new church was completed, the parishioners continued to attend mass and services at St. Peter’s, which also was to contribute $10.000 to the new parish

By August. 1918, the building was completed at a cost of $32,000. Much of the labor was donated by the parishioners for the Romanesque structure with a seating capacity of more than 600.

The Rev. F. A. Nowak came here from St. Adalbert’s Church in the Town of Alban on June 17th, 1924. During his tenure, St. Stanislaus School was erected west of the church and rectory in 1925 at a cost of $50,000. The modern eight room institution was under the charge of the Sisters of St. Joseph’s of the Third Order of St. Francis. On May 5th, 1937, Bishop Rhode gave his authorization for the parish to borrow $25,000 in order to build a convent for the sisters

By 1949, the parish had increased to 775 families, with nearly 3,000 individuals as members of the congregation. The school, built in 1925, no longer could accommodate the large number of students eligible to attend. For the 1949 school year, it was necessary to turn away nearly 100 students because of limited facilities. But a fund was started immediately to finance a new school, and in October 1, 1950, the modern new building was under construction west of the rectory. On August 19th, 1951, the new 16 room school building was dedicated by Bishop John P. Treacy of the La Cross Diocese. The total cost was a little more than $300,000. In the school year of 1963-1964, St. Stanislaus School reached a peak enrollment of 757 pupils. Presently there are 705 pupil being taught by 12 nuns and 5 lay teachers

Father Francis Piekarski, the present pastor, came here as the fifth pastor of the church on June 4th, 1959. In 1962, a new addition was started on the church at a cost of $150,000.

Several parish societies have been organized since 1917, including St. Joseph’s Society for men, the Rosary Society for Women, the Holy Name Society for men and boys and several other religious societies.

At the present time, St. Peter’s has a membership of about 4,000, St. Stanislaus has 3,500, St. Stephen’s has 3,200 and St. Joseph’s has 2,000, making the Catholic population of Stevens Point a grand total of 12,700 or two thirds of the total city’s population

While we are about to conclude the rather lengthy discussion of the four Catholic churches in Stevens Point and of St. Martin’s and St. Joseph’s at Ellis and Sacred Heart at Polonia, which incidentally also operates a grade school of the same name, it might be added that they do not only limit their supports of parochial school system to grade schools, but also are involved in operating two high schools, Pacelli School for boys and Maria School for girls.

Stevens Point Pacelli School was started in 1955, with the funds raised by the parishes, and being sponsored by the Christian Brothers. Its first principal was Brother F. Daniel, and its present principal is Brother Jerome Steven. The present enrollment is 390 students with 19 teachers of which 9 are lay teachers. The school finances itself through tuition from the students.

While their sister school, Maria High School, is strictly under the sponsorship of the sisters of St. Joseph’s. The school was started in 1922, originally called the St. Joseph’s Academy for Girls, and occupied a portion of the old wing of the convent. The first principal was Sister Alexia supervising about 24 students. As the years progressed the enrollment became larger and larger forcing the sisters to consider building a new school. In 1957, Sister Roselle became the principal of the new school, which was built across the street from the convent. The building cost almost one million dollars, but the financial burden was partly offset by the contributions from the community. The present enrollment is 426 girls taught by 23 teachers or which 3 are lay teachers and 2 are male. The present principal is Sister Bonicella.

The importance of the parochial school system cannot be taken lightly. Without it, the elementary and secondary system of this county, especially of the city of Stevens Point where the majority of the county’s population reside will be in a chaotic situation. Of the 16 elementary schools in the Stevens Point area, there are 6 parochial schools, more than one-third of the total. While there are two parochial high schools; Pacelli for the boys and Maria for girls, as compared to only one public high school: although the enrollment in the public school exceeds the two parochial schools combined.

Having completed the discussion of the Catholic churches in the Stevens Point area, we can now progress to discuss the rest of the Catholic churches in the county. But because they are so much smaller and of less importance than those in the city of Stevens Point, which have been elaborately discussed, we will not go into such detail in studying them. The author also had difficulties in obtaining information on some of these churches, and thus cannot discuss them as intelligently as would otherwise.

St. Mary’s of Mount Carmel in Fancher was organized in 1884 by a group of Polish immigrants. But the church itself was not built until 1905. The proof that it is a Polish church can be seen on the front entrance where three Polish words "Boze Zbaw Polske", or God Save Poland, are inscribed.

It is a very elaborately built church indeed. Although it is not as big as Sacred Heart Church in Polonia, it is, at least to the author, much more beautiful inside. The altar itself is one of the most beautifully designed altars that the author has ever seen. It reaches way up into the dome, which is almost seventy feet in height. The statues and other decorations appear to be very delicate and fragile. The stained glass are very beautiful as seen from the inside.

As in most Catholic churches, St. Mary’s of Mount Cannel has two side altars flanking the main altar. It may as well be mentioned here that a secondary or auxiliary altar has been installed in front of the main altar in every Catholic churches since 1960, so that the priests can face the congregation when they conduct their services. Before this the priests have their backs to the congregation when conducting services. This happened during the Second Vatican Council Meeting held in 1960 under the supervision of Pope John the twenty-third in Rome.

The parish also provides a school for the rural children, having classes up to sixth grade. The classes are held in a small building in front of the home occupied by four nuns who carry the teaching chores. Its present pastor is the Rev. Thaddeus S. Szczerbicki.

St. Bartholomew at Mill Creek was organized in 1883 by the Poles. But the church was not built until 1892, when Father Srydrykowic became the first pastor. Unfortunately, the church burned down in 1932, but a new one was erected the next year. The design is basically in the Roman Gothic style. This building is still being used today.

The present membership is 140 families or about 500 persons. A few of these are retired persons. The present pastor is the Rev. P. F. Rombalski.

St. Adalbert’s in Alban near Rosholt was organized in 1894, again by a group of Polish immigrants. The present church building was constructed in 1935 with Polish words inscribed in front.

The church sponsors a grade school which was recently constructed, but, unfortunately, the number of pupils and teachers could not be obtained. The church itself is quite simple, especially if compared to the very large and elaborate Sacred Heart Church or St. Mary’s of Mount Carmel Church. The altar is also quite simple and low. The present pastor is the Rev. John E. Nowak.

In the 1850’s and 1860’s, a large number of Irish immigrants started coming into Portage County and a small portion settled in the townships of Lanark and Buena Vista. Later on in the 1880’s and 1890’s, most of these Irish settlements centered around the church of St. Patrick’s which was built in 1888, and it still stands today.

The church is relatively simple, a departure from the usual Roman Gothic style which is so common among the Catholic churches, wooden frame and white in color. Not only is the architecture departs from the usual style, there are only two altars, a main and a side altar, instead of three. The capacity is about 250.

St. James’ Church was built in 1949, the newest church in this area, that is the Catholic churches. The author assumes that it was organized before this date, but the date inscribed on one corner stone is 1949. The reason that the church was built only recently was because the area was primarily settled by Norwegians. But since the 1920’s when more and more Poles started to migrate out to that part of the county. When the number of Catholics were sufficiently large, the demand for a church started, and in 1949, St. James’ was built. But unlike other churches, which had their resident pastor soon after the churches were built, the first resident pastor for St. James’ did not come until 1967. He is the Rev. Ernest Kaim who still remains at the church today.

St. Bronislava’s Catholic Church (Plover) was organized in 1896 by the Poles. In 1897, the church was built with the Rev. S. A. Kaspert as its first pastor. But it was burned down in 1910, and the new church sprang up within the same year. The church has a seating capacity of 425 to serve a huge congregation which numbers 450 families or about 2,300 persons. The present pastor is the Rev. Francis Przybyski who has been serving the church since 1953. Polish was used in the services until twelve years ago when English was introduced.

The last two Catholic churches in the county are St. Michael’s, which was organized in 1885, in Junction City and Guardian Angel Catholic Church in Almond. Unfortunately, the author could not obtain any information on these two churches and could not, therefore, intelligently discuss them.