Celebrating In Shoals
Rising well before dawn, Bishop Charles C. Thompson headed north from Evansville on Sunday, Feb. 18 to celebrate 8 a.m. Mass at St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Shoals. By the time he arrived at the little church on High Street, a bright winter sun was already melting away the morning frost.
This was the bishop’s first visit to the Martin County church, which was built in 1869.
“It was quite a pleasure to celebrate Mass with the good people of St. Mary’s parish,” Bishop Thompson said. “Although quite early in the morning, the beautiful countryside and small community made quite an impression on me. The parishioners seemed to be very gentle, hospitable and strong in spirit. They pray well together, and their witness of Catholic faith would be most inspiring to anyone who might decide to join them in worship or service.”
Bishop Thompson was assisted during the Mass by Father Joseph Erbacher, pastor of the Catholic Churches of Martin County (St. John, Loogootee; St. Joseph, Bramble; St. Martin, Whitfield; and St. Mary, Shoals). While the service and reception that followed were held at St. Mary’s, several of those in attendance mentioned that they consider all four Martin County churches part of one larger worship community.
“Since the clustering (of parishes back in 1998), we’ve gotten to know lots and lots more people than we did,” said long-time St. Mary parishioner Bruce Hawkins. “It’s worked really well.”
Father Erbacher credits the success of the Martin County Churches to the collaborative spirit of parishioners. “It’s really a volunteer community,” he said. “People all work together very well, and that’s wonderful.”
While the church building at St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception was erected in 1869, the history of the parish actually dates back to 1853, when Clement J. Horsey deeded 10 lots to Bishop St. Palais of the Diocese of Indianapolis “as a site for Catholic Church and for the benefit of the Catholics of this vicinity.” Mr. Horsey was a non-Catholic who hoped that allowing a church to be built on his property might increase the value of the surrounding land.
The simple 30- by 60-foot church with stone foundation was completed under the guidance of Father Louis Gueguen. A two-story frame rectory was built in 1878 at a cost of $500, but was later destroyed by fire.
The rectory-residence, built in 1896 and 1897, was razed in 1988, and construction of a new parish hall was completed on Nov. 1, 1988. An open house/dedication was held in January 1989.
During the summer and fall of 1999, the pews were removed and refinished, the kneeling pads were replaced, some new lights were installed and the church interior was repaired, painted and carpeted. The exterior was restored to the original brick, new windows were installed in the sacristy and new doors were installed in the basement and the sacristy.
Bishop Emeritus Gerald A. Gettelfinger celebrated a morning Mass on Sunday, Oct. 24, 1999, in honor of the church’s 130th anniversary, followed by a reception that was similar to the one Bishop Thompson enjoyed on Sunday. Asked about his time spent talking with and sharing breakfast with the people of St. Mary and the other Martin County churches, Bishop Thompson said he enjoyed getting to know such “good, de-cent people.”
“I was particularly happy to hear various wonderful comments about all that Father Erbacher has done for St. Mary’s and the Catholic community throughout Martin County,” he said.
