St. Mary (New Hampton, Iowa)

St. Mary (New Hampton, Iowa)

"Saint Mary Parish is the second parish to be founded in New Hampton. Its beginning is unusual. The school was established and in operation for three years before the first church was built. The German speaking parents in Saint Joseph Parish wanted their children to receive religious instruction in German so that they could assist in teaching their children. If we review the resident pastors of Saint Joseph’s, we realize it must have been English speaking from its beginning: Father Burke, Gosker, Leahy, and Reilly. In 1890 the German Catholics established a parochial school. The first teachers were laymen. In March 1892 land was purchased for the building of a church, which was completed the next summer. On the feast of the Visitation, July 2, 1894, Father Bernard H. Forkenbrock was appointed pastor."

-Rev. Msgr. Edgar Kurt, Parish Profile #151, The Witness, November 28, 1989.

The Archdiocese of Dubuque.
The Center for Dubuque History at Loras College.

Loras College
Kucera Center for Catholic Thought
Frank and Ida Goedken Series: "Spiritual Life in the Upper Mississippi River Valley"

Burback, Emily. Burns, Daniel. Gibson, Michael. Oberfoell, Carol. Waldmeir, Helen. Waldmeir, John.

English.

Various primary and secondary sources

2 July, 1894-30 October, 2013
History of the parish over the span of 119 years, including information about its priests and parishioners.

CLOSING/MERGER DOCUMENTS (6 documents)
PARISH HISTORY (4 documents)
Financial statements (3 documents)
Newspaper articles (3 documents)
Jubilee/Anniversary news and articles (4 documents)
Parish news (2 documents)

Unknown photographer. Satellite image of former church lot. Unknown date.