St. Mary’s Church was founded in 1858, to serve the Catholic, German-speaking immigrants who had come to this area. The Church has grown from 25 families at its founding to approximately 1,714 families in 2008.
The first church was begun at the corner of Third and Henry Streets in November 1858, and was completed in May 1859. It was destroyed by a tornado in June, 1860.
The second church was begun in July 1861, and completed in December 1862.
The current church was begun in 1891, and completed in the summer of 1895. The old church was remodeled into a schoolhouse, which was replaced by the current school in 1930.
A complete renovation of the interior of the church was done in 1989 – 1993.
Suddes Hall was completed as an addition to the school in 2001. The school was expanded to include the old St. Matthew’s School on Milton Road as a middle school in 2006.
The parish is in the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, and has been staffed and served by the Oblates of the Virgin Mary since 1987.
Many current members of the parish are the sixth generation of the original members of the parish.
Remastered in English in 2021 (PDF)