St. John the Evangelist Church and School
McCracken County, McCracken County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
St. John the Evangelist Church and School. Roots of the first Catholic parish in McCracken Co. go back to German immigrants who settled in this area about 1839. Fr. Elisha Durbin said Mass in homes until log church was built in 1849. A frame church was built in 1869 & used until the present church was dedicated in 1933. Extensive renovation was completed in 2006. (Reverse) First school on site was called “Spring School” and was used to prepare children for sacraments, with students being taught by priests and lay persons. Sisters of Charity operated the grade school from 1900-12 and Sisters of Mercy serving from 1913-92. High school curriculum offered from 1938-65. Grade school closed in 2008.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
The first Catholic parish in McCracken County grew from German immigrants who settled the area around 1839, worshiping in homes where the missionary priest Elisha Durbin said Mass until a log church rose in 1849. Frame and then permanent churches followed, the present building dedicated in 1933. Its school began as the "Spring School" and was staffed for most of the twentieth century by the Sisters of Charity and the Sisters of Mercy before closing in 2008.
Why it matters
The parish records the arrival of German Catholic settlers on the western Kentucky frontier and the central role women religious played in educating generations of American children.
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Related people
- · Elisha Durbin
Themes & tags
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