By Gail Peckler-Dziki~Correspondent
“For myself I shall willingly live poorly and be satisfied, but otherwise I am distressed and hurt over my church, my poor St. Patrick’s Chapel.
“When I arrived here and saw it for the first time, it struck me in every limb with fright and dread, and now after half a year, though the sight of it has become more habituated, I am obliged to sigh whenever I read Mass therein or conduct divine services.
“It is a log church with a roof and walls which are bound together with mud and clay. It appears uninviting and to me it is the ugliest one in Wisconsin that houses the most Holy Lord. I found not a thread of vestments in it, and if any had been there, no nail to hang them on. All was bare, deserted and empty.”
So wrote Father Francis Xavier Etchmann, founding priest of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, located on Highway X in Brighton.
St. Francis Xavier did begin as St. Patrick’s as prayer in the homes of original Brighton residents, Michael Ward and Patrick McGuire. And it all began 175 years ago, while Wisconsin was still a territory and there was no archdiocese in Milwaukee. The 16 original members of this church were true pioneers.
The Irish came to Brighton first. Some came straight from the Emerald Isle, others stopped off at points east before heading to Brighton.
Mary Ann Ward Decatur, descendent of Michael Ward, explained, “Many were drawn to this part of Wisconsin because it shared some geographic similarities to Ireland. Many were farmers and this area was agricultural. Ireland was rocky, this area was rocky.”
Mary Ann is involved in the celebration, planned for April 20 and 21, and still lives in the original home of Michael Ward. She explained that Catholics that came from Ireland, Germany, Amsterdam and Luxemburg gathered in her forebear’s home and that of McGuire as early as 1838.
In 1838, a young Irish priest named Father Patrick O’Kelly came to the area of Brighton (which was then known as Salem) to conduct the first Mass. In 1848, the log church to which so distressed Father Etchman, was replaced with a wooden frame church, which stood until May 18, 1883, when a cyclone destroyed it.
It was only a few days after that cyclone that the members of St. Patrick’s met and began planning a new church, the one now standing. By now, German immigrants joined the Irish at St. Patricks. After some controversy and negotiation, the name was changed to St. Francis Xavier, after Father Etchman.
There was still some division, since those of Irish descent sat on the left side of the church facing the stained glass window of St. Patrick, while those of German descent sat on the other side, where the stained glass window of St. Boniface was placed. Mary Ann joked that she still sits on the Irish side.
This hardy parish began with 16 members and is spiritual home to 216 families today. That’s quite an accomplishment in a town with just over 1,500 residents. And this community of faith has weathered fires, terrible weather conditions, various economic downturns, pestilence and disease.
St. Francis Xavier has a lot to celebrate and they plan to start a celebration on April 20 and 21, with a grand finale on Sept. 19. And they want anyone and everyone to come help them.
For more information, call the St. Francis Xavier Parish office at 878-2267. The email address is [email protected].