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IMMACULATA HISTORY
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1906 |
December 8, Feast of the Immaculate Conception - At a mass meeting of the Sodality, Fr. C.J. Shyne, S.J., presents his plan: the students should endeavor to obtain funds from the alumni to build a fitting chapel in honor of the Immaculate Conception. The plan was to find 300 subscribers of $100 or more. It was entirely successful. [Fr. Cornelius Shyne (1861-1943) is buried in Mt. Calvary Cemetery in the Jesuit section east of the center circle.] |
| 1907 |
December 9 - On a cold winter's day, the cornerstone is laid for Immaculata Chapel by Right Reverend Thomas F. Lillis, Bishop of Leavenworth, one of Bishop Miage's successors. |
1908 |
 October 18 - Permission is given for Holy Mass to be celebrated in the still unfinished chapel; Fr. Kuhlman, S.J., stresses in his sermon the necessity of building an Immaculata in the heart, one that would last for all eternity.
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1909 |
 May 23 - Immaculata Chapel is dedicated. It is built of native grey limestone, a jewel of Gothic architecture. The main altar of Italian Carrara marble is the work of the Joseph Sibbel Studio of New York as are the six-foot ivory and white Stations of the Cross. The Immaculate Conception statue is from Genoa, Italy. The magnificent stained glass windows are from the Franz Meyer Glass Company in Munich, Germany, produced by old glassmaking methods lost for centuries and rediscovered in the 1850's. [Note: The Immaculata was not a parish church; as the private chapel of a men's college (and later a seminary), parish functions such as marriages rarely took place there and only with special permission. Instead, the Immculata became known as "Mother of Priests" of which 1,000 would be ordained within her walls.]
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1926 |
The marble Sacred Heart and St. Joseph's altars are added to the Immaculata Chapel, the gift of friends and alumni of St. Mary's, as is the Father Shyne Organ, built by the Wicks Organ Company and installed in the Immaculata choir loft just below the Rose window. "Given in 1926 in honor of the B.V.M. and in grateful remembrance of Rev. C. A. Shyne, S.J., and the College Sodalists who built the Immaculata." |
| 1948 |
St. Mary's College celebrates the centenary of its founding. On June 14, in the Immaculata, 39 Jesuits are ordained to the priesthood by the Most Reverend Joseph E. Ritter, S.T.D., Archbishop of St. Louis. Since 1931, 700 priests have been ordained in the Immaculata. |
| 1967 |
 Summer - The Jesuits leave St. Mary's. The Jesuit superiors decided to move the Theologate of the Missouri Province back to St. Louis. A large auction is held, the highlight of which is the historic bishop's chair, hand carved in 1878 [it returned to St. Mary's in 1978]. The place known as St. Mary's Mission and St. Mary's College seems to sleep. Silence closes over the classrooms, the dorms, the refectory - and especially over the empty Immaculata where Our Lord no longer dwells in the tabernacle of the marble altar and the voices of students and seminarians are no longer lifted for the glory of God. During part of these silent years, an old brother caretaker stays on in the Infirmary building. |
| 1972 |
May 23 - In a ceremony that takes place on the porch of the Faculty Building, the use of St. Mary's is returned by the Jesuits to the Prairie Band of the Potawatomi, who requested it to be given to them. The land and buildings are given in trust for the purpose of developing them into an Indian cultural and educational center open to all tribes. Plans include a home for aged Indians, day care center, vocational school, and alcoholic treatment center. None of these plans materialize, and by about 1975, the Jesuits have St. Mary's again on the market. |
| 1977 |
Autumn - Traditional Catholics discover St. Mary's and begin attempting to interest the Society of St. Pius X in it. At the invitation of a local dentist, Dr. Eugene McKenzie, priests come from what was the the U.S. District Headquarters on the East Coast and have a look at St. Mary's, but decline. |
| 1978 |
 May 22 - His Grace Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre inspects St. Mary's and especially admires the Immaculata Chapel. It is because of this magnificent church that he urges Fr. Bolduc to continue negotiations and find the means to acquire St. Mary's for a traditional Catholic center. The chapel seems to him a symbol, raised up in the heart of America, and destined to favor the Catholic renaissance of our great country. Negotiations continue, and in the end, arrangements are made, by which KATO (A Land Grant Company from Phoenix) donates their interest and a benefactor puts up the remaining amount asked by the Jesuits. |
| 1978 |
 Nov. 8 - TRAGEDY. Volunteers had worked all summer to repair the roof, paint, and bring the chapel back to her former glory after squatters had spent a decade in her walls. Restoration was nearly complete when a spark from an electrical short caused a fire in the choir loft. Discovered at 12:53 pm, the fire was fought all afternoon by several area fire departments, and was one of the most hard-fought fires that residents could remember.
It was finally brought under control by 4pm. The roof was gone, the interior completely gutted, some of the priceless stained-glass windows broken. The walls and porch, however, remained intact. |
| 1979 |
On August 15th, His Grace officiated at the laying of the cornerstone for the rebuilding of the Immaculata Chapel which burned in a tragic fire in November 1978. Over 1,000 people were present when he applied a trowel full of mortar to the 300 pound piece of Kansas sandstone which was prepared by the Bayer Stone Co. of Saint Marys. Placed in a sealed container with the cornerstone were papers and documents pertaining to the Society of St. Pius X and St. Mary's College, medals, coins and other artifacts, including a current copy of The Angelus. After the blessing of the stone Archbishop Lefebvre called upon two workmen from Saint Mary's Karl Stromberg from California and Albert Gonzalez from Texas to assist him in setting the stone in place. |
| 1980 |
 May 31 - Archbishop Lefebvre's reconstruction plan had not yet even started when a severe storm with high winds knocked down part of the fire-eaten front wall, thus crushing the porch. During the following months, another windstorm destoyed the back wall, which fortunately fell outward, leaving the high altar and the statue of Our Lady of Grace untouched. Also, during these storms, part of the west side wall fell in. Damage there included the crushing of the side altars. |
| 1990 |
May 25 - Bulldozing begins behind the Immaculata to prepare for rebuilding the church and making a back road to it. The walls of an old Jesuit cistern are found behind the church, and is converted to a workshop dedicated to the rebuilding of the chapel. |
| 1991 |
Oct. 2 - A new steeple is fitted to the top of the bell tower by an enormous crane. The steeple itself weighs over 9,000 pounds, and is topped by a gleaming 6-foot copper cross. |
| 1992 |
Spring - Progress is made in the bell tower of the Immaculata. Floors, windows, and staircases are completely renovated, making the tower watertight for the first time in nearly fifteen years! |
| 2000 |
The parish grows to over 2,000 souls. Current rebuilding plans would encompass a 500-seat chapel, which would not even begin to serve the needs of the growing parish and school. Plans to rebuild the Immaculata in its current form are halted. |
| 2004 |
Late Winter - A committee is established to investigate the feasability of constructing a completely new chapel to meet the needs of St. Mary's. Work progresses from the ground up, starting a fundraising program, and beginning an architect search. |
| 2007 |
Dec. 25 - Schematic drawings are returned to St. Marys from McCrery Architects of Washington DC, showing a proposed "New Immaculata" |
| 2008 |
Spring - Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X, approves the project with these words:
"I am totally in favor of the proposed plan to build a great church in St.
Mary's in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the glory of God. Such a
magnificent project will take time to complete. It is a problem of our time
that we want everything done immediately and perfectly. In past ages, people
would go forward gradually. Recall the great cathedrals of Europe, which
took over a century to complete!
On my part, there is no problem with the plans to begin now what is
necessary to have a 'workable' church in the near future and leave for
later, what I call the finishing of the project - like the bell towers and
other elements of completion. I am satisfied with the general plan of the
building and wish God's blessing on this project.
God's generosity will not be outdone. May the faithful generously support
this project, which will demand sacrifice, in order to build a magnificent
church in St. Mary's for the glory of God and the honor of the Blessed
Virgin Mary." |
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Sunday, Mar. 30 - Rector Fr. Vincente Griego "kicks off" the project in St. Marys, asking the parishioners to donate for their new spiritual home. |
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