HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF THE LAKE CATHOLIC CHURCH (Version 2)

         HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF THE LAKE CATHOLIC CHURCH

     Before 1907 the Catholics who lived in Dartford and on the surrounding farms who wanted to attend Mass would have to travel to one of the surrounding towns in order to do so.  St. Patrick in Ripon, St. John the Baptist in Princeton or St. Stanislaus in Berlin were the Catholic churches most often attended by those able to travel that far.  Traveling to church by horse and buggy consumed almost all of Sunday, making Catholics wish for a church closer to home.

     In 1907, the same year that the name of the Village of Dartford was changed to the Village of Green Lake, Pleasant Point Hotel, located on the north shore of Green Lake, was owned by brothers, George and James Ross.  They were agreeable business men wishing to accommodate their guests, many of whom came by train and stayed for the summer.  (While George and James were not Catholic, one of their wives was, and understood the desire of their Catholic guests to attend Mass.)

     In the spring of 1907 George Ross talked to Fr. Thomas J. Cosgrove, pastor of St. Patrick Church in Ripon and suggested to him the idea of conducting Catholic services during the summer months for the guests at his hotel.  As many of the Catholic Dartford residents had attended Mass in Ripon at St. Patrick Church, and had their children baptized there, or had received other sacraments administered there, Fr. Thomas Cosgrove, the pastor of St. Patrick Parish, was already acquainted with them.  With the offer of a suitable place to hold Masses, he readily agreed to offer some there.

     The first Holy Mass celebrated in this area was said in July, 1907, in the home of Dennis McCarthy.  Fr. Cosgrove continued to hold Masses each Sunday in July and August in one of the cottages on the lake shore, most of them at the Dennis McCarthy cottage, but also in the homes of Thomas Collins, George O'Callaghan, Mary O'Callaghan, Matthew DeMoss and John Broder.  Fr. Cosgrove encouraged the families at Green Lake to build a church and a building fund was started.  $824.42 was raised that summer.

History Presentation

     I have been asked to present a little history to you today.  I am not sure just what you would be interested in, but I'll start with a little history of my own.

     Fifty one years ago this year I was baptised, received my first communion, made my first confession, was confirmed and married in just slightly less than three months.  Five sacraments of the Catholic Church in a very short time.    

     I came to Green Lake passing myself off as a loyal Catholic bride, but I knew very little about the Catholic faith or even about Catholic people.  I wanted to learn more.  I asked questions, but there were only two answers that I seemed to get.  One was, "I don't know" and the other was, "How come they let you in the Church if you don't know that?"  I quit asking questions and bungled my way.  Many times I was an embarrassment to my mother-in-law.

     How many remember Maggie Shikoski?  She used to make coffee for all the different church functions.  She made it strong and hot.  I used to sneak cold water into my cup.  She was very agitated when she caught me doing it.

     She served as sacristan for Fr. Steve, Fr. Roger and Fr. Karwata.  She had special faculties given by the bishop to wash purificators and handle things that had come in contact with the Blessed Sacrament.  In those days before Vatican II, the Blessed Sacrament was kept very much more remote from us than It is now.  Katherine Jankowski and Mary Fenske helped care for the other linens and vestments.

     Maggie was many things to the church.  Do you remember what else she used to do?

     She prayed.  She was a fan of the rosary.  She knew everything that happened and helped wherever she could.

     One wintry day the sidewalk leading to the old church was icy.  The priest took ashes from the furnace and sprinkled them on the ice so no one would fall down.  Well, some ashes got tracked into the church.  Maggie, single handedly, cleaned up all the ashes and got sand to use on the ice.  Tracked in sand was easier for her to clean up than ashes.

     The old church stood where the steeple now stands.  Besides the church building there was a wide shed open on the south where the old timers sheltered horses during mass.  As far as I recall it was located immediately behind where the present rectory stands.  By the time I came along most parishioners had cars, some farmers drove trucks to church.  No one came to church with horses anymore but the shed still stood.

BRIEF HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF THE LAKE PARISH

           BRIEF HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF THE LAKE PARISH

     Before 1907 Green Lake Catholics had to travel long distances to attend mass.  Many went to St. Patrick's church, Ripon, and asked its pastor, Fr. Thomas J. Cosgrove, to  baptize, marry and bury their loved ones.  He encouraged Green Lake residents to build their own church.  On Aug. 23, 1908, the corner stone of the new church was laid and in Jan. 1909, it was dedicated to the Immaculate Virgin Mary under the title of "Our Lady of the Lake."

     The parish was a mission of St. Patrick's from 1909 until 1923 when the Capuchin Fathers of Mt. Calvary agreed to minister to its spiritual needs.  A priest came to Green Lake from Mt. Calvary by train on Saturday morning, stayed over night at a parishioner's home, administered the sacraments, and left for Mt. Calvary Sunday night, ready to teach the seminarians for another week.

     In March, 1945, Fr. Stephan Szczerbiak was appointed resident pastor of Our Lady of the Lake.  He arranged for the School Sisters of Notre Dame to come each Saturday from St. Stanislaus in Berlin to teach catechism.  A rectory was built.  Fr. Steve was not well and in April, 1951, he passed away.

     Fr. Roger Idzikowski succeeded Fr. Steve.  Under his pastorate a strong Chi Rho Club was developed, new altar boys were trained, catechism by Sisters of Notre Dame continued, Holy Name Society was organized and a Discussion Club was formed.

     In June, 1956, Fr. Francis S. Karwata succeeded Fr. Roger.  In October, 1959, Fr. Karwata passed away, suffering from cancer.

TIME LINE OF EVENTS RELATIVE TO OUR LADY OF THE LAKE CHURCH, GREEN LAKE

                 TIME LINE OF EVENTS RELATIVE TO

             OUR LADY OF THE LAKE CHURCH, GREEN LAKE

 1665, Oct. 1  -  First Mass in Wisconsin offered up by Jesuit Fr. Claude Allouez at Cheguamegon on shore of Lake Superior.

 1669  -  First Mass in Green Bay offered up by Fr. Claude Allouez

 1670  -  Mission of St. Jacques (James) established by French    Jesuits at Mascoutin Village (in what later became Green Lake     County).  Indians built a bark chapel.

 1673  -  Fr. Jacques Marquette stopped at Mission of St. Jacques.       On the same trip he blessed the "Holy Springs" at the St.     Marie site (St Mary of the Fountain), Princeton, planting a    cross there.

 1674  -  Jesuit Fr. Antoine Silvy sent to help Fr. Allouez at   Mission of St. Jacques and Mission of St. Marc on the Wolf      River.

 1675  -  Fr. Marquette died.  Fr. Allouez was sent to replace him    at the Mission to the Illinois.  Fr. Silvy also was sent to    another mission.  Fr. Bonnault was sent to care for the     Missions of St. Jacques and St. Marc.

 1687  -  All remaining French Jesuit priests left the Fox River     Valley when Indians burned the St. Francis Mission at De Pere.

Our Lady of the Lake Church Poems

  

               Gracious God! how well Thou dost provide

               For erring judgments an unerring guide!

               O teach me her for my director take

               Whom Thou hast promised never to forsake!

                                 --John Dryden

                       TO OUR BLESSED LADY

               Mother of Mercy! day by day

               My love of thee grows more and more;

               Thy gifts are strewn upon my way,

               Like sands upon the great sea-shore.

               Though poverty and work and woe

               The masters of my life may be,

               When times are worst, who does not know

               Darkness is light, with love of thee?

               But scornful men have coldly said

               Thy love was leading me from God;

               And yet in this I did but tread

               The very path my Savior trod.

LANGBAUER & MATHE

LANGBAUER

CAYETON L. LANGBAUER - b. Aug. 6, 1834, in Germany

     Brother of Mary Ann Langbauer who married John Mathe

     Married Rosalia Kohler (Kollar)

     Father of John Sr., Frank, Katharine and Mary

     Farmer, Parents unknown on death certificate

     d. July 26, 1906 of heart disease - place of death, Almond -       residence at time of death Almond, Buried in German         Cemetery in Almond - death certificate signed by E. S.       Cooper, Physician  (Vol D pg 75 No 183)

FRANK LANGBAUER - b. Dec. 12, 1862 in Wisconsin

     Son of Cayeton and Rosalia Kohler

     d. Feb. 17, 1914  (Vol 6 pg 231)

ISABELLE LANGBAUER -

     Daughter of John Langbauer Sr.

     Married August Milius

     Mother of Sarah Milius Pohl and Lyle Milius

Lawsonia

      On April 1, 1918, Fred Shikoski bought the farm from I. O. Sherwood on a land contract.  It had a house and a well.  In May, Charlie, the oldest of Fred's seven children, graduated from eighth grade from Kelm School.  He did not continue his schooling but worked to help his father develop a good productive farm.

     The farm was fertile, had been developed, but still retained some huge trees blocking smooth, orderly fields.  Fred became expert at digging and using dynamite to get rid of them.  He also developed rotation and conservation methods to conserve its productivity.

     During the first ten years on the farm, with Charlie's help, Fred made big improvements.  He had developed a yearly system to conserve soil fertility.  He had built a 14x44 concrete silo; a drive-through, double corn crib; a swill-house/milk house: and a machine shed.

     In 1925 Lone Tree Farm was sold to H. O. Stone Company of Chicago, and re-named Lawsonia.  It became an exclusive country estate.  Otto Bierman, who had been the head carpenter of Lone Tree Farm, continued as the head carpenter of Lawsonia.  Charlie, who worked under Otto Bierman as a carpenter, worked on the hotel being built, as well as some of the homes also being built.  One of the homes being built was the Anne Hathaway Cottage.

     Charlie told me that one noon during lunch break, he another was worker were eating their lunch while relaxing in a house being built.  Charlie did not know the other man.  They were both relaxing and not talking.  As Charley looked at him, he began to think that there was something about him that made Charlie think that the man looked like a bulldog.  Though neither one was talking, the fellow said clearly and plainly, "You look like a bulldog."  It scared Charlie to have his thought spoken out loud.

     Another time Charlie said that when he was leaving work he told the bookkeeper that if he didn't feel better in the morning that he would not come in to work. The fellow was surprised saying he didn't know Charlie was not feeling well.  That night he was taken to St. Agnes Hospital in Fond du Lac where Charlie stayed four weeks with a ruptured appendix.