The Church of St. Peter in Mendota was the first Catholic parish in Minnesota and the first church building was a log cabin. The “historic church” that still stands was built in 1853 and it overlooks the Minnesota River. My late in-laws were married in the historic church on June 6, 1943. It’s a really neat building that has been restored. A newer and larger church now serves the parish. In the 1970s and beyond, I attended many family funerals and weddings at St. Peter’s, but most were in the new church.
This weekend the parish is celebrating its 175th anniversary. It began in 1840, which is 18 years before Minnesota became a state!
The history written for the 150th anniversary has this paragraph:
By the year 1900, names and photos of parishioners who became synonymous with the history of St. Peter’s began to appear in the annals of the parish. The names included: Auge, Bernier, Burns, Callahan, Corrigan, Fee, Kennedy, Lebey, Perron, Rowan, St. Martin, Slater and Walsh.
This page has links to a few histories of the parish and church buildings.
The historic church is open for free tours each Sunday from noon -2:00 p.m. through Labor Day.
© 2015, Paula Stuart-Warren. All rights reserved.
