Rockwell City - St. Francis

ROCKWELL CITY - The first Mass in Rockwell City was held in 1884 or 1885 in the upper room of the courthouse and was celebrated by Father Carroll of Fonda. Only six adult Catholics lived in the community at that time.

The first baby baptized was William J. Powers, the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Powers. Joseph Stumpf married Ann Heebner and their first child was also baptized. A handful of others joined these families.

Father Costello of Lohrville, who was then serving the parish, decided that with the swelling numbers, it was time to raise funds to build a church. Regardless of denomination, the townspeople made donations varying from 25 cents to $100. Mike Knapp was commissioned to build the church for $1,240. It was completed and dedicated in December of 1901.

By 1906, there were 18 Catholic families in their new little church. St. Francis became a mission of Sac City with Father Muyssen as the pastor. Since there were more families in Rockwell City, the bishop decided to transfer Father Muyssen. A house, which became the rectory, was purchased for $1,400.

Father Bernard Hunt (1907-1908), Father Christopher Huelshorst (1908-1911) and Father Mathias Marx (1911-1921) all served St. Francis's in the early years.

The church was incorporated in 1912, and land for a cemetery was purchased. The church bought the first county courthouse in 1913 for $450 to be used as a school. It was later moved west of the church to a lot donated by Frank Heebner. The school was staffed by the Sisters of the Order of Mercy of Pennsylvania and Illinois and opened in the fall of 1919. Later the Sisters of Dubuque followed by the Order of St. Francis in Milwaukee became the teachers.

Other priests serving the parish were Father John F. Achatz (1921-1934), Father Robert J. Quinn (1934-1935), Father Joseph Wolf (1935-1936), Father William Manson (1936-1938), Father Peter M. Sturm (1938-1943), Father William F. Bucholz (1943-1956), Father Edward F. Fandel (1956-1964), Father Edward Carpenter (1964-1969), Father Robert Phillips (1969-1981), Father Zeman (1981-1986), Msgr. Dean Walker (1986-1989), Father Weimer (1989), Msgr. Leonard Ziegmann (1989-1997), Father Roger Linnan (1997) and Father Richard Kielbasa (1997-present).

A new church was built in 1956 for about $178,000. A new school was also built in 1966 for about $120,000. Due to the difficulty of getting sisters to teach and dwindling enrollment, the school closed just two years later. The facility was rented to the Head Start Program for a few years, but is now used for the CCD program and other parish activities.

The rectory was completely remodeled under the direction of Father Phillips. In addition, the church was completely refurbished in 1976 and a new organ was installed. During Msgr. Ziegmann's pastorate, the church was remodeled and the priest started an active prison ministry.

Father Kielbasa oversaw the installation of an elevator for handicapped accessibility and a renovation of the Catholic cemetery. In the summer of 2000, an original sculpture "The Risen Christ," by artist Michael Montag was erected and dedicated in the cemetery.