Closed parish left its mark on West Toledo |
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Written by LAURIE STEVENS BERTKE, Chronicle Writer
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Wednesday, 07 July 2010 00:00 |
TOLEDO—Two months before the Diocese of Toledo was established in 1910, a small group of Catholics gathered for the first Mass to be celebrated by the newly formed Toledo St. Agnes Parish.
It was initially the only parish in West Toledo, but the population of that area grew rapidly with the emergence of new industries and factories such as the Pope-Toledo factory in 1901 and the Willys-Overland Company in 1907. To serve the burgeoning Catholic population, a number of other parishes were eventually carved from the original territory of St. Agnes, including Blessed Sacrament (1924), St. Catherine (1930), St. Clement (1946), Christ the King (1953), St. Pius X (1953) and Regina Coeli (1954).
In July 2005, West Toledo’s first parish was suppressed and St. Agnes Church on Martha Avenue was closed as part of a major restructuring of parishes throughout the Diocese of Toledo.
Pat Anaszewicz, a longtime member of St. Agnes, was cleaning out the attic of the church before it closed when she stumbled onto a tablet of writings by the late Father Edmund Widmer, who served as the third pastor of St. Agnes from 1914-1951.
“It looked like a stenographer’s notebook,” recalls Mrs. Anaszewicz. “It was done in his writing, in pencil, and it actually gave me a chill to see it.”
Mrs. Anaszewicz, a genealogist and parish history buff, decided to type the handwritten history exactly as it was written and share it with the rest of the St. Agnes community. She also recently shared her findings with the Catholic Chronicle.
Fr. Widmer’s writings document the conditions of West Toledo prior to the establishment of St. Agnes in 1910. The following excerpts were penned in 1935:
The original settlement, built on both sides of the Ten Mile Creek at Detroit Avenue, was known as Tremainsville: but when the Lake Shore Railroad built a passenger station at Phillips Avenue, this section was called West Toledo.
Joseph Gribbin, Lewis Avenue, now of St. Catherine’s Parish was born at this present residence in 1857. His father, Peter Gribbin, was among the earliest pioneers and he bought the land from the Federal Government for $1.25 an acre.
In search of facts on the early events of West Toledo, I called at the home of Joseph Gribbin on Lewis Avenue. Now past 70, Mr. Gribbin spent all of his life on the same farm, now the site of his present residence. In his boyhood, the family was guided on its way to St. Francis de Sales Church at Cherry and Superior Streets, by the marks on the trees. After the persecutions in the land of his ancestors, he did not consider distance, inclement weather or bad roads a hardship, much less an excuse for missing Sunday Mass. When the new parish was established on Martha Avenue, the two and one-half miles there seemed a short distance.
Until the organization of St. Agnes, Catholics were far removed from any church. Those who preferred the French language attended St. Joseph’s Church; while the Germans went to St. Mary’s, and the rest affiliated themselves with St. Francis de Sales. Efforts for a church of their own were made for several years before St. Agnes was realized. In fact priests were sent to survey the territory.
Finally Father James Higginbotham received an appointment on Dec. 3, 1909, from the Right Reverend Bishop Farelly, and on Feb. 13 of the following year the first Mass was celebrated in Redding’s Hall. Preparations were hurriedly made and only 35 attended this service. However, the enthusiasm shown encouraged the youthful pastor and by Easter the temporary church could hardly accommodate all who came.
It is not easy to visualize the topography of the district, which was within the limits of St. Agnes, as it appeared 25 years ago. Walking west on Sylvania Avenue in the summer of 1910, you would not pass more than ten homes from Martha Avenue to Jackman Road. Lush pastures and patches of growing vegetables would meet your gaze on both sides of the street. Large herds of dairy cattle could be seen grazing within the enclosed areas.
It is usual to find an enthusiasm in a group of Catholics when they learn that a parish has been canonically erected, which brings the services of the Church nearer their homes. At first there is regret at parting with associations of the old parish, but when the advantages are understood, the cooperation is near perfect. Those who may have been careless in their religious duties find their faith revived. With the leadership of Fr. Higginbotham and with the prospect of a church and school in West Toledo, every energy of the few Catholics were directed toward the realization of that hope. The pastor began his residence at 4123 Lewis Avenue in April 1910. After a few weeks he had called at the homes of 90 families in the extensive territory of eight square miles.
On July 18, 1911, John L. Henry accepted $100 on a contract for 400 feet of frontage on Martha Avenue. Within less than a month he received a check for $3,500, the remaining amount of the agreement.
Since the Bishop of the newly erected Diocese of Toledo had not been installed when the purchase of property was made, the necessary permission was granted by the Papal Delegate at Washington, D.C. The ceremony for the installation of Bishop Schrembs was held in St. Francis de Sales Cathedral on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 1911. He arrived in the city the previous Sunday and reviewed from a stand at Madison Avenue, a parade in his honor, which has been considered by many as the longest and most colorful in Toledo’s history. All of the parishes from the 16 counties in northwestern Ohio were represented. A heavy rain had fallen all morning. St. Agnes, then the junior parish of the diocese, had about 40 men in the line.
The cornerstone of the combination church and school for St. Agnes was laid Nov. 12, 1911, and the church was dedicated and the school blessed by the bishop a year later.
Though the parish was closed in 2005, the spirit of St. Agnes lives on through former parishioners who have become involved in other parishes. Mrs. Anaszewicz says many people from the community still identify with St. Agnes and keep in touch through prayer, ministry and social groups, reunions and an e-mail newsletter she sends out once a month.
“It just seems like everything did not dissolve with that parish — we are still a unit,” she says. “St. Agnes Parish is not dead at all.”
Mrs. Anaszewicz, now a member of Toledo St. Catherine, joined St. Agnes at age 15 and remained a parishioner throughout adulthood, raising her six children there.
“I think if anybody ever asked me, ‘what is St. Agnes?’ — in one word, it’s a community,” says Mrs. Anaszewicz. “And it’s a community that doesn’t break up.”
She has organized two reunions for former members of the St. Agnes community, including one in 2008 and an upcoming event slated for July 11 after the 12:30 p.m. Mass at Blessed Sacrament.
Tickets for the potluck picnic reunion are $6 for adults and $1 for children under age 12, and guests are asked to bring a dish to pass. Contact Mrs. Anaszewicz at stagnesreunion@bex.net for more information or to pre-purchase tickets. Tickets can also be purchased through Parish Federal Credit Union.
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 July 2010 00:00 |
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