ELLSWORTH – St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church will celebrate its 125th anniversary jubilee Friday, Nov.

11 at Tattersall Distilling (1777 Paulson Road, River Falls).

Doors will open at 5 p.m. for hors d’oeuvres, live music, dinner and an event program. Tickets are $75 and include a plated meal of harvest salad, a four-ounce beef medallion with port wine bordelaise, a four-ounce grilled chicken breast with champagne cream sauce, garlic mashed potatoes, vegetable medley, dinner rolls, and dessert.

Tickets can be purchased at www.stfrancisofellsworth. com or at the parish ovce during regular hours.

The congregation has a rich history in the Ellsworth community, which includes roots in the Immaculate Conception Lost Creek and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Clay- field churches. In 2022, St. Francis serves 485 families in Ellsworth and the surrounding area. The church continues to partner with community organizations aimed at bettering the lives of citizens, such as the Pierce County Food Pantry, the Assistance Resource Center, Options for Women in River Falls, The Pierce County Right to Life, and First Choice in Red Wing. In 2022, the church received the Best Non-Profit Civic Group award from the Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce.

There are currently 183 students in the religious education program and 77 students enrolled at St. Francis Elementary School in pre- school through fifth grade. And in 2022, the parish be- gan a five-year capital im provement campaign with the Diocese of La Crosse to fund deferred maintenance projects, such as new floor ing in the church, new or re- finished pews, incidental ren ovations of the area around the tabernacle and altar, and new roofs on the church and portions of the school.

The beginning

In the late 1800s, Catholics in the village of Ellsworth wanted to build a church in town, making the church at Clayfield a mis sion, according to documents located in 1938 in the 1898 church cornerstone. In the summer of 1897, those inter- St. Francis

ested in establishing a new parish held a meeting and selected a church committee, which included Michael Fitzgerald, F.B. Saxton, E.W. Richter, James Wcitzcl, Charles Riley and M.P. Harris.

The committee awarded a contract to architect and contractor A. Symes in October 1897 to build the new church, which was dedicated on May 22, 1899.

According to the “Ellsworth Glcanor” newspaper, more than 600 people attended the dedication. Rev. Reding of Eau Gallc delivered the dedicatory address, followed by comments from Bishop Schwebach. The building cost just over $5,000 to construct and could seat 450 people. The church purchased a home on Strickland Street to be used as a rectory; when a new rectory was built in the 1940s, the old one became home to the Benedictine Sisters who taught at the parochial school. It was sold and moved offsite when the Sisters relocated to a new house.

St. Francis Catholic School Thanks to the efforts of Father Georges Mathieu, St. Francis School was built in 1948. The cornerstone was laid June 20 of that year, but the school didn’t open until January 1949. Benedictinc Sisters from Eau Claire staffed the school, including Sister Ellen Stevens (principal and teachers of grades 6-8), Sister Attraeta Casey (grades 3-5) and Sister Haroldine Malinowski (grades 1-2). About 114 children best. gan school in the new building on Jan. 31, 1949.

Enrollment remained steady for more than 25 years, averaging between 120 and 170 students. The highest enrollment was 183 students in 1959. Overcrowding in 1964 and 1965 prompted school officials to discontinue first grade classes; however, first grade was reintroduced and seventh and eighth grades were eliminated, mainly due to the expensive science and sports equipment needed for students.

New church

In 1958, the congregation selected a building committee dedicated to constructing a new church building: Michael WT. Yound, James F. Hines, Arthur Jefcn, Leo Stoctzcl, Raymond Crownhart, John Wussler and Joseph S. Hines. The church bought an acre of land from the Peterson Estate across the street from the school (on Woodw'orth Street) for $7,500.

The building contract went to Wagner Construction Company of Austin, Minn., for a total of $148,111. Schoenoff Plumbing and Heating won the contract for plumbing and heating for $25,504. Meachim Electric of Ellsworth landed the electrical work contract for $8,500.

The groundbreaking for the new church took place on July 17, I960. The cornerstone was laid on the Feast of Christ the King on Oct. 30, 1960, donated by Melgard Monument Company and containing a metal box.

The building measures 140 feet long and 51 feet wide, except for the sacristy area which was 71 feet wide. The church scats 500 people in the nave with additional sealing in the cry room and the balcony. The exterior is mostly Lannon stone, enhanced by a 48-foot tall bell tower on the east side. The interior contains Italianate marble altars, statues and stained-glass windows made at Universal Studios in Winona, Minn. St. Francis of Assisi and his “Song of Brother Sun and All Other Creatures” are depicted in a window above the balcony. The seven nave windows show scenes from the Bible that refer to the seven sacraments.

Parishioners approved the constmction of the new St. Francis Parish Hall in 1976. The building, which was 80by-100 feet and attached to the back of the school, could scat 500 people. The council also decided to build a new convent and sell the old convent.

On April 14, 2002, St. Francis School was expanded with an addition on the cast side of the Parish Hall, providing four new classrooms, additional restrooms, and storage space.

A special thanks to Becky’ Beissel, who contributed to this article.

The interior of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, which was built at the corner of Piety and Woodworth streets in 1898. Photo courtesy of Pierce County Historical Association

Francis Church as it appeared in 1908, at the corner of Piety and Woodworth streets in Ellsworth. Photo courtesy of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church

A rendering of the current St. Francis church building at 231 W. Woodworth St. The current church was built in 1960. Photo courtesy of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church

This photo montage includes photos of (from top left, clockwise) St. Francis Church, Reverend Georges Pierre Mathieu, plaque on St. Francis’ wall, the 1958 building committee, the interior of the church, and Father John J. Pritzl.Photo courtesy of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church