Holy Cross Catholic Church
3009 Bay Settlement Road,
Green Bay, Wisconsin, 54311U.S.A
Phone Number: 920-468-0595
Holy Cross Catholic School
3009 Bay Settlement Road,
Green Bay, Wisconsin, 54311, U.S.A.
Phone Number: 920-468-0595
Sisters of St. Francis Of The Holy Cross
3025 Bay Settlement Road,
Green Bay, Wisconsin, 54311, U.S.A.
Phone Number: 920-468-0693
Pastor: The Rev. Tim Shilicox
Number to members: as of the year 2000: 2,300
Rev. Theodore Van den Broek, a missionary priest, built the first Church in the Bay Settlement area during the early 1830's. The parish was called Holy Cross.
Rev. Edward Daems purchased land on the northeast edge of Green Bay for the price of $9 an acre. He became the first pastor of Holy Cross. The first permanent church was built in 1852 at a cost of $605. It was made of white pine and built in the shape of the Cross. All furniture was handmade. The parish extended as far as Sturgeon Bay on the north and Green Bay on the south. The rectory was built in the early 1860's; constructed of heavy stone and is the only remaining original building. The church and convent were rebuilt directly onto the existing limestone in the 1930s. New windows were cut into the rectory's west wall in 1998. Father Daems established the Holy Cross School, on Feb. 13, 1868. The Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, which Father Daems founded, ran the school. Father Daems was pastor until his death in February of 1879.
The following is a list of Priests that served as pastors at Holy Cross until 1903. Fathers Henry Bruns; J. Martin J. Rocagel;
J. Mc Fadden; Joseph Darche; A, Le Bras; T. Mc Carthy, J. Courvoisier, t. Tacken, and P. Couterells.
In 1903 Rev. S. C. Mickers became pastor, and served for sixteen years. At this time two disasters struck the church. On
June 13, 1909 it was struck by lightning during services; one man was killed and several badly injured. In 1918 a tornado blew down the belfry.
In 1920 Rev. J. W. De Vries became the new pastor. He served for 37 years. In 1922 under his supervision a new church was built as well as a new school. The rectory and the convent were also remodeled. In 1977 the parish celebrated their 125th anniversary, under the Rev. Emmanuel Mulhall.
Holy Cross celebrates their 150th anniversary in 2002.
Information from "Wooden Shoe Trails" by Martha Deschane Jolly,
The Green Bay Press Gazette,
The Dioceses newspaper: The Compass
Holy Cross Catholic Church; Bay Settlement, WI.
1999