The history of the Diocese of Superior dates back to the 17th century. Our Journey Through Faith offers a glimpse into the historic events that played a role in the growth of Catholicism in Northern Wisconsin. Diocese of Superior - Statistics
Our Journey through Faith: A History of the Diocese of Superior,
View the summary from the last Parish self-assessment questionnaire conducted in 2012.
Read the 98-page Executive Report 2013 (PDF
Around 1900, some 20 Catholic families lived near Stone Lake at a place called "Jordan Settlement." They were ministered to by Franciscan Fathers who traveled from Bayfield and Ashland, mainly Fr. Agatho Anklin and Fr. Odoric Derenthal. From 1905 to about 1911 the priests came about four times a year and celebrated Mass in private homes. In 1909 two local carpenters built a church and Bishop Augustine F. Schinner dedicated it. This church was burned to the ground in 1913 when lightning struck. Stone Lake was incorporated on Dec. 19, 1914. About that year, the Servite Fathers from Ladysmith came to Stone Lake to celebrate Mass in the schoolhouse and the Stubbins Dance Hall once a month. Fr. Andrew Bauman was in charge when a new church was built in the fall of 1915 and blessed the following summer. The Servite Fathers had charge of the parish until the summer of 1920. Diocesan priests served the parish until 1938, when the Franciscan Fathers resumed pastoral care. Today diocesan priests again oversee the parish. On August 25, 1974, Bishop George A. Hammes dedicated a new church. The church was made possible, in part, by a $10,000 donation from the Catholic Extension Society.
REFERENCE: Our Journey through Faith: A History of the Diocese of Superior,
by Sam Lucero, 2005.