OLDEST - Catholic Church In Continuous Use in Wharton County, East Bernard, TX
Posted by: 
jhuoni
N 29° 31.721 W 096° 04.154
14R E 784055 N 3270144
This beautiful Spanish Colonial Revival church is the oldest Catholic church in continuous use in Wharton County.
Waymark Code: WMWC92
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 08/12/2017
Views: 1
A Texas Historical Marker here states the claim to
OLDEST:
Many Catholic Czechoslovakian immigrants settled in the prairies near East Bernard in the 1880s. Visiting priests served their religious needs. In 1900 the settlers began the establishment of a parish by purchasing cemetery property in East Bernard.
The first Holy Cross Church, a small frame structure, was built in 1905 by Valentine Kozelsky on two acres of land donated by Jan and Anna Vacek. A rectory was built in 1921 for the first permanent resident pastor, the Rev. Joseph C. Kunc. The Holy Cross Catholic school was organized in 1922. A new church building was constructed in 1925 by R.H. Reese of Eagle Lake. Houston architect M.J. Sullivan designed the Spanish Colonial Revival structure. It featured a 70-foot belfry and imported Czechoslovakian adornments including statues, painted copper wall hangings, and 10 large, unique stained glass windows of Roundel design. A new school and convent were built in 1928 in the same architectural style. The school operated until 1967. The Pioneer Chapel, a model of the original church, was built in 1994. Holy Cross Catholic Church is now the oldest Catholic church in continuous use in Wharton County. (1997) Incise: Donated by the John H. and Martha Viktorin Family