St. Catherine of Siena, Ripon

Our Parish Roots

St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Parish was founded on July 1, 2005 with the merger of the two Catholic churches in Ripon, St. Patrick and St. Wenceslaus. St. Patrick was the older of the two parishes, having been established in 1858. The original church building was located on the southeast corner of Oshkosh and Hamburg streets. The parish’s first school was held in the church basement. In 1922 the church building was moved to the corner of Blossom and Houston streets, the present location of St. Catherine of Siena. St. Patrick School and convent was built next to the church in 1962. St. Patrick replaced its aging wooden church building with a new brick structure in 1975. This is the church building which is currently in use. St. Wenceslaus was established in 1896 by families who desired a Polish speaking priest. The church was built on the corner of East Fond du Lac and Wenceslaus streets. Ten years later the lumberyard across the street caught fire and sparks blew across the street, landing on the roof of the church. The wooden church burned to the ground. The church was rebuilt in 1907 on the original stone foundation. This time the church was built of brick with a slate roof. St. Wenceslaus also had a school, a two-story brick structure with classrooms and a convent, both of which closed in 1916.

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Our Share

THROUGH MUCH PRAYER, PLANNING, AND CONVERSATION, WE HAVE IDENTIFIED OUR GREATEST NEEDS AND INITIATIVES TO STRENGTHEN OUR MISSION AND VISION FOR YEARS TO COME. OUR SHARE OF THE FUNDS RAISED WILL BE USED TO ADDRESS PHYSICAL NEEDS OF THE CAMPUS WITH REPAIRS AND RENOVATIONS