St. Francis Xavier Church
Carlsruhe, Ontario, Canada
Our History
The first Mass was celebrated in the Village of Carlsruhe by the Rev. Caspar Matoga, S.J., early in 1853.
Father Matoga continued to visit this centre periodically until his tragic death in 1856.
Mass was celebrated in private homes.The next Jesuit Missionary in succession to Father Matoga was Rev. William Blettner, S.J. who provided Mass about once a month until September 1859.
It was Father Blettner who started the first Baptismal Registry of Carlsruhe in December 1856.
Some time between 1856 and 1859 a frame church, dedicated to St. Francis Xavier Leichtle, was erected on the site of the present church.
Successor to Father Blettner was Rev. George Laufhuber, S.J., who attended this mission until August 1861, when it was attached as a mission to Formosa which had a resident priest.
The Cemetery site was purchased in 1863.
Carlsruhe was made an independent parish in 1866 with the appointment of the first resident pastor, Rev. Francis Rassaerts (Father Franz).Rev. Father Francis X. Rassaerts was born September 25, 1833 in Roermund, Holland and ordained in 1858.
He came to Canada in 1864
and became pastor here in 1865,
until his death on December 23, 1887.
He is buried in the St. Francis Xavier Cemetery directly across from his church.
The missions of Neustadt and Deemerton became attached to Carlsruhe in 1872.Construction of this church of the diocese of Hamilton was begun in 1872 under the direct supervision of Father Francis Rassaerts, the parish priest.
The church took two years to complete at a cost of $9000.00A recent immigrant from Holland at that time, Father Rassaerts brought the plans for the church with him when he came to Canada.
The design of the church is an exact replica of the priest’s church in his native town of Roermund, Holland.Coming from quite a well-to-do family in Holland, the priest returned to his homeland to obtain some stained glass windows, 38 to be exact, for his new church in Carlsruhe.
As well as procuring the windows, many of which were donated by the people he knew, he also received some funds from his family for the completion of the church.Built by the pioneers of this little community, the church’s yellow bricks were manufactured by Andrew Zettler a local brickyard owner.
The intricate and elaborate wooden altar which adorns the front of the church, along with the pulpit, were hand carved by a local farmer.
On either side of the altar approximately 4’ x 9’ high are two beautifully hand painted murals of St. Francis Xavier.
On the left side of the altar the mural depicts St. Francis Xavier being sent on a mission by a priest
while the right mural see him teaching on his mission.The fourteen stations of the cross, also hand painted, aids in decorating the already ornate walls of the church.
In addition to the money and the stained Glass windows that he brought from Holland, Father Reasserts also brought one other item in his pocket, an acorn which he planted in front of the rectory.As luck or the wish of God would have it, this little acorn flourished and grew into a beautiful oak tree, which still stands today.
The oak tree is considered one of the largest and oldest in Ontario.
At approximately 110 years old (c. 130 by 2005), it measures 13’ x 12’ in circumference.Two attempts by resident pastors, quite a number of years ago, were made to cut down this beautiful tree, but the residents of the community would not permit it.
Both times they appeared on the site just in the nick of time to rescue the oak from the axe.
So it stands today a stately and most perfect memorial to the man who brought the acorn home in his pocket.The 1880, Bruce County Directory lists 110 Catholic families in that year.
During Father Rassaert’s final years in Carlsruhe, he was suffering from the effects of typhoid fever and thus he frequently received assistance from the Formosa parish.
In 1892, Rev. Michael Halm arrived.
During his pastorate the church was renovated
and the large dome was removed,
the bricks from it being used to construct a small church in Neustadt.
It was in the pastorate of Joseph Wey that the roof was re-shingled.
He added a Cupola to the church as a place to have a bell.
Father Lenhardt was pastor for a period of 16 years.
During this time many improvements were made to the rectory and church.
He supervised the renovation of the Winter Chapel.
Rev. Henry R. Brick became pastor in 1930.
It was at this time that a large combination hall and shed was erected.
He also directed the redecoration of the church interior.
He remained until 1952 when the church was placed in the hands of Sacred Heart Fathers.
The parish was later returned to the Diocese of Hamilton.