St. Joseph Est. 1863 MASS SCHEDULE Saturday Vigil 4:00 PM Sunday 8:30 AM and 11:00 AM Holy Day Vigil 7:00 PM Holy Day 8:30 AM and 12:10 PM Weekdays 8:30 AM Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturday 3:00 PM ST. JOSEPH 322 Third St. SE Massillon, OH 44646 (330) 833-2607 (330) 833-3907 (fax) www.stjoemassillon.catholicweb.com FrRLP@hotmail.com PARISH STAFF   Rev. Raymond L. Paul, Pastor     Steven Wyles Permanent Deacon   Donald Molinari Permanent Deacon   Nick Perkoski Dir. of Religious Education   Carol McKimm Music Director   BRIEF HISTORY "Stand, then, like a wall of brass around your pastor, with willing hands and hearts and purse, and you will be carrying out the spirit of the Master." Rt. Rev. Msgr. Thorpe At the Dedication Mass of the Present Structure of St. Joseph April 24, 1892 For nearly one-hundred and forty-six years the parishioners of St. Joseph parish have stood like a "wall of brass" in establishing and maintaining a community that has remained steadfast in faithfully carrying out the mission of Jesus Christ. St. Joseph parishioners began their history in 1854 when the Catholics of Irish descent in Massillon felt unwelcome at the predominantly German speaking St. Mary Parish. After St. Mary burned in 1852, Bishop Rappe, the founder of the Diocese of Cleveland, was petitioned to form a parish that would serve the English-speaking people of Massillon. The request was granted and St. Joseph was established as a mission of St. Mary parish in 1852. Father Molon, then pastor of St. Mary, was appointed to serve the newly formed St. Joseph community. As the church structure at St. Mary was being rebuilt, the English congregation began to worship in a public hall known as the "stone block", (crone building) which is still standing on the corner of Erie and Tremont Streets. The facilities proved to be inadequate and in 1853, Father Molom purchased three lots on South Street. In 1853-54 a church was built on these purchased lots (the sight of the old school building). The building cost the struggling comunity $4,000. Bishop Rappe dedicated the Church in the spring of 1854 and placed it under the patronage of St. Joseph. Father Molon remained as the pastor of both congregations until 1855. Following his departure, Father Augustine Campion, then pastor of St. John Church in Canton, gave St. Joseph his limited services. At this time the parish began to struggle financially and spiritually without the benefit of a regular pastor. Bishop Rappe then transferred Father Joseph Lias, of St. Mary, to be the pastor of St. Joseph. Neither congregation approved of this move and after six months, Father Lais returned to St. Mary. At the same time, St. Joseph parish was in default of the building loan, only half of which was paid. The sheriff took possession of the property and the church and put it up for auction. Henry Falke, a faithful and wealty parishioner, purchased the church for $1,400 with his own funds and transferred the property back to bishop Rappe on March 24, 1863. Bishop Rape then appointed Father Henry L. Thiele in 1863, as the first resident pastor who served until December, 1864. Father Thiele was born in the diocese of Muenster, Germany in 1819 and was ordained a priest for the diocese of Marquette in 1854. In 1861, he transferred into the Diocese of Cleveland (Massillon was in the Diocese of Cleveland at this time). After serving as a pastor in Akron he came to St. Joseph. Under Father Thiele's pastorate, the church began to prosper and grow. A house on South Street was purchased to serve as the first rectory. However, Father Thiele did not stay long and was reassigned to Liverpool, Ohio in 1864. He then moved to Notre Dame, Iniana where he died in 1873. He was replaced by Father Molon who had returned to Massillon for a brief period. In 1865, Father George Verlet was appointed pastor and that began a period of growth and prosperity. Under Father Verlet's pastorate, a school was opened and teachers were hired. By all accounts, Father Verlet was well loved by the parishioners and exhibited amazing zeal and foresight in guiding the parish of St. Joseph until 1888. Between 1889 and 1892 five pastors - Father W.J. Finnucan, William Harks, John T. Cahill, F. Rupert, and Dennis J. Stafford, respectively - succeeded each other. It was Father Harks who conceived the plans to build the current church building and the property was purchased during the pastorate of Father Stafford. In 1892, Father F.W. Mahon was appointed pastor and the actual building of the "new" St. Joseph began. It was completed in 1892 under his careful guidance. Father Mahon was greatly loved by the parishioners who stood by him like a "wall of brass" and supported the building and expansion of St. Joseph Parish. Not only did he construct the present church building, he had the old church turned into a school building and the old school became a convent for the sisters who taught at the school. He also had a rectory built. The architect who designed St. Joseph Church was J.B. Vernon. He was born in Belfort, France and studied in the best architectural school of that country. Before coming to America, he worked in planning and constructing many churches in France as well as a seminary in Germany. He came to the United States in 1873 and attended Notre Dame University in Indiana for the purpose of learning English. Before designing the plans for St. Joseph, he planned churches in Sandusky, Marion, Canton, and other Ohio cities. He moved to Massillon in 1873, where he set up a small shop of architecture and sculpting design. He was the architect for many homes in Massillon. He supervised the construction of the current St. Mary Church and was responsible for developing the drawings on its ceiling. He also carved the figures on the exterior of St. Mary Church and some of the statues in the cemetery. In 1891, he was hired to plan and construct the present St. Joseph Church. The plans were entirely orginal but based it on the Gothic style of the thirteenth century. The cost of the building of St. Joseph was $30,000. The Church was completed in April of 1892. In 1899, Father Kuebler succeeded Father Mahon as pastor and successfully completed Father Mahon's plans for St. Joseph. He devoted much time and energy into improving the school and began developing plans to build a new school building. He was well known as an "earnest worker for educational advancement." In 1904, Father Vollmaier succeeded Father Kuebler as pastor for one year. He was succeeded by Father Doherty, who was pastor for seventeen years. Father Doherty was responsible for the completion of the building of the "new" school in 1907. Father Casey succeeded Father Doherty in 1922 and remained until 1933. St. Joseph went through some difficult times as the depression hit. The parish went deeply into debt. Father Casey pleaded with the parishioners to help relieve the debt by loaning money to the church. The bank holding the debt seized all church accounts, including the cemetery account. However, he was able to build the present rectory in 1924. Father Dominic Sweeney, pastor of St. Joseph from 1933 to 1937, was known in the Massillon community and in the Cleveland Diocese as a man who stood up for the poor and the rights of workers. During strikes at local foundries, he would often house and feed those workers who became destitute. He died in 1937 as pastor of St. Joseph. Father Owen Gallagher succeeded Father Sweeney in 1938. October of 1938 marked the purchase of the site of the present "new" school. In 1943, St. Joseph Parish ceased to be a parish of the Diocese of Cleveland when Massillon became part of the newly-formed Diocese of Youngstown under Bishop James A. McFadden. Father James Peppard was appointed pastor in 1944 where he remained until 1971. His long pastorate marked a long period of prosperity and expansion as St. Joseph continued to grow in parishioners. He was known as a very stern pastor who ruled with an iron fist, but he was also a loving priest who cared deeply about the parishioners, especially the children. With foresight, he built the current school building and convent (current parish center) and made many improvements to the existing structure, including the erection of a new steeple on the church. In 1961 a well deserved honor was bestowed on him when he was named a domestic prelate and given the title of the Right Rev. Monsignor. Following the long pastorate of Msgr. Peppard, a sad, and short term was served by Father Kennedy who died in a car accident in 1971. He was followed by Revs. Robert Hill, John Schmidt and Q. William Helline. In 1981 Father John R. Nentwick was appointed pastor during which time extensive renovations of the church sanctuary took place which brought it more in line with the reforms of Vatican II. The sanctuary was extended into the body of the church and a new altar and pulpit with beautiful carved figures was placed in it. In the spirit of Father Sweeny, Father Nentwick was also known for his concern for the poor in the Massillon Community. In cooperation with the St. Vincent DePaul Society, a soup kitchen was established which still serves meals every Monday. In 1985, after over one-hundred years in existence, St. Joseph school was closed, as low enrollment and a growing parish debt made it impossible to keep running. In 1986, the current pastor, Father Raymond L. Paul, was appointed pastor of St. Joseph. After assuming his pastorate, he succeeded in helping St. Joseph overcome its debt problems and within several years St. Joseph became financially stable. He also had extensive renovations done to the interior of the church - restoration of the church windows, air-conditioning the building, painting, new art work, carpeting and restoration of the statues. In 2006, the bell tower was found to be in need of extensive repair. Currently, the parish is in the process of restoring the bell tower, removing the steeple that was placed on the structure in the 1950’s, and returning the Bell Tower and steeple to a style that is in keeping with the architectural integrity of the whole church building. As a pastor, Father Paul is greatly loved by the parishioners who stand like a "wall of brass" around him as he now pastorally guides them into the future Church. Back to Office of Catholic Schools