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Our Lady Of Angels Catholic Church
565 Hermiston Avenue
Hermiston, Oregon 97838
Phone 567-5812
HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF ANGELS PARISH
ORIGINALLY, HERMISTON WAS PART OF THE DALLES PARISH AND THEN PART OF THE PENDLETON PARISH. IN THE SUMMER OF 1909, THE SERVITE FATHERS WERE PUT IN CHARGE OF HERMISTON AND IT BECAME A SEPARATE PARISH. THE SERVITES LEFT IN JANUARY 1910. THE IRISH CAPUCHIN FRANCISCANS ARRIVED IN HERMISTON IN FEBRUARY 1910. THE FIRST MASS SAID BY THEM WAS ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1910 IN HERMISTON AND ALSO IN UMA-TILLA. FR. THOMAS DOWLING OFM CAP., AND FR. LUKE SHEEHAN OFM CAP. WERE THE FIRST PRIESTS IN RESIDENCE. FR. CASIMIR BUTLER OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED PASTOR IN OCTOBER 1910, AND REMAINED PASTOR UNTIL AUGUST 1925. ASSISTANT PRIESTS ASSIGNED TO THE PARISH DURING HIS PASTORATE WERE: FR. LEONARD BROPHY OFM CAP. - DECEMBER 1910; FR. MALACHY HYNES OFM CAP. - JUNE 1912; FR. BRENDAN O'CALLAGHAN OFM CAP. - DECEMBER 1910; EMBER 1913; AND FR. ANTHONY HOLMES OFM CAP. - NOVEMBER 1915.
THE FIRST CHURCH IN HERMISTON WAS DEDICATED ON NOVEMBER 13, 1910 AND WAS A TWO STORY BUILDING, A COMBINATION CHURCH AND RECTORY. THIS BUILDING WAS LOCATED APPROXIMATELY TWO BLOCKS SOUTH OF THE PRESENT SITE OF OUR LADY OF ANGELES CATHOLIC CHURCH. ON OCTOBER 7, 1912, THE PRESENT SITE WAS ACQUIRED AND A BUILDING OF CONCRETE WAS ERECTED. BISHOP O'REILLY DEDICATED THE NEW CHURCH OCTOBER 24, 1915. IN OCTOBER 1924, THE OLD RECTORY WAS MOVED TO A LOT ADJACENT TO THE CHURCH AND REMAINED IN USE AS RECTORY UNTIL 1960.
FR. DOMINIC O'CONNOR OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED PASTOR IN AUGUST 1925. ON JANUARY 25, 1927, BISHOP FRANCIS MCGRATH CONSECRATED THE CHURCH. THE RELICS OF ST. AURALIA, MARTYR, AND ST. AELODORE, MARTYR, WERE PLACED IN THE ALTAR. IN AUGUST 1928, FR. SERAPHIN NESDALE OFM CAP. REPLACED FR. DOMINIC AS PASTOR. FR. CHARLES GOUGH OFM CAP. BECAME PASTOR IN FEBRUARY 1931 AND FR. REGINALD O'HANLON OFM CAP. BECAME PASTOR ON JULY 25, 1931. FR. DOMINIC O'CONNOR OFM CAP. AGAIN BECAME PASTOR ON OCTOBER 12, 1931 AND REMAINED PASTOR UNTIL HIS DEATH IN BEND, OREGON ON OCTOBER 17, 1935. FR. VINCENT KERWICK OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED PASTOR NOVEMBER 2, 1935 AND WAS SUCCEEDED BY FR. FINIAN CARROLL OFM CAP. ON SEPTEMBER 23, 1936. FR. VALERIAN O'LEARY OFM CAP. BECAME PASTOR IN 1938. FR. ALBAN CULLEN OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED PASTOR OCTOBER 9, 1939 AND WAS SUCCEEDED BY FR. CORNELIUS HYLAND OFM CAP. ON SEPTEMBER 12, 1943. FR. FERGUS LAWLESS OFM CAP. REPLACED FR. CORNELIUS AS PASTOR SEPTEMBER 27, 1946, AND SERVED IN THIS CAPACITY UNTIL FR. SYLVAN MURPHY WAS APPOINTED PASTOR JULY 9, 1951. ON JANUARY 9, 1952, FR. LEOPOLD O'RIORDAN OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED PASTOR AND REMAINED IN THIS POSITION UNTIL OCTOBER 1965.
DURING FR. LEOPOLD'S PASTORATE, A WHOLE PLANT WAS BUILT IN HERMISTON. THE PARISH HALL, VALUED AT $40,000, WAS STARTED ON JULY 6, 1953 AND WAS DEDICATED BY BISHOP FRANCIS P. LEIPZIG ON JANUARY 25, 1954. THE LAST MASS WAS SAID IN THE OLD CHURCH BUILDING ON APRIL 7, 1956 AND CONSTRUCTION WAS BEGUN ON THE PRESENT BUILDING APRIL 25, 1956. ON JULY 5, 1956, WHEN ONLY THE FLOOR AND THE EXTERIOR WALLS WERE IN PLACE, ARCHBISHOP WM. O'BRIEN OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ECTENSION SOCIETY, CHICAGO, DEDICATED THE NEW BUILDING, VALUED AT $50,000. THE FIRST MASS IN THE NEW CHURCH WAS CELEBRATED BY BISHOP LEIPZIG ON OCTOBER 29, 1956 ON FEBRUARY 23, 1960, CONSTRUCTION BEGAN ON THE NEW RECTORY, VALUED AT $52,615. THE BUILDING WAS BLESSED BY BISHOP LEIPZIG ON JUNE 28, 1960 AND THE GOLDEN JUBILEE OF THE CAPUCHINS IN OREGON WAS CELEBRATED AT THE SAME TIME. ON JULY 6, 1964, CONSTRUCTION BEGAN ON FOUR NEW C.C.D.CLASS-ROOMS. THESE WERE DEDICATED BY BISHOP LEIPZIG AUGUST 23, 1964. IN OCTOBER 1965, FR. LEOPOLD WAS TRANSFERRED TO BURLINGAME, CALIF., AND THE PRESENT PASTOR, FR. SIMON COUGHLIN OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED TO SUCCEED HIM. FR. VENANTIUS O'SHEA OFM CAP. WAS APPOINTED ASSISTANT. OTHER PRIESTS WHO HAVE SERVED OUR LADY OF ANGELES PARISH ARE: FR. ISIDORE KENNEDY, FR. STEPHEN MURTAGH, FR. HERBERT WHITFIELD, FR. DANIEL DUFFY, FR. BERTRAM MULLIGAN, FR. ANTONINE KEATING, FR. BAPTIST WELDON, FR. URBAN RIORDAN, FR. IRANAEUS O'SULLIVAN, FR. ELZEAR BARRY, FR. ANDREW OROSCO. FR. VIVIAN O'CONNELL, AND FR. FIDELUS COFFEY.
ST. PATRICK'S - UMATILLA
IN 1847, FR. BROUILLET SPENT 3 DAYS IN UMATILLA, LATER IT WAS PART OF THE DALLES PARISH. UMATILLA THEN BECAME PART OF THE PENDLETON PARISH AND FINALLY IN 1909, IT BECAME PART OF THE HERMISTON PARISH. IN THE FALL OF 1909, AND IN JANUARY 1910, MASS WAS SAID THERE BY THE SERVITE FATHERS FROM HERMISTON. THE CAPUCHINS WERE PLACED IN CHARGE OF THE HERMISTON PARISH AND ON FEBRUARY 20, 1910 FR. LUKE SHEEHAN OFM CAP. SAID THE FIRST MASS IN UMATILLA. THE CHURCH WAS BUILT IN THE SUMMER OF 1910. MASS HAS BEEN SAID IN UMATILLA CONTINUOUSLY SINCE THAT TIME. THE GOLDEN JUBILEE OF THE PARISH WAS CELEBRATED IN 1960, WITH BISHOP LEIPZIG PRESIDING. THE POOL WHICH WILL BE FORMED BY THE COMPLETION OF THE JOHN DAY DAM BEING CONSTRUCTED APPROXIMATELY 60 MILES DOWNSTREAM ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER FROM UMATILLA, WILL FLOOD THE CHURCH PROPERTY AT UMATILLA. IN RELOCATING THE CHURCH, IT WAS MOVED TO A NEW SITE AT IRRIGON, OREGON, SIX MILES WEST OF UMATILLA, TO SERVE PARISHIONERS FROM UMATILLA, IRRIGON, AND BOARDMAN. THE LAST MASS WAS SAID AT UMATILLA ON OCTOBER 23, 1966. THE BUILDING WAS MOVED OCTOBER 31, 1966 AND THE FIRST MASS IN IRRIGON WAS SAID NOVEMBER 13, 1966.
ST. PETER'S - ECHO.
ST. PETER'S HAS BEEN ATTENDED BY THE CAPUCHINS SINCE THEIR ARRIVAL IN HERMISTON IN 1909. THE PRESENT CHURCH WAS BUILT IN 1913 AND WAS DEDICATED ON APRIL 6, 1913 BY BISHOP O'REILLY. THE GOLDEN JUBILEE WAS CELEBRATED ON MAY 5, 1963 WITH BISHOP LEIPZIG GIVING THE ADDRESS. MASS IS NOW SAID EVERY SUNDAY AT 8:30 AM, BY FR. AL. FISHER FROM ST. ANDREWS INDIAN MISSION, PENDLETON. BECAUSE THE PRIESTS FROM HERMISTON SAY MASS IN ARLINGTON, OREGON EVERY SUNDAY. HOWEVER, ST. PETER'S REMAINS OFFICIALLY A MISSION OF OUR LADY OF ANGELS IN HERMISTON.
ST. MARY'S - BOARDMAN
ST. MARY'S WAS ORIGINALLY PART OF THE HEPPNER PARISH WHEN THE CHURCH WAS BUILT IN 1929 AND MASS WAS SAID THERE ONCE. ALMOST FROM THE BEGINNING, IT BECAME PART OF THE HERMISTON PARISH AND MASS HAS BEEN SAID THERE FAIRLY CONSTANTLY OVER THE YEARS. DURING THE PAST 10 YEARS, MASS HAS BEEN SAID THERE EVERY SUNDAY. THE POOL BEHIND THE JOHN DAY DAM & LOCK PROJECT WILL ALSO FLOOD THE SITE OF THIS CHURCH. MASS WAS SAID FOR THE LAST TIME ON NOVEMBER 27, 1966 AT BOARDMAN. THE BUILDING WAS TURNED OVER TO THE CORP OF ENGINEERS AND WAS DESTROYED.
ST. PATRICK'S - IRRIGON
THE CHURCH WAS MOVED FROM UMATILLA ON OCTOBER 31, 1966 AND THE FIRST MASS WAS SAID HERE ON NOVEMBER 13, 1966. THE OLD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN UMATILLA WAS PURCHASED IN DECEMBER 1966 AND MOVED TO IRRIGON WHERE IT WAS JOINED TO THE CHURCH BUILDING TO BE USED AS A C. C. D. CENTER AND PARISH HALL. THE NEW CHURCH WAS BLESSED BY BISHOP LEIPZIG ON MAY 28, 1967.