DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — and it's quite a story. Sit back and let me walk you through it. Now, 1875 is where we begin.
The Right Reverend Anthony Dominic Pellicer — First Bishop of San Antonio, and a man clearly with an eye for good ground — established St. Michael's Parish right here in DeWitt County. And the land itself?
That came courtesy of the Cuero Land and Immigration Company, who donated this very site for a church. So from the start, this parish was built on generosity. The name St.
Michael's wasn't chosen at random, either. It was chosen in memory of a man named Michael O'Brien, whose widow was one of the very first members of the congregation. There's something in that — a community gathering itself together and, right from the beginning, holding someone's memory in the name they would call their church.
A small frame church went up in 1876, and with it came the parish's first resident pastor: the Reverend V. L. Manci, of the Society of Jesus.
By 1877, St. Michael's was already running a Catholic school. One year old, and already teaching.
Now, here's where the story takes a darker turn — and you have to appreciate the timing, because timing is everything. Construction started on a larger building in 1886. Just a few months in.
The mortar was barely dry on the ambition when a hurricane came ashore and destroyed the coastal town of Indianola. That same storm damaged the first church right here. Indianola — wiped from the map.
And the people who fled? Many of them made their way to St. Michael's.
They joined the parish and became part of this congregation before the new brick edifice was even completed in 1892. There's a kind of grim grace in that — a community torn from one place finding its way into another. The brick church was done by 1892, and the parish kept growing.
A new rectory in 1894. A new school in 1912. And then in 1931, the present church itself was erected — and credit for that goes to the Reverend Francis Pallanche, who served as pastor from 1922 to 1932 and pushed that building into existence.
Soon after Pallanche's time, another pastor arrived — the Reverend William Jansen — and he settled in for the longest pastorate in this church's entire history: 1937 to 1966. Nearly three decades of one shepherd with one flock. The building didn't stop after that.
A new school and convent in 1955. A new rectory in 1963. Remodeling of the school and church buildings through the 1960s.
A new parish hall in 1973. By the time this marker was set down in 1975 — a hundred years after Bishop Pellicer established the parish — St. Michael's counted over 400 families among its members.
What started as a donated lot and a small frame church had grown into something that outlasted a hurricane, outlasted a whole town, and kept on going. That's the story the marker tells. And out here on the Texas road, that's the kind of staying power worth pulling over for.
What the marker says
The Rt. Rev. Anthony Dominic Pellicer, First Bishop of San Antonio, established St. Michael's Parish in 1875, after the Cuero Land and Immigration Co. donated this site for a church. The name was chosen in memory of Michael O'Brien, whose widow was one of the first members. A small frame church was erected in 1876, and the Rev. V. L. Manci, S.J., became the first resident pastor. St. Michael's Parish has operated a Catholic school since 1877. Construction was started on a larger building in 1886, a few months before the first church was damaged by the hurricane that destroyed the coastal town of Indianola. Many of the families who fled Indianola became members of St. Michael's Parish before the brick edifice was completed in 1892. As the parish grew, a new rectory was built in 1894 and new school in 1912. The present church was erected in 1931, through efforts of the Rev. Francis Pallanche, Pastor 1922-32. Soon afterward, the Rev. William Jansen began the longest pastorate in this church's history, 1937-66. Recent expansion has included a new school and convent (1955), rectory (1963), remodeling of school and church building (1960's), and new parish hall (1973). Today St. Michael's has a membership of over 400 families.