Englefeld, Holy Guardian Angels Parish

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On Aug. 1, 1903, Prior Alfred Mayer sent Fr. Peter Windschiegl with Mr. F. J. Lange, president of the Catholic Settlement Society, to the eastern part of St. Peter's Colony. There, on Sunday, Aug. 2, 1903, Fr. Peter celebrated the first holy mass in the tent of Frank Kintz on the northwest quarter of Section 20, township 36, range 19, now part of the parish of the Holy Guardian Angels, Englefeld.

When Prior Alfred Mayer and Mr. Lange first visited the eastern part of the colony, they arrived late in the evening of Aug. 15, 1903, at the log cabin of John Bettin and Paul Wacholtz. No one was home and the door was locked but "necessity knows no law" so the two of them forced their way into the house and after unhitching and feeding their horses, went to sleep.

During the night John Bettin returned and noticing the cabin was occupied cried out, "Who is there?" They both replied at once, "Fr. Alfred, Mr. Lange." Of course there was no eviction but a joyful welcome. The next morning they proceeded on to Watson.

Sunday, Aug. 30, 1903, on his second visit, Fr. Peter Windschiegl celebrated holy mass and was instructed by Prior Alfred Mayer to dedicate the Mission to the Holy Guardian Angels. This mass was celebrated in the log cabin of Thomas Graf Sr. Often when Fr. Peter celebrated mass, snow had to be melted to provide for water used at mass. Ordinary tables were used as altars and confessions were heard on wooden boxes.

On the morning of Saturday, Nov. 21, 1903, Fr. Peter left Muenster with a Democrat wagon as no sleigh was available. When he reached a dilapidated shack near what is now St. Gregor, he stopped, fed his team, made a fire and thawed out the piece of bread he had in his pocket for lunch. He continued on his journey till darkness set in. When he reached section 4, township 37, range 19, he saw a shack on Mr. Nordick's homestead where he intended to stop for the night.

But the door was nailed shut and there was no window so Fr. Peter continued on until he reached the cabin of Thomas Graf. He decided to stay there but again, no one was home. Should he break in or proceed to the home of John Bettin and Paul Wacholtz, which could not be far away? There was no road and if there had been a trail, it was obliterated by the snow. Settlers' homes were few and hard enough to find in the daylight harder still in the dark of night.

After covering a mile or two he stopped his team and yelled as loud as he could. The only response was the howl of a coyote. About a mile farther he again tried his vocal cords and was heard by John Bettin who guided him by the light of his lantern to a safe destination.

At a meeting on Feb. 9, 1906, at which Prior Alfred presided, it was decided that the district be divided into two parishes - the one in Watson to be called Sacred Heart Parish and the other in Englefeld to remain Holy Guardian Angels.

At Englefeld, under Fr. Benedict's direction, a log church, 20 ft x 30 ft with a small stocky tower was started south of the railway station on the land of Joseph Nordick. It was completed by the middle of July, 1905. This little church was solemnly blessed on Aug. 16, 1905, by Bishop Pascal, OMI, who also confirmed 12 members of the parish. On Aug. 22 the first nuptial mass was celebrated with the marriage of Paul Wacholtz and Aurelia Kintz.

In 1911, under Fr. Bernard's supervision, the church at Englefeld, a frame building 92 ft x 42 ft with a tower, was built on a new site north of the hamlet. August Schmitz, a member of the parish, was the contractor. The altars were built by August Schmitz, Frank Kintz and Nick Schmitz. The church was heated by two wood burning stoves. William Lieman had to start the fires at 4:00 a.m. to have the church heated for services.

The first divine service was held on Oct. 27, 1912. That same year a set of four bells was donated three by August Breker and one by August Schmitz. On Dec. 15, 1912, the bells were blessed by Bishop Pascal. Fr. Bernard celebrated high mass and Fr. Peter delivered a German sermon recalling events of earlier days and congratulated the parish on their achievements.

At 2:00 p.m. the bishop blessed the bells, giving the large one (weighing 800 lbs.) the name "Augustine"; the second one of 400 lbs., "Gabriel"; the third weighing 300 lbs., the name "Raphael," and the fourth one of 150 lbs., "Aye Maria." Sponsors at the blessing were Mr. & Mrs. August Breker, Mr. & Mrs. Henry Nordick, Mr. Bernard Tondorf and Mrs. Lange, Mr. & Mrs. August Schmitz, Mr. & Mrs. Nick Herriges and Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Breker.

On Aug. 16 - 19, 1913, Bishop Pascal blessed the church and confirmed 61 boys and girls from Englefeld, St. Gregor and St. Martin. The bishop, accompanied by Prior Peter, arrived by train on Saturday, Aug. 16, 1913. He was met by Fr. Joseph, a squadron of horsemen, the Englefeld band, a group of girls dressed in white and the parishioners. The bishop's carriage was escorted to the rectory where the prelate donned his episcopal robes. The bells rang joyfully as he was conducted into the church where he was officially received. Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament followed.

The old church was sold to John Nordick who used it as his home. Because of its proximity to the road, it was decided to move the structure. This proved to be quite a task. The building was positioned on four wagons with railway steel for beams. First they attempted to go north, but when the wagons sagged down they decided to go south. Mr. Schuman tried to move it with a steam engine but when it got stuck they had to let the building stand. John Pitka Sr. finally managed to pull it with one horse on his stump puller.

Some of the early settlers recall the social life of the parish in the early days. There were church picnics which included community dinners and suppers. Stoves were put up in tents to heat the food that was brought in by the women who had cooked it at home. Everyone brought their own dishes as there were no community facilities. Trees were "planted" for shade.

In 1947 Fr. Marcellus Mayer was once again pastor. Renovations were made in the church— paneling and new linoleum were installed. In 1950, because of the efforts of Fr. Marcellus Mayer, the Ursuline Sisters came to teach in Englefeld. Their musical influence was greatly appreciated. Fr. Luke Boeckmann became pastor in 1955 and new church pews were purchased.

Fr. Florian Renneberg became pastor at Englefeld in 1970. In 1971 his brain child, the Englefeld Hog Fest, was born. His enthusiasm spurred on the people of our community and with the co operation of many, Hog Fest became Englefeld's major event of the year. The summer of 1996 will mark its 25th anniversary.

The new building was to be 46 ft x 84 ft with a 15 ft x 15 ft entrance. There would be a choir balcony and full basement with dining facilities. Monarch Construction in Humboldt was given the contract and work began on May 15, 1979. The pews from the old church were remodelled under the supervision of Fritz Breker with the help of many volunteers from the parish. The altar and lecterns from the old church were used. The side altar was made by Monarch Construction. The chair was made and donated by Fritz Breker. The Stations of the Cross were donated by Alex and Con Bader.

Two new carved wood statues were purchased - one donated in the memory of Jude Lefebvre and the other by the COOL. The baptismal font, made of prairie clay, was made and donated by the pottery club members: Marie Herriges, Manny Lefebvre, Cindy (Kuzminski) Lefebvre and Agnes Breker. The bells from the old church were installed in a new bell tower, built by Schulte Industries. The outdoor cross was also built by them. In 1978 a cairn to honor the early settlers had been built on the southeast corner of the parish property by Joe Plag of Plag Masonry.

The first service in the new church was the wedding ceremony of Alan Plag and Judy ven der Buhs (both of Englefeld) on Feb. 16, 1980.