St. Margaret of Cortona Church

On January 24, 1920, the building committee met to ask for the appointment of a Pastor for a new parish in Fairfax.  Rev. Harry Ansbury was chosen to organize the new parish.  Mr. Mike Roche built the first church of stucco

at Watterson and Murray Streets.  The parish took the name St. Margaret, and Sister Josephine of Brown County suggested that St. Margaret of Cortona be adopted as patron saint - a fine example of perseverance and penance.  The church was dedicated by Rev. Archbishop Henry Moeller on Sunday, September 11, 1921.

In 1922, a frame school building with four classrooms was built by the men of the parish at Watterson Street under thesupervision of Mr. Joe Meyers, with all of the labor supplied free.  The first framed temporary school was opened in September 1922.  In 1927, a four-room brick school - the beginning of our present church/school building was opened. 

In 1950, Rev. Basil Hanebergy opened the new church located in the currect church/school building, celebrating the first Mass on Christmas Day.   

St. Margaret of Cortona School merged with Cure of Ars School in August 2002 and became known as Prince of Peace School, which was housed in the St. Margaret School building.  Prince of Peace school closed after the 2012-13 school year.

St. John Vianney Church

On August 21, 1949, the building program was announced for the purchase of fourteen and a half acres at Berwick and Windward Streets in Madison Place.  Archbishop Karl Alter approved the building of the Parish Center that included a church, a convent, a school, and a rectory.  

In the fall of 1949, Msgr. Hoban solicited the help of the seminarians to clear the land - Fr. Paul Edrich (a later pastor of St. John Vianney) was among those seminarians.  On February 26, 1950, Mass was said in the church for the first time.  The formal blessing of the church by Msgr Clarence Issenmann took place on April 23, 1950.  On March 30, 1952, groundbreaking for the school took place. 

On the Feast of St. John Vianney - August 4, 1953, the new school was blessed and it was announced that the school would be named "Cure of Ars," since St. John Vianney was known as the priest of the village of Ars in France.  Cure of Ars school merge with St. Margaret of Cortona School in August 2002 and became known as Prince of Peace School.  The fiftieth anniversary of St. John Vianney Parish was celebrated in August of 2000 with Pastor Father Paul Edrich as celebrant.  Many of the founding members were in attendance.

On September 14, 2008, due to dwindling attendance, St. John Vianney Parish and St. Margaret of Cortona Parish officially merged into St. Margaret-St. John Parish.  Mass continuted to be celebrated in both parishes.

St. John Vianney Church celebrated the last Mass on June 1, 2014 at 9:00.  Many current and past parishioners were in attendance.

 

The Pastors

St. Anthony Oratory Pastors:
2022-Present Rev. Jamie Weber

St. Margaret-St. John Parish Pastors:
2016-2022 Rev. Jamie Weber
2014-2016 Rev. David Lemkuhl
2016-present Rev. James P. Weber

St. Margaret of Cortona Pastors:
1921-35 Rev. Harry J. Ansbury
1935-44 Rev. Eugene C. Gerlach
1944-56 Rev. Basil Haneberg
1956-63 Rev. Henry J. Imbus
1963-65 Rev. Albert H. Metz
1965-70 Rev. John R. Berning
1970-86 Rev. Carl A. Lizza
1986-98 Rev. Michael Flaherty
1998-04 Rev. Len Fecko
2004-14 Rev. David Lemkuhl

St. John Vianney Pastors:
1949 Msgr. Joseph Schneider
1949-62 Msgr. James Hoban 
1962-77 Rev. Robert Leugers
1977-85 Rev. Norbert Brinkman
1985-02 Rev. Paul Edrich
2002-04 Rev. Len Fecko
2004-14 Rev. David Lemkuhl

A History of St. Anthony Church, Madisonville, Ohio

St. Anthony Church was founded in 1859 by German farmers who had previously driven over an hour each Sunday to St. Francis de Sales, the closest Catholic Church at the time. The church was originally named St. Michael’s, in honor of Michael Bückel, the leader of the Church-building project. St. Michael’s Church was built at the corner of Madison and Roanoke.  St. Michael’s cemetery still exists across from the corner of Erie and Settle. In 1874 the current church building was built to accommodate the growing community.  The new church was named St. Anthony in honor of the pastor, Fr. Anthony Walburg, who had been the first Cincinnati-born German seminarian.  It was dedicated by Archbishop Purcell on September 26, 1874.  In 1891, the church suffered a devastating fire, leaving only the brick walls.  The church was rebuilt and enlarged in only 9 months and was rededicated by Archbishop Elder on October 4, 1891.  The church was rebuilt with one large bell in the steeple.  The following year two additional bells were installed.  In 1902 the four faced steeple clock was installed with the support of parishioners and the Madisonville community.  In 1959 in preparation of the centennial of the parish the church interior was repainted and new pews installed.  In 1981 the interior of the church was repainted white covering the earlier ornamentation.   The last major renovation was completed in 1993 that included remodeling the altar and choir loft, resulting in the current configuration.