1886

The Santa Fe Railroad, having obtained permission from Congress in 1884 to build across what was then Indian Territory, staked out the route from Arkansas City, Kansas south to Gainesville, Texas.

1887

A railroad siding station, used as a fuel and water stop, was built and was originally known as "Summit", but later was called "Edmond" station. This was truly an isolated frontier railroad station surrounded by nothing but prairie grass, wild flowers, red dirt, and a few blackjack oaks scattered here and there.

1889

President Benjamin Harrison assigned April 22 as the date for the Homestead Run in which three million acres of "Unassigned Lands" were opened for settlement. This event was not only the birth of Oklahoma but, also, was the force that changed the emphasis of Oklahoma Catholicism. The importance of Indian missions diminished and priority was given to the new settlers.

Settlers came from as far away as the Great Lakes region. Some wanted farm land and some wanted to build towns. Existing railroad stations became their destinations. By the end of the day of the run, about 150 people, mostly men, had arrived at the Edmond site.

Among the first settlers was Father Nicholas F. Scallan, an Australian. He was one of three secular priests working in Oklahoma at the time of the Land Run. His territory included Purcell, Oklahoma City, Edmond, Deer Creek (Lockridge), Yukon, Norman, and Frisco. Edmond began holding religious services without church buildings. Any space that could be found was used, such as, homes, tents, hotels, boarding houses, and dance halls. Immediately after the run, Father Scallan found four Catholics in Edmond, J. C. Canty, J. J. Kerwin, James Brown, and Michael O'Keefe. He asked them to build a Catholic Church.

Since there were so few Catholics, the church was built mainly by non-Catholics. Mr. Canty obtained the land on the southwest corner of First and Boulevard. Mr. Kerwin was the building committee; Mr. Brown, a lumberman formerly of Gainesville, Texas, donated the materials required for construction; J. J. Stephenson was the contractor. This, the first church of any denomination in Oklahoma, was a one room frame structure with a bell tower in front and three windows on each side. It seated 150 people and cost $500.00 to build. Upon completion, the total debt was approximately $90.00. On Christmas Eve, Mr. Canty imported oysters from Kansas City, put on an oyster dinner and dance for all, and paid off the remaining debt.

The church was dedicated only sixty-three days after the Land Run, with the first Mass being said on June 24, the feast day of St. John the Baptist. The dedication was performed by Father Ignatius Jean, OSB, Prefect Apostolic. The Mass was said by Father Scallan. Initially, the church was used for Catholic services one Sunday each month when Father Scallan came to town. It was used on other Sundays by Methodists, Christians, and Presbyterians for their services.

1890

In July, Father Gregory De Groote, OSB, was appointed to succeed Father Scallan as the pastor of Oklahoma City with the missions of Norman, Edmond, Deer Creek (Lockridge), and Frisco. Father De Groote was a missionary priest who had recently arrived from Bengal, India.

1891

In May, Father D. Hilary Cassal, OSB, succeeded Father De Groote as pastor of Oklahoma City and its missions.

In June, Pope Leo XIII elevated the Oklahoma and Indian Territories to the status of Vicariate Apostolic. Father Theophile Meerschaert was appointed Vicar Apostolic. Father Meerschaert was a 44 year old native of Belgium who had been ordained at the American College in Louvain in 1871 and had come to America in 1872. He was a simple, kind, direct and sincere man with a very dominant personality.   

In September, Father Meerschaert was consecrated a bishop. He chose Guthrie as his place of residence and St. Mary's was made the Pro-Cathedral. As bishop, he managed a vast area of over 70,000 square miles within which some 5,000 Catholics were scattered. Working with Bishop Meerschaert were three diocesan priests and twenty-three Benedictine priests. Since American-born priests were not available, he was able to recruit 21 priests from Belgium and Holland. These priests, traveling by horse and buggy, covered large distances under extremely adverse conditions.

Father Willebrord Vooghden, OSB, assistant pastor at St. Joseph's in Oklahoma City, became the first resident pastor at St. John's. He was born in Holland, went to a Benedictine Monastery in Belgium, spent 5 years as a missionary in India, and came to Indian Territory in 1889 at the age of 32.

St. John the Baptist had a mission church, St. Patrick's, in Lockridge, a settlement west of Edmond. This was the first rural church of any denomination in the Oklahoma Territory. Previously called Deer Creek, this settlement had approximately 30 Catholic families, most being Irish homesteaders and farmers who arrived during the Land Run. St. Patrick's Church, built by the parishioners on 5 acres of land donated by John Charles Kelly and his wife Musetta, was a small 24 x 40 feet white building with a simple steeple and bell tower. The church was designed by Thomas Cashman and built under his direction.

Besides saying Mass at St. John's and St. Patrick's, Father Vooghden also said Mass once a month at Seward, 44 Catholics, and Frisco, 62 Catholics.

On November 8th, Father Vooghden, along with Fathers Germanus Guillaume and Savinien Louismet, OSB, assisted Bishop Meerschaert as he blessed the church of St. John the Baptist. The little church was very crowded with both Catholics and non-Catholics in attendance. The next day, Bishop Meerschaert went to Lockridge to dedicate St. Patrick's Church. There he was assisted by Fathers Vooghden, DeGrasse, Beck, Cassal, Guillaume, Ospital, and Louismet.   

1893

Father William Ospital, OSB, was assigned pastor of St. John's. He was a Basque monk who came to Sacred Heart Benedictine Abbey, 60 miles northwest of Atoka, in 1888, was ordained in 1889, and served as assistant pastor at Purcell from 1890 to 1893. Father Ospital took care of Chandler as well as Edmond and Lockridge.
 
 

1894

In January, Father Frederick Van der Aa became pastor of St. John's. He was one of the first four Belgian and Dutch priests recruited by Bishop Meerschaert and was the only one who continued serving in Oklahoma throughout his active life. He was a man of independent means who took a several month vacation in Belgium every year to get away from the heat of Oklahoma summers.

1895

Father Denis Van Huffel succeeded Father Van der Aa as pastor of St. John's. He was also one of the first group of priests recruited by Bishop Meerschaert. Father Van Huffel remained pastor at St. John's for 4 years.
 
 
 
 

1899

In June, because Edmond had not grown much, St. John's was made a mission parish of Norman and was served by the Norman pastor, Father John Metter. He had come from France and, in 1894, was the third priest ordained for service to the Vicariate Apostolic of the Indian Territory. He was an assistant at Guthrie before going to Norman in 1896. When Edmond became a mission of Norman, St. Patrick's at Lockridge became a mission of Kingfisher and was served by Fathers John van den Hende, W. P. Lamb, Charles Goetsinger, and Francis Trompeter.

1900

Parish status for St. John's in Edmond was regained and a new church was built at a cost of $4,000. James Brown, George Klein, and Simon Hartman were the building committee and, even though Father Metter contributed largely to the building fund, they had to work hard to overcome opposition from some of the parishioners who believed that a new church was not needed. A bell was donated by Mrs. James Brown who donated many items to the church.

The new St. John's Church was dedicated on August 15 by Bishop Meerschaert, assisted by fourteen priests. The original church was sold and moved to the business section of Edmond where it became the Bebout Barber Shop. It was located on the east side of Broadway just north of Second Street. It was torn down in 1916 and replaced by a new brick barber shop.  
 
 

 1901

Father Zenon Steber was named pastor of St. John's. He was born in Alsace and ordained in France. He had worked on the African Gold coast but had to leave there because of illness. After leaving Edmond, he became pastor at Okarche where he remained for 46 years.
 
 
 

1902

Father Germanus Guillaume, OSB, became pastor. He was one of the first four priests ordained at Sacred Heart for the Indian Territory.
 
 
 
 

1903

Father Dupret was assigned as pastor of St. John's. He was one of the first four Belgian priests recruited by Bishop Meerschaert during the summer of 1893. Father Dupret resigned in December, 1904.
 
 
 
 

1904

Father Francis J. Trompeter was the next pastor of the Edmond church. He was very popular with Catholics and non-Catholics, and was able to obtain many gifts for the church, including a baptismal font from the Honorable Dennis Flynn, Territorial Representative. The altar Society held a several day long fair that cleared $400.00 which was used to purchase a fine Gothic altar. Mrs. James Brown donated statues. At this time there were 33 families registered in the parish.

1905

In August, the Oklahoma and Indian Territories were elevated to a full diocese and named the Diocese of Oklahoma. Bishop Meerschaert was told to move from Guthrie to Oklahoma City and St. Joseph's was made the Pro-Cathedral.

1906

Father Joseph Knafels was made pastor of St. John's. He was born in Austria, was ordained in Minnesota, and came to Oklahoma because of poor health. Up to this time, the priests lived in the vestry of the church, there was no rectory. Since Father Knafels was accompanied by his sister, a house was rented for them. Because his health got worse, he had to give up his pastoral work in December, 1907.
 

1907

On November 16th, Oklahoma became the 46th state in the union as Oklahoma Territory (the western half) and Indian Territory (the eastern half) united for statehood. Oklahoma was an overwhelmingly Protestant state. The Catholic church had to interact with the Bible Belt environment in order to overcome the prejudice of non-Catholics. Catholics were viewed as foreigners and intruders by many Oklahomans. Many Oklahoma Catholics were immigrants. The bishop was a European and so were 61 of the 88 priests in Oklahoma. Because of these anti-Catholic feelings, an effort was begun to recruit priests from the northeastern part of the United States.

1908

Father Andrew Pouey, OSB, was temporarily assigned as pastor of Edmond where he remained for 18 months. Father Pouey purchased a house across the street from the church for $1,700.00 and it became the first parish owned rectory. At this time, Lockridge again became a mission of Edmond.
 
 

1909

Father Maurice Omer Dannis (D'Haenens) became the pastor of St. John's. He was ordained in Belgium in 1900. He improved the church building by installing electric lights and natural gas. He obtained statues and made a chapel in the sacristy where Mass could be offered in cold weather. Mass was held on the first and third Sundays of the month in Edmond. On the other Sundays, Father Dannis went to the mission churches of Lockridge and Navina. He instituted the practice of assigning pews to specific people and families, and charging pew rent.