The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1922-08-05
HISTORY OF CATHOLIC CHURCH
BOHEMIAN, MONT.

1t is my duty to say something about
the history of the parish of Bozeman
and the missions attached to this par
ish Among the many places where
the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was Of
fered in early days, Bozeman deserves
special mention, for it was one of the
first places in the state to afford hos
pitality to the early Fathers. The City
of Bozeman was called after one of
it's first settlers, John Bozeman. This
city is SO miles from Butte, and the
same distance from the Capital City of
the state, Helena. 1t is unfortunate to
have to state that no early records
are on file containing the early history
of the parish of Bozeman, and tradi-
tion in reference to the early Fathers
in this parish is not safe to follow on
account of differences in opinion and
defective memory of those living in
Bozeman in early days. The ear
lest records we can find treating
of the history of the Bozeman
parish is taken from Father Pal
ladino's History of the Indian and
the White in the Northwest" Steps
toward the erection of a church were
begun as early as the year 1897 when
two large blocks were offered for this
purpose by non-Catholic gentleman
of this city. This offer of property
was on Third avenue and Olive street.
This site was most beautiful one for
a Catholic church and through the eff
forts Of some narrow-minded individu-
ais the purchase of this site never ma
terialized. In 1880, Rev. Father Pal
ladino, S. j., was sent to Bozeman to
look up another site. Father Palladi-
no, according to his own writings, left
Bozeman in about a month, without
making any selection owing to the
small number of Catholic families here
at that time. Finally Father Joseph
Guidi, S. j., came to Bozeman and Sc
1ected the site on which now stands
the church building which is located
on West Mendenhall street.. Father
Guidi in 1885 began the erection of
the first Catholic church in Bozeman,
but before he completed the building
he was called away to another mis-
sion and the church was finished by
Rev. Father c. Pauwelyn. The first
church, was completed in 1886. The
site of the old building on Mendenhall
street consisted of four lots, these lots
being donated by a non-Catholic gen.
Hannah nf This oifx Nv. ToI4
er. The Mendenhall Street church
was dedicated by the Right Rev. Bish-
op Brondel of Helena (nowdeceased)
on the 18th day of August, in the year
1856, and the little church was placed
under the patronage of Our Lady of
the Most Holy Rosary. The Bozeman
parish was given a resident priest. In
the latter part of August, 1889, the
late Bishop of Helena, the Right Rev.
John Baptist Brondel, appointed Rev.
A. r. Coopman first resident pastor
to take care of the souls in this par
ish and to attend to the missions of
Three Forks, East and West Gallatin,
Chestnut, Belgrade and Manhattan. In
1891, Father Coopman was succeeded
in Bozeman by Rev. Father Lambaere,
who remained here but few months,
and after his appointment to another
parish in the diocese, Bozeman was
attached as mission to Livingston
Rev. Father Pirnat, then pastor in
Livingston, attended to Bozeman's
spiritual wants and it's missions until
Father H. B. Allaeys was appointed
as Bozeman's resident pastor, he re-
naming about two years, then sue
ceeded by Father Peter Gallagher,
who remained about one year. Father
John O'Brien, next appointed, was pas
tor for the next two years, until the
close of 1904. Rev. j. B. Thompson of
Boulder, Mont, was next appointed
pastor March 9, 1905, and up to the
present is the acting pastor in charge
of the parish. Upon his arrival in |
Bozeman, he learned from the trus-
tees of the parish that the Catholic
people owned two church sites; one