| St.
Mary's Parish, the oldest Catholic church in Downers Grove, was founded by poor
immigrants who came from Gostyn, Poland, shortly after the American Civil War.
By the 1880's, Polish-speaking priests from Chicago were regularly serving this
rural settlement. Masses
were said in homes or tents because there was no church. The people petitioned
the Archdiocese of Chicago for a Polish National Church. This request was denied
because it seemed the small number of families would be unable to build and support
a church and parish. At that time there were no Catholic churches between LaGrange
and Naperville. Eventually, land for a church, rectory and convent was donated
by a parishioner. In 1891, the Chicago Archdiocese approved the establishment
of a parish that would include non-Polish Catholics from the Downers Grove area. A
group of parishioners, with donated materials and volunteer labor, built a wooden,
tar-paper covered church with 13 pews to seat 25 families. It was located on the
site of our present rectory. The first rectory was built on Douglas Street in
1895. In 1897,
a one-room school was built and the children were taught by lay teachers. It was
Downers Grove's first parochial school and the only one between LaGrange and Naperville.
From 1915 to 1918, two Franciscan nuns staffed the school. In the fall of 1918,
the Felician Sisters came and members of their order are still with us today. In
1920, a combination school/convent was built on the southeast corner of Douglas
and Prairie. After World War II, a brick church, seating 220 persons, was built
on the northeast corner of Douglas and Wilson Streets. It was dedicated in 1948.
In 1949, St. Mary of Gostyn became part of the Joliet Diocese and the congregation
totaled 400 (130 families). St.
Mary's became a territorial parish of the Joliet Diocese in 1953 to help serve
the growing surrounding population. A 3-story school was built on the northeast
corner of Prairie and Douglas. A convent (now the Parish Center) and the current
rectory were built in 1954 and 1957 respectively. Catechism classes for public
school children were introduced about this same time. In
1962, the second church was moved from Wilson and Douglas to its current location
on the northwest corner of Douglas and Prairie. The building now serves as the
Learning Resource Center, Kindergarten, Preschool and Lower Social Hall meeting
room. Our present church was constructed from 1963 to late 1964. The first Mass
was celebrated on December 20, 1964. It was not dedicated until March, 1966, due
to the illness of the then Bishop Martin McNamara. In
1978, additional classrooms and a gymnasium were added to the school building
along Prairie Avenue. The facility was dedicated by Bishop Romeo Blanchette in
August of 1978. Presently
St. Mary's, after 109 years, has nearly 3,000 families with more than 10,000 parishioners.
Almost 700 students are enrolled in St. Mary's School. Over 1,000 children attend
religious education classes. Currently, Father Ernest Norbeck is the 25th pastor
to lead our parish. | 
