The Churches of Corpus Christi Parish

A History of the Central Maine Catholic Community

Individual church histories may be found by following the church links above.

The Early Years

Waterville's first Roman Catholic citizens, Jean-Baptiste and Sarah (Dostie) Mathieu arrived from Canada in 1827. It was during this time that the Canadian migration of the nineteen-century caused a Catholic presence to be felt in Waterville. With the immigrant population of Roman Catholics growing quickly, the Bishop of Quebec sent Father Moise Fortier, Pastor of St. George de Beauce, on a mission to Maine in July, 1841. The first Catholic mass in Waterville's history was celebrated at the Mathieu home. Father Fortier's diary records that many of the Catholic flock had stated to him that they had not seen a priest in seventeen years. Father Fortier stayed in Waterville for four days before returning to Canada. He returned again the next year, and likely intended to continue returning on an annual basis, but he drowned when his canoe capsized on the Kennebec River near the Forks, Maine in May of 1845.

The second priest to minister to Catholics in the Waterville area was the Swiss born, French speaking Jesuit, Father John Bapst. He was assigned to the Old Town area but arrived in Waterville for the first time around 1848. By this time, the Catholic community had grown to the point where building a church was deemed both necessary and feasible. The city's first Roman Catholic Church, St. John's was dedicated in 1851. It was a simple wooden structure without a steeple or belfry and had a seating capacity of three hundred. For many years it was the only Catholic Church between Augusta and Bangor. Not long after its completion, St. John's suffered a devastating fire, but it was quickly rebuild by the community.

The migration of French-Canadians to Waterville begun in the 1830's increased throughout the century that followed. Waterville's population increased at an astounding pace, and most of the population of those from French-Canadian and Irish descent. The Roman Catholic congregation felt the pressure of this growth and it was apparent that a larger church building was needed.

Parish of the Holy Spirit

By the 1980's, the effect of the nationwide decline in clergy began to be felt by Waterville's three Roman Catholic parishes. A pastor and at least one associate had once served each parish, but now they were only being served by a pastor. It soon became apparent that when the existing pastors departed, the diocese could not guarantee their replacements. In February of 1996, a petition was presented to Bishop Joseph J. Gerry to merge the three parishes into one. The formation of a single parish would not only help to alleviate the clergy issue, but it would also make the best use of parish resources to meet the needs of the community. Great importance was placed on fostering a greater sense of Catholic community within the city while also preserving the integrity of the former individual parishes. On May 26, 1996, Pentecost Sunday, Waterville's Catholic parishioners voted to rename their new parish the Parish of the Holy Spirit. On July 1, 1996, Waterville's merged parishes officially became the Parish of the Holy Spirit. Father James S. Plourde was assigned pastor of the Waterville Catholic Community in July of 1995, and served as the first pastor of this newly formed faith community. Father Philip A. Tracy became the second pastor in July 1999.

Father Claude R. Gendreau, who had also been assigned to Waterville in 1995, served as the new parish's first parochial vicar. In June of 1997, Fr. Gendreau was assigned to his own parish in northern Maine and Fr. Scott Mower succeeded him as parochial vicar until July 1999, when Fr. Ralph Boisvert became parochial vicar.

With the creation of the Parish of the Holy Spirit, one cannot help but reflect that the history of Roman Catholicism in Waterville, has in some respects, returned to its roots. Change is nothing new to the parishioners of Waterville. From the time of its inception as St. John's parish in 1851, the parish has continually been transformed to meet the needs of the community. Those needs are at the forefront of this most recent change. It is believed that by returning to a single parish, the Roman Catholic community will continue to be well served.

Corpus Christi Parish