Luxembourg immigrants established Our Lady of the Presentation Parish
By Father Kenneth Borowiak
for the Register
In the last half of the 19th century, immigrants, many from Luxembourg, settled in the Platte Valley in northern Butler County. One of the first things they did was to find a suitable site to build a Catholic Church.
The Catholic settlers sought out the rich soil of the Platte Valley in establishing homesteads and farms. Wishing to establish their Catholic faith in a new land, they set out to create and build the new parish of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
One hundred fifty years later, many direct descendants of those pioneer families gathered to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Catholic faith in northern Butler County.
Bishop James Conley opened up the sesquicentennial (150th) year for members of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary parish with the celebration of Mass Sept. 14 in the picturesque Marietta church. A meal and program followed afterward.
Editor's Note: See photos by Jodi Prochaska here.
“This is something to celebrate,” pastor Father Adam Sughroue said. “The faith has been practiced here for 150 years and we must celebrate,” he added. “It is beautiful that we get to celebrate this milestone and lay the foundation for future generations.”
In his homily, Bishop Conley reflected on the parish celebrating 150 years of faith. The parish has seen so much history in that time, he said. Commonly known as “Marietta,” the parish was established 13 years before the creation of the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln.
“They’ve gone through two world wars and any number of things,” he said, “and still, the faith was handed on at Marietta, generation after generation. That is beautiful, this legacy of faith.”
After Mass, parishioners and guests reminisced and enjoyed displays of 150-year-old Butler County maps, old parish council meeting minutes, photos and family biographies. A meal was served in the parish hall and under a large decorative tent set up for the occasion. Current parishioners and descendants of other original families took part in the day’s celebrations.
The first settler to make his home in the northern part of Butler County was Peter Nicholas Meysenburg. Born in 1838 in Luxembourg, he and other family members emigrated to the United States in 1863.
They eventually arrived at Shinn’s Ferry, west of the town of Savanna, which at the time was the county seat of Butler County. Here, several other Catholic families joined the Meysenburgs. In the years following, more than a dozen additional Catholic families joined the first pioneers.
On April 16, 1874, Father Frederick Uhing of West Point celebrated the first Mass in the Luxembourg Settlement, in the sod house of Peter Nicholas and Mary Meysenburg. In 1876, plans began in earnest to build a church and cemetery on land donated by parishioners John Meysenburg – Peter’s brother – and John Sprunk, respectively.
Bishop James O’Connor, apostolic vicar of the Vicariate of Nebraska, dedicated the parish’s first church under the patronage of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Nov. 25, 1878. The first rectory at Luxembourg was completed a short time later, at a cost of $700.
By 1890, the parishioners had outgrown the first church. Bishop Thomas Bonacum, the first bishop of the Diocese of Lincoln, dedicated a new 80’ x 40’ church in January 1891. Tragedy struck less than three weeks later, when a fire of unknown origin burned the new church to the ground. Parishioners learned Bishop Bonacum had insured the building for $4,000, the cost of construction. They immediately began planning to rebuild the church on the same foundation as the previous one. On Aug. 15, 1891, Bishop Bonacum dedicated the new Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church.
Sixteen years later, Father John Hoffman oversaw the completion of the interior work when art glass windows depicting the 12 apostles, the stations of the cross, and decorative, stamped wall and ceiling metal tin was added. All are commonly admired by visitors today. In May 1909, two Presentation families, Mr. and Mrs. John Morbach and Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Smith, donated the statue of Our Lady of Consolation (Consolatrix Afflictorum) of Luxemburg. The antique statue came equipped with several sets of richly embroidered robes for Mary and the Christ Child whom she holds. The garments were changed by the parish women according to the liturgical season of the year. The statue was blessed by Bishop Bonacum May 12, 1909.
To provide a place for social, religious and educational activities, the parish hall was completed in 1947.
A great-grandson of Peter Nicholas Meysenburg is Father James Meysenburg, pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Parish in Falls City. He reflected on his family’s involvement in the parish and the parish’s impact in the discernment of a vocation to the priesthood.
“As a member of Presentation Parish, you knew you belonged,” he said. “My parents just lived their faith,” he added. “For them and for all parishioners, it was just a part of the fabric of their being.
“Presentation Parish has always been and always will be home for me,” he continued. “I am so grateful to have grown up in that parish and so grateful to all the parishioners and pastors who have continued to take such pride in their parish home.”
Marietta School
Opened in September 1898, the first Presentation School was in the first church which had been renovated into a classroom. After several modifications and expansions to the original school building, it was decided to build a new Catholic school.
Father Ferdinand Mock was appointed pastor July 6, 1915. Although it was his first assignment after ordination, he immediately began a campaign to finance the construction of a new school building. The three-story brick building was dedicated October 16, 1916, by Bishop J. Henry Tihen. Construction and furnishings cost $21,395. In 1928, the school was renamed Marietta High School.
From 1931 to 1945, Marietta High School had the distinction of being the smallest accredited high school in the United States. The efforts to keep the high school open, and sustainable, were due in large part to the efforts of Msgr. Daniel Cooper, pastor from 1941 to 1959.
Msgr. Cooper made every effort to keep Catholic school education accessible and affordable in the Platte Valley. He wanted students to have a well-rounded and developed curriculum to form the entire person.
An accomplished pianist, Msgr. Cooper wished for Marietta High School to have an excellent music program. With resources limited and no money to pay a music director, he took on that position himself. During the summer, in the rectory yard, he taught himself, by the light of a lantern hung from a tree, all the instruments needed for a band. In addition to this, he was full-time pastor, coach, teacher and school bus driver. He also conducted annual summer altar boy camps, which were popular for many years.
Part of the support of the parish and school came from “God’s Acre.” Begun by Msgr. Cooper, farmers pledged the proceeds of one acre of their crops to the financial support of the church and school. The program was so successful that parishioners donated a total of 2,000 bushels of corn in 1948.
Msgr. Cooper also worked with parishioners to take in boarders who wished to attend Marietta High School from other parishes. Marietta High School continued operations until 1961 when it was consolidated with Aquinas High School in David City while the grade school continued.
Tragedy struck the parish community Nov. 21, 1969. Three School Sisters of St. Francis, who taught at Presentation School, were killed in an automobile accident near Brainard. The school outlook was very bleak with the loss of the Sisters. With the help of the lay teachers and Sister Mary from Howells, the school was able to continue through the term. The elementary school closed in 1970; most of the 83 students transferred to St. Mary School in David City.
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church has remained largely the same since its construction 133 years ago. The church was last renovated in 2021. In anticipation for the parish’s 150th anniversary, Father Michael Ventre, then the pastor, installed a high altar and two side altars which had been reclaimed from a Catholic church in Butler County, Pa. Jean Kriz constructed a new altar of sacrifice to complement the other three altars.
A new sound system was installed, the confessional was updated, and new carpet and lighting were installed in the choir loft. At that time, the pews also were refurbished and restained, and the decorative wall and ceiling tin were repainted.
