Holy Cross Parish

Father Gabriel Richard received this triangular plot of land by way of a grant from President John Quincy Adams on April 1, 1825. This area, known as Catholic Point, contains, among other buildings a church, a rectory, a convent, the former high school, a new high school, and a grade school. The present Church edifice, the second to stand on the site, was built in 1903. A bell, which formerly hung in the original church, was cast in Normandy, France, in 1825. The tracker organ in the Church was built in 1861 and is one of the earliest American-built models in Michigan. Among former pastors of Holy Cross Parish, in addition to Father Gabriel Richard, were the saintly missionary, Bishop Frederic Baraga, and a pioneer priest of St. Clair, Father Lawrence Kilroy. Holy Cross Parish has remained in continuous use and service to the people for over 150 years.