Saint Stephen Parish History

• Parishioners founded St. Stephen Catholic Church's existing site in 1847, when Wisconsin was still a territory.
• The area was known as New Coln at that time.  Church founders came from the Cathedral of St. Stephen in Cologne, Germany.
• Fires in 1884 and 1906 caused minimal damage to the church, but a third fire in 1927 burned it to the ground.  A fourth fire caused by a lightning strike in April, 2008 damaged the steeple and bell tower.
• The congregation built a school in the 1960s.  It closed in 1992, but the building was still used for other church outreach programming, such as the Family Life Center.
• In January 2008, St. Stephen vacated the school building and moved the parish offices and Family Life Center to the rectory.
• In October 2001, the congregation purchased a parcel at 13th Street and Oakwood Road in preparation for the construction of a new church.
• In October 2008, a groundbreaking ceremony kicked off the construction of a new church