Breda - St. Bernard

BREDA - The city of Breda was founded in 1874 when the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad passed through the untamed prairie of the north and west of Mt. Carmel. The early Catholic settlers, mostly of German descent, plus some of Dutch descent, were affiliated with Mount Carmel parish until 1880. In 1879, Father F. W. Pape of Carroll organized a congregation of about 60 families who set to work and put up a frame church which stood where the rector now stands. The new congregation was officially founded in 1880 and was placed under the patronage of St. Bernard of Clairveaux. Father Matthew B. Norton was appointed the first pastor.

Father Conrad Schulte came in 1882. He purchased a rectory and started a school. In 1884, three Franciscan Sisters came from LaCrosse, Wis. to teach. On June 17, 1888, the corner stone for the present church was laid. The building cost $15,000. Today it is the oldest Catholic church building in Carroll County.

Father John Anler became the third pastor in 1897 and under his direction the stone chapel was constructed in 1898. Father G. H. Luehrsmann (1902-1916) and Father Joseph Schulte (1916-1929) succeeded Father Anler.

The grade school was built and completed in 1903 and the old church was moved west of the present church and became a convent. The church was enlarged in 1915 at a cost of $13,000.

St. Bernard High School was accredited on Jan. 6, 1927, and high school classes were held in the four rooms on the first floor of the grade school building.

Father E. L. Schleyer (1929-1949), Father John P. Hausman (1949-1966), Father John Doherty (1966-1974), Father J. Charles Yetmar (1974-1980), Father Robert McClintok (1980-1982), Father Richard Birdsall (1982-1985) and Father Thomas Munn (1985-1989) served St. Bernard Parish over the years.

A new rectory was built in 1930, and a drive was begun for a high school. A new high school was built in 1951. The church was restored in 1977. In 1979, the high school closed and the majority of students became members of Kuemper High School. The high school building was converted into a grade school. The old grade school was razed and the land sold.

St. Bernard Grade School joined with the school operated by Mount Carmel, Lidderdale and Maple River to form Christ the King Grade School. In his will, Father Birdsall left the parish over $35,000 to be used for the education of the children.

Included among the spiritual and temporal accomplishments were the complete remodeling of the rectory, the repairing of the school to make it more energy efficient, a new roof on the chapel and the masses in the cemetery. In July of 1991, the convent was sold. A parish endowment was established. A Pieta statue was placed in the church. In June of 1997, the Statue of St. Bernard, given to the parish by the Presentation Sister Dubuque, was placed.

Father James Smith became pastor in 1997. In 1999, the outside of the church was insulated and covered with stucco. The stained glass windows were restored and a protective glass was put over the windows and frames. The interior of the church was recently restored.