St. Joseph Parish um 1920
The building of the I-40 interstate ended up re-routing a large amount of tourism away from Winslow, dealing a blow to economic growth in the town. A foundation was formed in the 90s with the goal of restoring tourism to the downtown area, inspired by the mention of Winslow in the hit Eagles song “Take It Easy” (“Standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona”, goes the line in the song). While it may not be another Santa Fe, New Mexico as originally envisioned by pre-Depression railway executives, Winslow with its nearly 10,000 citizens still stands as a fine example of classic Route 66 small town America.
Catholicism in Winslow
In 1888, Mass was being offered once monthly in a private home.
The first Mass offered in Winslow was in a home in February of 1888. At that time Mass could only be offered once a month. The Catholic parish of Saint Joseph was established in 1896, by the Bishop of Arizona, Most Rev. Peter Bourgade of Tucson, with Father Thomas M. Connolly as the first pastor.
For years Fr. Connelly lived in two small rooms in back of the church until 1906 when a building was donated for the rectory. In 1897, Fr. Connelly was in charge of Winslow, Williams, Grand Canyon, Seligman and Kingman.
In 1923, a new church was constructed under the direction of Father Edward A. Albouy, then pastor. Mr. Bob Felton was the contractor who built the walls. The stone for the church was cut and shaped on the site and hauled with team and wagon by Charles Daze. The basement was dug by hand and also the foundation. In 1921 the solemn blessing of the corner stone took place. Officiating was Fr. Schuster, OFM, who periodically took care of the spiritual needs of the Lagunas, here. (That it is indeed a small world can be seen when later Fr. Schuster was sent to Indiana. During his pastorate he sent a number of young men to study for the priesthood in the Southwest. Among them was a young lad named James Lindenmeyer.) On April 8, 1923, the new church was completed and solemnly blessed by Archbishop Daeger of Santa Fe
St. Joseph Church records date back to 1896. The first Baptism was on December 27, 1896; first Marriage was on January, 14, 1897; first funeral on December 23, 1897; first Communion class on August 15, 1902 and the first Confirmation class on March 22, 1903.