St. Francis of Assisi

History

In 1907, Fr. W. L. Lambertz of Campti began offering a regular monthly Mass in the old school house in Powhattan.  In 1912, his successor, Fr. Nicholas Judermanns built a chapel in the area.  It was blessed by Bishop Van de Ven in the spring of that year and dedicated in honor of St. Andrew.  That chapel was destroyed in a storm in 1937 but it was rebuild the following year by Fr. Hubert, a Holy Ghost Father, and blessed by Bishop Desmond who dedicated it in honor of St. Francis.  The Holy Ghost Fathers took charge of the mission from 1936 to 1948.
     In 1948 Bishop Greco established St. Francis' Church as an independent parish and assigned Fr. Herman Couvillion as the first pastor.  The church building was relocated to Allen Road in 1957.  Under Fr. Rudolph Engelen, ground was broken for a new church in 1963.  The structure, which was built at a cost of $124,000, was completed with help from the Catholic Extension Society in the spring of 1964.  The first Mass was celebrated in the new church on April 12, 1964 and Bishop Greco blessed the church on May 25 of that same year.


Location

179 Hwy. 485 P. O. Box 82
Powhatan, LA 71066
United States
Phone: (318) 352-8819
Fax: (318) 352-8008
31° 50' 52.4076" N, 93° 12' 42.4188" W
See map: Google Maps

Missions

St. Anne Church

The origins of the Church of St. Anne began when San Miguel de los Adais was founded by the Spanish Fransciscan Fathers in 1717 near Robeline, Louisiana. In 1721, Fort Los Adais was founded by the Spaniards to protect the Mission Church and strengthen the Spanish position against the French in Natchitoches, Louisiana, and served as the capitol of the Spanish Province of Texas for fifty years.