By Pamela Seal

Special to the American Press

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Lake Charles has been a symbol of resilience and faith over the past 150 years, rising above the destruction of hurricanes and ashes early on.

From its humble beginnings as the Parish of St. Francis de Sales in 1869 to a majestic Cathedral now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Immaculate Conception has always been the center of liturgical life. It serves as a reminder of the pioneering spirit and determination of the early missionaries who helped establish the first Catholic church in Lake Charles.

Reflecting on the sesquicentennial anniversary of Immaculate Conception Church Parish, which is Dec. 8, the Rev. Rommel Tolentino, rector of the Cathedral, expressed gratitude to those early church fathers for their sacrifice and dedication to provide spiritual nourishment to the people in this area.

“The missionaries and priests deserve a great deal of thanks for being faithful to their vocation,” Tolentino said. “Christ commanded the apostles and their successors — which are the bishops and their collaborators, the priests — to spread the Gospel and to preach to all corners of the world. They took that mandate seriously even through difficult situations, crossing bayous and marshes, using boats and horseback to bring the Gospel and Sacraments here to the people of Lake Charles.”

The sesquicentennial year-long celebration initially kicked off on Dec. 8, 2018, with the theme, “Celebrating Our Past With Joy Today and With Hope For the Future.”

Coinciding with the anniversary year was the extensive restoration of the Cathedral.

“It is such a blessing that our own generation has been able to contribute to our history through the capital campaign for the restoration of the Cathedral,” Tolentino said. “Not every generation had that opportunity. The examples of our ancestors are truly inspiring for us to do our own part in contributing to the growth and development of this parish. Hopefully our efforts will inspire the generations that are coming after us.”

Being the “mother church” of Southwest Louisiana, from which all other Catholic churches were born, adds a great weight to the Cathedral, Tolentino noted.

“When you think about all the prayers that have been said in this church, all the sacraments that have been celebrated, the holiness of this place draws people to this parish.”

Today, the Cathedral ministers to 845 registered families (2,117 individuals) and is considered to be one of the most outstanding examples of Lombardy Romanesque architecture in the United States.

History of the parish

While Immaculate Conception was established as the first Catholic church parish in Lake Charles on Dec. 8, 1869, recorded missionary activity began in the Imperial Calcasieu area as early as the 1850s as priests from Texas and later Opelousas and Abbeville came to minister to the people.

Instrumental in this role were two missionaries from France, the Rev. P.F. Parisot and the Rev. Andre Borias, who traveled the ocean for 52 days to answer the plea of the Most Rev. Jean-Marie Odin, Bishop of the Diocese of Galveston. Their missionary work in eastern Texas included the western part of Louisiana in which Calcasieu Parish and Lake Charles were also serviced.

The registers of the Galveston Diocese show 129 baptisms were recorded in Calcasieu Parish during those early years. The growth of the Catholic Church soon led to regular visits by clergy from Opelousas.

When priests made visits to Lake Charles, Mass was celebrated in the courthouse. But as the number of Catholics continued to grow, it became obvious that a church building was needed.

In 1857, through the efforts of Father Francois Raymond from Opelousas, a lot on the corner of Ryan and Kirby streets, measuring 200 feet-by-200 feet was purchased for $375, and a chapel was built. The church, constructed for $900, was dedicated to St. Francis de Sales on Sept. 26, 1858, thus making Lake Charles a mission of St. Landry Parish in Opelousas.

In 1866, after the Civil War, the parishes of the western part of the state were realigned, and Lake Charles became a mission of St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Abbeville. The Rev. Theodore Lamy, pastor in Abbeville, visited Lake Charles at least three times in 1867 and 1868.

In 1869, however, missionary status came to an end when the Most Rev. Jean-Marie Odin, who had since become Archbishop of New Orleans, established the Parish of St. Francis de Sales with the appointment of a pastor, the Rev. Francois Magniny, and his assistant, the Rev. Etienne Badoil. The region — recognized today as the Diocese of Lake Charles — encompassed the present civil parishes of Allen, Beauregard, Jefferson Davis, Cameron and Calcasieu.

A few months after the Rev. Michael Kelly arrived in Lake Charles in May of 1879, a hurricane spread destruction throughout the area on Aug. 22, badly damaging both the church and the rectory. While the rectory was refurbished, a new church was built and dedicated under the name Immaculate Conception by the Most Rev. Francis X. Leray, Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans, on Oct. 2, 1881. It faced the courthouse on Ryan Street, as did the old church and rectory.

Kelly used lumber from the old church to build a boys’ school, and added a girls’ school and a convent.

Destruction would strike again when The Great Fire of 1910 leveled more than seven city blocks of Lake Charles claiming not only the church, rectory, convent and both the boys’ and girls’ schools, but most of the parish church records as well. Only a few baptismal records survived. Because of its devastating effects, the Great Fire proved to be a turning point in the history of Immaculate Conception parish.

Plans for a new church, seating between 800 and 900, were approved in 1912. Building got underway immediately on the corner of Kirby and Bilbo streets, and the church and was dedicated on Dec. 18, 1913, by Archbishop James Blenk of New Orleans. On Dec. 8, 1927, Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the church was solemnly consecrated. This is the church that stands today.

It was under the leadership of the Rev. Hubert Cramers, a 27-year-old Dutch priest, assigned to the parish in 1902, that Immaculate Conception would flourish. Under his pastoral care at that time were about 4,000 Catholics and two schools enrolling 110 girls and 78 boys. In 1929 Pope Benedict XV made Father Cramers a Domestic Prelate with the title of “Monsignor.” He would spend the remainder of his life as pastor before his health declined. He died on Aug. 10, 1935, and his body is interred in a special vault just outside the sanctuary in the main aisle of the Cathedral.

In September 1935, Monsignor J.A. Vigliero was appointed as successor to Monsignor Cramers. During his five-year term as pastor, stained glass windows were installed in the church as well as a bell in the high tower.

Succeeding Vigliero was Monsignor Louis H. Boudreaux, who served from 1940-1974. He was the first native-born priest to serve the parish as pastor. It was during his administration that Immaculate Conception became the first Catholic church in Louisiana to be air conditioned. Boudreaux died on Dec. 3, 1974, just hours after his retirement had taken place.

Eventually, the Diocese of Lake Charles was formed on Jan. 29, 1980, and The Church of the Immaculate Conception became the Cathedral of the Diocese.

The establishment of the first Catholic church in Lake Charles would also bear fruit to serve the community’s medical and educational needs.

It was through the efforts of Monsignor Cramers and Dr. John Greene Martin that the first hospital in Lake Charles, now known as Christus Ochsner St. Patrick Hospital, was dedicated in 1908 as St. Patrick Sanitarium.

Under the leadership of Boudreaux, Immaculate Conception Catholic School was the first parochial grade school in the area for both girls and boys, opening its doors on Feb. 19, 1950. ICCS was later recognized as the school representing the Cathedral Parish once the Diocese of Lake Charles was formed, thus becoming Immaculate Conception Cathedral School.

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Editor’s note: Sources for history of Immaculate Conception Parish include “The Vine and the Branches: A History of the Catholic Church in Lake Charles” by Lloyd G. Barras; “The Visible Church” by the Diocese of Lake Charles; and the 2015 church directory for the Cathedral.