The Diocesan History of St Mary Parish Edgerton OH begins with the establishment of the Bardstown, KY

Diocese in 1808. ( Only the Archdiocese of Baltimore (1789) and the Archdiocese of New Orleans (1793) were established earlier. )

The Diocese of Bardstown was founded as the first inland diocese in the United States on April 8, 1808. Benedict Joseph Flaget came to Bardstown in 1811 and was the “First Bishop of the West,” he came to shepherd the

newly designated Diocese of Bardstown – the first inland diocese in the United States and a mega-diocese at that, stretching from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast, the Allegheny Mountains to the Mississippi River. From this “mega-diocese” there would eventually be carved more than forty new dioceses in 10 states, including Cincinnati, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Chicago, and Detroit.

The Diocese of Cleveland was created on April 23, 1847 for 10,000 Catholics. In 1855 when the first church was built south of Edgerton on the Adam Hilbert farm and in 1865 when St Mary Parish was established and the first church built in Edgerton, we would have been part of the Cleveland Diocese.

The territory of the Diocese would fluctuate with the creation of the Diocese of Toledo in 1910. Established on April 15, 1910 by Pope Pious X, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo encompasses 8,222 square miles in a mixture of urban and rural areas that spans 19 counties in Northwest Ohio. The diocese includes Allen, Crawford, Defiance, Erie, Fulton, Hancock, Henry, Huron, Lucas, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam, Richland, Sandusky, Seneca, Van Wert, Williams, Wood, and Wyandot counties.

St Mary Parish began right after the Civil War when Andrew Jackson was president and Pius IX was Pope. These Catholics traveled to Defiance and other places to attend mass and receive other sacraments. In 1855 a first church was built in the Edgerton area on the corner of Adam Hilbert's farm 4 1/2 miles south of Edgerton. In 1865 a new church was built in Edgerton on the corner of Bement & Locust Streets. In 1869 a new church was built, and in 1903 it was moved across the street and the present parsonage was built. For many years the pastor of St Mary also served Blakeslee as a mission.

In 1938 Fr. Joseph Williams became pastor, and a new church (present church) was begun. There were 198 families. The basement was completed September 24, 1939, and the church was begun in June, 1940. 40,000 board feet of oak was donated by the parishioners, and cut at Otis Miller's sawmill. In 1941 the tile roof was installed. In April 1942 the rose windows were installed, a gift from the parish children at a cost of $1000.00. In 1943 marble for the steps, sanctuary, and three altars arrived. The altar and corner stone were blessed by Bishop Altar and he gave St Mary the designation of the Immaculate Conception, and on December 21, 1944 the church was dedicated. Relics of saints were placed in the altar. The bell was installed in the new church weighing 1200 pounds and inscribed with the words 'Glory to God in the Highest'. Total cost before the wainscoting, paneling, and stained glass windows was $108,755.00

John H. deRosen, famed painter for the Pope, painted the triptych and side alter paintings 1950 - 1952. A school addition was also completed and the parish census was up to 200 families. In 1955 the old church was donated to the K of C's and moved to a lot donated by Guy Cape. The sister's convent was built in 1956 at a cost of $27,000.00. In 1962 the pews in church were replaced with new ones. In 1965 the large stained glass window in the choir was installed. A ramp was built on the north side of the church in 1975, and the communion rail was removed in 1981. In 1984 the Lentz Estate came to the parish, and in 1987 the Chapman estate was willed. In 1989 the altar was recut and moved forward in the church and a new Bronze tabernacle was installed.

Upon retirement of Fr. D. David Moore in 1976, Fr, Niedermier became pastor until 1980 when Fr. Tom Ankenbrandt came as pastor for 10 years. In 1990 Fr. Robert Tucceri became pastor while still remaining pastor St. Michael's, Hicksville. This is the first time the parish had to share a priest since 1865.

In 1994 - 1995 St Mary Church underwent a renovation. The basement rough ceiling was finished and painted, the floor was refinished and a new organ was installed in the church. Fr. Tom Oedy moved from Defiance to become pastor in 1996. In 1997 the parish raised $330,000 for an addition to the school under Sr. Rosanne Swope's able leadership. This included a large classroom, new restrooms, a computer lab, and an unfinished basement.

The Church stained glass windows were repaired in 1998 by Hauser Company at a cost of $24,500. Air Conditioning was installed in the church and basement in 2001 by Fitzenrider of Defiance at a cost of approximately $92,500. New handicap accessible restrooms were installed in the basement by Thiel Construction Co. in 2002. In 2002 the Diocese of Toledo conducted a major capitol campaign involving all the parishes, with 60 million as goal. St Mary surpassed their goal of $224,000 tallying a total of $238,516. Half of the goal comes back to our parish and 75% of what is over the goal. In 2003 Thiel Construction closed off the north side basement windows, and installed new ones on the south side. 

For almost a year in 2001 -2002 St Mary invited St Michael's parishioners to have their services here while their own church was undergoing major renovation. the two parishes got to know each other better and worked together more , which is a good omen for when there will be three parishes together in a few years, and parishioners of all three will have to do some more things together.

In 1999 the Parish Council conducted a survey of parishioners to determine what priorities existed. All 5 of the major priorities have been completed