First wedding took place at the new church

Hannah Gross
NLJ Correspondent 
With Leonard Cash
 
In this week’s installment of “History on Main,” historian Leonard Cash begins part two of his series on the Catholic Church by backtracking to News Letter Journal (previously Newcastle News Journal) records from 1890. 
The April 11, 1890, issue announced that
Father Patrick Brophy was scheduled to arrive in Newcastle and celebrate Mass at the Judge Nelson office building on April 27 at 10:30 a.m. 
According to Elizabeth Thorpe’s booklet “A History of Corpus Christi And Its Missions,” Brophy’s first visit in 1889 was less than desirable. He “discovered a ‘shabby little pioneer village’ of shacks, dugouts, businesses, and homes in all stages of construction.” 
A few months later, the paper reported on Nov. 14, 1890, that the Rev. J.C. Quinn from Cheyenne was also coming to celebrate Mass — this time at the Jake Lang school house on Nov. 23. 
“He had a large congregation and we understand secured three lots for the erection of a Catholic church,” the Nov. 28, 1890, issue reported. 
According to the booklet, the Rev. P. Cassidy began making irregular visits around 1892, and he played a vital role in helping Newcastle construct a church building. 
The Lincoln Land Co. donated the first lot for the church, and the parish bought the second one, which was commonly done with most of the churches in Newcastle, Cash said. 
According to a newspaper article from Nov. 25, 1892, construction was in the preparation
stage, but it would be postponed for two additional weeks. 
The booklet explained that the Coyle family, who were “pioneer members” of the local church, had a brother who was a priest from New York. Whenever he visited his Newcastle relatives, he held baptismal services and celebrated Mass.
Additionally, a list of the other members during that time were mentioned in the booklet, which “according to Mary A. Lerche, were herself and her sister Eliza McLaughlin, Emma and Nellie Bohan, Mrs. Park Dobson, the Jim Kinneys, Nellie and Rita, the Peter Kinneys, the M.J. Coyles, Marguerite, Dick and Emmett (Pat), Mrs. Coffee and her children, Forbes and Millard, and the Zanonis.”
As the Christmas season drew near, the Catholic congregation was making preparations. However, according to the Dec. 23, 1892, issue of the paper, the originally planned Christmas Mass was canceled because the lumber “was to be furnished from a distance. Instead, mass would be celebrated on
New Year’s morning.”
In Cambria, on the other hand, Mass would be celebrated twice on Christmas day – once at the mines and the other at city hall. 
On Jan. 8, 1893, Cassidy officially opened and dedicated Corpus Christi Catholic Church to the public by celebrating high Mass.
About 30 families were present during the dedication, reported the Jan. 13, 1893, paper. 
Although it was “far from finished,” according to the booklet, the article said that due to “divine favor,” the contractor managed to prepare the building in time for the service thanks to good weather.
The dimensions of the building were 70 feet by 32 feet, in addition to a 70-foot steeple. 
“The structure when done will be the largest Catholic church in the state of Wyoming (and) an imposing edifice and an ornament to the city of Newcastle,” the article says. 
By Jan. 20, 1893, the paper reported that the building was nearly complete. However, the booklet stated that when Mary Lerche arrived in 1896, it was “only partly finished.” The main
work was completed, but bugs and insects swarmed the place during the summer months. 
“The Church was surely a poor place for the bald-headed men. The
women were better protected from the insects as they wore hats, veils, gloves, and long dresses which they gather around their high-buttoned shoes, but all suffered from mosquitoes,” the booklet says. 
Wintertime was a different story. Although a drum heater was used to create warmth, it was still cold and the pews – or lack of – were no picnic either. However, the priest was friendly, and Lerche gave a good review on the fellowship. 
The priest also made trips to Cambria during this time to say Mass in someone’s home, and Catholic member Dick Lake, “the only black man in the county,” sometimes drove the reverend up to Cambria (earlier, the booklet stated that the Newcastle’s parish covered Weston and Crook counties but originally also included Campbell County).
Wedding bells began to ring in the next segment of the booklet when a unique story described the marriage of Addie Howie and Tom Brennan. 
Howie was only 16 years old at the time and was not a Catholic. However, she wanted to become one, so a bishop from Hot Springs traveled to Newcastle to meet with her in the Antler’s hotel to teach her the basics and confirm her into the Catholic church. 
Additionally, because of her young age, Howie had to obtain written from her parents, giving their consent to the marriage, and they did. 
“As a result, Addie probably set a record.
Few people can claim to have been instructed, baptized, confirmed, made their first confession, first Communion, and were married all on the same day – by a bishop, no less!” the booklet says. 
Rev. John Aherne visited Newcastle from 1896 to 1989, but he wasn’t a resident. However, he always alerted the newspapers to his arrival, so the locals would know when he would be celebrating Mass.
During his frequented stays, the church held fundraisers, so more work could be completed. The walls were plastered, and the flooring and ceiling were installed, as well as pews and an altar in the sanctuary. 
Before moving on, the booklet retold another fun wedding story at Corpus Christi. This time, Father Aherne was officiating at the wedding of Mary and Chris Lerche on Aug. 15, 1897. They were the first couple to be married in the new church building.
Lerche said that Lizzie McCafferty and Jim Pitts were getting married the following day, but McCafferty, who was unaware of Lerche’s marriage, excitedly exclaimed to Lerche that week how she was going to be the first couple married in the church.
“I (Mary) didn’t tell her I was going to be married on Sunday,
but said, ‘Don’t be too sure.’”
Lerche’s wedding was very private, with just her sister Sadie and Herb Mendenhall present. Lerche wore a cream China silk dress with wide silk lace in a gored skirt pattern. It also had a fitted basque with a laced high collar and jabot. However, in her “excitement,” she forgot to put garters on her socks, which caused them to fall down during the ceremony, so she held on to them through her skirt and “managed to go through the ceremony.” 
Next week, Cash will share history from his newspaper records from 1898.