The year 1858 marked the beginning of New Market and parish of St. Nicholas. At that time Mass was offered in the homes of Parish families by traveling missionaries. In 1861 the first church was built on the site of the “old cemetery” and it was constructed of logs.
 
By 1871 a new “frame” church was built to house the growing Parish. In February of 1877 the articles of incorporation were drawn up, thus officially establishing St. Nicholas Catholic Church. It was not until 11 years later, in 1888, that St. Nicholas Catholic Church was considered stable enough to warrant a full-time pastor, Father John Dorfsmeister. Father Dorfsmeister came to St. Nicholas directly from his native Germany.
 
In 1909 the parishioners decided that even the larger wooden church that had replaced the old log structure was too small; a larger church was needed to accommodate future growth. Parishioners made donations toward the cost of the building, which cost $25,160 in 1910. The current church site on top of the hill was selected because in this location, the church could be seen for miles around. To aid in the construction of the new church, each family was asked to bring 10 loads of field rock to be used in the laying of the foundation!!
 
Ground was broken in 1910 and on November 7, 1911 the church we now use was officially dedicated. One year later the main and side altars and interior stations were installed. St. Nicholas was becoming a beautiful church.
 
In 1916 the schoolhouse was built and three sisters from the Sisters of Notre Dame arrived to begin instructing area students. Several students who lived too far away to “commute” would stay at the convent during the school week and would then return home on the weekends. In 1969 our school consolidated with the schools at Lonsdale and Veseli to form the Lonsdale-New Market-Veseli Area School, a name which was changed to Holy Cross School in 2003. The vibrant Catholic school is committed to academic excellence and Catholic values. Our new facility, the LNMV Catholic Education Center, opened its doors in 2005. In addition to housing the school, the new facility is used for a broad variety of educational purposes and activities.
 
St. Nicholas Catholic Church offers sincere thanks and praise to God for the many blessings and graces he has bestowed upon our family and our community. With the help of God’s grace, we look forward, humbly yet confidently, to bearing witness to Christ for many more years to come!