09/17/2026
St. Paul's Church Interior, circa 1910 - Valparaiso, Indiana
Roman Catholics in the area around Valparaiso in Porter County, Indiana, would begin to regularly meet in the early 1850s on the farm of Patrick T. Clifford located immediately west of the intersection of present day Harrison Boulevard and Froberg Road. Mass was conducted outdoors and the congregation would establish a cemetery on the Clifford property. A new Catholic cemetery would later be established southeast of Valparaiso and most burials at the Clifford farm were removed to this new burial ground. Burials remaining at the Clifford property were eventually obliterated due to agricultural activities.
The first church to be built by Valparaiso's Roman Catholic congregation was completed in 1858. The structure was situated on the southwest corner of the intersection of present day Chicago Street and Weston Street, described as Lot 1, Block 3 of the West Valparaiso Addition. Today [2026], a residential structure is located on this site with a street address of 107 Weston Street.
This wood frame church had a footprint of 110 feet by 50 feet and cost approximately $2,000 to erect. Father John Force, who served as parish pastor from July 1858 to December 1858 was largely responsible for guiding the completion of the church's construction. It has been noted in some sources that the interior of the church was very simple and plain with wooden planks used for the floor boards.
It is interesting to note that when the West Valparaiso Addition was added within the boundaries of the City of Valparaiso, Weston Street was named 5th Street. When the church was constructed, the street's name was changed to St. Paul Street. It appears that at some point in time after 1893 the street was once again renamed to Weston Street.
Between 1858 and 1863, the parish was accumulating a substantial debt burden on their church property and the parish was forced to close the church due to a court injunction sought by creditors. As a result, the congregation met in the second story of Hughart's Hall in Valparaiso, which was rented for $2 per Sunday. Hughart's Hall was located in the upper floor of the Empire Block building (Block 18 on Main Street across north of the court house square). Hughart's Hall later became Wilson's Hardware.
On Easter Sunday 1863, local pastor Father Michael O'Reilly was able to secure the wood frame church property, which was at this time in dire need of repair. After putting the structure back into good working order, the congregation converted the wood frame church into the newly founded St. Paul Catholic School.
Later in 1863, Father O'Reilly purchased one acre of land at the intersection of present day Chicago Street and Campbell Street for $1,800. The congregation would raise funds for several years in order to build the pastoral residence on this property in 1870 at a cost of about $6,000. This residence was continually used by the church's clergy until June 2018 (148 years).
Near the pastoral home, a new brick school called St. Paul's Academy was completed in 1872 at a cost of $9,000 and opened in September of that year for use. The Sisters of Providence at St. Mary of the Woods in Terre Haute, Vigo County, Indiana, provided the teachers for the school.
A second St. Paul Catholic Church, the interior seen above, was constructed of brick on the northeast corner of the intersection of Chicago Street and Campbell Street, the cornerstone being laid on Sunday, October 7, 1883, by Bishop Dwenger of Fort Wayne. More than 8,000 people witnessed the laying of the church cornerstone.
The foundation stones used in the construction of the church were obtained from the foundation of the 1853 Porter County court house, which was torn down in the spring of 1883 and replaced with a much larger building.
This gothic-style structure, built under the direction of Father O'Reilly, was constructed at a cost of more than $65,000 [about $2.15 million in 2026] and was one of the largest churches in Indiana upon its completion. Father O'Reilly passed away less than year after the church was completed. O'Reilly's funeral was one of the largest ever witnessed in Porter County as he was a very active and beloved member in the Valparaiso community.
The brick church was 153 in length, with a transept of 95 feet, a 65 foot nave, and a spire nearly 200 feet in height. Money was raised for church construction by parishioners donating 25 cents a week to a building fund. This brick church was dedicated for use on October 17, 1886.
After 80 years of use, the brick church was found to have several structural deficiencies that would be prohibitively expensive to repair. Thus, a third church was constructed on a 34 acre parcel along Harrison Boulevard, which was dedicated on Friday, October 27, 1967. In November 1967, demolition took place to remove the brick church.
