Antonino, Kansas
Est. 1905

Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic Church

Unlike its neighbors, Munjor and Schoenchen, Antonino did not begin as one of Ellis County's original Volga German settlements of the 1870's. The town's history started three decades later, arising out of travel inconveniences and lack of land to farm in the Munjor area.  In October 1904, thirty families met to discuss the establishment of a new village and church in southwest Ellis Country, an area known as Lookout Township.  Following approval by the bishop for a new parish, settlers agreed on a site atop a scenic hill nine miles southwest of Hays, eight and a half miles west of Munjor and ten miles from Schoenchen.  Construction of the church took first priority.  Unlike the earlier settlements which experienced considerable difficulty in locating supplies, the Antonino founders received the gift of a frame building.  A decade  earlier, the "Gold Mill" hotel had been constructed to serve the book town of Chetolah, following the discovery of gold on the Smoky Hill River.  The Ellis County gold rush evaporated quickly and Chetolah became a ghost town in 1894.  Using lumber from the defunct gold mine, Antonino residents donated most of the labor.  Built at a cost of about $3,000 over a period of less than four months, the original wood frame church measured 80 by 30 feet and was 18 feet high.  Fr. Maurus Schebler, Antonino's first priest, offered the first Mass on March 25, 1905; Bishop John Cunningham dedicated the new Parish, Our Lady Help of Christians, in October 1905.

Original Families of Antonino

Anton Dader (Dater)
Anton Dechant
Cornel Dechant
Cark Dechant
John Dechant
Jacob Gabel
Joseph Gassman
Bernard Grabbe
Anton Haas
Michael Haas, Jr.
Michael Haas, Sr.
John H. Herl
Joseph Keberlein
Jacob Kippes
Raymund Krannewitter
Anastas Leiker
John Peter Leiker
Ludwig Pfannenstiel
George Rohr
John Rohr, Jr.
Lawrence Rohr
Carl Rumbach
Frederick Rupp
John Jacob Rupp
John Rupp, Sr.
Joseph Rupp
Anton Sauer, Sr.
Fidelis Sauer
George Sauer
John Sauer
Peter Sauer
Adam Schmitt
Adam Schneider
John Unrein
Joseph Unrein
John Urban
John E. Wasinger
Philip Weingardt
John P. Zimmerman

Overcrowding in the 1905 church became the main reason for the construction of a new church in 1951.  Under the guidance of Fr. Flavian Meis, the parish built a much larger church, using many of the materials from the original church.  A Gothic-in style building was an attached five-room rectory, full basement, indoor restrooms, electrical wiring and kitchen facilities was constructed.  A buff color exterior nicely complemented the area's generous use of stone for buildings and fence posts.  Many local parishioners donated their labor and most of the cost of materials came from private donations.  At a cost of slightly over $70,000, the new church facility was dedicated on May 7, 1952 by Bishop Frank Thill.  The community of Antonino celebrated its 100 year centennial in 2005.  Our Lady Help of Christian's parish continues to be the center of the community.  A Fall Feast is held each year on the first Sunday of November when "all roads lead to Antonino."  Mass is celebrated every Saturday afternoon at 4:00 p.m.

Research Materials
Available

Saint Francis Parish
Munjor, Ks.
1876-1976
by Fr. Earl Meyer

The Changing Village:
The History of Antonino, Kansas
by Dr. Jim Leiker

Priests

Fr. Maurus
Schebler
1905-1907

Fr. Matthew
Savelsberg
1907-1908
1915-1916

Fr. Bruno
Bender
1908-1909

Fr. Antonius
Burkart
1909-1910

Fr. Basil
Heim
1910-1911
1941-1942

Fr, Andrew
Herrmann
1911-1914
1930-1935

Fr. Michael
Neff
1914-1915
1925-1930

Fr. Edmund
Trischler
1916-1917

Fr. Joseph
Mayerheofer
1917-1918
1943-1947

Fr. Jerome
Mueller
1918-1921

Fr. P. Stanislaus
Eser
1921-1925

Fr. Walter
Herrmann
1935-1937
1947-1950

Fr. Casimir Bernard
Debef
1937-1938

Fr. Nicholas
Krebs
1938-1941

Fr. Maurice
Ackermann
1942-1943

Fr. Flavian
Meis
1950-1953
1956-1958
1963-1968

Fr. Camillus
Schmitt
1953-1956

Fr. Virgil
Kuhn
1958-1959

Fr. Cyprian
Gehrling
1959-1960

Fr. Kenen Crowley
1960-1963

Fr. Thomas Aquinas
Dutkiewicz
1968-1969

Fr. Thomas
Vohsing
1969-1970

Fr. Adrian
Conrad
1970-1972

Fr. Alvin
Werth
1972-1977

Fr. Benedict
Pope
1977-1983

Fr. Roger
Meitl
1983-1984

Fr, John
Poell
1984-1985

Fr. Earl
Meier
1985-1989

Fr. Felix
Petrovsky
1989-1995

Fr, Mike
Scully
1995-2001

Fr. Frank
Grinko
2001-2003

Fr. Earl
Befort
2003 - present