How We Got Started
On September 28, 1856, local Napa merchant George N. Cornwell donated a lot on the corner of Main and Caymus Streets to the Catholics of Napa to build their first church here. Like their early Christian predecessors, the Catholic community in Napa had been holding their services in makeshift locations: their homes; the front parlor of Mrs. Margaret McInerney's boarding house on South Main Street; a warehouse next door belonging to John Truebody; and a hall on the second floor of a building on the southwest corner of Main and First Streets.
A small but energetic church committee (Thomas Lynch, Patrick O'Connor, and Nicholas Bastien) hired an architect by the name of Mr. Fairfield, and a contractor named William Richmond to begin building a small brick church in 1858 at a cost of $4,862. Father James Largan, Pastor of Sonoma, opened the baptismal and marriage books, the first entry being dated October 1, 1858, recording the baptism of Marie Diffley O'Hagan. The church was dedicated by Bishop Joseph Sadoc Alemany on Sunday, November 24, 1859. The first “priest-in-charge” was Fr. Rousche, assisted by Fr. Larkin.
The church was finally completed in June 1860. Archbishop Alemany of San Francisco appointed the first resident Pastor, Fr. Peter Deyaert, who was assigned to cover Lake, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano Counties. The town of Napa was just over 10 years old when Fr. Deyaert arrived, and enjoying a booming economy based on the tanning, mining, and lumber milling industries.
Fr. Deyaert visited all his districts on foot. Until 1865, therefore, the Napa Catholics had Mass only on alternate Sundays, as the Pastor traveled to his other stations in turn. Then Sonoma and Suisun became separate es, and from then until 1887, the boundaries were: Kelseyville to the Knoxville mine, to the boundary line of Yolo County, to the boundary line of Solano County, to Three Mile House on the Vallejo Road, to San Pablo Bay, and back to Kelseyville.
In 1866, Fr. Deyaert inherited some money from relatives and built a two-story six-room rectory, moving out of the three-room cottage at the rear of the church that had served him since his arrival. He also bought some acreage adjacent to the church, on the corner of Main and Napa Streets, intended as the future site of a school. Recorded in the name of Archbishop Alemany, this was Deyaert's gift to the . He also bought an adjoining lot for himself on the corner of Main and Caymus Streets, where he planted a vegetable garden.
As Napa grew, so did St. John’s. In July 1881, a larger, wood-frame church was built, described in a Napa Valley Register article as “as a beautiful structure, purely gothic in architectural design,” with seven gothic arches spanning the interior, 28 stained glass windows, and a stairway climbing up a tower to a gallery for the choir.
The old brick church was left standing. In 1898, an earthquake damaged it beyond repair and it was torn down.
The 20th Century: Growth and New Construction
In April 1962, St John's became part of the new diocese of Santa Rosa, with Bishop Leo Maher at the helm.
In 1965, St. John’s church was suffering from dry rot. The church building had by then served the Catholic community for 84 years! The began building a new church on Third St., an impressive, contemporary church, reflecting the vision of Vatican II, and capable of seating 1,500 people. The new church, which we still worship in today, was dedicated on January 29, 1967. At the time it was built, it was believed that the new church would serve as the Cathedral for the Diocese of Santa Rosa – hence its size. However, St. Eugene’s in Santa Rosa was selected to fill that central role for the Diocese.
St. John’s Catholic School (click here)
