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August 26, 2021Constructed in 1886, the first Catholic church in Purcell, a town named for the vice president of the Sante Fe Railroad, was a small, wooden structure near the Canadian River. It also served during the week as the school building. Father Frank Rouqier was the first pastor, and built this edifice. He was, to say the least, mysterious.
Early accounts say that he was from Canada, perhaps Quebec given his French name. He soon disappeared and surfaced again in the Quapaw Reservation in 1890. Father Roquier vanished again, and no record of his existence can be found anywhere in North America. Regardless of his dubious past, he effectively brought three Sisters of Saint Francis to Purcell to start Saint Elizabeth School, and ground was broken near the present site of the church.
It was from Purcell that the Prefect Apostolic of Indian Territory Ignatius Jean delivered his famous sermon on the necessity of honoring the rights of the American Indians, who were already present, on the eve of the Land Run of 1889.
Purcell was the town where the newly appointed Vicar Apostolic Theophile Meerschaert set foot in the Territory for the first time on Sept. 18, 1891. Mass was celebrated the next day at the convent chapel.
Father Vincent Joly, a Benedictine, became the first resident pastor and in 1888 had the church building moved to the newly acquired land where the new school had been constructed. Seeing the need for a better space for worship, he built the second church that was dedicated on March 21, 1892, under the patronage of Our Lady of Victory. The cost for the building was $2,000 and raising the funds for that exorbitant amount seemed like an insurmountable task.
The zealous and talented Father Vincent did indeed accomplish his goal. His health began to fade, and he died tragically young in 1894. At his Requiem Mass, Bishop Meerschaert called him “the flower of the clergy, most beloved by priest and people.”
Saint Elizabeth Academy, the second oldest in the state, was erected with funds given by Saint Katherine Drexel whose primary mission was American Indians. Eventually, all children were invited to attend. After 60 years, Saint Elizabeth closed its doors in 1948 citing financial woes.
The present church, the project of Father A.O. Murphy (another Canadian), was dedicated by Bishop McGuinness on Feb. 11, 1952. This beautiful new building was in the Romanesque style and contained the old altar and reredos from The Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Oklahoma City, which had recently installed a new baldichino and updated the sanctuary. Accounts of the day state that the windows also came from the cathedral.
Just across the river, Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church was dedicated in 1889 in Lexington. They were only a few miles apart and were closely united until it closed in 1999.
Presently, Our Lady of Victory remains an important community and with an influx of Hispanics is poised to continue its essential ministry to the people of south-central Oklahoma.
