324 W 2nd St
PO Box 13
Halbur, Iowa 51444-0013

ESTABLISHED 1901
Current church building built: 1974

Office Hours: Thurs--8:30 - 11:30 a.m.; and at St. Bernard-Breda
Phone: 712-658-2464
Fax: x

Sunday Mass: 8:00 a.m.

The history of St. Augustine's Parish began in 1901. Up to that time the people living in what is now the Halbur Parish had been members of Holy Angels Parish of Roselle. Because of the distance, many people, especially those living west of Halbur, had to go by horse and buggy to attend church and send their children to a Catholic school. Halbur was also a railroad town.

The people at that time decided to form a new parish in the town of Halbur. A delegation was sent to see Archbishop James J. Keane of Dubuque, then the bishop of this territory, to request a pastor and have Halbur proclaimed a parish. The archbishop granted their request and appointed Father John B. Baeumler as pastor.

Father Baeumler arrived in the newly formed parish in 1901. The people, having been notified of his coming, formed a procession on foot, on horseback and in carriages to welcome their first pastor. The procession escorted him to the public school building in the north part of town, which had been prepared for Mass.

On the Sunday after Father Baeumler's arrival, on June 16, 1901, Mass was celebrated for the first time in the Halbur Public School building. The parish at its beginning numbered 52 families. After that first Mass, the families made their first payment on the pastor's salary and toward parish expenses. The contribution that Sunday amounted to $281.40.

Church services continued to be held in the public school building until 1902. Shortly after the formation of the parish, a tract of land in the west part of Halbur, 8 acres in size, was donated by August Prenger to the new parish. On this property a parochial school building and a rectory were built in 1902. The school building, a two-story frame structure, cost $4,400. The rectory cost $3,350. The upper story of the school building was used as a church for three years until the new church was completed.

The first altar for this building and for the new church was built by Henry Petersohn and Peter Schulte. These two men also later built the confessional for the new church. The original school building was also used from the very beginning as the sister's convent.

In 1904, a new brick church was completed at a cost of $13,900. The contractor for the building was J. P. Arp of Sac City.

By 1911, the parish was debt free for the first time. In the meantime, sidewalks were put down where needed, city water mains were extended by the parish to church property, the church was frescoed, a crucifixion group was erected in the cemetery, three fine altars were bought and a pipe organ was installed in the church.

Catholic school education began in Halbur in 1902. On March 24, 1958, construction was started on the present St. Augustine School. By February, 1959, this building was ready for use and classes were moved to it. It was staffed by the Franciscan Sisters of Dubuque.

In 1969, St. Augustine and Sacred Heart of Templeton consolidated with the attendance center for grades 1-4 at Halbur. Grades 5-8 were at Templeton. At that time there were approximately 320 students.

Roselle joined Templeton and Halbur in 1974, adding 75 students to the enrollment. In the fall of 1993, kindergarten classes started for the first time. The system is called Holy Trinity School. Current enrollment is 116 students.

Father Baeumler, the first pastor, was succeeded on Aug. 31, 1914, by Father M. A. Schemmel. The following served as pastors: Father Bernard Schilmoeller, Father H. B. Kramer, Father Lawrence J. Greteman, Msgr. Bernard V. Greteman, Father Victor E. Kollasch.

Also assigned to St. Augustine's were: Father Cleo Seuntjens, Father Leo Riesberg, Father Eugene Ceperley, Father Paul Kelly and Father Gary Snyder. Currently, Father Dale Reiff is pastor.