The Old Holy Family Catholic Church

Established in 1859 by residents of Eudora who had previously travelled by horseback to attend services in Lawrence, the small congregation met in homes and other spaces until the erection of a 20 by 48-foot sandstone structure built in the midst of the Civil War. The new church was officially established as the German Church of the Holy Family in 1864. In 1896, a 60-foot steeple was added to the front entrance. In 2021, this building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

This historic church building was utilized until 1963 when the congregation built a modern structure nearby. With the support of local members, the church was restored in 1981 and is still utilized for events and occasional Saturday and Sunday masses along with weddings and funerals for members of the congregation that operates as New Holy Family Church.

Alexander, Kathy. (2021). Eudora, Kansas. Legends of Kansas. https://legendsofkansas.com/eudora-kansas/.

An immense amount of work: Eudora’s Holy Family Catholic Church accepted on National Register of Historic Places. (2020). Lawrence Journal-World. https://www2.ljworld.com/news/general-news/2020/oct/21/an-immense-amount-of-work-eudoras-holy-family-catholic-church-joins-national-register-of-historic-places/.

Bollig, J. (2020, November 13). Eudora Catholics get First Church on Historic Register. The Leaven Catholic Newspaper. http://theleaven.org/eudora-catholics-get-first-church-on-historic-register/.

Eudora Community Museum. (2021, November 18). 1864 Holy Family Catholic Church History and Tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D-EX67-5x0.

Higgins, Cindy. (2015). Where the Wakarusa Meets the Kaw: A History of Eudora, Kansas. Eudorahistory.com. https://www.eudorakshistory.com/churches/churches.htm.

History of Holy Family Parish. Holy Family Catholic Church. https://holyfamilyeudora.com/home/history.