A History of St. Bernard Parish

From “Mother Church of Madison’s East Side” to Mother Church of the Diocese 

On October 1, 1907, Archbishop Sebastian Messmer of Milwaukee appointed Fr. John Fisher to organize a parish on Madison's east side. He sent a call out to Catholics in the area, and a meeting took place the very next day, with approximately 75 Irish and German Catholic families in attendance. Plans were made at the meeting for a dual-use building, a combination church and school. The project would cost $25,000.

During construction, Masses were held in a neighborhood house; the first Mass for this new parish was held November 10, 1907. A town hall was also being built at the same time as the church, and when it was complete, activities and celebrations for the new parish were held there.

Fr. Fisher was only assigned to the parish for a year; after that, Fr. John Bach became pastor, and he oversaw the completion of the church and school building and the parish's first rectory in 1910. The school was administered by the Racine Dominicans, who moved into the parish's original rectory.

Fr. Bach remained pastor until 1916 and was succeeded by Fr. Loughney, who helped the parish to pay off its debts. When the parish celebrated its 10th anniversary, it had 300 households. Even through the economic difficulties of the 1920s, the parish continued to grow. Under pastor Fr. William Eggers (who was pastor from 1925 to 1960), a new church was built in the late 1920s, which is the church that stands today. The gothic church building cost $175,000, and it was the largest place of worship in Madison. When the Diocese of Madison was established in 1946, it was the largest parish in the diocese. St. Bernard's rapid growth earned it the nickname "The Mother Church of Madison's east side."

As St. Bernard continued to grow, it became clear that a second parish on Madison's east side was needed. A large contingency of the parish was founded in Monona as Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in 1950. A new school was also built at St. Bernard to accommodate its growing student body.

In June 1960, Msgr. Theodore Thome was named St. Bernard's new pastor; under his administration, a new convent and rectory were built. The church underwent remodeling in response to the Second Vatican Council. As the 1960s continued, school's enrollment shrank, forcing it to close in 1970.

Msgr. Thome was succeeded as pastor by Msgr. George Wirz, who was the parochial vicar of St. Bernard from 1952 to 1954. He was named an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Madison by Pope John Paul II and remained pastor of the parish until June 1984. Msgr. John Hebl became pastor after Bishop Wirz and served until 1993, when he was succeeded by Fr. Michael Hippee. During his time as pastor, Msgr. Hippee made the church handicap-accessible and moved the parish offices from the rectory to the old school building; the rest of the school building became the parish center.

St. Bernard's is currently administered by Fr. Michael Radowicz, who was named pastor in 2013. Fr. Radowicz oversaw the installation of new phone and internet systems to the campus, and he has made changes to the sanctuary over the years.

In 2023, as part of the Diocese of Madison's Into the Deep process, Bishop Donald J. Hying petitioned the Holy See to name St. Bernard Church as our next cathedral. The proposal was accepted in late 2023, and renovations are currently underway to ​elevate ​the church to a building worthy of its cathedral status.

(source: sbmsn.org/about)