St Mary’s Hamilton Celebrating 150 Years and Beyond St Mary’s recent 150th celebrations in Hamilton gathered past and present parishioners to significant weekend events, highlighting a community spirit that lives on in the parish faithful. Visitors were firstly invited to view a thoroughly researched and beautiful display of parish history, presented by two dedicated members of our church.  History tours of significant gravesites at Hamilton’s...

The St Mary’s Church window above the main entrance to the building was created by Master Stained Glass Artist – Jean Orval.  Mr Orval was commissioned by Fr Dunworth in 1959 for the sum of Twelve Hundred Pound. The following information has been provided by his son Noel Orval in 2015. “Starting from the top depictions one can see the four “Tetramorphs”.  These depict: St Matthew as man, St Mark the lion, St Luke...

From a Little Wooden Chapel …….. St Mary’s Parish records reveal a great spiritual strength and determination of both clergy and pioneers during early settlement. Through their efforts in laying the foundations of religion and the Catholic Church in the Hamilton district, it is the subsequent generations who reap the harvest of past wisdom and perseverance. The acquisition of land and erection of the first building of worship, were...

The main building located on Clarendon Street and accessible from Lonsdale Street, originally housed Maryknoll College – a Girls’ Secondary School run by the Good Samaritan Sisters. The school was blessed and opened by Rev J P O’Collins, D D Bishop of Ballarat on Sunday 10 March 1968. Fr R Dunworth was the Parish Priest. Monivae began co-education for senior students with full intake by 1977. As no boarding facilities were available to girls,...

Rev Bishop Connors officiated at Condah’s Closing Mass – February 2007  Newspaper Article – Hamilton Spectator Thursday 22 February 2007 CONDAH’ s St Patrick’s Catholic Church closed its doors on Sunday after 127 years service to the community. The weatherboard red tin-roofed building was bursting at the seams, as families who once attended every Sunday returned to say goodbye. Bishop Peter Connors, Fr Pat Mugavin and Fr Paul Gurry officiated a...

Formerly known as Mt Sturgeon, Dunkeld was aptly renamed in 1854 by early Scottish settlers, likening the district to their previous homeland. Their devotion knew no bounds, as Catholic residents were united in faith praying the Rosary between visits from travelling priests. As these visits were only enjoyed once or twice a year, they were also a time for celebrating the Sacraments. The dining room in the district Coach Station, known as the...

            The commitment of the early day priest is never more evident than when reading the pages of a parish history. Horse and buggy was their modern form of transport, which replaced the earlier means of travel by bicycle.So it was, for the priests who commuted from Hamilton to serve the congregation of Glenthompson in 1904. On November 27th of that year a new church was constructed on land donated by a Mr John Brady. In keeping with...

Had the town of Macarthur retained its aboriginal name, it would be known today as Eumerella – meaning Valley of Plenty. A read of Simone Dalton’s book “Boring? Not Likely – Great Characters of Macarthur” introduces us to a town rich in amazing characters since 1857. Long before the boom of soldier settlement in the 1950s, the strength of community spirit was evident and those living in the past, helped shape the town’s future. Macarthur is...

In 1907, the Bishop and his advisors transferred the community of St. Joseph’s, Penshurst out of the Parish of Hamilton as it was then situated and the community of St. Joseph’s, Hawkesdale out of the Parish of Koroit to create the new Parish of Penshurst. Some months later Fr John Walsh took up residence as the first parish priest of Penshurst. The nave of the present blue-stone church had been built in 1864 – being serviced...

In 1845, eleven years after arrival from Ireland’s County Cork, Geraldine Henrietta Gibbons became a member of the Irish Sisters of Charity – the only Catholic group of Sisters in Australia at that time. She was to receive Scholastica as her religious name. Mother Scholastica Gibbons (pictured below) ministered with selfless zeal and compassion for the women in her care at the Good Shepherd Refuge in Pitt Street Sydney. Some years...