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A Brief History of Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church
On January 12, 1879, carving an area from the nearby church parishes of Charenton and Patoutville, Archbishop Napoléon Perché of New Orleans formally established St. John the Evangelist Church in Jeanerette, Louisiana. An Irish priest named Fr. John D. Flanagan arrived to take up the duties as the first pastor and set to work building up the parish and constructing a church for services. The single central spire structure, pictured on the left, was shingled with the finest cypress and simply furnished on the interior. With its spire and pointed roof, the church was tall enough to be visible throughout the town.
In 1889, five Sisters of Mercy arrived to establish a school for boys and girls. The first graduating class of the school was in 1892. Pictured on the right are the faculty and students when the school was located on Provost Street. Eventually, the school was moved across the Bayou Teche to a new facility built on land donated by the Carlyle Bourgeois family. It remained an important part of the church and community life until its closure in May 2011.
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The current church edifice was built during the pastorate of Fr. Michel Bardy and completed in 1908. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the official placard is shown on the left.
The former High Alter of the church.
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