About Assumption · Morrison, Missouri
Assumption Catholic Church is a small Roman Catholic parish in the rural community of Morrison, in Gasconade County, Missouri, within the Diocese of Jefferson City. It is one of three rural parishes served together by a single priest and pastoral team — along with Most Pure Heart of Mary in Chamois and St. Mary's — sharing a pastor, secretary, mailing address and the mostpureheart.org web home. Worship takes place in a building that began life as a parish school in 1958, was converted into the church in 1970, and was remodeled and rededicated after the devastating 1993 flood. Today the parish is served by Fr. David A. Means (Administrator) and Deacon Robert R. Schowengerdt, with Saturday evening Vigil Mass and seasonal Sunday morning Mass.
- Established
- 1853
- Patron
- The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
- Rector
- Rev. David A. Means (Administrator)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Jefferson City
Why belong here
Assumption is a tight-knit rural parish where the same priest and pastoral team care for three neighboring small communities (Morrison, Chamois and St. Mary's), so members get to know their pastor personally. The parish keeps a simple but steady sacramental rhythm — Saturday Vigil Mass (6:00 PM Oct–Mar) and a seasonal Sunday morning Mass (8:00 AM Apr–Sept) — and the building itself carries a remarkable story of community resilience, having been rebuilt after the 1993 flood. For Catholics in the western Gasconade County / eastern Osage County area, Assumption is the local embodiment of more than 170 years of continuous Catholic worship in the valley.
Mass times at Assumption
Weekly Mass schedule
Assumption Catholic Church — Morrison, Missouri
Assumption is the Roman Catholic parish serving Morrison, in western Gasconade County, Missouri. It is one of three small, historically German-rooted parishes (along with Most Pure Heart of Mary in Chamois and St. Mary's) that share a pastor, parish secretary, mailing address and website. The parish office line is (573) 763-5345, the pastor's email is [email protected], and the parish secretary's email is [email protected].
- Pastor: Fr. David A. Means
- Deacon: Robert R. Schowengerdt
- Secretary: Mrs. Evelyn Dudenhoeffer
- Phone: (573) 763-5345
- Website: mostpureheart.org/assumption
Mass & Service Schedule
The parish keeps a simple, season-dependent Mass schedule that rotates with daylight and weather. Saturday evening Vigil Mass and a Sunday morning Mass ensure weekly Sunday obligation coverage for the rural community. The schedule published by the Diocese of Jefferson City is the most current public reference for both locations.
- Saturday Vigil Mass: 6:00 PM (October – March)
- Sunday Mass: 8:00 AM (April – September)
- Mass is celebrated in English
- For full parish activities (Lenten fish fries, etc.) see the online calendar at mostpureheart.org/calendar.html
Parish History — From 1853 Mission to Today's Church
Catholic worship in the Morrison area began in 1853 when Rev. George Tuerk of Hermann began visiting a handful of Catholic families near Gasconade City, celebrating Mass in the home of Nicholaus Wolz. After years of irregular visits under Tuerk and his successor Rev. Fr. Ruesse, Rev. William Klevinghaus called a meeting in 1853 to organize a permanent congregation, and a first frame church near Gasconade City was eventually finished and dedicated on October 24, 1870. By the early 1870s most families lived west of Gasconade City and in eastern Osage County, so the Franciscan Fathers — who had taken over the Hermann mission in 1875 — relocated the parish to Morrison, where a larger frame church was dedicated on August 28, 1875 by Vicar General Henry Muehlsiepen.
- 1853: First visits by Rev. George Tuerk to families near Gasconade City
- 1870: First frame church dedicated Oct 24 near Gasconade City (cost ~$800, on land of Nicholaus Wolz)
- 1875: Larger Morrison church dedicated Aug 28 by Vicar General Muehlsiepen (cost ~$3,000)
- 1883: Parish school opened Dec 10 with Miss Lizzie Mundmiller as teacher
- 1886: Parish cemetery land acquired near Morrison by Fr. Jerome Hellhake, O.S.F.
- 1958: Current building constructed as parish school
- 1964: Parish school closes
- 1970: School building converted into the present parish church
- 1993: Church inundated by flash flood waters
- 1994: Church completely remodeled and rededicated in August
Founding Members & Cultural Roots
The original congregation gathered by Rev. George Tuerk and his successors was overwhelmingly German, with a few Irish, French and Polish families mixed in. The names of the founding members — Wolz, Birk, Henneberger, Gerard, Kuebler, Epple, Neckermann, Grein, Wetzel, Kaiser, Gieger, Storch and others — still echo in the surnames of the surrounding Gasconade and Osage County countryside today.
- Nicholaus Wolz (hosted the first Masses in his home)
- Fr. X. Birk, Sr., Jacob Henneberger, Mathew Birk
- Peter Gerard, Sr., Joseph Kuebler, Edward Epple
- George Neckermann, Adam Englert, Leon Soisson
- Mrs. Carl Epple, Philip Neckermann, Nicholaus Grein
- Ignace Wetzel, Henry Kaiser, Joseph Gieger, Joseph Storch
The 1958 Church Building — School, Then Church, Then Rebuild
The building in which Assumption parishioners worship today is not the 1875 frame church. It was built in 1958 as the parish's Catholic school and continued in that role until the school closed in 1964. Six years later, in 1970, the empty school was converted into the present parish church. In 1993, during the catastrophic Missouri River and Gasconade River floods, flash flood waters inundated the building; the parish then undertook a complete remodeling and rededicated the church in August 1994.
- 1958: Built as the parish school
- 1964: School closes
- 1970: Converted into the present parish church
- 1993: Inundated during the Great Flood
- August 1994: Completely remodeled and rededicated
Staff & Associated Parishes
Because Assumption is a small rural parish, it shares clergy and staff with neighboring Most Pure Heart of Mary in Chamois and St. Mary's. The grouping is called the 'Most Pure Heart' cluster and shares a single website and phone line. The current staff, as listed by the Diocese of Jefferson City, includes an Administrator, a deacon, and a parish secretary.
- Administrator: Rev. David A. Means
- Deacon: Robert R. Schowengerdt
- Secretary: Mrs. Evelyn Dudenhoeffer ([email protected])
- Phone: (573) 763-5345
- Pastor cell: (573) 301-0350
- Pastor email: [email protected]
- Associated parishes: Most Pure Heart of Mary (Chamois), St. Mary's
- County: Gasconade
- Deanery: Southeast
Contact, Address & Online Presence
Parish mail and telephone go through the shared parish office in Chamois, while the church building itself sits at 155 Morrison Street in the village of Morrison. The parish also keeps a public Facebook page and a shared parish calendar online.
- Physical address: 155 Morrison St, Morrison, MO
- Mailing address: P.O. Box 156, Chamois, MO 65024
- Phone: (573) 763-5345
- Fax: (573) 763-5345
- Parish email: [email protected]
- Pastor email: [email protected]
- Website: http://mostpureheart.org/assumption/
- Diocese listing: https://diojeffcity.org/assumption-morrison/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Assumption-Catholic-Church-100070352495721/
- Calendar: http://mostpureheart.org/calendar.html
Visit & Connect
The parish's home page extends a simple, plain welcome: 'We are the Roman Catholic parish in Morrison Missouri.' Visitors are pointed to the parish calendar for the full list of activities — including seasonal events like the Lenten Fish Fry — and to the pastor or parish secretary for any needs.
- Saturday Vigil Mass at 6:00 PM (Oct–Mar)
- Sunday Mass at 8:00 AM (Apr–Sept)
- Seasonal events listed on the parish calendar
- Lenten Fish Fry (annual)
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. George Tuerk1853–1862
First priest to visit the Catholic families near Gasconade; celebrated Mass in the home of Nicholaus Wolz.
- Rev. Fr. RuesseJan 1862 – Dec 1865
Succeeded Tuerk; gave the small congregation more regular attention.
- Rev. William KlevinghausJan 1866 – Oct 1868
Called the 1853 meeting that decided to build the first church; took years to complete due to the poverty of members.
- Rev. William HinssenOct 1868 – Oct 1870
Completed construction of the first frame church near Gasconade City.
- Rev. August SchillingOct 1870 – Apr 1875
Secured the dedication of the first church (Oct 24, 1870) by Vicar General Muehlsiepen.
- Rev. John Rings, O.S.F.Apr 1875 – Jul 1879
Franciscan pastor; oversaw dedication of the new Morrison church (Aug 28, 1875).
- Rev. Martin Vom Koike, O.S.F.Jul 1879 – Nov 1879
Brief Franciscan pastorate of about three months.
- Rev. Rudolph Horstmann, O.S.F.Nov 1879 – Oct 1882
Franciscan pastor.
- Rev. Benignus Schuetz, O.S.F.Oct 1882 – Jul 1885
Built the parish school by moving the old Gasconade City church building; school opened Dec 10, 1883.
- Rev. Jerome Hellhake, O.S.F.Aug 1, 1885 –
Franciscan; born Quincy IL 1854; bought parish cemetery land near Morrison in May 1886.