About Our Lady of Sorrows · Starkenburg, Missouri
The Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows is a historic Roman Catholic pilgrimage site in Starkenburg, Montgomery County, Missouri, set in the rolling, wooded countryside near the Missouri River. Established by German immigrant farmers beginning in the 1840s, it encompasses 40+ acres of devotional landscape — including the 1873 Gothic Revival Church of the Risen Savior (originally St. Martin of Tours), an 1888 Log Chapel, the 1910 Romanesque Revival Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, fourteen outdoor Stations of the Cross, the Lourdes Grotto, Mt. Olivet, and the underground Holy Sepulcher replica. It has been the site of twice-yearly pilgrimages since 1891, was granted Plenary Indulgences by Pope Leo XIII in 1897, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
- Established
- 1847
- Patron
- Our Lady of Sorrows (the Sorrowful Mother / Mater Dolorosa); the original 'White Lady' / 'Our Lady of the Woods'
- Rector
- Administered by the Church of the Risen Savior (Rhineland, MO); parish priest details to be confirmed via the parish office.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Jefferson City
Why belong here
The Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows offers a Catholic experience few parishes can match: more than 130 years of continuous pilgrimage devotion on a 40-acre historic landscape of stone chapels, Stations of the Cross, and grottos set in the rolling Missouri River hills. Visitors can pray at the altar where countless thanksgiving crutches and plaques attest to graces received, walk the same Stations Father Hoehn's parishioners built, and join a living tradition — spring and fall pilgrimages with rosary processions, outdoor Stations, Reconciliation, Benediction, and Mass — that still draws Catholics from across the region.
Mass times at Our Lady of Sorrows
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Second Tuesday of the month (March–November): 11:15 AM (before noon Mass)
- Pilgrimage days: Reconciliation offered (Noon on Fall Pilgrimage; during Spring Pilgrimage as well)
- Sunday (per Discover Mass listing): 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM (verify with parish before visiting)
Adoration times
- Fall Pilgrimage: Exposition & Adoration begins at 10:00 AM
History of the Shrine
The Shrine was born from the devotion of mid-19th-century German immigrant farmers who built the first log church of St. Martin of Tours on this site in 1847. The 1873 stone Gothic Revival church, the 1888 rediscovery of the original 'White Lady' statue by Father George Hoehn's nephew August Mitsch, and the 1891 pilgrimage tradition — born from a vow during severe storms — set the stage for the magnificent 1910 Romanesque Revival Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows built entirely by volunteer parishioners who quarried the limestone themselves.
- 1847 — First log church of St. Martin of Tours built by German immigrant farmers
- 1873 — Stone Gothic Revival church begun under Father Joseph Schaefers
- 1887 — Father George Hoehn arrives
- 1888 — August Mitsch finds the original 'White Lady' in the attic; Log Chapel built
- 1891 — Community renamed Starkenburg; first public pilgrimage; bell tower added
- 1892 — First out-of-town pilgrimage (40 Catholics from Hermann cross by ferry)
- 1897 — Pope Leo XIII grants Plenary Indulgences
- 1899 — Confraternity of the Seven Dolors founded
- 1900 — Father Hoehn launches Der Pilger magazine
- 1906 — Ground broken July 28; first stone laid October 23
- 1907 — Cornerstone laid May 24 by Very Rev. O.J. Hoog
- 1910 — Copper cross placed July 16; chapel dedicated on eve of the Assumption by Archbishop J.J. Glennon
- 1912 — Stone from German Starkenburg fortress embedded in chapel's east wall
- 1950 — Holy Sepulcher constructed
- 1982 — Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The Buildings and Shrines
The 40-acre complex contains four principal buildings and seventeen structures built between 1873 and 1950, all in excellent condition. The grounds, designed to take advantage of the hilly wooded landscape, include devotional landscapes recalling Lourdes, Gethsemane, and the Holy Land — making the Shrine as much a religious park as a set of buildings.
- Church of the Risen Savior (1873, Gothic Revival limestone) — originally Parish Church of St. Martin of Tours
- Log Chapel (1888) — built to house the original 'White Lady' statue, now polychromed
- Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows (1910, Romanesque Revival) — designed by Professor Becker of Mainz with John Walchshauser of St. Louis
- Holy Sepulcher (1950) — underground reinforced-concrete replica with reclining Christ
- Lourdes Grotto — near Cedron stream (named for the Biblical Kidron)
- Mt. Olivet / Grotto of Gethsemane (1906, 1941) — hillside construction recalling the Agony in the Garden
- Fourteen Stations of the Cross — set in the woods, ending near the Holy Sepulcher and Crucifixion scene
- Outdoor altar and stone pulpit with Evangelist ironwork
- Cemetery adjoining the Church of the Risen Savior
- Valentine Hall (parish hall) for dinners and gatherings
Pilgrimages and Annual Events
The Shrine has hosted twice-yearly pilgrimages since 1891, when parishioners vowed to build a larger chapel to the Sorrowful Mother if their prayers for an end to devastating storms were answered. Today these pilgrimages remain the highlight of the Shrine's calendar, drawing Catholics from across the region for a day of outdoor devotion.
- Spring Pilgrimage — 3rd Sunday of May (e.g., May 18, 2025): 10:00 AM Rosary Procession, outdoor Stations of the Cross, Dinner, Reconciliation, Benediction, and Mass
- Fall Pilgrimage — 2nd Sunday of September (e.g., September 14, 2025): 10:00 AM Exposition & Adoration, Rosary Procession, Stations, Reconciliation (Noon), Lunch (11 AM–1 PM), outdoor Mass at 2:00 PM
- Annual Fall Dinner — early November (e.g., November 2, 2025): country-fried chicken, whole hog sausage, mashed potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, sauerkraut, green beans, Missouri baked apples, dinner rolls, salads, and pie; served 11 AM–3 PM
- Sounds of Starkenburg — Pfeffer Pipe Organ Concert at St. Martin Church (e.g., November 22, 2025): concerts at 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM
- Tuesday Mass at the Shrine — second Tuesday monthly, March–November, with lunch in Valentine Hall afterward
Mass and Sacraments
The Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows is a mission chapel of the Church of the Risen Savior parish and is administered under the Diocese of Jefferson City. Regular public Masses are offered in the historic chapels, with additional devotions during pilgrimage days and the October Month of the Rosary.
- Sunday Mass — 2:00 PM
- Tuesday Mass — 12:00 noon on the second Tuesday of each month, March through November (Rosary at 11:40 AM)
- Wednesday Mass — 6:00 PM during October
- Sacrament of Reconciliation — 11:15 AM before the monthly Tuesday Mass; offered during both pilgrimages
- Eucharistic Adoration — Exposition begins at 10:00 AM on Fall Pilgrimage day
- Benediction — following the day of prayer at each pilgrimage
The Devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows
The Shrine's spiritual identity centers on the Sorrowful Mother (Mater Dolorosa) and the Seven Dolors of Mary. The original devotion grew up around the so-called 'White Lady' statue — first venerated in the 1847 log church, rediscovered in 1888, and now polychromed on the main altar of the 1910 chapel. Plenary Indulgences granted by Pope Leo XIII in 1897 and the founding of the Confraternity of the Seven Dolors in 1899 institutionalized the devotion and shaped the Shrine's identity as a place of pilgrimage and intercession.
- Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows — September 15
- Confraternity of the Seven Dolors — founded 1899
- Plenary Indulgences — granted 1897 by Pope Leo XIII
- Side altar of Our Sorrowful Mother — surrounded by crutches, braces, and thanksgiving plaques
- Lourdes well water — site of documented cures (e.g., Monsignor Hellriegel)
- Original 'White Lady' (Our Lady of the Woods) — now polychromed on main altar
Visiting the Shrine
Open to the passing traveler year-round, the Shrine offers a 40-acre landscape of prayer, history, and natural beauty in the rolling Missouri River hills. Visitors are welcome to walk the Stations of the Cross, pray in the Gothic Revival church and the Romanesque Revival chapel, visit the Lourdes Grotto and Mt. Olivet, and see the Holy Sepulcher. A hardbound history book can be ordered from the parish office.
- Address: 197 State Hwy P, Rhineland (Starkenburg), MO 65069
- Phone: (573) 236-4390
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: historicshrine.com
- Diocese: Diocese of Jefferson City (diojeffcity.org)
- Best to visit during Spring or Fall Pilgrimage for full liturgical schedule
- Wear comfortable walking shoes for the wooded Stations and hilly shrines
- Hardbound history book available via parish office
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Joseph Schaeferscirca 1873
Directed construction of the new stone church (the first phase of the present Church of the Risen Savior).
- Father George Hoehn1887–at least 1912
Native of Heppenheim, Germany; studied in Milwaukee and Louvain (Belgium); served in St. Louis and St. Charles. Renamed Rhineland to Starkenburg (legally in 1891), published Der Pilger magazine beginning in 1900, broke ground on the Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows in 1906, oversaw its construction and dedication in 1910, and brought a stone from the original Starkenburg fortress in Germany to embed in the chapel's east wall in 1912.
- Monsignor Hellriegelordained 1914
Said his first Mass in the new chapel in 1914; as a young student had earlier been cured of a growth on his hand through the intercession of Our Lady using holy water from the Lourdes well at the Shrine.
