About St. Anthony · Sheldon Springs, Vermont
St. Anthony is a small Roman Catholic parish in the village of Sheldon Springs, Franklin County, Vermont, part of the Diocese of Burlington. It worships at a single church building on Shawville Road that the local congregation first entered for Mass on January 1, 1912, more than a century ago. Today the parish shares its clergy and sacramental life with the neighboring parishes of St. John the Baptist in Enosburg Falls and St. Mary in Franklin, operating together as a three-church collaborative out of one parish office. The parish offers Sunday Mass at 8:00 AM and a weekday Mass on Thursday morning, with confession offered before the Sunday Mass.
- Established
- 1907
- Patron
- St. Anthony of Padua
- Rector
- Fr. Daniel Jordan, J.C.L.
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington (Vermont)
Why belong here
St. Anthony offers a close-knit, bilingual French-Canadian-rooted Catholic community in rural Franklin County, with the prayerful intimacy of a small parish church that has gathered on the same Shawville Road corner for more than a hundred years. Worshippers can attend Sunday Mass at 8:00 AM in English, receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation right before that Mass, and join a Thursday morning weekday Mass — all supported by a three-parish team ministry (St. John the Baptist in Enosburg Falls and St. Mary in Franklin) that brings broader priestly availability, faith formation, and outreach. The parish is proud of its devotional life, including a Monument for Aborted Babies built by the local Knights of Columbus in 2000, and welcomes new members to share in works of mercy, faith education, and parish activities.
Mass times at St. Anthony
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 7:30 AM – 7:45 AM (at St. Anthony, Sheldon Springs)
- By appointment — call the parish office at 802-933-4464
Welcome to St. Anthony Parish
St. Anthony is one of three Catholic parishes that share clergy and pastoral life in northern Franklin County, Vermont. The collaborative of St. John the Baptist (Enosburg Falls), St. Anthony (Sheldon Springs), and St. Mary (Franklin) shares a common parish mission statement: 'We, the people of the St. John the Baptist Parish and St. Anthony's are a community of Catholic Believers who seeks to proclaim the Gospel through liturgy, worship, and the practice of Charity.' Worship at St. Anthony centers on Sunday morning Mass and a Thursday weekday Mass, with confession available right before the Sunday liturgy.
- Sunday Mass — 8:00 AM (English)
- Thursday Mass — 9:00 AM (English)
- Confession — Sunday 7:30–7:45 AM and by appointment
- Parish office phone: 802-933-4464
History of St. Anthony
The Catholic community in Sheldon Springs grew from French-Canadian families who settled in northern Vermont in the 1800s. They were first ministered to by priests crossing the border from Canada and, during the Sheldon Springs resort 'Boom Years,' they gathered for Mass in the dining room of the grand Congress Hotel. After the hotel burned on December 21, 1908, John Stephen Michaud deeded the property and roughly 128 acres to the Roman Catholic Church. The parish was formally established in 1907, and its first Mass in the new church on Shawville Road was celebrated on January 1, 1912.
- 1865–1870: Sheldon Springs is the leading water resort in the United States with eleven hotels and six identified mineral springs.
- 1868: The four-story Congress Hotel is built by S.S.F. Carlisle and Dr. S.S. Fitch.
- 1907: Parish formally founded; John Stephen Michaud deeds land and former hotel to the Church.
- December 21, 1908: Congress Hotel burns; Catholic worship moves to other locations.
- January 1, 1912: First Mass celebrated in the new St. Anthony church building.
The Church Building and Grounds
The 1912 St. Anthony church on Shawville Road has been the spiritual home of the parish for over a century. The original altar has been carefully updated and renovated over the decades. Two rectories have served the parish: the original rectory near the church still functions as a residence, while a larger one-story frame house across the road in a grove of maple trees became the principal rectory — historically noted as the first modern house in Sheldon built on a slab foundation.
- Original altar — updated and renovated
- Two historic rectories on either side of Shawville Road
- Monument for Aborted Babies (built 2000) — between the parish office and the rectory garage
- Pathway and refurbished benches around the monument
Clergy and Pastoral Staff
St. Anthony is served by the clergy team assigned to the three-parish collaborative of St. John the Baptist / St. Anthony / St. Mary in the Diocese of Burlington. Together they cover weekend Masses, weekday Masses, confessions, anointing of the sick, funerals, weddings, and sacramental preparation across all three worship sites.
- Fr. Daniel Jordan, J.C.L. — Pastor
- Fr. Luis Barrera-Hernandez — Parochial Vicar
Three-Parish Collaborative
St. Anthony worships and ministers alongside St. John the Baptist in Enosburg Falls and St. Mary in Franklin. The three parishes share clergy, sacramental preparation, faith formation, and community activities. St. John the Baptist, founded in 1874 for French-Canadian immigrants, is the largest of the three and hosts the live-streamed Sunday 10:00 AM Mass on Local Access Comcast Channel 1079 for those unable to attend in person.
- St. John the Baptist — 62 Missisquoi Street, Enosburg Falls (founded 1874)
- St. Anthony — 117 Shawville Road, Sheldon Springs (founded 1907)
- St. Mary — 145 Square Road, Franklin
- Shared parish office phone: 802-933-4464
- Live-streamed Sunday 10:00 AM Mass on Comcast Channel 1079
Ministries and Devotions
Although St. Anthony is a small parish, it actively participates in a number of ministries through the collaborative and the wider Franklin County Catholic community. Parishioners take part in faith education, social activities, and the spiritual and corporal works of mercy called out in the parish mission statement. The Knights of Columbus St. John's Council, which serves all three parishes, has been especially visible in building and maintaining devotional sites.
- Knights of Columbus — St. John's Council (parish-wide)
- Annual prayer service at the Monument for Aborted Babies
- Faith formation and sacramental preparation across the collaborative
- Social activities and works of mercy outreach
- Live-stream broadcast ministry (Comcast Channel 1079)
Visiting and Contact
Visitors and parishioners can reach the parish office through the shared three-parish line during business hours. The St. Anthony church itself sits on Shawville Road at the prominent corner once occupied by the historic Congress Hotel, easily spotted in the small village of Sheldon Springs. The bulletin and latest parish news are posted on the collaborative website.
- Physical address: 117 Shawville Road, Sheldon Springs, VT 05485
- Mailing address: P.O. Box 563, Enosburg Falls, VT 05450
- Phone: (802) 933-4464
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://www.stjohnbaptistvt.com/
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Joseph A. Damecirca 1916–1917
Pastor of Sheldon Springs (St. Anthony's) during construction of the related St. Mary's Church in Franklin in 1916/17.
- Fr. Karl Hahr
Assigned to St. John the Baptist / St. Anthony's collaborative as a seminarian; later involved in pastoral work at the parishes, including installing the pathway beside the parish monument.