About St. Francis de Sales · Hazel Green, Wisconsin
St. Francis de Sales is a Roman Catholic parish in Hazel Green, Wisconsin, in Grant County's historic lead-mining region, belonging to the Diocese of Madison. It is one of seven parishes clustered into Pastorate 2 – St. Dominic, a rural grouping that shares clergy across the southwestern Wisconsin communities of Benton, Cuba City, Dickeyville, Hazel Green, Kieler, Platteville and Sinsinawa. The parish traces back to the earliest Catholic missionary activity in the area by Dominican Father Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP, in the mid-1840s, and it still carries the name of St. Francis de Sales (Doctor of the Church, patron of writers and the laity).
- Established
- 1846 (brick church completed 1847)
- Patron
- St. Francis de Sales (Doctor of the Church)
- Rector
- Rev. Gregory (Greg) Ihm — Parochial Administrator of Pastorate 2 – St. Dominic (Fr. Peter Auer is listed as Parochial Vicar with specific assignment to St. Francis de Sales, Hazel Green, and St. Joseph, Sinsinawa)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Madison
Why belong here
St. Francis de Sales offers a small, rooted Catholic community in the historic lead-mining country of southwestern Wisconsin, with reverent weekly Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, and the regular Sacrament of Confession. As part of Pastorate 2 – St. Dominic in the Diocese of Madison, the parish shares priests and sacramental life with six neighboring parishes — meaning parishioners benefit from a vibrant worship schedule, clustered faith-formation options, and the pastoral care of multiple priests who serve the wider region together.
Mass times at St. Francis de Sales
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:30 PM – 3:50 PM (before the 4:00 PM Vigil Mass)
- First Saturdays 8:45 AM – 9:30 AM
Adoration times
- Tuesday 11:00 AM through Wednesday 11:00 AM (24-hour Eucharistic Adoration ending before noon Mass)
History of the Parish
The Catholic parish at Hazel Green was established in the mid-1840s by Father Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP, who was already running a mission and school at nearby Sinsinawa Mound. Mazzuchelli celebrated Mass at a private home south of the village as early as 1845, then built a brick church at the present site that was completed in 1847. The parish was named for St. Francis de Sales, the great Doctor of the Church from Savoy. After Mazzuchelli moved to Benton in 1847, the parish was served by visiting Dominicans from Sinsinawa until 1866, when it finally got a resident priest. From 1877 to 1880 it was a mission church again, before being restored as a resident parish in June 1880 — a status it has maintained ever since.
- Founded c. 1845 by Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP
- Brick church built 1846, completed 1847
- First resident pastor arrived 1866
- Mission period 1877–1880 (Dominican Fathers)
- Resident-priest status restored June 1880
Mazzuchelli's Missionary Roots
Mazzuchelli's diary-named list of churches credits '1847 Hazel Green, designed St. Francis de Sales,' placing the parish among the more than 30 parishes and 20-plus churches he is documented to have founded across the tri-state lead-mining region. The same years (1847) he founded the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters, whose motherhouse remains a few miles west of Hazel Green. Hazel Green's first pastor, Mazzuchelli himself, was assisted by his nephew, Francis Mazzuchelli.
- Sinsinawa Mound mission was the originating station
- Hazel Green was initially a mission, not a parish
- Francis Mazzuchelli (nephew) assisted as co-laborer in the early years
The 1895 Church and the Present Building
Wisconsin Historical Society records (AHI 44459) document the 1895 church at 2620 Main Street as a Front Gabled, red-brick, Late Victorian Gothic Revival house of worship with a central square bell tower, wooden-shingled steeple, pointed stained-glass Gothic windows, side buttresses and a wagon-wheel window in the tower. The 2019 architectural survey update noted the historic 1895 building is no longer extant, replaced between 1976 and 1998 by the current contemporary church at 2720 N. Percival Street, which is the parish's present address.
- 1895 church: Front Gabled, red brick, Late Victorian Gothic Revival
- Central bell tower with wooden-shingled steeple
- Pointed Gothic stained-glass windows and wagon-wheel window
- Present-day church: contemporary style, 2720 N. Percival Street
Pastorate 2 – St. Dominic
St. Francis de Sales is one of seven parishes that form Pastorate 2 – St. Dominic in the Diocese of Madison — a pastoral grouping created to share clergy and resources across rural southwestern Wisconsin. The other parishes in the cluster are St. Patrick (Benton), St. Rose of Lima (Cuba City), Holy Ghost (Dickeyville), Immaculate Conception (Kieler), St. Mary (Platteville) and St. Joseph (Sinsinawa). The pastorate is staffed by a Parochial Administrator, Fr. Gregory Ihm, together with several Parochial Vicars and a retired priest in residence.
- Benton – St. Patrick
- Cuba City – St. Rose of Lima
- Dickeyville – Holy Ghost
- Hazel Green – St. Francis de Sales
- Kieler – Immaculate Conception
- Platteville – St. Mary (pastorate hub)
- Sinsinawa – St. Joseph
Clergy of Pastorate 2
Priests serving the pastorate are appointed by the Bishop of Madison and rotate across the seven parishes for weekday Masses, weekend coverage, confessions and anointings. According to the Diocese of Madison's official roster and the St. Dominic parish site, the current priest team is led by Rev. Gregory Ihm as Parochial Administrator; Rev. Peter Auer is the Parochial Vicar specifically listed for St. Francis de Sales (Hazel Green) and St. Joseph (Sinsinawa); Rev. Tom Kelley, Rev. Bernie Rott, and Rev. David Flanagan (retired, in residence) round out the team.
- Fr. Greg Ihm — Parochial Administrator
- Fr. Peter Auer — Parochial Vicar (Hazel Green / Sinsinawa)
- Fr. Tom Kelley — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Bernie Rott — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. David Flanagan — Retired Priest in Residence
Sacraments and Parish Office
Baptisms, weddings, anointing of the sick, First Communion and Confirmation preparation are coordinated through the parish office at 2720 N. Percival Street, reachable at (608) 854-2392. Because the parish shares clergy with six other parishes, scheduling often involves neighboring priests as well as the parish's own parochial vicar.
- Parish phone: (608) 854-2392
- Address: 2720 N. Percival Street, Hazel Green, WI 53811
- Sacramental preparation coordinated through the parish office
Visiting and Getting Involved
Hazel Green is a small village in Grant County in far southwestern Wisconsin, near the Illinois and Iowa borders. Visitors are welcome at any of the parish's scheduled Masses and Adoration hours; the pastorate hub at St. Mary, Platteville serves as the larger center for faith formation and sacramental events. News and updates appear on the parish's Facebook page and through the Diocese of Madison communications.
- Parish Facebook page: St. Francis de Sales, Hazel Green, WI
- Live-stream of Mass available (per Mass-times aggregators)
- Diocese of Madison: madisondiocese.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Samuel Mazzuchelli, OPc. 1845–1847
Italian-born Dominican missionary; founded the parish from his mission at Sinsinawa Mound; oversaw construction of the 1846–1847 brick church before moving to Benton in 1847. Assisted by his nephew Francis Mazzuchelli.
- Dominican Fathers of Sinsinawa Mound1847–1866
Hazel Green had no resident priest; priests from Sinsinawa came over to celebrate Mass.
- First resident pastor of Hazel Green
- Dominican Fathers of Sinsinawa (mission period)1877–1880
Hazel Green again became a mission church of Sinsinawa for three years.
- Resident priest seriessince June 1880
Continuous succession of resident priests in Hazel Green since 1880.