About St. James the Apostle · Refugio, Texas
St. James the Apostle is a small Roman Catholic parish in Refugio, Texas, a historic town on the Texas Gulf Coast settled largely by Irish Catholic immigrants from County Wexford in the 1830s. The parish belongs to the Diocese of Corpus Christi and was established in 1886, making it one of the older Catholic communities in the region. Today St. James is part of a tri-parish community with Our Lady of Refuge in Refugio, St. Therese of the Little Flower in Woodsboro, and the Mission Chapel of St. Dennis in Tivoli, sharing clergy across the four churches. Worship is celebrated in English according to the Roman-Latin rite, and Mass is offered weekly along with Friday adoration and Sunday confessions.
- Established
- 1886
- Patron
- St. James the Apostle
- Rector
- Rev. William J. Marquis
- Diocese
- Diocese of Corpus Christi
Why belong here
St. James the Apostle offers a small-town, family-sized Catholic community rooted in one of Texas's oldest Irish Catholic settlements, where neighbors still know each other by name. The parish shares strong, active clergy with the neighboring Our Lady of Refuge and St. Therese of the Little Flower parishes, so members benefit from a wider tri-parish family along the Highway 77 coastal corridor. With weekly Sunday Mass, regular Friday adoration, and accessible Sunday confessions, it is a welcoming place for anyone seeking traditional Catholic worship in Refugio.
Mass times at St. James the Apostle
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 11:30 AM – 11:50 AM (before 12:00 PM Mass)
- Or by request
Adoration times
- Friday 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM (following the 7:30 AM Mass)
About St. James the Apostle Parish
St. James the Apostle is a Catholic parish in Refugio, Texas, in the Diocese of Corpus Christi. Founded in 1886, it serves the small Gulf-Coast town whose Catholic life stretches back to the 1834 Irish settlement at the old Refugio Mission. The parish is part of a tri-parish community that shares clergy and resources along Highway 77. Its shared website with the sister parishes is christontexashwy77.com.
History of the Parish
St. James traces its roots to one of the earliest Irish Catholic communities in Texas. After the 1834 cholera-stricken arrival of the Power and Hewetson colonists, Catholic worship in Refugio was organized informally for decades before the formal establishment of St. James parish in 1886.
Irish Catholic Settlement in Refugio
James Power and James Hewetson, both Irish-born former citizens of Mexico, secured an empresario contract in 1828 and brought roughly 350 Irish immigrants, mostly from Ballygarrett Parish in County Wexford, to the Texas coast. After a cholera epidemic in New Orleans, survivors settled around the abandoned Spanish mission of Nuestra Señora del Refugio in 1834. Descendants of these original families still live in Refugio and San Patricio counties, and they form the historical backbone of St. James parish.
- 1834 – First Irish Catholic colonists arrive at Port Aransas and settle at the old Refugio Mission.
- 1994 – Texas Historical Commission marker 'Irish Immigrants in Refugio' placed at King's Park, Refugio.
The 1929 Church Building
As the Catholic population grew, the congregation built a new frame church on Santiago Street, which was dedicated in 1929. An archival photograph held in the Portal to Texas History (c. 1930) shows the south (front) and east elevations of the building, which remains the parish church today.
- 202 E. Santiago St., Refugio — site of the 1929 church building.
Pastoral Care & Clergy
The parish is pastored together with two neighboring parishes and one mission chapel. The pastor is Rev. William J. Marquis (ordained June 14, 2003), and he is assisted by Parochial Vicar Rev. Alejandro O. Saenz (ordained June 11, 2011). Both priests serve the entire tri-parish family.
- Rev. William J. Marquis — Pastor (Our Lady of Refuge, St. James the Apostle, St. Therese of the Little Flower; Parochial Administrator of St. Dennis Mission, O'Connor Ranch).
- Rev. Alejandro O. Saenz — Parochial Vicar (Our Lady of Refuge, St. James the Apostle, St. Theresa of the Little Flower).
Tri-Parish Community
St. James the Apostle is a member of a tri-parish (effectively four-church) community along the Texas Coastal Bend. The shared arrangement lets a small group of priests and staff offer more robust Mass schedules, faith formation, and sacramental ministry across a wide rural area. St. James previously also served the Mission of St. Catherine in Blanconia, which is now permanently closed.
- Our Lady of Refuge Parish — 1008 S. Alamo St., Refugio
- St. Therese of the Little Flower Parish — Woodsboro
- Mission Chapel of St. Dennis — Tivoli / O'Connor Ranch
- Former mission: St. Catherine, Blanconia (now permanently closed)
Visit & Contact
St. James the Apostle sits one block east of U.S. Highway 77 in downtown Refugio, making it an easy stop for travelers along the Texas coastal route. Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish office at (361) 526-4454. The official diocesan listing remains the central point of contact, and the tri-parish family maintains a shared online presence at christontexashwy77.com.
- Address: 202 E. Santiago St., Refugio, TX 78377
- Phone: (361) 526-4454
- Diocese contact: [email protected]
- Tri-parish website: https://christontexashwy77.com