About St. Joseph · Willisville, Illinois
St. Joseph Catholic Church was a small Italian-heritage parish in the coal-mining village of Willisville, Illinois, founded in 1903 to serve Sicilian Catholic families who had migrated from Murphysboro to work in the mines opened by the Willis Mining Company. The parish operated for 120 years as a cornerstone of the community before the Diocese of Belleville celebrated its final Mass on July 30, 2023 and formally closed it on August 15, 2023, citing declining population and a shortage of priests. The church building and parish hall were subsequently sold to the village of Willisville for $40,000.
- Established
- 1903
- Patron
- St. Joseph
- Diocese
- Diocese of Belleville
History of St. Joseph Parish
St. Joseph was founded in 1903 to serve the Sicilian Catholic families who had moved to Willisville to work in the Willis Mining Company's coal mines. Within weeks of his arrival in January 1903, Father Francis Sannella built a 150-seat frame church for about $1,300; the larger present church followed in 1908. The parish was officially incorporated on December 13, 1919. Through the twentieth century it tracked the boom-and-bust of the local mining economy, surviving the closure of its parochial school in 1928 and a long population decline. After 120 years the Diocese of Belleville celebrated its final Mass on July 30, 2023 and formally closed the parish on August 15, 2023.
- Founded January 1903 under Bishop Johannes Janssen of Belleville
- First resident pastor: Fr. Francis Sannella
- First church built July 1903 (150 seats, ~$1,300)
- Present church erected 1908
- Incorporated December 13, 1919 (trustees Sam Castellano and Anthony Simonara)
- Parochial school operated 1906–1928
- Final Mass celebrated July 30, 2023
- Parish formally closed August 15, 2023
Italian Heritage and Mining Roots
St. Joseph was a textbook Italian-immigrant mining parish. Italian Catholic families began arriving from Murphysboro after the Willis Mining Company opened in 1897, fueling a 171 percent population increase between 1900 and 1910. By 1912 the parish registers listed 185 families, almost all Sicilian Italians, with only a handful of English-speaking households. That heritage shaped the parish's devotional life and, in Father Leo Hayes's telling, gave its legendary spaghetti supper its signature sauce.
- Named after Dickie Willis of the Willis Mining Company (mine opened 1897)
- First Catholic settlers in the area arrived about 1880 (Laub, Rheinecker, Heine families)
- By 1920 the village population reached 1,485
- Original $750 contribution toward the first church came from Anthony Laub
Father Leo Hayes and the Spaghetti Supper
Father Leo Hayes arrived in 1968 and within a short time became the heart of the parish. The annual spaghetti supper — already a tradition before he came — was being held under a tent when a storm blew the tent down, prompting him to build a permanent parish hall with a kitchen laid out specifically for the cooks. The supper ran for 67 years in total and drew up to 900 diners in a single night before ending in 2018 due to a lack of volunteers. Hayes also served Ava and Raddle alongside Willisville for 47 years, and did a 25-year chaplaincy at Menard Correctional Center in Chester. He retired in June 2015 and still celebrates Mass at Immaculate Conception Church on Kaskaskia Island.
- Served 47 years across Willisville, Ava and Raddle
- Built the present parish hall
- Spaghetti supper ran 67 years total, ended 2018
- Called the three rural parishes his 'three children'
The Church Building and Its Treasures
The present St. Joseph church was erected in 1908 and received a major interior renovation in the late 1970s under Father Leo Hayes. Its most distinctive features are salvaged rather than commissioned: the stained-glass windows were rescued from the former St. John's and St. Anthony's hospitals in St. Louis, and the crucifixion scene behind the altar was brought in from a closed East St. Louis parish.
- Stained-glass windows from former St. John's and St. Anthony's hospitals, St. Louis
- Crucifixion scene behind altar from a closed East St. Louis church
- Interior renovated in the late 1970s
- Rectory built 1906 (later sold and moved outside Chester)
Parochial School
During 1906–07 Father Ermengild Senese founded a Catholic school at St. Joseph, initially using the old 1903 church building. Enrollment reached about ninety pupils, taught by Father Senese and a lay teacher, Miss Anna Sankpiel. The school operated until 1928, when the building was demolished and its wood was reused to construct a barn on parish property.
- Established 1906–07 by Father Ermengild Senese
- Classes first held in the original 1903 church
- About 90 pupils; taught by Senese and Miss Anna Sankpiel
- Demolished 1928; wood reused for a barn
Parish Cemetery
St. Joseph established its own cemetery in 1904. On September 6 of that year, Father Francis Sannella, as pastor, and trustees Vincent Demmi Sr. and Emmanual Belluccia, purchased a 20-by-40-rod cemetery lot from Peter and Myrtle Ross of Sparta for $110. The cemetery served the Italian Catholic community and remains an enduring physical link to the parish's earliest years.
- Cemetery lot purchased September 6, 1904
- 20 × 40 rods, bought for $110 from Peter and Myrtle Ross of Sparta
- Trustees at purchase: Vincent Demmi Sr. and Emmanual Belluccia
Closure and the End of an Era
By 2023 the Diocese of Belleville concluded that St. Joseph no longer had the congregation or the priests to sustain regular ministry. The final Mass was celebrated on Sunday, July 30, 2023. Parishioners like Joli Smith — baptized there in 1969, whose son Colin and granddaughter Charlie were also baptized there — spoke of the closing as 'the end of an era.' Father Leo Hayes, retired since 2015, called the decision 'terrible and disgusting' but urged former parishioners not to stop going to church, 'that they know that the Catholic Church is bigger than St. Joseph's.' Parish sacramental records are now kept at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Sparta.
- Final Mass: July 30, 2023
- Officially closed by the Diocese of Belleville on August 15, 2023
- Bishop Michael McGovern transferred the property to the village of Willisville
- Sale price for parish hall and storage: $40,000; the church building was added to the deal
- Parish records housed at Our Lady of Lourdes, 611 W. Broadway, Sparta, IL (618-443-2811)
Contact and Location
The church property sits at 501 Broadway in Willisville, Illinois (Perry County), and the listed parish telephone is (618) 426-3321. Because the parish is closed, sacramental records and pastoral correspondence are now handled through Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Sparta.
- 501 Broadway St., Willisville, IL 62297
- Phone: (618) 426-3321
- Records and pastoral care: Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, 611 W. Broadway, Sparta, IL 62286, (618) 443-2811
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Francis Sannella1903–
Sent by Bishop Johannes Janssen; celebrated first Mass in a public school; oversaw building of the first church in July 1903 at a cost of about $1,300; eventually returned to Italy.
- Fr. Ermengild SeneseApril 15, 1905–
Ordained August 15, 1902 at Conza, Italy; built the rectory (completed February 1906); founded the parish school in 1906–07 with about ninety pupils; the present church was erected in 1908 during his tenure.
- Fr. John Ferrara, C.S.B.through December 1920
Last resident pastor of the independent parish; oversaw the church's official incorporation on December 13, 1919; returned to Italy shortly before Christmas 1920, where he died of a heart attack.
- Rev. Patrick Slattery1920–1922
Came from Carbondale to say Sunday Mass after St. Joseph ceased being an independent parish.
- Fr. Louis Tugerearly 1922
Lived in both Ava and Willisville for about two years.
- Fr. Joseph Mueller, Fr. Anthony Keepes, Fr. Louis Ellcirca early 1920s
Traveled by train from East St. Louis to celebrate periodic Masses for the remaining parishioners.
- Fr. Robert DeGasparifrom 1924
Resident pastor of Ava, also serving St. Ann's, St. Elizabeth's and St. Joseph's Willisville.
- Fr. Leo Hayes1968–2015
Longest-serving pastor (47 years across Willisville, Ava and Raddle); built the parish hall; oversaw the late-1970s interior renovation; retired June 2015.
- Fr. Ben Stern
Served after Father Hayes's retirement.
- Fr. Larry Lemay
Served in the years after Father Hayes.
- Fr. Iheme Iuvenis
Served St. Joseph at the time of the final Mass on July 30, 2023; subsequently assigned to parishes in Sparta, Evansville and Walsh.