LIVINGSTON — Sacred Heart Parish, Livingston, in northeastern Madison County is celebrating its 100th anniversary. The Livingston parish was founded in December 1913 by Bishop James Ryan of the Alton diocese. The original church building was destroyed in a fire, but a second building was quickly constructed and on Thanksgiving Day, 1914, it was rededicated.

Bishop Thomas John Paprocki will be at Sacred Heart Church on Nov. 3 to celebrate Mass at 10:30 a.m., and attend a parish dinner afterwards in the Crystal Ballroom at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Staunton.

"Livingston began as a simple coal mining town, comprised of a large Eastern European and Italian immigrant population of near 2,000 when the parish was founded," according to Kelly A. Best, a parishioner who researched and wrote Sacred Heart Catholic Church, A Celebratory History, 1913-2013.

"The first pastor, Father Ignatius Kershevich, was Lithuanian; he delivered the sermon in Slovak," said Best. "He slept in the sacristy for a few years and donated some of his own salary in order to save money to build a rectory and buy a plot of land for Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery."

Parish socials and fairs became a popular tradition at the parish, and by 1924 the parish size had grown and Sacred Heart Catholic School opened its doors to an enrollment of 210 students. Ursuline Sisters from St. Michael's in Staunton taught at the first- through eighth-grade school.

But the Great Depression, and the closing of the nearby mine from 1930 to 1932 had an impact on the area.

"Father Arthur VanSpeybroock helped our struggling parish through the hardships of the time," Best wrote. He "even sacrificed much of his own salary in order to make much needed renovations to the church and rectory." The First National Bank of Livingston closed. St. Ubaldus in New Douglas became a mission to Sacred Heart Church.

Father Robert McCarthy took the role of pastor in 1942, and during a time of better prosperity was able to make considerable improvements. Father Francis Corrigan, who replaced Father McCarthy in May 1950, served as pastor at Sacred Heart for 44 years until his retirement in 1994.

"Even though the coal mine closed permanently during Father Corrigan's tenure, this post-World War II era proved to be a most affluent time for our parish," Best writes. "Social events such as picnics, plays, carnivals, chicken dinners, and more kept Father Corrigan and the Sacred Heart parishioners very busy."

The church underwent a $50,000 renovation in 1962, for the parish golden jubilee in 1963. Father Corrigan "also helped with the church's diamond jubilee in 1988 and saw the last confirmation class go through in April of 1991," writes Best.

Father George Radosevich, pastor at St. Michael's Church in Staunton, has served Sacred Heart as a mission for 19 years. He also served St. Ubaldus as a mission until it closed in 2004.

"The parishes have become a blended church family over the past two decades and they help one another with social events, such as the annual Christmas party and the Octoberfest," Best said.

"We used to have hundreds of families in our parish. We were on Route 66, the train track was near. But since the mine closed in 1960, the town has shrunk. We still have some popular attractions — an antique mall, several restaurants, a grocery store and an insurance agency. Our children go to school in Staunton."

A statue of the Infant of Prague at Sacred Heart Church is one of the reminders of its early eastern European heritage.