St. Mary Parish – Downs

Founded 1903

Priests from nearby Cawker City offered the Sacraments to a few Catholic residents before the turn of the century. In 1903, the Congregational Church building, constructed in 1879, was purchased and dedicated as St. Mary’s. The parish always has been a mission.

Parishioners began raising money in 1955 to build a new church. The ground-breaking took place in 1967, and the new church was dedicated in 1969.