One of the freedoms most valued by so many of the settlers was the freedom of religion, the freedom to practice the faith that sustained them in those first difficult years.

Various sects were represented in Benton Township. Each small group remained steadfast in its own faith, but there seems to have been a spirit of "live and let live."

Services were held wherever space was available, sometimes in tents of groves.

In the 1870's Reverend LEDGERWOOD, a Campbellite, held services in the large barn on the Bazzel TURNER farm (later known as the HART place) on the north edge of present-day Maloy. Reverend LEDGERWOOD did the baptizing in the river nearby. The Campbellites were a branch of the organized Baptist Church.

In 1890 Reverrend HENSLEY, a Free-Will Baptist, conducted meetings at the Bozaris School west of Maloy. His followers built a small church near the river on land donated by Colonel FOX. After a short while, the group disbanded and sold the land to the LOUTZENHIZER brothers, who organized a Church of the Brethren.

This group too was short-lived, and the building was sold to the Baptists. It was then razed and built into a Baptist Church which was erected across the river just north of where the post office now [1987] stands. Before 1920, it was dismantled and moved to Delphos.

About 1908, Elder H. E. Van HORNE from Blockton organized a group of Christians in the Maloy area. They build a church in the south end of town just across the street from where Howard JACKSON now [1987] lives. This church was used regularly for many years. It often included people of other faiths in its membership, and was shared with the Catholics while they were rebuilding following the disastrous fire of 1931.

The Church was itself destroyed by fire in 1984.

Prayer meetings were held in the Highland School beginning about 1880. It was located on the present Highway 2. In October, 1890, Highland Church was built north and west of the school.

Some early families who attended were RUSS, MOREY, SMITH, CANNY, DAVIS, HOUSE, TOLAND, GOODMAN, BENDER and MATTHEWS.

Other Protestant clergymen included the following:
George T. PREWITT, who was serving the Baptist Church in 1908.
Benjamin WARING, who, in addition to practicing medicine and teaching, also conducted Baptist services
and, William "Old Bill" McFARLAND.

The first Catholic Services were held in Luke SHAY'S hom ein 1864. Three years later Mr. SHAY moved one mile west to the John DALE farm. DALE had a contract with the stage company and maintained headquarters for the stage line. SHAY took over the contract and the stage barn.

Catholic Services continued to be held in the SHAY home; and when the congregation was too large for the house, the missionary priest simply moved to the barn. Mass was also said at times after 1870 in the William LAMBERT home.

It was customary to p rovide food for everyone following the services as some had come considerable distances to be there. This was a fine arrangement except, as sometimes happened, the priest chose to go to to the LAMBERTS' and the turkey was at the SHAYS' or vice versa!

They were served at various times by missionary priests from Ottumwa or Georgetown, and after 1872 by the Benedictine Fathers.

In 1874-1875, one of the later, Father Placidus McKEEVER, directed the building of the first church in the Maloy vicinity. It was located in St. Mary's Cemetery.

From 1883 to 1887, Diocesan priests from Dubuque were stationed at Mount Ayr and said Mass in the little church in the cemetery. They were Fathers FEELEY, WILLIAMS and B. J. SHERIDAN.

In 1887 when the town of Maloy was platted, the building was moved from the cemetery to the site of the present Catholic Church. Elias COWELL accomplished the feat with his mules.

This church [St. Mary's] was used until 1903. At that time Father J. J. CONDON supervised the construction of a larger church with stained glass windows and a 60-foot spire. There were at the time 50 amilies in the parish. Included among these were some of the pioneer Catholic families: SHAYS, LAMBERTS, O'CONNORS, SHEILS, MULLINS, HIGGINSES, GEIGERS, HOWES and WARINS.

The smaller church was moved to the rear of the lot and served as a parish hall.

It served well as it became the site for fabulous Thanksgiving dinners, bi-weekly dances and Sunday movies! (Sunday movies were taboo in the rest of the county, so Mr. KRAMER brought his projector and film to Maloy each Sunday, and patrons from a wide area became acquainted with Rudolph Valentino, Mary Pickford, Ramon Navarro and others.)

Both buildings were destroyed by the disastrous fire which swept through most of Maloy in 1931.

The Catholics, rallying round their pastor, Father M. J. CULHANE, accepted the offer of the Christian Church to share their facilities for a while and started planning the construction of the present [1987] church and rectory.

"The all-brick church if of English Rural Architectural style. Its steeply pitched roof is supported by heavy steel beams encased in wood. The ceiling is of accoustical tile, and the floor is inlaid tile. The Gothic altar and communion rail, constructed by the Daporte Studio of Chicago, was a gift of the late Margaret GRIFFIN, a long-time resident of Maloy."
~ Information supplied by Father CULHANE in 1956.

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
June 18, 1931

A $50,000 fire loss was suffered by the businessmen and residents of Maloy Wednesday forenoon when nine buildings including the Catholic Church, the parsonage and Forester Hall, five business houses, a barn, and one residence were reduced to ashes.

The fire started in the general store of J. E. O'CONNOR and Sons and was discovered by Joe O'CONNOR when he took a cream can to the testing room. The room was filled with sacks, and the fire had gained such headway that it was impossible to control.

No fire fighting equipment was available, and the flames soon spread to the adjoining building. A strong south wind was blowing which carried sparks to the building across the street and they too were soon burned to the ground.

Fire departments from Mount Ayr, Bedford and Blockton were summoned and of valuable assistance in protecting the remaining properties.

Following is the list of properties destroyed.

Frank CARR, post officer, grarage building and stock valued at $3,000.
E. O'CONNOR and Sons, general store, stock and fixtures, valued at $3,500.
Robert AUGUSTINE, building valued at $3,000.
James MULLIN, general store, stock and fixtures valued at $4,750.
Catholic Church, parsonage and hall, valued at $29,500.
J. B. HULL residence, valued at $1,500.
A. J. MATTHEWS, barn valued at $1,000.
J. E. GRAY, houshold goods stored valued at $1,000.

The Church was insured for $20,000 and each of the businesses was partially covered.

On the seventeenth day of June, 1931, a very destructive fire visited the little town of Maloy and destroyed the beautiful fram church building, the rectory, and the rather new community hall, as well as the post office, the lumberyard, hardware store, two general merchandise stores, oil station, residences, and other buildings.

The Register

MALOY -- Construction underway here, including a $33,000 Catholic Church and rectory, involves approximately $38,000, local contractors reported Saturday.

Other projects include a store remodeling costing $1200 and the erection of a store building costing $2500.

The Messenger, November 5, 1934

Tuesday, October 23, was an eventful day in the lives of the parishioners and pastor of the Immaculate Conception parish of Maloy. On that day His Excellency, the Most Reverend Gerald T. BERGAN, D.D., Bishop of Des Moines, dedicated the recently erected Immaculate Conception Church to the honor, service, and glory of God.

The contract for a new church was let during October of 1931, and the work of building was completed during 1932. It was to be dedicated during 1933, but because of the death of the then Bishop of Des Moines, the dedication of the new church was postponed until the present year.

The first mass was offered on August 18, 1932. On that day Father CULHANE officiated at the marriage of John D. WARIN and Mary SHAY.

Pastors of the church from 1887 to 1971 are as follows:

Fathers T. J. MULLEN (first resident pastor); Terence J. MALLOY; Henry V. MALONE; Monsignor James William BULGER; Fathers J. A. COOK, Thomas LOFTUS; J. J. CONDON; John C. WHITE; Charles WALDRON; John BURKHEISER; Henri POUGET and M. J. CULHANE.

Following Father CULHANE'S retirement in 1971, the Maloy parish became part of the Leon Region. Also included in the Region are Mount Ayr, Leon, Grnad River, Osceola, Chariton and Corydon.

The first priests assigned to the Region were Monsignor Paul CONNELLY, James McILHON and John LORENZ. Others who have served the Region are Fathers Larry HOFFMAN, Joseph McDONNELL, James KIERNAN, Jerry O'CONNER, Frank CHIODO, Donald DALEKE, John CIARO, Alphonso ERESTAIN, Robert BOHN, Michael O'MEARA and Brother Emmanuel TECH-GIL.

Current [1987] member of the Regional Team are Fathers Jim FREEMAN, Bernard GOTTNER, Michael McLAUGHLIN, John ZEITLER and Sister Bernadine PIEPER.

Father CULHANE -- a man with love in hisheart and the courage to live the faith he professed. He served the Catholics of Maloy for half of the 100-year existence of the church, sharing good times and bad with his parishioners and the community.

Born and educated in Ireland, he was ordained for the Diocese of Des Moins and came to Maloy after spending a year as assistant pastor in Council Bluffs.

Driving into town in his brand new Ford in 1922, he was probably unaware that the thought in the minds of many of his parishioners was "Why, he's only a boy!"

Boy or not, he immediately assumed leadership of the 53 families comprising the parish. One of his first tasks was directing the redecorating of the church and the restructing of the parish hall.

He instituted catechism classes after Mass on Sundays assuring attendance by all the children. On one occuasion when a group of teenaged boys slipped quietly from their places in a back pew to "loaf" over town, Father took one look and left the class. It didn't take long to locate the truants and bring them back to church. Henceforth, they were regular attendants at Catechism class.

However, following Father's precepts was never too difficult. If a basketball tournament was scheduled for the same time as Lenten devotions, he quietly rescheduled the devotions. In his book, both were important.

He loved the outdoors, and each autumn he and Queenie (an American water spaniel) stalked their prey. Often he cast a line in the river with his fishing buddy, Peanut COWELL. The short vacations he took were likely to be spent at the lakes in northern Iowa or Minnesota.

He ws truly a part of the community, enjoying the simple pleasures that the town afforded as well as enduring the near despair of the area during the depression years.

Even the heartbreak of having his home and church reduced to ashes failed to diminish his faith and optimism.

In these trying times, the spirit of the people manifested itself. With Father CULHANE leading the way, a new church and rectory were built, and life went on. The unfailing cooperation of the congregation and their tremendious sacrifices are evidence of their loyalty to their pastor.

Also the many acts of friendship and courtesy extended by the non-Catholic people attested to their regard for him.

Father CULHANE was ahead of his time in recognizing the good faith of members of other religions. He stated his philosophy in the following, written in 1960.

"We have many religions in this county; and as far as I am concerned, that simply means that we've got a lot of church-going Christians. We're here to worship and live as people of God, and all kinds of churches will not hamper that effort."

He continued to serve in the ensuing years even though his congregation grew smaller as farms grew larger and more mechanized.

He twice refused assignment to a larger, more prosperous parish. Maloy was "home."

In 1969 he celebrated the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood.

Failing health forced his retirement in 1970, and he passed away at Clearview Home [Mount Ayr] in 1974.

One final tribute from the Mount Ayr Record-News:

"Each heart was touched in its own way with Father's passing, for if you have lived in the community for very long, you have a special place for him.

"His quick Irish wit, his concern and prayers for all, his love of dogs and outdoor sports, made him a friend to everyone."

Father John ZEITLER is the Catholic pastor for Ringgold County. He began serving the county while living in Leon. Since August 1986 he has been living in the parish house in Maloy. Before coming to southern Iowa, he did a three-year stint with the National Catholic Rural Life Conference working out of Des Moines. In that job he traveled extensively in the United Sates, trying to understand the problems of agriculture and working on national legislation. He also went to Mexico, Honduras, and Nicaragua, and to Poland to work with their farm organizations.

"My years at the Rural Life Conference strengthened three convictions:
1) Farm families worldwide share many of the same problems - being driven off the land by state or corporate agribusiness.
2) We have a moral obilgation to provide food and biver by methods that will enhance our land, our health, and our communities. The day of industrial agriculture with its heavy use of oil, capital, and chemicals is over.
3) The only lasting way to effect change is at the grassroots. Monsignor Luigi LIGUTTI said: 'A lot of little people, in a lot of little places, doing a lot of little things, make great changes in the world.' In the years that God and the Bishop leave me in the county I intend to follow these convictions."

Father ZEITLER was born and raised in a coal town of western Pennsylvania where he attended public shcools before beginning his studies for the priesthood. He graduated from St. Bonaventure University and was ordanined in 1968. While serving a church in Sharon, Pennsylvania he earned a masters degree in social work and community organizing from the University of Pittsburgh.

In 1973 he transferred to the Diocese of Southwest Iowa and spent four years at Holy Trinity Parish in Des Moines. He then volunteered for the Glenmary Home Missioners and served rural churches in Georgia and Kentucky for three years.

In the cool quiet of a Maloy morning you can often see Father with his beagle, Midge, and his single-shot 410 working the nearby fields and timber. None of the game has much to fear!

Sister Bernadine PIEPER was born on a farm in north Lee County, Iowa, the oldest of five children.Her brother, Jim, and his sons now farm the land their great-grandfather purchased one hundred years ago. Sister Bernadine holds a doctorate in zoology with a minor in botany from the University of Iowa. She taught biology for 22 years at Marycrest College in Davenport.

Before coming to Maloy, Sister devoted her talents in teaching in grade school and college and was president of her community, the Sister of the Humility of Mary. Several sisters from this order taught in Maloy through the years.

Sister Bernadine was president of Ottumwa Heights College in Ottumwa. For seven years, she was the administrator for the North Central Region of the American Friends Service Committe, an international peace and justice organization.

Between her teaching and AFSC roles, PIEPER wrote a book on the order of the Humility of Mary.

Sister came to Maloy as a member of the Leon Team Ministry in August [1987] and resides in the church rectory. Her vivacious personality and compassion for others make her a special new member of our community.

Betsy KEENAN was born and raised near Buffalo, New York, and Brian TERRELL is from Green Bay, Wisconsin. When they met in 1977, Betsy was living at a Catholic worker farm at Tivoli in upstate New York and Brian was at the Catholic worker hospitality house on the lower east side of New York City.

Betsy and Brian moved to Daven port, Iowa, in 1979, where they worked at the Catholic worker house there, giving hospitality and serving meals to homeless people as well as working for peace and to stop the arms race.

They were married in January, 1981, and have two children - Elijah, age 4 years, and Clara, 2 years.

In October, 1986, they moved to Maloy with the PEIFER-RUNYON family to form Strangers and Guests, an attempt to live and work as a small Christian community.

Mary PEIFER and Jim RUNYON both grew up on small family farms in central Illinois. There are eight children in Jim's family and six children in Mary's. They met in Rock Island at the Catholic worker house which provided housing and meals for homeless men. After eight years in the Quad City ares, they moved to Dubuque for one year where Jim was employed at Loras College.

Mary and Jim were contacted about moving to Maloy and after several discussions decided to move, arriving here October 17, 1986. They were accompanied by their two children, Kate, age 6, and Daniel, age 4.

SOURCE: Maloy, Iowa Centennial History: 1887 - 1987 Pp. 22 - 27. 1987.

Courtesy of Mount Ayr Public Library

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, August of 2011