St. Elizabeth Catholic Church built by local members
St. Elizabeth Catholic Church built by local members
Written by Pamela Stephenson Sunday, 07 January 2007
One of the oldest churches in Pflugerville is St. Elizabeth Catholic Church. Pflugerville was one of eight missions for Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Austin until 1932 when it was placed under the protection of St. Elizabeth of Hungary. Priests periodically came from Austin or Taylor to conduct Mass, weddings, confirmations and funerals.
The first Mass celebrated in the area was in 1919 in an empty hall known as the “Green House” owned by Estanislao and Anita Cantu. Mr. Cantu longed for a Catholic Church in Pflugerville and offered to donate the land to the OLG.
When the OLG checked the property records they learned the property had back taxes due and agreed to purchase the property for the price of the taxes owed. The two lots, located on the corner of Railroad and Wilbarger Streets, became the location for the new church. Lumber from the structures on the land was used to construct the church.
Additional lumber was donated by an anonymous woman from Illinois whose only condition was that the church be named St. Elizabeth. The building was completed in 1932 at a cost of $1,800.
In 1977, five acres were purchased from Leon and Gladys Pfluger on what is now Pflugerville Parkway/Pfennig Lane, to build a new facility. Architectural drawings and designs were contributed by member Jose Mercado of JAM Designs. He kept it simple knowing that the building would be constructed by church members without construction backgrounds. Mercado is the grandson of two of the original founding members. The contemporary-styled building was built by parishioners over 52 weekends with men and boys erecting the building while the ladies and girls prepared meals spread on planks and saw horses to be shared by all.
“From above, the building looks like an angel,” said W.C. Kolinek, who coordinated the building efforts. “When it was finished, it was paid for.”
In June 1984, St. Elizabeth was raised to the status of an Independent Parish. From its tiny beginnings of about 20 families, the church has more than 2,100 registered families today.
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