Silver Lake

St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church

The parish first started as a log cabin mission church served by the Vincentians from Perryville in the 1850s. The first frame church was built in 1865, under William Vincent Moore, C.M. In the early 1870s, Father Joseph Hellwing, who had just become pastor of St. Mary's at Biehle, also gave services here. Father William Vincent Moore, C.M., a local Missouri native, who studied both at St. Mary's of the Barrens Seminary and later in Cape Girardeau, also served here.

The stone church was constructed under direction of Father Denis D. Leyden, C. M. in 1877-79 of unique colored stone blocks, and was known as Holy Innocents. The brothers and students at St. Mary's of the barrens donated 30,000 shingles for the roof of the new church. The Silver Lake church was changed to St. Rose of Lima, in 1885-1886, under Father Pommer and Father E. J. Wynne, apparently as a response to the completion of the new stone church. The church was badly damaged P.O. 1869-1954.

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