
9. The 'In Memory of Rev. John Schoenmakers' Window.
The memory window for Father Schoenmakers is 70 inches wide by approximately 10 feet high. It is located in the east choir loft near the main entrance to the bell tower. When you consider the extraordinary impact he had on the Osage, the Mission, our Parish and the town of St. Paul, the size and position seem rather obscure. But then, you turn around in the choir loft and look down, you remember this is his church!
Father John Schoenmakers died on July 28, 1883, ten months before his church's dedication. The windows were installed in 1900. An article in the February 1, 1900 says his window was donated by a friend. Who? We do not know. Credit for this window is lost to history. However, we do know from an inscription at the base of the window notes that it was restored in the memory of John and Jane O'Kane Farran by their Great Grandchildren. We will focus the credit for the window on the Farrans.
The memory window for Father Schoenmakers is 70 inches wide by approximately 10 feet high. It is located in the east choir loft near the main entrance to the bell tower. When you consider the extraordinary impact he had on the Osage, the Mission, our Parish and the town of St. Paul, the size and position seem rather obscure. But then, you turn around in the choir loft and look down, you remember this is his church!
Father John Schoenmakers died on July 28, 1883, ten months before his church's dedication. The windows were installed in 1900. An article in the February 1, 1900 says his window was donated by a friend. Who? We do not know. Credit for this window is lost to history. However, we do know from an inscription at the base of the window notes that it was restored in the memory of John and Jane O'Kane Farran by their Great Grandchildren. We will focus the credit for the window on the Farrans.
Father John Schoenmakers.
Like all of the original Osage Mission missionaries, Father John Schoenmakers was an immigrant. He was born in a humble home in the village of Waspick, Langstaat, in the province of North Brabant, Holland. His father was Henry Schoenmakers, and his mother was Petronella Kam. There was nothing about his youth that hinted he was bound to do great things. After receiving a public education he entered the school of Charles De Neff in Turnhout, Belgium. De Neff was in institution that groomed young men with missionary aspirations. While he was at the De Neff school, he added his name to the list of other prominent De Neff graduates like Jesuit missionary Fathers Pierre-John de Smet and Charles Van Quickenborne.
But rather than being repetitive here, follow THIS LINK to our profile of Father John's life and accomplishments. That profile also includes another Schoenmakers window in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Pawhuska, Oklahoma — The Cathedral of the Osage.
Like all of the original Osage Mission missionaries, Father John Schoenmakers was an immigrant. He was born in a humble home in the village of Waspick, Langstaat, in the province of North Brabant, Holland. His father was Henry Schoenmakers, and his mother was Petronella Kam. There was nothing about his youth that hinted he was bound to do great things. After receiving a public education he entered the school of Charles De Neff in Turnhout, Belgium. De Neff was in institution that groomed young men with missionary aspirations. While he was at the De Neff school, he added his name to the list of other prominent De Neff graduates like Jesuit missionary Fathers Pierre-John de Smet and Charles Van Quickenborne.
But rather than being repetitive here, follow THIS LINK to our profile of Father John's life and accomplishments. That profile also includes another Schoenmakers window in Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Pawhuska, Oklahoma — The Cathedral of the Osage.
The Farrans.