Click on the following link to view the extended history of Assumption Church, or read the shorter version found below.
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Established 1895
The first Mass was celebrated in the Dwight Assumption Parish on March 1st, 1896 at the Public School in Dwight. The parishioners and their Priest, Father AJ Klein, soon realized that they would need a permanent structure in which to have Mass on a regular basis. The first Mass was celebrated in the initial Church on September 8, 1899. In 1910 Dwight Assumption became an independent parish when they were assigned a permanent Priest, Father Klein, who no longer had to commute between Brainard and Dwight. At the time, two Masses were held on Sundays to accommodate the large number of parishioners. The young and old generations were feuding over whether or not to build a larger Church. The result was a new Church, our current building, and the dedication of this magnificent structure was held on September 22, 1915. The design of our Church is classified as Late 19th and early 20th Century Revival Gothic Architecture.
Significant Dates
1914 – Construction of church
1921 – Construction of school
1934 – Grottoes and shrines dedicated
Dwight lies in flat lying plains that make good agricultural land, which attracted a large concentration of Czech settlers to the area in the late 1800s.
Grottoes and Shrines
The grottoes contain several shrines, beautiful rock gardens and fountains. The shrine in the center of the grotto garden is the Mother of Grace. Her statue is carved of Carrara marble, and is set on a pedestal of red granite rocks that have been laid in various levels to create a plinth. Arced steps allow the petitioner to approach her, and urns of what appears to be quartz lie beside her feet and the steps.
A small chapel is situated to the northeast of the shrine of the Mother of Grace. The chapel is built of varied colored brick, nine by ten feet, and will seat only four people. The altar is finished in white marble with the columns of the front in onyx and the spiral columns on each side of the picture of the Mother of Perpetual Help in red Verone marble. The picture of the Mother of Perpetual Help is a reproduction of an ancient Grecian painting and was blessed by Pope Pius XI. The lower part of the altar is a glass reliquary, in which lies a statue of St. Cecilia, representing her martyrdom. It is a replica of a Stefano Maderno statue in Rome. This statue is unusual in that it has actual garments and human hair on her head. Parishioners made the dress and donated their hair for the statue. The fingers on her hands, three open on one hand and one open on the other, represent the early Christian belief, “I believe in Three Persons in One God.”
One of the larger grottoes is the “Grotto of Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane,” which is found in a cave-like structure at the northwest portion of the grotto garden. Gethsemane is the scene where Christ sweat drops like blood and was betrayed by Judas. The statues of Christ and the visiting angel are made of terra cotta and weigh 1800 pounds. They are accompanied by three sleeping apostles. There are also two doves that were brought from Czechoslovakia and donated by Caroline Vogeltanz. One is lying dead and the other stands nearby. In a Czech story, these doves loved each other deeply and had mated for life, and even after the one died, the other remained faithful, just as a married couple does.
The Grotto of St. Jude Thaddeus is connected to the Gethsemane cave, and creates an arched walkway, under which one can walk to the back of the school yard. The grotto is made of tufa rock, more commonly called petrified moss. This rock was brought in from the Black Hills in South Dakota. The statue of St. Jude the apostle is holding a medallion of Christ in his right hand, as it is said that he wrought miracles and conversions with the picture of Christ. In his left hand he holds a club, the instrument of his martyrdom.
A small lily pond with koi fish and a trickling fountain is situated in front of a shrine to St. Michael. Although there was historically a lily pool in the garden, this current pool represents a slight reconfiguration of the original after a storm caused some damage to the property in 1997. In addition, a new three-fountain pool flanked by two raised flower beds was added in front of the Mother of Grace shrine. The three fountains represent the trinity, and the pool and flower beds were intended to draw the eye to the Mother of Grace.