Our Lady of Guadalupe

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 HISTORY OF OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE CHURCH AND SHRINE

1876 – The property was deeded to the church by Isadore E. Solomon.

1878 – A chapel was erected and the first Mass was celebrated on May 3, 1878.

1887–1891 – Our Lady of Guadalupe Church was built and dedicated in 1891 under the guidance of Father Vandermaesen.

1891 – Our Lady of Guadalupe was established as a parish and served as the mother parish to St. Joseph in Lordsburg; Sacred Heart in Clifton; Holy Cross in Morenci; St. Rose of Lima in Safford; Holy Angels in Globe; and, Sacred Heart in Willcox.

1891 – The church burnt to the ground and was rebuilt by parishioners. 

1894 – San Jose Mission was established; it was closed in 1954; Bishop Moreno re-dedicate the mission as a house of God in 1985.

1911 – The wooden floor of the Sanctuary and some of the wood statues from the main altar were destroyed by fire.

1912 – After the fire, the existing church was designed by Don Joaquin Figueroa and rebuilt again.

1937 – St. Rose of Lima in Safford was designated a separate parish.

1961 – The Sisters of the Eucharistic Missionaries of St. Dominic, locally known as the “White Sisters” came to Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Rose of Lima to help with the catechetical program.

1981 – On the 450th anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego on the Hill of Tepeyac in Mexico, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church was dedicated as a Shrine by Bishop Moreno from the Diocese of Tucson.