Leavenworth County Churches
St. Lawrence Catholic Church, Easton
"History of Leavenworth County," 1921
The pioneer Catholic family of Leavenworth County was that of Pensoneau, who dwelt on Stranger Creek. The
name of Lawrence Pensoneau appears in the letters of the first missionaries to this region. He was an agent for the American Fur Company,
which was largely controlled by the Catholic Chouteau family, one member of which founded St. Louis and another of which was largely instrumental in the founding of Kansas City. The records as far back as the
early thirties of the last century found in the "Kickapoo Register," which
is now kept at St. Mary's, Kansas, among the first marriages and baptisms the name of Pensoneau.
After Bishop Miege was constituted Vicar Apostolic of all Indian
missionary work east of the Rocky Mountains, he sent the Rev. Ambrose
T. Butler to the settlers on Stranger Creek in the vicinity of Easton in
the year 1854. Among the other priests that were later sent there were
the Rev. Bernard Hayden, and Rev. Sylvester Meehan. The latter is now
at Everest, Kansas. Father Hayden has been dead for a number of years.
In 1889 the Rev. Francis Taton was appointed to Easton and outlying
missions then comprising Springdale and St. Joseph's at Mount Olivet.
Father Taton completed a beautiful stone church at Springdale in 1893.
He built the present St. Joseph's Church at Mount Olivet also. The pres-
ent pastor at the Mount Olivet Church is Rev. A. Grootaers, who having
built the present parish house adjoining the church moved there from
Easton to become the first resident pastor of the St. Joseph's of the Valley
Church. He was succeeded at Easton by Rev. Father Fisher, now at
Tonganoxie, Kansas. The next pastor at Easton to follow Father Fisher
was Father Lercke, who was forced to leave on account of ill health and
died later in California. His successor was Rev. J. A. Laczniak, who is
now pastor at the St. Casimer's Catholic Church of Leavenworth. Father
Lacznizk's predecessor at St. Casimer's was sent to Easton, where he built
the present beautiful brick church of Roman style. He also furnished
the church with a beautiful altar and stations and a large bell.
The Rev. Stephen F. Healy, who is at the present time pastor of the
St. Lawrence Church at Easton, is a zealous young priest who is well
pleased with the generous co-operation of his parishoners in religious
work. He is contemplating the erection of a new rectory in the near
future.
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