Fondo 015 - Beiseker, St. Mary

In 1907 Tinchebray Father, L. Forget visited Beiseker. Mass was celebrated in the home of Ludwig Schmalz and family. In 1909 the small Catholic community began work on a formal church, completing the building in 1910. A rectory was added in 1914 but it wasn’t until 1920 that Beiseker received its first resident pastor. The church was expanded in 1926. The rectory, which was destroyed by fire, was rebuilt in 1944 and a new, enlarged church was completed in 1956, when it was blessed as the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. There were 140 registered members in 1956 and 450 in 1972. By the 1980s there was significant loss of population as young people moved out of the area and by 1996 there were only 142 registered members.