St. Mary’s Church, Fairfield, AL

St. Mary’s Church has a rich history that began in 1943 as a mission of Holy Family Church. Just a year later, on March 21, 1944, a small wooden church was dedicated in Fairfield, followed by the opening of a school the next year.

In September 1945, three Sisters of St. Francis from Joliet, Illinois, arrived to begin teaching with classes held both outdoors and inside the church. By 1948, the school had grown to 178 students, and by 1947, the parish itself counted 45 members.

A special milestone came on March 20, 1949, when Bishop Toolen dedicated an unfinished school building at St. Mary’s. That same day, 35 new converts were joyfully received into the Catholic faith. By 1951, the school expanded to seven grades, and two years later, a convent was built for the Sisters, who continued their service until the 1980s.

The parish continued to flourish. A new church building was dedicated on April 29, 1962, and in 1985, new offices and meeting spaces were added to better serve the growing community.