The first Mass in Bowmanville was celebrated by Fr. Michael Timlin who came from St. Michael's Church in Cobourg. That was in 1850. At first, Mass was celebrated in people's homes. In 1867 the first church was built, a brick building on the north side of Church St., west of Division.

   That church served as the place for worship until the present building was opened with Midnight Mass, December 25th, 1958. Bowmanville was established as a Parish in 1933 when Fr. James McGuire became the first pastor.

   Until relatively recent times, the Catholic community in Bowmanville was quite small. That began to change in the very early '50s. In 1952 a second Sunday Mass was added and in 1956 a third was required. The opening of the present church in 1958 eased the problem of overcrowding since the new church was much larger, seating over 400. Growth in recent years has been accelerated so we began to celebrate a fourth Sunday Mass on Sunday evening at 7:00 p.m.

   Presently our parish can be proud of its many volunteers in various forms of ministry. I would in particular like to emphasize the involvement of young people in the parish. It is often said in our days that youth feel alienated from parish life. However, the large numbers of young people who are servers and readers at Sunday Mass would indicate that this is not much of a problem in this community. The readiness of these persons to participate is a credit to them and to the quality of their upbringing. At the same time it needs to be noted that they are merely continuing a tradition established by their elders. I have always been favourably impressed with the support given to parish life by so many of the membership. This is especially impressive in view of the often hectic pace of life in our days.

   God bless you all,

   Fr. Garry
 

Extended History of the PARISH OF ST. JOSEPH, BOWMANVILLE

St. Joseph's Parish which includes the Mission of St. John the Baptist in Newcastle is comprised of the townships of Darlington and Clarke, Cartwright to the line between the fifth and sixth concessions, and Manvers to the line between the seventh and eight concessions, all of which are in Durham County. The first priest who visited this area, in 1850, was Father Michael Timlin of Cobourg. Mass was celebrated in the homes of the people until a brick church was built in 1857 at a cost of eight hundred dollars. This church which served the original mission and later parish until 1958, was located on the second lot on the north side of Church Street and west of the corner of Division Street.

The mission of Bowmanville was part of the parishes of Cobourg and Port Hope until 1931. Until the erection of the Diocese of Peterborough in 1882, Fathers John Madden, Michael Keane (Kane) and Joseph Browne served the Mission of Bowmanville. Father Browne continued his care of this mission until 1886. During the following six years, Fathers John S. O'Connor, George Whibbs and J. H. Cotey who was on loan from the Diocese of Hamilton attended Bowmanville. These were succeeded by Fathers Timothy Collins from 1892 to 1895, Fitzpatrick and Joseph O'Sullivan from 1898 until 1900. Until the turn of the century Mass was celebrated once a month.

In 1900, Bishop R. A. O'Connor assigned Dr. J. M. O'Brien to the care of Bowmanville. As there was no church in the Village of Newcastle, Mass was celebrated in a private home. The number of Catholics in the village and surrounding area warranted a church and Dr. O'Brien was instrumental in having one built. From June 24, 1900, Sunday Mass was celebrated every second Sunday in both Bowmanville and Newcastle. For the next twenty-five years priests from Peterborough and Cobourg attended Bowmanville and Newcastle as follows: Fathers John J. O'Brien from 1901 to 1903; Patrick Galvin from 1903 to 1904, C. J. Phelan and P. J. Kelly in 1905, N. B. Collins, on loan from the Archdiocese of Kingston, from 1906 to 1907, Michael O'Leary from 1907 to 1908, Patrick Galvin in 1909, James Toner and Victor McFadden in 1910, W. P. Meagher from 1910 to 1911, D. A. Casey in 1911, John J. McCarthy from 1911 to 1912, Joseph Ferguson from 1912 to 1913, Fergus O'Brien in 1914, John Leonard in 1915, McHugh in 1917, James Guiry in 1918, Charles Cantillon, on loan from the Archdiocese of Toronto, in 1919, Paul Costello in 1920, Vincent Gillogly in 1921, John Garvey from 1922-23, Joseph Collins from 1923 to 1924, John Finn from 1924 to 1926, and Peter Butler from 1926 to 1931. It was Father Butler who made the first notable change in the Bowmanville church by installing a new ceiling.

In October of 1931 Father James McGuire was appointed to take charge of Bowmanville and Newcastle with residence in Bowmanville, although the mission was not raised to parish status. Two years later the Mission of Bowmanville was erected as a parish and Father McGuire became the first pastor on October 31. During his pastorate the church interior was redecorated.

In February of 1937, on Father McGuire's transfer to Bracebridge, Father Stephen Coffey was named administrator of the parish and became pastor on June 11, 1940. During Father Coffey's pastorate a program of repair and improvement was initiated. Firstly, the basement of the church was excavated, beams renewed and a furnace was installed. In 1939 a vestry was built on the east side and an entrance porch was erected. In 1941, stained glass windows were installed and in 1944 the electric wiring was renewed and new lighting installed. In the following year the ceiling was insulated and the exterior painted. Finally, a lot with a house and garage was purchased for $6500 to serve as a parochial headquarters. Meanwhile, Father Coffey was enlisted as an army chaplain to serve the guard for the interment camp for German prisoners of war, which occupied the facilities of the Bowmanville Boys' Training School. In the fall of 1951, Father Coffey was transferred to the Parish of Trout Creek.

Father F. K. Malane became the third pastor of St. Joseph's Parish of Bowmanville. Because of the increasing congregation, a second Sunday Mass was commenced in Bowmanville in 1952 and by 1956 a third Sunday Mass was required. Meanwhile, the church interior was redecorated, although plans for a new and larger church at a later date were under consideration. In September of 1957 a piece of property on Liberty St. South, just north of Highway 401, was acquired as a site for a future church. By June 1958 plans for a church similar to one at Davidson near Flint, Michigan, were completed by architect Frank Burcher of Hamilton who added, as a special feature, an entrance seen by Father Malane in Rome. A contract for the construction of the church and adjoining rectory at a cost of $200,000 was awarded to the J. J. Wilkinson Construction Company Limited on July 3. Two weeks later a pile-driving machine commenced driving piles to a depth of twenty-four feet. By September 28, construction had progressed sufficiently for the laying of the corner-stone by Bishop Webster in the presence of twenty-one priests who had attended Bowmanville as a mission.

The second St. Joseph's Church of Bowmanville opened with midnight Mass on December 25, 1958, although not entirely completed. The adjoining rectory was not occupied until June of 1959. An historical tie with the past was the transfer of seven stained glass windows from the original church and their adaptation to the style of the new church. These were complemented by a rose window in the choir loft and one in the nave which were donated by the Knights of Columbus. The patron of the church and parish, St. Joseph, is represented in a life-size statue carved in Italy from one piece of wood. The Stations of the Cross which came from Oberamergau are likewise carved from single pieces of wood. A crucifix bearing a corpus carved in Italy, the gift of a Baptist minister, adorns a niche. In 1962 a two-manual Hammond organ was procured, thus completing the appointments of the new church.

In 1959 the former church property was sold. The church building, over one hundred years old, was sold for $10,000 and was subsequently converted into a commercial laundry. Nine years later the building was torn down and the property on which it had stood became a municipal parking area. The rectory at 25 George St. which had been purchased in 1947 was sold separately.

Until 1960 the Catholic children in Bowmanville attended the town's Public Schools. During the spring and summer of that year a four-room school, electrically heated, was completed by the M. J. Finn Construction Company on property east of the church parking lot. An enrolment of ninety pupils for the school's opening in September was expected; fifty additional pupils registered. In 1961 it was necessary to accommodate an additional class in the auditorium located in the church basement. In the following year two class-rooms were added, and in 1964, five additional rooms were provided. By 1968 the school registration exceeded 300.

In 1967 the sanctuary of the eight-year-old church was renovated to update the liturgical appointments in accordance with the directives of the Second Vatican Council. The main altar was brought forward and turned to face the congregation to become the Altar of Sacrifice. A Repository for the Blessed Sacrament was installed on the south side of the sanctuary and its location is accentuated by a life-size figure of the Risen Christ on the wall behind the Repository and multi-coloured illumination from a nearby stained glass window. At the same time, the Communion rail and the pulpit were removed, the latter being replaced by a lectern.

During Father Malane's pastorate the parish had increased in population to such an extent that the assistance of a priest for weekends was required. Fathers Raymond Garvey and John Maskey provided this assistance while attending the Ontario College of Education in Toronto. Eventually the appointment of a full-time assistant became necessary and the first assistant in the parish was Father Clare Hickson, and he was succeeded by Father Clare Maloney, later by Father Raymond Heffernan, and presently by Father James Wilson.

In June 1971, Father Malane who had been Bowmanville's pastor for almost twenty years was transferred to St. Joseph's Parish of Douro. He was succeeded by Father Francis Mihelic who had been Pastor of Downeyville.
 

Extended history information taken from the book, "From the Pioneers To The Seventies - A History of the Diocese of Peterborough, 1882 - 1975" by Edgar J. Boland