Our History

St. Mary’s Church and School (now known as Our Lady of the Lakes) got their beginning in 1854 when a number of Catholic families came to the Town of Abbott, now known as the Town of Sherman. A church was built on land donated by David and Margaret Leahy and deeded to the Rt. Rev. John Martin Henni, Archbishop of Milwaukee in 1855.

 
Due to the quickly increasing parish size, another stone church was built in 1873, and Rev. Joseph Hamm, pastor of St. Nicholas, Dacada, celebrated the first Holy Mass there.  The Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi, who ministered at St. Mary’s School, started in 1885.
 
In March of 1895, the church caught fire and burned to the ground. The parish members agreed to build a new church, but in the Village of Random Lake, and left the old site for a cemetery. A parcel of land was acquired from the Butler estate and a new church, school and rectory were completed in 1895. The school was completed and opened Sept. 1, 1895. A lay teacher conducted classes with about 33 students.
 
In 1906 three Sisters of Christian Charity, Manitowoc, came and taught for 10 years. In 1916 the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi, Milwaukee County, taught at St. Mary’s School, continuing until June 1992.
 
In 1924 the church had to be enlarged by building on a sanctuary and an addition to the church. At this time, two classrooms were added to the school. In the 1950-51 school year, the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi, including a principal/teacher and three additional teachers, served 90 students in grades 1-8.
 
In May of 1962, St. Mary’s School was razed in order to erect a new school and convent. Classes for grades 1 through 8 began operating in Nov. of 1962, but changes kept coming, including the hiring of the first lay teacher since 1906. In 1969, St. Mary’s of Random Lake, St. Nicholas of Dacada, and Rosemary School in Fredonia, decided to consolidate, forming Tri-Catholic Consolidated Schools. Grades 1 to 4 attended at St. Mary’s in Random Lake, and grades 4 to 8 attended at Rosemary School in Fredonia. This arrangement ended in 1974 when Rosemary School was again on its own. Then St. Mary’s School operated with grades 1 to 6, which included pupils from Random Lake and St. Nicholas, Dacada. In 1989, kindergarten and pre-school classes were added to St. Mary’s. The final sister to serve in our school was from the School Sisters of Notre Dame in Milwaukee, and her final term was during the 1996-97 school year.
 
Now we come to the present. Our school is thriving and continues to grow in many ways. We currently have 71 students enrolled in pre-school through sixth grade. A principal and nine teachers staff our school. We are continuously working to keep our curriculum, books, computers, technology and physical plant current and up to date.
 
It is through the commitment of a strong, faith filled community that Our Lady of the Lakes has been allowed a long and rich history of educating the community’s youth. At Our Lady of the Lakes School we continue to teach the children that God is a part of our everyday life, not only at home, but in our studies and play. We plan to maintain that commitment, to offer a Catholic education in our rural area for generations to come.
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