Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka

Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka
Bazylika Świętego Stanisława Kostki
The Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka from the northwest
Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka Location in Minnesota Show map of Minnesota Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka Location in Minnesota Show map of the US
44°2′49″N 91°37′20″W / 44.04694°N 91.62222°W / 44.04694; -91.62222Coordinates: 44°2′49″N 91°37′20″W / 44.04694°N 91.62222°W / 44.04694; -91.62222
Location	625 E. 4th Street, Winona, Minnesota
Country	United States
Denomination	Catholic
Website	http://ssk-sjn.weconnect.com/
History
Dedication	Stanislaus Kostka
Dedicated	November 28, 1895
Past bishop(s)	Jan Romuald Byzewski (1875–1890)
Architecture
Status	Minor basilica
Architect(s)	Charles G. Maybury & Son
Style	Polish Cathedral style
Years built	1894–5
Administration
Diocese	Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona
Church of St. Stanislaus--Catholic
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Area	1 acre (0.40 ha)
NRHP reference #	84000251
Added to NRHP	November 8, 1984

Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona

The Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka (Polish: Bazylika Świętego Stanisława Kostki) is a historic church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona in Winona, Minnesota, United States, and a prominent fixture on the city's skyline. Within the diocese it is better known as Saint Stan's. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 as Church of St. Stanislaus–Catholic and was designated as a Minor Basilica of the Roman Catholic Church on November 10, 2011 by Pope Benedict XVI.

The congregation dates back to April 2, 1871, when leaders of Winona's Kashubian Polish community formally declared its intent to organize a parish under the patronage of St. Stanislaus Kostka. Prior to this they had been attending Mass at either the "Irish" (Saint Thomas) or the "German" (Saint Joseph) Catholic church, but they wished to worship in their own language and to be led by a Kashubian or Polish pastor. Accordingly, a small wooden sanctuary was constructed at the corner of Fourth and Carimona Streets in 1872.

From its very beginning, the new Saint Stanislaus Kostka Parish served as the religious and the civic center for Winona's Kashubian Poles. The first permanent pastor was the Reverend Joseph Juskiewicz, who was succeeded in January 1875 by the Reverend Alexander Michnowski. In 1875, the Reverend Jan Romuald Byzewski (1842–1905), a Kashubian-born Franciscan forced to emigrate from German Poland due to the Kulturkampf, arrived and served as pastor until 1890.

Winona grew rapidly during the 1880s and 1890s, and the continuation of the Kashubian diaspora played a major part of this population boom. By 1893, Saint Stanislaus Kostka Parish had completely outgrown its old sanctuary. Creation of a satellite Polish parish on Winona's West End was considered; indeed, such a parish, Saint Casimir, would be established in 1906. The congregation was bitterly divided on the question of whether to build a new church or expand the old. But as a matter of religious and civic pride, the parishioners of Saint Stanislaus Kostka decided to build a larger, grander 1800-seat structure on the site of their present church.