About St. Edward
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The Beginnings
Prior to the founding of St. Edward Church, the Catholic
people in Texarkana, Arkansas attended the Sacred Heart Catholic Church of
Texarkana, Texas. This parish was founded during the administration
of the Most Reverend Edward Fitzgerald on June
20, 1903. Mass was first celebrated in the Miller
County Courthouse. On December 25, 1903,
a frame chapel on Fourth
and Hickory Streets was dedicated, and the first Mass was held
there on the same day.
In 1918, a young but generous
parish built a new church building on Fourth and
Beech Streets. The church was blessed with a Pontifical
Mass, a first in the state of Arkansas.
The church was and is a beautiful structure. It was
designed and built under the supervision of Lambert
deKonning, and modeled on the Church of the
Most Holy Trinity at the top of the Spanish steps in Rome. It
is graced with a beautiful altar of Carrara marble,
stained glass windows, and classic statues. Back to top of page.
The Stained Glass Windows
There are four large, round stained
glass windows. The one above the main altar depicts the seven
sacraments showing the symbols or signs of each: water for Baptism,
Holy Spirit for Confirmation, wheat and
grapes for the Eucharist, keys to the kingdom
for Reconciliation, sands of time for Anointing
of the Sick, miter for Holy Orders,
and uniting of hands for Matrimony. The
birth of Christ is on one side of the nave of
the church and the birth of John the Baptist is
on the other side. Above the choir loft is St.
Gregory, for whom the Gregorian Chant was named.
The smaller stained glass windows
along the sides of the church follow the lives of
Jesus and Mary: the Annunciation; Finding of Jesus in the
Temple; The Resurrection; The Assumption; Sacred Heart; the Crowning of Mary; and
Saints Edward, Patrick, Monica, and Ann. Back to top of page.
St. Edward's School
An integral part of St. Edward's has always been the education
of children. From its earliest days, a school was part of the
church and its grounds. St. Edward's School was opened in 1908
by the Olivetan Benedictine Sisters. In
1921, the Providence
Academy was founded. When the Benedictine sisters withdrew
from Texarkana, the Sisters of Divine Providence of
San Antonio, Texas assumed charge of the school. Providence
Academy was destroyed by fire on New Year's
Eve, 1949, and the students attended classes
at the vacant Michael Meagher hospital building until 1953
when a new school was completed.
Circumstances caused the high school
to close in 1966, and in the following
year the Sisters of Divine Providence were forced to withdrawal from St.
Edward School. The school building still stands and is the site today
of a busy and active
Parish Religious Education program. Back to top of page.
The Vietnamese Tradition
Twenty years ago, St. Edward received many Vietnamese
refugees who today are a vital part of
the parish. They participate in the ministry of the church as lectors,
eucharistic ministers, and commission members.
A Vietnamese priest comes periodically to hear
confessions and say Mass in their
language. Back to top of page.
The Spanish Tradition
In 1987, St. Edward Parish
reached out to the large and growing Hispanic community by going to where
the migrant workers were. With the
first Mass celebrated in Spanish, ten attended. Now a
weekly Sunday Mass celebrated in Spanish has over 200
attending. There is a bi-lingual
bulletin (English and Spanish) and religious education classes
for the children and Bible
classes for the adults held before
Mass. There is an Hispanic council who
plans and coordinates their activities, and a representative
is a member of St. Edward's Parish Council.
Back to top of page.
