About Saint Peter of Alcantara Parish
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Two gentlemen by the names of John Gaw and N.M. Lancaster first proposed the idea of building a church in the area of Oakford in western Daviess County. After two meetings, sufficient funds were raised to build the church and the location at Bernard Hill was decided upon. The first priest involved was Father Eugene Callahan of Owensboro, who attended the planning meetings. The building committee consisted of Thomas J. Monarch, John Gaw, N.M. Lancaster, J.C. Grant and T.C. Hill. At a cost of $4,000.00, the church was constructed in 1873 and was dedicated by Bishop McClosky (Louisville).
A second church was built in 1922 and is still in use by the parish. The basement was divided into classrooms, which were used until a school and convent for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount St. Joseph were built in 1952. Declining enrollment led to the closure of the school in 1984. The church underwent a renovation in 1972. A beautiful wooden raredos (an ornamental wall or screen that rises behind the high altar of a church, forming a background for it) was installed and the side altars were removed. The old St. Peter Cemetery on Overstreet Road (known as Lancaster
Cemetery) has long since been out of use and a larger, well kept cemetery is located about a mile from the church.
