A Historical Perspective
Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church
Many, Louisiana
According to the Archives at the Congregation of the Divine Providence in San Antonio, Texas, the earliest Catholic settlers of the Many area arrived in the late 1830's. At this time, the nearest Catholic chapel was located some 20 miles away on Bayou Scie. He was sent from the Immaculate Conception Rectory of Natchi
toches and came here three or four times a year. Father John Francois LeVezouet was among a group of 12 young men Bishop Martin recruited for work in the United States, the majority from Brittany, France. Father LeVezouet said his first Mass in Many in the home of John B. Vandegaer. He continued to serve the parish by administering the sacraments on his occasional visits to Many from Natchitoches. According to a letter Bishop Martin wrote to the Propagation of the Faith in Paris, “In 1871 Father LeVezouet founded a permanent mission in Many. There he constructed a church with its presbytery, its cemetery, and the lands necessary for the residence of a priest and he even installed, in the same year, a young confrere, successor of his zeal.” Thus, the first resident priest, Father J. Aubree came to Many and extended his services over Sabine, Vernon and parts of Natchitoches Parishes.
