Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Peak were the first Catholic residents of Manhattan, having arrived in 1864, and the first Mass was celebrated in their home the next year. In 1875, Fr. Ignatius Lager, S.J., was appointed pastor at Rock Creek, Kansas, later called Flush, with Elbow, Walmego, and Manhattan as missions. From 1868 to 1881, Catholic worship in Manhattan, led by Fr. Bernard Nuttmann, S.H., was centered in the home of Mrs. J. Ellicot, a niece of the Archbishop of Cincinnati. In 1881, they and Mr. H. Filiatrault arranged the purchase of a former Methodist Church and Seven Dolors Parish was established. Fr. Nuttmann conferred the priviledge of naming the parish on Mrs. Ellicot.
Fr. J.M.J. Reade took charge of the parish, with Odgen and McDowell Creek as missions, in 1907 and served until his death in 1913, having overseen the establishment of Sacred Heart Academy in 1908 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia. A number of Mexican families immigrated to the Salina area during this period to find employment in railroad construction. The children of some of these families later migrated to Manhattan. Fr. Arthur J. Luckey replaced Fr. Reade as pastor in 1913.
In 1920, the old church (built in 1859) was replaced by the current building which stands on the original sight but faces Juliette Street instead of Pierre. The cornerstone was blessed on March 25, 1920. The new Seven Dolors Church was dedicated on October 31, 1920. Five years later, a new Rectory was built, and in 1930 a Kilgen pipe organ (used until 1981) was bought from the First Presbyterian Church. In 1934, Fr. Luckey was appointed Domestic Prelate by Pope Pius XI.
Msgr. Luckey persuaded the Sisters of St. Joseph to establish the St. Mary's Hospital in 1936 and helped them to expand the parish educational facilities in 1938, separating the grammer and high schools at that time. The grammer school was further expanded in 1943, and again in 1945, and Luckey High was built in 1951 despite the chaos of the great flood of that year. Also in 1951, Msgr. Luckey was struck by a car while crossing Poyntz Avenue. He never fully recovered from the accident and died in 1954.
Msgr. Luckey was replaced by Msgr. William Merchant who abolished separate seating for Hispanics, students, and other community groups at Mass and led the efforts to build a convent for the Sisters of St. Joseph and a modernized grammer school. The convent was later converted for use as the Parish Center.
Most of the major liturgical changes that have taken place as a result of Vatican II were instituted locally by Fr. James Grennan who succeeded Msgr. Merchant as pastor in 1968, and by Fr. John Moeder, who served from 1971 to 1981.
Fr. Robert Vering was co-pastor with Fr. Norbert Dlabal and then Fr. Jerome Morgan until Fr. Vering's accidental drowning in 1985. Fr. Morgan was then pastor of Seven Dolors. In June 1992, the Parish celebrated the first ordination in years to take place at Seven Dolors with the ordination of Fr. Damian Richards.
On September 1, 1995, the church building was added to the national registry of historical buildings.
The story of our beautiful piano: The grand piano was purchased in the summer of 1999. Two special donations made this purchase possible. Two-thirds of the cost was underwritten by funds received from Esther Glenn Estate. The remaining one-third of the cost was donated by Tom and Bettina Boller as a special memorial to all living and deceased members of their families.
1881-1884 ...... Msgr. A.T. Ennis
1884-1886 ...... Fr. C.D. Curtin
1889-1889 ...... Fr. E.F. Dooley
1889-1892 ...... Fr. Bernard Martin
1892-1893 ...... Fr. L.H. Schulze
1893-1896 ...... Fr. G. Lecoutre
1896-1898 ...... Fr. Robert Loehrer
1898-1899 ...... Fr. J.C. Regan
1899-1907 ...... Fr. P.J. Shields
1907-1913 ...... Fr. J.M. Reade
1913-1954 ...... Msgr. A.J. Luckey
1954-1968 ...... Msgr. William Merchant
1968-1971 ...... Fr. James Grennan
1971-1981 ...... Fr. John A. Moeder
1982-1983 ...... Fr. Norbert F. Dlabal/Fr. Robert L. Vering
1983-1985 ...... Fr. Robert L. Vering/Fr. Jerome L. Morgan
1985-1988 ...... Fr. Jerome L. Morgan/Fr. Bradley J. Sterrett
1988-1991 ...... Fr. Jerome L. Morgan/Fr. Keith Weber
1991-1993 ...... Fr. Jerome L. Morgan/Fr. Randall Weber
1993-1994 ...... Fr. Larry Grennan/Fr. Joseph S. Popelka
1994-1997 ...... Fr. Larry Grennan/Fr. Mark Wesley
1997-1999 ...... Fr. Larry Grennan/Fr. David Metz
1999-2001 ...... Fr. Larry Grennan/Fr. Urbano Tin
2001-2005 ...... Fr. Larry Grennan/Fr. Michael Elanjimattathil
2005-2007 ...... Fr. Joseph S. Popelka/Fr. George Chalbhagam (CMI)
2007-2009 ...... Fr. Joseph S. Popelka/Fr. James M. Thomas
2009-2010 ...... Fr. Joseph S. Popelka/Fr. Francisco Montoya
2010-date ....... Fr. Joseph S. Popelka
*When two names are present, the first represents the pastor.
