Zeehan shines for silver service
By Wendy Shaw
A deep vein of Catholic faith runs through the mining towns of the West Coast.
In its boom years, Zeehan, or ‘Silver City’, had a population of 10,000 and more than 20 hotels.
Today those numbers have fallen, and the one surviving church, St Fursaeus Catholic Church, has just marked the 130th anniversary of the first Mass.
Archbishop Julian presented sparkling nuggets of history in his homily at St Fursaeus, on 21 November.
“Today as you drive into Zeehan it is hard to imagine what the town was like 130 years ago,” Archbishop Julian said.
“Archbishop Daniel Murphy [1815-1907] was concerned for the spiritual and pastoral needs of this bustling mining community. He asked Fr Daniel O’Sullivan to attend to the needs of the Catholic population in the area. This priest celebrated Mass and visited the mining and railway camps, and baptised children.
Happy memories: Long-time Zeehan parishioner Pat Casey, left, with fellow parishioner Jenny Keating. Photo by Citoy Azarcon.
“The growing Catholic community needed a church and so funds were sought to build a church in Zeehan.”
Archbishop Julian reflected on the joy the Catholics of the time must have felt when the foundation stone was laid in April 1891 and a small timber church, later extended for the growing Catholic population, opened that November.
These days, Fr Amal Devadoss travels each week from Queenstown “to serve a small and faithful community, continuing in a line of priests who have served in this beautiful but isolated West Coast of Tasmania”.
“God continues to be worshipped here in Zeehan each Sunday in the way that we Catholics know best – we offer up the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass,” Archbishop Julian added.
“And so, the Catholic faith continues to be nourished and lived here in this town.”
Parishioner Eleanor Phelan, who spearheaded anniversary preparations, said that St Fursaeus was spruced up ready for the big day. This included a range of repairs, including work on the exterior crosses and belltower. She thanked all those who had supported the church over the years and everyone who contributed to making the anniversary a success.
The November celebrations followed on from a special Mass in April to mark the 130th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone – sparkling occasions to remember in the Silver City.