St. Mary's Plumb Bayou
St. Mary's Plumb Bayou is the oldest Catholic church in the State of Arkansas [1]. Located north of Pine Bluff, Arkansas [2] along the banks of Plumb Bayou, St. Mary's church was established as a mission church from the Diocese of New Orleans. Initially St. Mary's was built on a barge (1772) located on the Arkansas River near the original territorial capital and first state capital of Arkansas, Arkansas Post[3]. A more permanent church was built (1832) on land known as "St. Mary's Bend." near the Arkansas River south and east of the current location. On the grounds of the church, a Catholic girls school was built and named St. Mary's Academy. The school was staffed by four Sisters of Loretto[4] from Nerinx, Kentucky headed by Mother Agnes Hart. Mother Hart died of an unknown illness (probably cholera or malaria) in 1839 and was buried on the church grounds without a casket and on a "bed a roses" a tradition that originated in European convents. Due to annual flooding of the Arkansas River, St. Mary's was moved to higher ground near Plumb Bayou. A new building was built and consecrated in 1869. All the graves from the original church site were also moved. Mother Agnes Hart was found incorrupt[5] and reinterred in a wooden casket at the new site. The church is still in its original condition except for external bricking that was constructed around the exterior of the church precluded the possibility of the building to be added to the National Register of Historical Places[6]. The church is under the direction of St. Joseph Catholic Church [7] at Pine Bluff, Arkansas. St. Joseph's current pastor is Fr. Warren Harvey.
Link: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Sr_AgnesHart.jpg http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St.Mary%27s.JPG
