Italian immigrants, who came to Annville to work in the stone quarries in the 1910's,
not only brought their skill, they brought their faith.
Even before the parish acquired its first church building in 1928, local Catholics
from some 30 families met in homes to provide religious education for their children.
The pastoral care for the fledgling Annville mission was led by Father Leopold J.
Stump of Saint Gertrude's Church in Lebanon, PA
As the parish grew, the former United Brethren in Christ at West Main and Concord
streets was purchased. Father Leo B. Kirchner was appointed as the first pastor
and the first Mass at Saint Paul's was celebrated on July 20, 1928.
In 1962 Saint Paul's celebrated a milestone with the priestly ordination of John A. Batz, a young man born and raised in the parish. He was the son of Catherine and Herbert Batz
The parish grew at a steady pace and also served the needs of Fort Indiantown Gap,
a military base training soldiers from around the country. When Fort Indiantown
Gap was used as a resettlement center for Vietnamese refugees in the 1970's, the
parish again opened its arms to Catholics of another foreign nation.
By 1978, when the parish celebrated its golden anniversary, it was obvious that
for a new church and parish buildings were needed. Ground was broken for a new Saint
Paul's church on July 27, 1980 on eight acres of land on the east end of Annville,
south of Rt. 422. The first Mass in the new church was celebrated on September 12,
1981 by Bishop William H. Keeler. Bishop Joseph T. Daly consecrated the new church
on November 1, 1981.
In 1990, Saint Paul's welcomed its own mission church, Saint Marc's in Haiti, which
is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. More than $56,000 has been raised
for Saint Marc's which has paid for a new chapel, a well, and other needs of the
Haitian church which served 70,000 people.
In 1992, Saint Paul's celebrated another milestone with the ordination of a young
man born and raised in the parish, Allan F. Wolfe, son of Dr. and Mrs. Allan Wolfe.
The same year, Saint Paul's bid farewell to Monsignor Thomas H. Smith, who, after
nineteen-and-a-half years, was transferred to Saint Joseph's Church in Lancaster.
Three years later, Father Michael Barrett, assisted with Masses since 1975, retired.
The parish mourned his death on November 1, 1996. Father Barrett was buried from
Saint Paul's on November 4, 1996 by Bishop Nicholas Dattilo.
Saint Paul's continues to grow under the leadership of Father John J. Peck, OSB,
who came to the parish in September of 1999 from Saint Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe,
Pennsylvania. He succeeded the Reverend John D. Hoke who is now serving as a chaplain
in the U.S. Navy.
The church welcomed the new millennium in 2001 and celebrated the new church building's
20th anniversary with an outdoor Mass.
For Saint Paul's 75th anniversary in 2003, Father John spearheaded a renewal of
evangelization to reach from the parish into the community.
The church completed the construction of a new bell tower in 2005. The bells, calling
the parish's faithful, include a bell from the original Saint Paul the Apostle Church.
Saint Paul now serves over 1,700 parishioners in 700 households, and has grown in
20 percent in the last ten years.