Our History

Our Founding

The need for a new parish on Dayton's eastern edge first became evident in the early 1900s as more and more Catholic families settled in the Belmont area. It was Archbishop John T. McNicholas who then asked the Marianist Order to assume the responsibility for this new parish and suggest a name. On May 10, 1938, with the appointment of Fr. John Rauscher S.M. as pastor, the Parish of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception began. 

Immaculate Conception from S. Smithville Rd.

Shortly after Fr. John Rauscher's appointment in 1938, the parish bought a former bowling alley at the corner of Smithville and Watervliet. This parish also set out to build a school and completed the first story in 1940. A second floor was added in 1949. The present Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception was built in 1966. Total cost for the church including all furnishings and outside landscaping was approximately $1,300,000. Fr. James Sherman, the pastor of the parish from 1956-1976, oversaw all aspects of the fundraising and building. As its name implies, the church is dedicated to Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Catholics venerate Mary, not only because she is the physical Mother of Christ, but because she is the model of what it means to be a follower of Christ. The New Testament shows Mary as continually open to the Spirit, full of faith, and reaching out to others. Under the title of Immaculate Conception, we honor Mary’s perfect responsiveness to God, free from the inner restraints and obstacles that we experience. At present the parish has approximately 1000 families. Fr. Satish Joseph has been the pastor of Immaculate Conception since 2015.