“St. Mary’s Parish Church stands atop a hill, which dominates the surrounding area, as a beacon of light for all those who come to offer their prayer and worship. It represents to all Christ the Light who dwells lovingly in the tabernacle for our salvation.”
 
From Bishop (Cardinal) Raymond Burke’s letter to the parish
at it’s 125th Anniversary in 1997 

In 1827 a syndicate largely composed of army officers, stationed at Fort Snelling, made a claim of several hundred acres of land at and near the junction of the St. Croix and Mississippi rivers. A small trading post was soon erected, and in 1849 a town was organized and named Elizabeth. The name was later changed to Prescott in honor of its original founder. In 1853 Pierce County became a separate county with the county seat at Prescott.  In 1857 the town of Oak Grove was taken off from the town of Prescott.
In 1861 the Rev. James Stehle came to Big River, then Oak Grove, for the first time and had Divine Services in a home on the Feast of All Saints. He was the priest of Hudson, St. Croix County at the time. The congregation at Big River consisted of eleven German families and five single men. A little log church was completed in 1862 and the cemetery was located one-half mile north of the church. Then in 1872 a frame building was started and was completed the following year at the present site.
The congregation grew and grew,  and in 1892 the Bohemians left the parish of St. Mary's and built a little church at Cherma (named after their home in Bohemia), called St. Martin's in the town of River Falls. St. Martin's became a mission parish of St. Mary's and operated until its official closing in October 1987.

 
 

Over the years St. Mary's was enlarged, remodeled, and redecorated and has only improved with age. She sits on top of a hill between Prescott and Ellsworth, WI overlooking fields, hills, and valleys, and has been called the "Little Cathedral". 

In 1997, celebrating the 125^th anniversary of the church, visitors were impressed with the beautiful high altar, stained glass windows, and statues. With the many new homes being built in the area, St. Mary's will undoubtedly continue to grow. One thing which will always remain the same, is the strong faith of her people and their generosity and hard work to keep their parish church in wonderful condition. In 2022 we celebrated our 150th Anniversary. To continue our legacy, we are currently planning additional improvements and restorations to this historic building.