A series where we take a #lookback at the stories and history of our community, brought to you by Mick Pryor, Financial Advisor with Edward Jones.
Jami Cannon
Those considered Mystics within the Catholic Church are known for having direct, sacred, and personal experiences with God. The Catholic Church does not demand its practitioners believe in the personal revelation of Mystics, but the Church does convey the depth that comes when considering what these apparitions might mean. Riverton’s St. Margaret’s Catholic Church was named after one such Mystic.
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690) was a French Visitation nun known for experiencing several mystical visions of Christ. A devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus followed these apparitions, which—along with specific instructions of worship—asked lovers of Christ to witness and accept his mercy. Upon acknowledging this mercy, the Sacred Heart devotion would increase compassion within the individual, which would allow a deeper kindness in interactions towards themselves and other people. Despite only having been canonized for two years, it was to Saint Margaret that the new Catholic Church in Riverton was dedicated in 1922. Given dedications work similarly to Patron Saints in the Catholic faith, the choice of a particular Saint can orient an individual or a community towards a certain way of being. By dedicating itself to Saint Margaret, those involved in the Riverton Catholic community in the 1920s were dedicating themselves and what would become the legacy of the Parish to a deeply felt sense of forgiveness. Under this backdrop of forgiveness, many physical changes occurred in leadership and to St. Margaret’s itself.
The Catholic community in Riverton was alive well before 1922. Bishop Keane incorporated St. Margaret’s Catholic Church on July 1, 1908, but the Riverton Republican newspaper announced an upcoming mass at the Grand Central Hotel as early as December 14, 1907. Mass was more commonly offered in John Malone’s small cabin until 1911 when the number of Catholics grew to need a stable place to worship. Construction began that year and the Church was dedicated on June 10, 1913 with Father Keavy—who was stationed at Holy Rosary in Lander and had to travel to Riverton to give mass regularly—listed as “Pastor.” Riverton’s economy grew and by 1923 Father William Short became Resident Pastor; however, the economic increase was short-lived. Within less than a year, his salary became untenable for the St. Margaret’s budget and he was transferred to Kemmerer.
Salaries continued to be an ever-looming problem during the 1930s with the Great Depression tightening budgets in all directions. Pastors from Lander as well as missionary Priests stepped in to serve mass as they could at St. Margaret’s. Once life stabilized following the Depression, leadership appeared to have grown more consistent as well. The Parish had also grown large enough, and financially sound enough, to necessitate Resident Pastors. In 1939, Father John Spillane of Ireland arrived and served St. Margaret’s for 8 years until illness led to his retirement. Before his retirement, he began to garner funds for a new brick building. The construction was later completed under Father Adolph Pate’s stewardship in 1951. Mass continues to be held in this building. 
Caption: St. Margaret’s Catholic School, Taken June 11, 2025
As the Catholic community grew in Riverton, so did its families. Catholic children needed to be educated and many parents sought to teach them religious values alongside secular necessities such as math and writing. St. Stephen’s began allowing students from Riverton to attend their school in 1954, which lead Catholic families from St. Margaret’s to send their children there. Watching parents send their children away from St. Margaret’s helped encourage plans for a school to be built closer to home. The Kellogg Brothers (architects) designed plans for the building in the late 1950s, which lead to a bid for the building—won by A. N. Nelson Construction Company in 1962.
St. Margaret’s Catholic School opened on August 30, 1965 with 100 students enrolled into four different grades. A staff of Franciscan Sisters and lay teachers filled the school. The Franciscan Order—named after Saint Francis of Assisi—emphasizes love of God and Creation (people, animals, earth, etc.), justice, peace, simplicity, community, and, most especially, service to the poor. Saint Francis himself is known for denouncing his inheritance to follow Jesus. Thus, the Sisters which filled the halls of Saint Margaret’s Catholic School likely honored these values amongst the students in their care and most certainly did not teach for the sake of the money involved (especially as many Sisters do not receive independent salaries!) As the years went on, the teaching staff at St. Margaret’s eventually no longer included Sisters, likely due to the progression of shortages in women’s Religious Vocations (less women were becoming Nuns and Sisters).
Through all of its physical and personnel shifts and changes, St. Margaret’s continues to serve Riverton Catholic Parishioners with an eye towards Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque today.
Next up for the Fremont County Museum
June 11, 10am with the Dubois Museum, “Historic T-Cross Ranch Tour” Wind River Visitor’s Council Adventure Trek Series
June 12, 6:30pm at the Pioneer Museum, “Life in the Coal Camps” Wyoming Community Bank Discovery Speakers Series
June 14, 11am at the Riverton Museum, “National Bighorn Sheep Center at the Riverton Museum” Bailey tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
June 14, 10am with the Pioneer Museum, “Atlantic City Cemetery Trek” Wind River Visitor’s Council Adventure Trek Series
June 14, 10am at the Dubois Museum, “Kids Corner: Natures Hide and Seek” Bailey tire/Pit Stop Children’s Exploration Series
Oct 4, TBA at the Lander Community Center, “Rare Relics Roadshow” Wind River Cultural Centers Foundation
Call the Dubois Museum 1-307-455-2284, the Pioneer Museum 1-307-332-3339 or the Riverton Museum 1-307-856-2665 for detail regarding their programs.
The Dubois Museum, the Pioneer Museum in Lander and the Riverton Museum need your financial support. In the current economic environment, the museums are more reliant than ever on donations from the private sector to continue to provide the quality programs, collections management, exhibits and services that have become their hallmark over the last four years. Please make your tax deductible contribution through the Wind River Cultural Centers Foundation www.windriverccf.com or by sending a check to Fremont County Museums 450 N 2nd Rm 320 or taking it directly to the museum you choose to support.