From the Matagorda County History & Genealogy page
usgenwebsites.org/TXMatagorda
Southwest of Wadsworth on FM 521 stands a little picturesque church and graveyard- so dear to many, but unknown to most of the residents of Matagorda County.
It is situated in what was known as the “Polish Village,” for most of its earlier inhabitants came from Poland and settled in this community.
Most early communities were centered around the church and St. Francisville was no exception.
A Mr. Adamska brought most of the Polish people to Matagorda County from Lagiewvnik, District of Lublinitz, Prussia.
By 1859, other families such as Joseph Petrucha, his wife, and two small children had come, followed by the Butter, Sygudas, Gawenda (Gavender), and Bomk (Bunk) families.
The St. Francisville residents’ love for religion was so great that they requested visiting priests from Houston, Victoria, Liberty, and Galveston to hold services at the home of Mrs. Frank Seerden (Mary Jadwiga Petrucha Seerden).
Mary Jadwig Petrucha, a native of Linz, Prussia, came to America as a nursemaid, arriving at the port of Galveston January 21, 1852.
Later, she came to Wild Cow Island near Matagorda, where her brother, Heinrich Petrucha, and Frank Seerden had a brick yard.
She married Frank Seerden July 13, 1857.
Mrs. Seerden and her nephew, Zeflick “Z” Butter, gave 1.55 acres of land for a church and cemetery.
The deed dated Dec. 21, 1895, was recorded in the Matagorda County Deed Records Volume 3, Page 506-507.
Various citizens were appointed to take up collections for the materials and construction of the first church.
The first church was built in 1895 by contractors from Hitchcock, Texas.
Mrs. Seerden ordered an altar from England and had it shipped to Liberty, Texas.
From Liberty, the altar was brought by wagon to St. Francisville.
This first church was destroyed by a storm in 1896.
The men of the community rebuilt the church that same year.
The second church was not as tall as the first, and the altar had to be shortened six inches.
The men of the church rebuilt it that same year, and today the church stands almost as it looked in 1895.
The altar had to be cut down to fit into the rebuilt church in 1896.
The first burials in St. Francis Cemetery were in 1899.
As evident by the names on the markers, most of the individuals buried in the St. Francis Cemetery are descendants of the early Polish settlers.
Barbara Herreth Petrucha, originally from Vienna, Austria, died August 25, 1899.
Maria Petrucha Butter, sister of Mary Petrucha Seerden, died October 6, 1899, and was the second person buried in the cemetery.
In 1930, Zefflick Butter, a nephew of Mary Jadwiga Seerden, donated an acre to the church and cemetery to bring it to its current size.
St. Francisville residents’ love for religion is reflected in the crosses which adorn the top of the church, the altar, and almost every marker in the cemetery.
They also loved the land, many being farmers and ranchers.
The marker of John A. Butter shows a Brahma bull and reads “Cattleman of the Year 1972.”
The back of Ludwig Zernicek’s marker has a country scene with trees in the background and a cow, calf, and tractor in the foreground.
St. Francis is still used today for special occasions and a mass is said once a year on All Souls Day Once the mass was over and all graves had been blessed, the participants paid their respects to their dead relatives.
This done, the church would remain quiet until All Souls Day the next year, when the families return to St. Francis Church in “The Polish Village.”
The 2.55 acres are enclosed with a chain link fence.