A Wauwatosa native living in Georgia has released a new book documenting the history of Milwaukee’s 19 historic Polish churches — and he’s preparing to join the Catholic Church next month as well.
John Smallshaw and his wife live in Savannah, Georgia, but he grew up in Wauwatosa in the 1960s and 1970s in a mainline Protestant home.
After graduating from Indiana University in telecommunications, he worked in international sales abroad for 13 years before moving to Chicago and meeting his wife, who introduced him to her Polish culture and faith. This would set him on the path toward writing his book and eventually being received into the Church.
A project 15 years in the making, Smallshaw finished a draft of “Polish Churches of Milwaukee” 10 years ago while he was still living in Chicago.
At the time, he was an evangelical Protestant playing the guitar for a local church. He had been doing some research and writing articles chronicling the history of brewing in America.
Despite neither being Polish nor Catholic, he was inspired by the history he discovered in Milwaukee’s Polish churches and worked hard in his free time to do research and pull a manuscript together.
“When we were dating, I went up to see my folks in Delafield,” he said. “My dad took me down (to Milwaukee) to see the beautiful mosaic at St. Stanislaus Church.” His wife told him there was a story there that he needed to tell.
He found that the Germans who established manufacturing factories in Milwaukee recruited Polish people — whose country had been absorbed at that time by Russia, Austria-Hungary and Germany — to work there starting in the 1850s.
“The first thing they did here was to build churches. The Poles were determined to maintain their language, culture and Catholic faith because they were facing pressure to become Lutheran and Orthodox. When they came to Milwaukee, they were determined to worship in the Polish Catholic way and build schools to teach Polish, hoping to return to Poland once it became independent, which didn’t happen until after World War I.”
When the Polish people arrived in Milwaukee, they weren’t well received by Irish and German Catholics, and there was some discrimination, he said.
“Growing up in Milwaukee, we never talked about Polish people. It was like they didn’t exist. The history was all about Mayor Solomon Juneau and the Germans. But they built these incredibly huge gothic churches on their own. They paid for and built the buildings themselves without modern equipment — with horses and mules in their spare time and with incredible sacrifice. Many people took out second mortgages on their homes to pay for them,” he said.
“I realized how they made an incredible contribution to Milwaukee, and it’s not incredibly well known,” he said. “It’s really a testament to them. They arrived and they were on the bottom of the ladder, but somehow, they found the commitment to faith to build these churches.”
Smallshaw initially struggled to find a publisher for his book, and the project languished after he finished his manuscript. He donated much of his research to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee archives.
Thanks to some encouragement from local parishioners, he eventually contacted historian and author John Gurda, “the guru of Milwaukee history,” who recommended that he get in contact with MECAH Publishing, which specializes in local ethnic history. Through them, Smallshaw was able to see the book edited and published.
As an outsider experiencing the beauty of Polish Catholic churches, he developed a strong sense of respect and affection for the Catholic Church that was bolstered by the time he spent visiting historic cathedrals in Europe while he was working abroad.
His wife’s devotion to her faith and the friendships he’s developed in Georgia over the past seven years since retiring slowly shaped his decision to begin preparations to become Catholic.
“I was amazed by how beautiful these churches were. It definitely impacted me. I had a newfound respect and love for all things Catholic. It was just a matter of time before I converted, but it’s not an easy decision.”
“Milwaukee is a pretty Catholic city,” he said. “Growing up in Wauwatosa, all my friends were Catholic. I was the only kid in my neighborhood going to public school. I was always comfortable around Catholicism. My wife, being Polish, is very devoted to faith. Even though I was an evangelical nondenominational, I went to church with her, and we ended up at a church called St. Frances Cabrini. I developed a close relationship with the priest and God pushed me toward converting. All the stars aligned, and I found a fondness for the Catholic faith. I’ll be confirmed at Easter.”
“Polish Churches of Milwaukee” was published in paperback Dec. 17 and is available for purchase online through Amazon for $25.
St. Stanislaus, Milwaukee, is one of 19 Catholic churches featured in a new book, “Polish Churches of Milwaukee.” The parish was founded in 1866 and the church was completed seven years later. (Submitted photo)
