Roman Catholic Diocese of Sioux City

1800 to 1900

The first Catholic missionaries arrived in the Iowa area during the early 1830s. They were under the supervision of the Diocese of St. Louis. In 1837, the Vatican erected the Diocese of Dubuque, covering Iowa and adjoining territories.^[1] Bishop Mathias Loras of Dubuque in 1856 erected Corpus Christi Parish in Fort Dodge. It was the first parish in the present-day Diocese of Sioux City.^[2]Sioux City in 1867 received its first resident priest, turning a mission church into St. Mary's Parish.^[3]A second St. Mary's Parish was founded in Storm Lake in 1871 and its church was dedicated in 1872.^[4]

The Sisters of Mercy in 1890 opened St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Sioux City^[5]. Today it is part of UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s – Downtown. In 1897, the Sisters of St. Benedict of Sioux City was authorized as a new religious order by the Vatican.^[5]

1900 to 1950

On July 24, 1900, Pope Leo XIII erected the new Diocese of Sioux City by separating 24 counties in northwestern Iowa from the Archdiocese of Dubuque.^[6] At that time, the Catholic population of the diocese was approximately 50,000.^[7]

The pope appointed Philip Garrigan, vice rector of the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., as the first bishop of the new diocese.^[7]Garrigan designated the uncompleted St. Mary's Church in Sioux City as the cathedral for the diocese.^[3]

In 1902, the Sisters of Mercy opened the St. Joseph School of Nursing in Sioux City.^[5] The Cathedral of the Ephiphany was dedicated in 1904.^[3] The Benedictine Sisters in 1907 opened St. Vincent Hospital in Sioux City.^[5]It is also part of UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s – Downtown. The Sisters of St. Francis in 1910 opened St. Anthony's Home in Sioux City for orphans and other children needing a home.^[8]

During his tenure as bishop, Garrigan visited all the parishes of the diocese. He authored the article on the Diocese of Sioux City for the Catholic Encyclopedia.^[9]

After Garrigan died in 1919, Pope Benedict XV named Auxiliary Bishop Edmond Heelan of Sioux City as his successor in 1920.^[10] During his term as bishop, Heelan greatly expanded Catholic education in the diocese. In 1929, Heelan donated land in Sioux City to the Sisters of St. Francis for the establishment of Briar Cliff College for women.^[11] Today it is Briar Cliff University. In 1947, Pope Pius XII named Joseph Mueller of the Diocese of Belleville as coadjutor bishop to assist Heelan. When Heelan died in 1948, Mueller automatically became bishop of Sioux City.^[12]

1950 to 2000

During his 22-year-long tenure, Mueller built several new schools, churches, and other parish facilities. After Mueller retired as bishop of Sioux City in 1970 Pope Paul VI appointed Auxiliary Bishop Frank Greteman of Sioux City as its fourth bishop.^[13] The primary focus of his episcopate was Catholic education. Greteman retired as bishop of Sioux City in 1982.^[12]

In 1983, Pope John Paul II appointed Lawrence D. Soens of the Diocese of Davenport as the next bishop of Sioux City.^[14] While Soens was bishop, he established the Ministry 2000 program, the Priests Retirement Fund, and some youth ministry programs. The diocese also mandated that the parishes establish pastoral and finance commissions.^[15]

In 1997, John Paul II named Daniel DiNardo from the Diocese of Pittsburgh as coadjutor bishop to assist Soens. When Soens retired as bishop of Sioux City in 1998, DiNardo automatically succeeded him.^[16]While bishop, DiNardo oversaw a $14 million capital campaign for the diocese.^[17]

2000 to present

In 2004, Pope Benedict XVI appointed DiNardo as coadjutor archbishop of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.^[16] To replaced DiNardo in Sioux City, Benedict XVI appointed R. Walker Nickless of the Archdiocese of Denver as the seventh bishop of the diocese.^[18]David Newbrough, the chief financial officer of the Bishop Heelan Catholic school system, sued the school and the diocese in 2013. He claimed that he had been fired because he was not a Catholic.^[19]The lawsuit was dismissed in 2015, with the judge citing federal law allowing religious institution to discriminate in employment on religious grounds.^[20]

In 2015, Nickless granted permission to the Ministry Institute of Christ the Servant to identify as a Catholic institute.^[21] The Ministry Institute was affiliated with Briar Cliff University. In 2016, the diocese announced plans to consolidate 41 parishes due a shortage of priests and decreased mass attendance. Some of the redudent worship sites became oratories and sites for prayer services, funerals, and weddings, but not for weekly masses. Most of the affected parishes were in rural areas of the diocese.^[22]

After Nickless retired in 2025, Pope Francis named John Keehner Jr. from the Diocese of Youngstown as bishop of Sioux Falls on February 12, 2025.^[23][24]

Sexual abuse

In 1992, after receiving multiple sexual abuse allegations, the Diocese of Sioux City forced Rev. George McFadden to undergo treatment and retire from his pastoral position. However, after finishing treatment, the diocese assigned him to hear confessions and celebrate mass at the cathedral. McFadden was finally suspended from all ministerial functions in 2002. At that time, Bishop DiNardo said it had been a mistake in 1992 to allow McFadden to continue in ministry.^[25] By August 2004, the diocese had been served with 20 lawsuits alleging abuse by McFadden.^[26] The diocese had settled 16 of these lawsuits by March 2005; by July 2005, the number of lawsuits had reached 26.^[27]

In June 2005, the diocese was sued by a man who accused Bishop Soens of fondling him. The alleged abuse started in 1963 when Soens was director at Regina Catholic High School in Iowa City.^[28][29] In November 2008, the diocesan review board reported that there were several credible accusations against Soens of sexually abusing minors. Thirty-one men had accused him of abusing them between 1950 and 1983. His case was referred to the Vatican for further action.^[30]

In October 2018, the diocese admitted that for several decades it had concealed sexual abuse committed by Rev. Jerome Coyle. It stated that Coyle had abused at least 50 minors during his time as priest. Coyle confessed his history to Soens in 1986, who placed him on a six-month medical leave, but did not report the admission to police or suspend him. The diocese eventually forbade Coyle from publicly functioning as a priest. The diocese did not notify anyone of his admission nor of allegations against Coyle, and it did not take any further action against him.^[31]

In October 2019, Samuel Heinrichs sued the diocese, claiming that he had been physically and sexually abused when he was ten years old by Rev. Dale Koster. The abuse occurred during the 1960's at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Carroll. The stress caused Heinrichs to develop an ulcer when he was in the fifth grade.^[32] The diocese and Heinrichs settled the lawsuit in 2021.^[33]

Bishops of Sioux City

1. Philip Joseph Garrigan (1902–1919)
2. Edmond Heelan (1920–1948)
   - Thomas Lawrence Noa (Coadjutor 1946–1947), appointed Bishop of Marquette before succession
3. Joseph Maximilian Mueller (1948–1970; Coadjutor 1947–1948)
4. Frank Henry Greteman (1970–1983)
5. Lawrence Donald Soens (1983–1998)
6. Daniel N. DiNardo (1998–2004), appointed Coadjutor Bishop and later Coadjutor Archbishop and Archbishop of Galveston-Houston (elevated to Cardinal in 2007)
7. R. Walker Nickless (2005–2025)
8. John Edward Keehner (2025-present)

Auxiliary bishops

• Edmond Heelan (1918–1920), appointed Bishop of Sioux City
• Frank Henry Greteman (1965–1970), appointed Bishop of Sioux City

Other diocesan priest who became bishop

Dennis Marion Schnurr, appointed Bishop of Duluth in 2001 and later Archbishop of Cincinnati

High schools

Closed schools