St. Francis Xavier began its life as a parish and chuch in the late 1800s. In the year 1877 ten Catholic families lived in Petoskey. The next year the number of families grew sufficiently large enough to warrant organizing a parish church apart from St. Francis Solanus (the first Catholic Church built in Petoskey under the patronage of the famed Indian missionary). In the year 1879 the Catholics of Petoskey translated their hopes into a visible reality. They established St. Francis Xavier and built the first structure in 1879 under the supervision of Fr. Zorn of Harbor Springs. Fr. Zorn made it a practice to come to Petoskey once a month to serve the needs of the Catholics. St. Francis Xavier was built on the corner of Howard and State Streets, the location of the present church.

See the links below to learn about the St. Francis Xavier community history and the enduring architectural and statuary elements of our beautiful church.