Pew Ends

Monseigneur Auguste Wassler, pastor from 1947 until 1968, was the primary designer of the carved pew end caps at St. Peter’s in Carencro, Louisiana.  When the plans were being made for the carvings, Msgr. Wassler, in his own words stated: “I hit upon a bold idea to interest parishioners by dedicating to their family through a wood-carved pew-head representing their coat-of-arms, or pictorial history of the family tree.  A casual announcement in the Sunday bulletin brought responses from 50 families, who volunteered to pay $250 each for that privilege.”

In addition to Msgr. Wassler, Lucille Arceneaux, local librarian and parishioner, did a great deal of research for these designs, looking for interesting family members and resurrecting cherished family stories that could be referenced in the design.  Mr. Ludwig Kienenger, a masterful Bavarian woodcarver whose studio was near Dallas, Texas, was the artist who transformed Msgr. Wassler’s sketches on paper into stories in wood.  Designed and created in the 1960’s, they provide a mini historical record of the families of St. Peter Church.  Many of the symbols indicate countries of origin of the families, dates when European ancestors first came to the New World, the types of livelihood families engaged in, and even cattle brands registered to the families.  It took months to complete the research for the enormous project, and the results are a treasure.  The woodcarver, Ludwig Kienenger, died in 2014, just as this book was being written. It would have been priceless to include an interview with him, but his work will have to speak for itself. 

In 2017, Rev. Mark P. Ledoux commissioned Doug Oliver (apprentice to the original carver, Ludwig Kienenger) to carve pew ends to bring the pew ends current.  The empty pew ends are kept to honor future pastors of St. Peter and Bishops of the Diocese of Lafayette.   

St. Peter Roman Catholic Church received a generous grant from the Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission that assisted in the development of the audio files used in the our story of "The People in the Pews." Please visit the Lafayette Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission website for a list of activities support by this wonderful organization. 

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