The Trois-Rivières parish church was built in 1714 under the administration of Father Joseph Denys, the first Canadian Recollect, who was the superior and priest of the Immaculate Conception parish of Trois-Rivières from 1710 to 1717.
In 1735, a pulpit and workbench were constructed.
In 1745, a new sacristy was built.
In 1769, a bell was purchased.
In 1783, a presbytery was constructed southwest of the church near the Platon, across from the cemetery gate.
In 1787, a new bell.
In 1788, repairs to the church choir.
In 1796, the parish church bell tower was rebuilt.
The reverend François Noiseux, also known as François-Xavier, after serving as a priest in Beloeil, became a priest in Trois-Rivières (1796-1812).
In 1798, he purchased a silver chalice dating from 1748, then a ciborium and a thurible.
In 1805, a new sacristy measuring 24 by 30 feet was constructed.
In 1812, the vault was rebuilt.
In 1817, the church was covered with tinplate.
In 1818, major repairs to the church began. Under the direction of Reverend Louis-Marie Cadieux, vicar general and priest from 1819 to 1835, the church was beautified and restored. This work was completed in 1822. The canopy, pulpit, vault, and workbench were produced by skilled artists and artisans, with sculptor François Normand (1779-1854) at the head.
In 1824, Reverend Cadieux purchased an organ.
In 1825, he purchased a clock for the sacristy.
In 1831, the canonical establishment of the parish was witnessed.
In 1832, a stone wall was constructed around the cemetery and the presbytery.
In 1835, the new priest appointed was Father Thomas Cooke, who would become the first bishop in Trois-Rivières in 1852, the year the diocese was established.
In 1841, the Stations of the Cross were solemnly installed by Monsignor Forbin-Janson, bishop of Nancy and Toul in France, in the midst of an immense crowd of faithful and in the presence of 20 priests.
On August 15, 1852, the assets of the Fabrique were transferred to the new Bishop.
In 1855, a bell was blessed at the parish church, and a door was built in the transept on the street side.
In 1901, Msgr. François-Xavier Cloutier, the 3rd bishop of the diocese, had the parish church restored at a cost of $13,000; the old cachet was carefully preserved while freshening up the gilding and the paint. A water heater and an organ were installed.
The stone wall all around the grounds of the Fabrique was removed.
In the sacristy, the entrance door that opened onto Rue Notre-Dame, near the roundabout, was moved to open onto Rue Saint-Pierre.
Blessing of the new Stations of the Cross: the long staircase from the pulpit was removed.
Four years after writing his collection (published by the presses of P. V. Ayotte) revealing the broad outlines of the history of the Trois-Rivières church, which are recounted above, Father Louis-Arthur Lévêque-Dusablon, with the help of Fathers Henri Vallée and Louis Denoncourt, saved several objects of worship from the flames which were about to reach the parish church. These included the high altar, paintings, and sacred objects.
With respect to the artist, Rodolphe Duguay (1891-1973), he was inspired by a photograph or postcard to create this depiction of the Trois-Rivières parish church in 1928 at the request of Msgr. Albert Tessier.
Donation from Msgr. Albert Tessier
Musée Pierre-Boucher Collection
1977 23 D
