1848 The Little Log Cabin Church
Bishop Timon urged Fr. Kramer to construct a church, however the congregation did not yet have the financial
means of doing so. Kramer remained active in the settlement until 17 September 1848. On November 19, 1848 Fr. Fritsch
said his first Mass at Pendleton. Subsequently the parish had Mass every third Sunday along with baptisms, still in
the homes of the parishioners.
In 1849 Fr. Fritsch, at the urging of Bishop Timon, proposed to the parishioners that they construct a log
building, to be called “The Little Church”, on four acres of land purchased by the community and deeded to the bishop.
The property was within the boundaries of where the present day Good Shepherd Church stands and was carved out from
acreage owned by Francis Joseph Leuthauser and his wife Catherine, members of the parish. At that time, there were
eight Catholic families in the neighborhood. On December 30, 1849 Fr. Fritsch said the first Mass in the new church
building. He remained pastor of the Pendleton Settlement until April 1851. He was also one of the first Latin teachers
of the then fledgling Canisius College.