St. Theresa of Avila has been a parish since 1918, but Catholics have been worshiping in this area since the mid-1800s. For many years the settlers of east-bank Ascension Parish had to travel across the Mississippi River to Donaldsonville, or up the River Road to St. Gabriel Church for worship.
This was no easy feat by horse-back, or horse-drawn wagon. In the 1840s, residents built St. Ann Chapel at Crevasse, which was popularly referred to by the Acadian descendants as Sainte Anne de la Crevasse. The chapel’s original site is now in the Mississippi River.
During these early years, the tireless Lazarist Fathers were in charge of Ascension Church in Donaldsonville, and the conscientiously covered a mission territory which extended from the Amite River all the way to the Atchafalaya River. In 1863, the Gonzales area became part of a newly erected parish, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary of New River, which later became Sacred Heart at Cornerview.
For the next 50 years the Catholics of Gonzales were served by the priests from Cornerview. Over time, Gonzales grew in population and importance. The new railway line from Baton Rouge to New Orleans cut through Gonzales, but bypassed Cornerview. The same was true of the River Road and the new Airline Highway. In 1918, the parish seat was moved from Cornerview to Gonzales, and a new church was built and placed under the protection of St. Theresa of Avila. The first pastor assigned to the new church was Father Eugene Hubert. Today, the parish has expanded to include a regional school which serves children of the entire area.