In June 1858, Roman Goetz and a procession of German Catholic settlers climbed a steep glacial hill in Washington County, Wisconsin, and planted a 15-foot white oak cross at its summit — the first formal act of Catholic devotion on a hilltop that had already drawn a hermit, a legend, and the prayers of the surrounding frontier community. The cross, blessed by Father Hasselbauer of nearby St. Augustine's parish, rose over 435 acres of oak-forested moraine at 1,350 feet, the highest elevation in southeastern Wisconsin. From that ridge, on a clear day, a pilgrim can see across the drumlin fields and kettle lakes of the Kettle Moraine all the way to Lake Michigan. More than 300,000 people make the climb each year.
The hill's Catholic story begins earlier still, in a French diary dated 1676, discovered in Quebec by a wandering hermit named François Soubrio sometime between 1862 and 1864. The diary described a cone-shaped mountain in Wisconsin where an unknown author had built a stone altar, raised a cross, and dedicated the place to the Mother of God. Soubrio, moved by the account, walked south from Quebec to find the hill. He recognized it from the description, settled on its slopes, cleared a small plot, and began a life of prayer and fasting. According to the shrine's own account, Soubrio experienced miraculous healing of a partial paralysis after spending a night in prayer on the summit — the first of the cures that would come to define Holy Hill's identity.
The crutches began arriving even before the first chapel was built. Pilgrims who prayed on the hill and attributed their recovery to Mary's intercession left their walking aids as testimony. That tradition has continued without interruption for over 160 years. Today the Shrine Chapel inside the basilica displays rows of crutches, leg braces, and canes — a wall of abandoned instruments of infirmity, each one a wordless account of what someone believed had happened on this hill.
📜 History & Spiritual Significance
The land had been purchased in 1855 by Father Paulhuber, an Austrian priest who intended to give it to the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. He died before the transfer was completed; the deed passed to the archdiocese in 1876. By then, Irish settlers in the valley had already given the hill its name: Holy Hill. On May 24, 1863 — the feast of Mary, Help of Christians — Father George Strickner formally dedicated a log chapel at the summit as the first Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians in North America, using the feast day title that would remain the shrine's defining dedication.
The title itself carried a particular history. Pope Pius VII had established the feast of Mary, Help of Christians on May 24, 1815, the year after his release from Napoleon's captivity, attributing his liberation to Mary's intercession. The devotion spread through the German-speaking world with particular fervor, carried to Wisconsin by the waves of German and Irish Catholic immigrants who flooded the Midwest in the mid-nineteenth century.
The present stone church took shape through decades of accumulated effort. Father Ferdinand Raess proposed a grander structure in 1879; the monastery was completed in 1920. The cornerstone of the current basilica was laid on August 22, 1926, and the building was completed and consecrated in 1931. The architecture is Romanesque Revival — twin towers of dark brick and stone rising from the oak canopy, visible from the valley roads for miles. Conrad Schmitt Studios of Milwaukee created the stained glass, filling the nave with deep jeweled light.
The Discalced Carmelite Friars arrived on June 26, 1906, summoned from Bavaria by Archbishop Sebastian Messmer of Milwaukee. The Carmelites — the order of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Ávila — brought a tradition of contemplative prayer and Marian devotion well matched to the site. They have administered the shrine without interruption for over a century.
The Stations of the Cross on the hillside are among the most distinctive features of Holy Hill. A simple first set of wooden crosses with passion pictures was built by George Klippel during the tenure of Father Ferdinand Raess, who arrived in 1875. A brick set followed in 1889. The current life-size stations, carved from Bedford Stone and set in hand-built fieldstone grottos, were made by sculptor Joseph Aszklar between 1914 and 1928 — fourteen years of work that produced fourteen scenes of the Passion arranged along a winding path up the hill's eastern face. Pilgrims walk the route in all seasons, often barefoot on Good Friday.
On July 11, 2006, Pope Benedict XVI raised the shrine to the rank of Minor Basilica by Pontifical Decree, one of fewer than 100 minor basilicas in the United States. The designation acknowledged both the site's historical importance and the vitality of pilgrimage that had never flagged across a century and a half of American Catholic life.
☩ Pilgrimage Sites in Holy Hill
Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians
Minor Basilica, designated 2006
The basilica occupies the summit of the hill, its Romanesque Revival towers forming the silhouette that identifies Holy Hill from every approach road. The interior is organized on three levels, with the Shrine Chapel on the first level housing the famous collection of crutches, braces, and canes left by pilgrims who attributed their healing to Mary's intercession. The upper nave holds the main altar with its gilded reredos and the deep-toned stained glass of Conrad Schmitt Studios. A Chapel of St. Thérèse of Lisieux serves the Spanish-speaking community with a weekly Mass. The friars maintain a perpetual schedule of daily Masses, confessions, and the Liturgy of the Hours.
Outdoor Stations of the Cross
Life-size Bedford Stone, completed 1928
The outdoor Stations wind up the eastern slope of the hill through stands of oak and hickory, each of the fourteen stations housed in a fieldstone grotto with a life-size carved scene of the Passion. Sculptor Joseph Aszklar required fourteen years to complete the commission, finishing in 1928. The path is approximately a half-mile in length with a significant elevation gain; pilgrims often carry their own crosses on Good Friday. In autumn, when the oak canopy turns gold and rust, the walk through the grottos is among the most beautiful short pilgrimages in the American Midwest.
Scenic Tower
Panoramic views of the Kettle Moraine
The twin towers of the basilica are open to pilgrims who climb the interior staircase to an observation level. From the tower platform at 1,350 feet — the highest point in southeastern Wisconsin — the view extends across the Kettle Moraine State Forest, past the drumlin ridges and kettle lakes carved by the last glacier, to the distant shimmer of Lake Michigan on clear days. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had recognized the hill's commanding position as early as 1873, erecting an observatory at the summit to map the Lake Michigan coastline. The towers offer a different kind of contemplation: the geography of the glacial landscape laid open beneath a pilgrim who has just climbed the hill on foot.
Holy Hill Guest House and Monastery Inn
On-site pilgrim accommodation
The Carmelite friars operate two retreat facilities for pilgrims who wish to extend their stay. The New Guest House, built in 1962 and renovated in 2017, offers fourteen rooms with private baths and a shared kitchenette. The Old Monastery Inn occupies the original 1920 monastery building with fifteen rooms, a conference room, lounge, and chapel. Both facilities are open to the public; reservations are made directly through the shrine. The atmosphere is that of a working monastery — quiet hours observed, no alcohol permitted — and the proximity to the basilica allows guests to attend the early morning Mass and the daily rhythm of the Liturgy of the Hours.
🕯️ Annual Feast Days & Celebrations
Feast of Mary, Help of Christians — May 24
The patronal feast of the shrine, celebrated each year with special Masses, a procession, and the crowning of the Marian statue. The date has carried particular significance at Holy Hill since Father Strickner chose it for the dedication of the first log chapel in 1863. Pilgrims who can only make one visit each year often choose this feast. Crowds are substantial; early arrival is advised.
Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel — July 16
The principal Carmelite feast day, marking the legendary gift of the Brown Scapular by Our Lady to St. Simon Stock in 1251. The Discalced Carmelite Friars who administer Holy Hill celebrate this feast with solemnity — Mass, the blessing of scapulars, and particular attention to the contemplative character of the Carmelite charism. Pilgrims receive the scapular enrollment and hear the friars speak on Carmelite spirituality. The feast is an opportunity to encounter the tradition of prayer and Marian devotion the Bavarian Carmelites carried to Wisconsin in 1906.
🛏️ Where to Stay
Holy Hill Old Monastery Inn (retreat house) — Original 1920 monastery building with fifteen rooms, chapel access, and the full rhythm of Carmelite community life on-site. Book directly through the shrine. Website
Holy Hill New Guest House (retreat house) — Renovated retreat facility with fourteen private-bath rooms and shared kitchenette, 100 yards from the basilica entrance. Book directly through the shrine. Website
Cobblestone Hotel and Suites Hartford ⭐⭐⭐ — Clean, modern hotel in downtown Hartford, 9 km from Holy Hill. Complimentary breakfast and indoor corridor access. Website ∙ Reserve this hotel
AmericInn by Wyndham Hartford ⭐⭐⭐ — Well-maintained mid-range hotel on Highway 60 in Hartford, 9 km from the shrine. Indoor pool, free hot breakfast. Reserve this hotel
Super 8 by Wyndham Hartford ⭐⭐ — Budget-friendly option 9 km from Holy Hill on East Sumner Street, Hartford. Reserve this hotel
🚗 Getting There
By Air: Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE) is 48 km southeast of Holy Hill, approximately 50 minutes by car. O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, is 135 km south, about 1 hour 45 minutes driving without traffic.
By Car: From Milwaukee, take I-41/US-45 North to Exit 57 (WI-167 West / Holy Hill Road). Follow WI-167 West approximately 10 km directly to the shrine entrance on Carmel Road. From Madison, take I-94 East to I-41 North, then Exit 57 — approximately 1 hour 20 minutes. From Chicago, take I-94 North to I-41 North. Total approximately 2 hours in normal conditions. Large free parking lots at the base of the hill and adjacent to the basilica.
Local: The shrine complex is walkable once on-site. The Stations of the Cross path up the eastern hill face takes 30–45 minutes on foot. A café and gift store are open year-round. No public transit serves Holy Hill; a car or organized tour is required.
📚 Further Reading
Stacey Wittig, Spiritual and Walking Guide: The Wisconsin Way — The definitive field guide to walking the Wisconsin Way pilgrimage from the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion to Holy Hill Basilica. Combines daily devotions, historical background on each spiritual site encountered, and practical route guides for the 156-mile journey.
J.M.J.T., History of Holy Hill Shrine of Mary-Help of Christians — Historical account of the shrine from its origins through the Carmelite guardianship, drawing on primary sources and the shrine's own archives.
🎥 Recommended Videos
The Virgin Mary Visited Wisconsin — EWTN News In Depth — EWTN News examines Wisconsin's two major Marian shrines, with particular attention to the history and continued pilgrimage activity at Holy Hill. 7 minutes 33 seconds.
Inside the Vatican Pilgrimages: Wisconsin Testimonials — Pilgrims recount their experiences on an organized Wisconsin pilgrimage tour including Holy Hill and the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion. 5 minutes 48 seconds.
🔗 Useful Links
Holy Hill Basilica and National Shrine — Official shrine website with Mass schedules, guest house reservations, events calendar, and history.
Archdiocese of Milwaukee — Archdiocesan home page; Holy Hill falls within the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.
Wisconsin Way Pilgrimage Route — Official site of the 156-mile walking pilgrimage from Champion to Holy Hill, with maps, route guides, and stage descriptions.
Travel Wisconsin: Holy Hill — State tourism board entry with visitor information.
🥾 Pilgrim Routes
The Wisconsin Way — Holy Hill is the southern terminus of the Wisconsin Way, a 156-mile pilgrimage route running from the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion near Green Bay south through the glacial landscapes of central Wisconsin. Established in 2013 and inspired by the Camino de Santiago, the route passes through Kettle Moraine State Forest, follows Rails-to-Trails corridors through river valleys and forested ridges, and connects Wisconsin's two major Marian shrines. Pilgrims walk or cycle the full route in approximately eleven days. The official website at wisconsinway.com provides stage-by-stage maps and accommodation guides. The route does not yet have a dedicated entry in the Destinationes database.
🧭 Nearby Pilgrimage Destinations
Champion (156 km north) — America's only Church-approved Marian apparition site, where the Virgin Mary appeared to Belgian immigrant Adele Brise in 1859. The northern terminus of the Wisconsin Way.
La Crosse (237 km northwest) — Mississippi River city with the National Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the tomb of Venerable Samuel Mazzuchelli, the Dominican friar who built much of Wisconsin's early Catholic infrastructure.
Carey (481 km east) — The Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Consolation in northern Ohio, a major Midwest Marian pilgrimage site with a history of healings dating to 1875.
🪶 Closing Reflection
"On 24 May we celebrate the liturgical memory of the Blessed Virgin Mary Help of Christians... I ask everyone to pray that, under the protection of the Mater Auxiliatrice, Catholics may continue to believe, to hope and to love." — Pope Francis, General Audience, May 21, 2014
