Following the arrival of the Cleveland and Pittsburgh Railroad in what is now Portage County in 1851, a small group of Catholic railroad employees and their families living around Earlville— known today as Twin Lakes—began gathering monthly for Mass with a priest from Akron. By 1854, the Catholic community began gathering in Ravenna and became established as Immaculate Conception Mission. Masses were offered in local homes or in the Ravenna Town Hall.
In 1857, Immaculate Conception became an out-mission of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Cleveland. Efforts were soon made to raise funds for a permanent church. In 1861, the pastor of St. Mary Parish in Hudson was also assigned to minister to Catholics in Ravenna and what would eventually be known as Kent. Fundraising efforts continued, which eventually enabled the construction of a church.
For the ensuing years, various priests served as pastor. In the 1870s, a parish school was also established with lay teachers. During this period the parish established St. Mary’s Cemetery on the southwest side of Ravenna just outside of the village. During the 1880s, the parish debt was retired and the church was enlarged and renovated to accommodate the growing congregation. In 1887, the Sisters of St. Dominic of Caldwell, New Jersey, came to Immaculate Conception to staff the school— later succeeded by the Akron-based Our Lady of the Elms Dominican Sisters.
In 1926, construction began on a new church, which was dedicated Sept. 4, 1927. Over the subsequent decades, the church was renovated and other enhancements of the parish’s facilities were implemented. Over the years, the parish has engaged in outreach to area nursing homes and numerous other organizations and ministries sought to actively serve parishioners and the larger community.
With declining enrollment, the parish school was closed in 2004 and the school building repurposed. In 2024, the two Kent parishes—St. Patrick and the University Parish Newman Center—and Immaculate Conception were brought together as a collaborative pastoral unit. Today, Immaculate Conception has an active Knights of Columbus council, a Young at Heart group for those aged 55 and older and a Social Life Committee, which plans parish events. Dedicated to the Blessed Mother, Immaculate Conception Parish is committed to extending the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ through Word, Sacrament and Christian service.
Description from The March of the Eucharist, 2nd edition (2025) published by The Catholic Echo
