The first St. Jerome was completed in 1836 by the Rev. Elisha Durbin and was the first Catholic church in the Jackson Purchase. A second church was dedicated in 1858, and the present church dates to 1893. St. Jerome’s settlers were mainly descendants of Maryland Catholics from Washington County, Kentucky. Its missions included St. Charles in Carlisle County in 1891 and St. Denis in Hickman County in 1913. Elisha John Durbin, who lived from 1800 to 1887, served as a missionary for more than 50 years and helped build ten Catholic churches, including St. Jerome. Born in Madison County in 1800, he was ordained in 1822 and in 1824 was given pastoral care of the Catholic population of western and southwestern Kentucky, now the Owensboro Diocese. His headquarters were at Sacred Heart in Union County, and he was buried in St. Louis Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky.