St. Martin Of Tours Church, Siberia, Perry County, Indiana was established in 1869.

St. Martin in Siberia was St. Meinrad Abbey’s only successful parish foray into Perry County. Chrysostom Foffa began visiting German and Russo-Polish settlers in the area in 1864, where he built a small church in 1869.  As its original name suggests, Sabaria was designated to honor the patron of the local church, St. Martin of Tours. In yet another misunderstanding by the post office, the official name was changed from Sabaria to Siberia. Isidor Hobi is considered the father of the settlement, as he platted the village and recorded the papers in 1873. By 1885 it had grown to thirty families, and in 1892 counted forty-five families within its parish boundaries.!” It was attended from St. Meinrad until 1880, when for the next three years it was visited by the diocesan priest from St. Croix, the alumnus Karl Bilger.  St. Meinrad again took charge of the parish in 1883, with the parish receiving its first resident pastor from the monastery in 1896.

Attacked by Anti-Catholics  Three Persons Killed and Many Hurt at an Indiana Picnic English, Ind. July 5 1895 —- Dr. William Lomax, of White Sulphur Well, telephoned here this evening news of a serious riot at a picnic in Siberia, Perry County, in which one thousand men and women participated. It is stated that three persons are dead and fifty wounded. St. Martin Of Tours Church, Siberia is fifteen miles from a railroad in the wildest part of Perry County. The men supposed to be dead are William Geise, Frank Hart and Frederick Elmer. It was a German Catholic picnic and was interrupted by anti-Catholics – New York Herald 7/6/1895

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174 Foffa to Oberholzer, June 14, 1876, Schnellville, SMAA St. Meinrad Abbey Letters in Einsiedeln Archives, box 3: vol. 13, 1515-1517; Alerding, 322.
175 Warrick. Spencer. and Perry Counties. 727; Marty, Annalen 60, (Munich. 1892),204. 176 De la Hunt. 271; Boeglin, 57. (For Bilger’s biographical information see footnote 111.)
177 Raymond McGinnis, The Centennial of Siberia and St. Martin of Tours Church. Siberia. Indiana. (An Historical Precis. 1869-1969), CSt. Meinrad, Ind.: Abbey Press, 1969).