Church Name: St John the Evangelist
The first Leeston church measuring 40 feet by 20 feet was built by Fr Chervier and opened on December 5, 1869 at a cost of £456. It was situated on the site later occupied by the Leeston Band Hall. It was replaced by the present church, which was opened on April 1, 1894, the old church becoming a school on a site behind the new church. The 1895 parish returns say it was called Our Lady of the Holy Rosary but by 1905 it was listed as St John the Evangelist.
Ian Lochhead attributes the Catholic chapel at Leeston to Benjamin Mountfort.
