St. Michael's Church, Penampang

St. Michael's Church is a Roman Catholic church in Penampang with a central nave, two side aisles, and tall arched windows that fill the interior with light. The wooden pews are arranged throughout, and a bell tower rises prominently from the structure.

Mill Hill Missionaries founded this church in 1936, but construction was delayed by World War II and completed in 1947. The building emerged as part of post-war recovery and religious expansion in the region.

The church has ties to the local Kadazan-Dusun community, and you can see this reflected in how the cemetery honors their traditional burial customs. Different sections show both conventional graves and spaces for practices passed down through generations in this region.

The church welcomes visitors during regular hours and has an administration office on site for inquiries and information. The cemetery grounds are accessible and allow you to walk through and observe the different burial areas.

The bell tower holds three manually operated bells supported by a concrete tripod structure built as a memorial to Father Wachter. This distinctive arrangement is not typical for church bell towers and marks an important connection to the church's missionary heritage.