Jan Zawistowski, born August 11, 1822 in Slupno (Plock - Russian-occupied Poland), received his preliminary education in local schools. He later studied at the University in Wurzburg, Germany.

After his ordination in Germany as a member of the Carmelite order (1846), Zawistowski volunteered for missionary work. India's climate did not agree with him, however, so he returned to Europe after a short time.

In 1857 he was sent to the United States. Before ministering in the Western New York region (where he was first named pastor of St. Francis Parish in North Buffalo and subsequently served the growing number of Poles in the Dunkirk area), he worked in the Brooklyn Diocese.

Zawistowski traveled throughout the United States, visiting many growing Polish settlements. By 1869, he was in Wisconsin where he ministered to mixed congregations at Two Rivers, Algoma and Oshkosk. In 1885 he was named pastor of St. John Parish, a position he held until his death in May 1889.