A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 127

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188

USA > New York > A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time > Part 127

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St. Vincent de Paul's .- In the Eastern Dis- trict the English-speaking and the German Catholics were also increasing. The year 1863 saw the erection of two new churches, St. Vin- cent de Paul's, at North Sixth street near Fifth' under the pastoral care of the Rev. Bernard

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

McGorisk, and the German Church of the An- nunciation, under the care of the Rev. John Hauptmann. A frame building on the corner of North Sixth Street had long been used by the Presbyterians of this vicinity as a house of worship, but they were now about to remove to a more suitable church in another part of the city. Father McGorisk secured the frame structure and dedicated it to St. Vincent de Paul. Father McGorisk labored in his little parish for six years and was succeeded by the Rev. David O'Mullane, who built a very hand- some church. He was succeeded in 1872 by the Rev. Martin Carroll, the present Pastor. Father Carroll is a progressive priest, and everything about his parish proclaims it. Al- though his congregation is composed of hard- working people their generosity is above ques- tion. Father Carroll has had the church beau- tifully frescoed and decorated, and marble al- tars have taken the place of the original wood- en ones. But the work dearest to his heart will ever stand as a monument to his zeal in the interest of the children of his parish. In 1873 Father Carroll transformed the old frame church into a parochial school-the first in the parish. It was fitted up so as to accommodate about 500 pupils, but this was only the initia- tory step to what he saw he would need before many years. In 1885 he erected a magnificent school-house, one of the finest in the city, capa- ble of accommodating from 1.500 to 1,800 pu- pils, and the schools of St. Vincent de Paul's are now in a flourishing condition and have an excellent reputation.

The Annunciation .- The German Church of the Annunciation was founded by the late Rt. Rev. Monsignor Michael May, in 1863. The building of the church was entrusted to the Rev. John Hauptmann, who administered to the people of this parish until 1891. The first Mass was celebrated at the northeast corner of North Fifth street and Havemeyer Street. Father Hauptmann laborcd earnestly and not without difficulties, for before he could see his way clear to accomplish his de-

sires he was obliged to meet a law suit in- volving a loss of $15,000 to his struggling parish. Yet, in the face of all this, Father Hauptmann succeeded :n doing a great work. In 1870 he replaced the old church by a hand- some brick structure 125 by 50 feet, and made other improvements. In 1891 he was trans- ferred to St. Aloysius' Church, and Rev. George Kaupert became Pastor. His first thought was the education of the children of his parish and in 1892 he erected a fine three- story school-house 88 feet by 50 feet, and when completed he placed it under the care of six Dominican Sisters. The school is now taught by fifteen Dominican Sisters.

St. Nicholas' .- Rt. Rev. Mgr. May inherit- ed the church-building spirit of his illustrious predecessor, and the German Catholics of Brooklyn are indebted to him for the founda- tion of more than one parish for the accom- modation of his fellow countrymen. In 1865. he founded the new church of St. Nicholas, at the corner of Olive and Powers streets. The first Mass was celebrated in the old church on May 14, 1866, by the Rev. Charles Peine, and from four to five hundred persons were pres- ent. Father Peine did good service here until- 1877, when he was succeeded by Rev. John P. Hoffmann, who built a new church at the- corner of Olive and Devoe streets and turned the old building into a school. The old church was 40 by 100 feet: the new edifice, a de- cided improvement upon the old one, is 70. feet by 140 feet. The school has some between five and six hundred pupils. There is also a Convent of Sisters of St. Dominic dedicated to St. Catherine of Sienna, erected in 1867 by Father Peine. Father Hoffmann has en- deared himself to his people by his zeal and devotion to their welfare. He is assisted in his. work by the Rev. John J. Bender.

St. John the Baptist's .- During Bishop- Loughlin's episcopate the Diocese of Brooklyn had but two Congregations of priests within its limits. The first to come were the Laz- arists, or Priests of the Congregation of the:

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THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ON LONG ISLAND.

Mission. In the spring of 1868 the Rev. Ed- ward M. Smith, of that congregation, was sent by his superiors to Brooklyn to open a new field for the special work of his community. He was fortunate enough to secure an entire block of ground, bounded by Lewis, Stuyves- ant and Willoughby avenues and Hart street. It was bought by Very Rev. Stephen V. Ryan, subsequently Bishop of Buffalo, but who was then Visitor of the Congregation of the Mis- sion in the United States. There was a little cottage upon this ground and it was soon trans- formed into a community house. A room was fitted up as a chapel, and here, on July 12, 1868, the first Mass was celebrated, before a con- gregation of not more than twelve or fifteen persons. On the same day the corner-stone of the temporary wooden church was laid, by Bishop Loughlin. In the following year, 1869, the Bishop laid the corner-stone of the new College of St. John the Baptist, and in Septem- ber, 1870, it was opened, under the presi- dency of the Rev. John T. Landry. Rev. J. Quigley succeeded Father Smith as Pastor of the church in 1868, but Father Smith returned in 1870 and resumed the pastorate, and con- tinued in that capacity until 1874, when he went to La Salle, Illinois. On February 9, 1875, Father Landry resigned the presidency of the college and his unexpired term was filled out by the Rev. James A. Maloney. In September following the Rev. P. M. O'Regan became President and Father Maloney became Pastor of the church. Father Maloney was a man of more than ordinary ability and his pastorate was marked by a growth and pros- perity that was most gratifying. In Septem- ber, 1877, the Rev. A. J. Meyer became Presi- dent of the college and he continued in that capacity until 1882, when he was appointed Bishop of Galveston, Texas. Father Meyer's ambition was to be a good Lazarist and to die a good son of St. Vincent de Paul. He pleaded with the Holy See to be excused from so great an honor, and among other ex- cuses urged his failing sight. Rome accepted

his excuse, and after years of useful service to his congregation as President of St. Vin- cent's College at Los Angeles, California, and of Kenrick Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri, he died-as he wished-a good Lazarist.

In 1882 the Rev. Jeremiah A. Hartnett, C. M., became President of St. John's College and Pastor of the church. The congregation had outgrown the old frame church and the col- lege had increased in the number of its pupils because its standard had been raised to meet the requirements of the times. A new church was needed, and on June 24, 1888, Bishop Loughlin laid the corner-stone of one of the largest and finest church edifices in the State. It is 208 feet long; nave, including side chap- els, 85 feet ; width of transept, 135 feet ; depth of chancel, 50 feet ; and height of ceiling from floor, 95 feet. The material used in the con- struction of the church is blue granite; the style of architecture is Roman, and the build- ing was under roof before there was a cent of debt upon it.

The new St. John's was dedicated in May, 1894. The occasion was worthy of the splen- did edifice. The dedication was performed by the Rt. Rev. Charles E. McDonnell, D. D., second Bishop of Brooklyn; the Solemn Pont- ifical Mass was celebrated by the Most Rev. William Henry Elder, D. D., Archbishop of Cincinnati, and the dedication sermon was preached by His Eminence James, Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore. Rt. Rev. Stephen Vincent Ryan, D. D., Bishop of Buf- falo, but who as Visitor of the Congregation of the Mission, had purchased the splendid church property years before, occupied a seat in the Sanctuary. It was a happy day for Father Hartnett, and he deserved it. But his work was not yet over, as we shall see further on.

Our Lady of Lourdes .- Besides the Laz- arists the only congregation or community of priests allowed in Brooklyn up to this time were the Fathers of Mercy, or "Peres de la Miserecorde." They are a society of mission-

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

ary priests, founded in France in 1806 by Fa- ther Jean Baptiste Ranzan. In 1842 they came to the United States, and under their Superior, the venerated Father Annet Lafont, took charge of the French church of St. Vin- cent de Paul, in New York city. In 1873 they established themselves at No. 1575 Broadway, Brooklyn, where they secured a private house, which became their novitiate, parish church and parochial school. Mass was said in the parlors of this house until 1875, when a neat brick church, one hundred feet long by forty feet front, was erected and placed under the patronage of St. Francis de Sales. This con- gregation, under the direction of Father Leneuf and his successors, has grown quite rapidly. Considerable improvements were made by Very Rev. E. H. Porcile, the present Superior, and a year or two ago the original church was replaced by a very handsome structure dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes. The Fathers of Mercy have a flourishing parochial school attended by over four hun- dred children, under the care of the Sisters of St. Joseph. The Fathers attend a number of out-missions and charitable institutions, be- sides giving missions in all parts of the conn- try.

St. Francis'-in-the-Fields .- Reference has already been made to Rev. Father Raffeiner. justly styled the Apostle of the Germans. Like Bishop Loughlin, he was a great church- builder, but it is a question whether he ever erected a more quaint or a more interesting church than that of St. Francis, built in 1850 on Putnam avenue, near Bedford. This little two-story church stood about the middle of a fine lot, surrounded by a high board fence, with an entrance on Putnam avenue. A narrow flagstone path extended from this gate to a wooden staircase which led to the church prop- er in the second story. After the burning of the Brooklyn Theatre, in 1873, when all the pub- lic buildings were required to have unusual means of exit, this staircase was doubled, so that persons might reach the ground from a

landing at the church door by two staircases in place of one. The church was built of brick, with shingled roof, and was surmounted by a little, slender steeple, in which was a bell, the tones of which, if not as melodious as some of larger proportions, were dear to those who frequented St. Francis.' Rev. Maurus Ramsauer, O. S. B.,was its first Pastor ; he was succeeded in 1855 by Rev. Bonaventure Keller. In 1857 he became superior of a house of his order in Philadelphia and St. Francis' was at- tended from Holy Trinity until 1861, when Father Raffeiner died, and the church was closed for a time. In 1866 Rev. Nicholas Bal- leis, O. S. B., took charge and made it his home up to the time of his death, December 13, 1891.

Father Balleis was born at Salzburg, Aus- tria, November 22, 1808, and was ordained November 17, 1831. In 1836 he came to this country, at the invitation of Bishop Kenrick, of Philadelphia. He was the first Benedictine that came to the United States. He labored for a time in Philadelphia, at the Church of the Holy Trinity, and afterwards in other parts of Pennsylvania, and later on in New York. In 1841 we find him in New- ark, New Jersey, organizing St. Mary's par- ish. Here he remained for some years, and they were years of severe trial. On Sep- tember 5, 1854, a mob of Orangemen attacked his church, looted it, and Father Balleis and his assistants barely escaped with their lives. Father Balleis repaired the church and then obtained permission from his superiors to sep- arate himself from his order. He ministered for a time to the wants of the German Cath- olics in Elizabeth, Hoboken and elsewhere in New Jersey, settled in Brooklyn in 1866, and took charge of the little church "in the fields." Here he lived in comparative seclusion, in the lower part of the church building. His bed was for a long time a board stretched across two trunks. His sitting-room or reception room was monastic simplicity itself. His only luxury was his library, well stored with theo-

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logical and miscellaneous works of the choicest kind, for Father Balleis was a man of more than ordinary ability. In the centre of the church was a little wooden stairway leading down into the good pastor's living rooms be- low. At the foot of these stairs was his con- fessional. The sanctuary was a model of neatness and of regard for the "decency of divine worship." The ornaments were not al- ways of the richest kind, but they were the best he could afford. His sermons were al- ways very practical and full of instruction. He would frequently have a number of books and periodicals brought to him while preaching, and he would read extracts from them on the practical questions of the day, and comment upon them.

The church was a "free church," that is, there were no pews rented. It was customary to take up a seat collection at the Credo and the usual collection at the Post Communion. Father Balleis rarely spoke of money, but sometimes he would venture a playful remark upon the "number of brass pennies that had been hoarded up to put into the collection box." On November 27, 1881, he celebrated the Golden Jubilee of his ordination, in a very quiet way in the little church, and he lived on ten years longer, doing good to all who came in contact with him. Father Balleis was a most lovable character, generous with the little he possessed, and considerate with every- body. He would baptize, hear confessions, and attend "sick calls," but he would not perform marriage ceremonies. The old-time custom of the men sitting on one side of the church and the women on the other was followed in this church. The grounds around the church were ample. On the Putnam avenue side a nicely kept lawn afforded the Pastor an abundant crop of hay, while the ground on the Jeffer- son street side was occupied by rows of grape- vines, some of which crept up the side of the church and shaded the worshippers from the summer sun. From the grapes Father Bal- leis used to make his altar wine. For a quar-

ter of a century this good man was seen at the altar every morning with scrupulous regu- larity. Even in his old age he persisted in singing the late Mass and preaching on Sun- days in spite of the long fast this duty im- posed upon him. His healthi continued good until the last year of his life. He was loth to accept the assistance tendered him by his brother priests, but he was obliged to yield at last and avail himself of kind offices of the Fathers of Mercy. A short time before his death his Benedictine confreres came from Newark and persuaded him to return to his convent and die with. his brethren. He con- sented and went to Newark, where, on Decem- ber 13, 1891, in the eighty-third year of his age and the sixtieth of his priesthood, he "gave his better part to God and slept in peace." "St. Francis in the fields" did not survive its Pastor. The property on which it stood passed into the hands of the Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood and their beautiful mon- astery now occupies the site of the quaint yet historic old St. Francis'.

Our Lady of Victories .- The new parish of St. John the Baptist had hardly been organ- ized when within a fortnight another Cath- olic church, in an adjoining parish, was dedi- cated. On July 26, 1868, the new Church of Our Lady of Victories, on McDonough street, corner of Throop avenue, was opened for di- vine service, under the pastoral care of the Rev. Patrick Creighton. This edifice was built of wood, and four years later was' turned into a school-house, as a new structure, in course of erection, was then so far completed as to be used for church purposes. This building is of granite and is one of the most imposing in the city. It fronts on Ralph avenue. The pastoral residence, a handsome brick building, adjoins the church, and is amply provided for the needs of the resident clergy. Father Creighton labored here faithfully for some years, until his advanced age induced the Bishop to assign him to a less arduous charge. He is now Rector of St. John's church, River-

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

head. He was succeeded by Rev. James J. ton; and the Rt. Rev. James F. Wood, D. D., Woods.

New Cathedral .- Bishop Loughlin, it has been said with truth, was a far-seeing man and at the same time a man of wonderful pru- dence. He foresaw the marvelous growth of the city of Brooklyn and also that of its Cath- olic population. A city of the importance which Brooklyn was fast attaining deserved a Cathedral worthy of itself, and in 1860 Bish- op Loughlin began to look around for a lo- cation upon which to build his new Cathedral. He found it near the summit on the "Hill," and in one of the most aristocratic quarters of the city. The property purchased by the Bishop in 1860 extended 470 feet on Clermont avenue, 200 feet on Greene avenue, 470 feet on Vanderbilt avenue, and 200 feet on Lafay- ette avenue. The ground was owned by Maria Spader and Jeremiah V. Spader and Margaret, his wife, who, on November I, sold it to John McCahill, of New York, for $75,200, the prop- erty being guaranteed against nuisances by a covenant in the deed. Mr. McCahill gave a mortgage for $50,000, which was paid in No- vember, 1865, when he conveyed the property to Bishop Loughlin.

Three years later, on June 21, 1868, the cor- ner-stone of the new edifice was laid with im- posing ceremonies by the Bishop. The sermon was preached by Archbishop McCloskey, of New York. In his sermon, referring to the grandeur of the new Cathedral, he said the edifice "will stand as a monument to Catholic genius, Catholic architectural taste and skill, and to be, besides, looked upon, as it will be, as adding a newer beauty and another glory and another honor and another source of pride to what is already the renowned City of Churches." Bishop Bacon, one of the pioneer priests of Brooklyn, came from his Diocese of Portland to take part in the ceremonies, as did also the Rt. Rev. Francis P. McFarland, D. D., Bishop of Hartford ; the Rt. Rev. John J. Conroy, D. D., Bishop of Albany ; the Rt. Rev. John J. Williams, D. D., Bishop of Bos-

Bishop of Philadelphia. A large number of priests from this and neighboring Dioceses made the occasion memorable by their pres- ence.

The new Cathedral is to be dedicated to Almighty God, under the invocation of the Immaculate Conception ; the style of archi- tecture is to be Renaissance-Gothic of the thirteenth century, revised by Pugin. The en- tire length will be 354 feet ; extreme breadth at the transept, 180 feet; the largest chapel, St. John's, is 90 feet long and 40 feet wide; the whole frontage is 160 feet, the large towers at the front will be 50 feet square at the base and 350 feet high. The entire struc- ture will be of blue granite. The building is far from completion, as work has been suts- pended for years, owing to the greater need of churches, schools and institutions. The prudence of the Bishop told him that his Ca- thedral could wait until the more urgent needs of his Diocese had been provided for, and among these were the sick and the orphans.

But the building was not left entirely un- finished. The end towards Green avenue will give an idea of what the Cathedral is to be. St. John's Chapel was opened in 1879. It is `handsomely decorated with frescoes represent- ing Scriptural scenes; the altar is of pure white marble and the body of the chapel is furnished with neatly carved walnut pews. The opening of this Chapel formed the nucleus of the congregation that will some day wor- ship in the magnificent structure when com- pleted. The architect, Mr. P. C. Keely, left his plans, almost completed, to his successor, and he was correct in claiming that no church edifice in the country will be equal to the Brooklyn Cathedral in completeness or beauty when it is finished. The lapse of time and changes in architectural taste may interfere with some of his original ideas, but the struc- ture itself, when completed, will stand as a lasting monument to Brooklyn's first Bishop.

Our Lady of Mercy .- Up to 1869 there

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was no Catholic church between St. Paul's and St. Patrick's. The Catholics of that sec- tion of the city were divided between St. Paul's and St. James,' but in 1869 a new parish was formed in Debevoise Place, near De Kalb avenue. It is true that as early as 1857 the Catholics of this vicinity assembled in an old oilcloth factory, under the pastoral care of the Rev. John McCarthy. Among the first Trus- tees of this church were Mr. Clarence Bradley and Mr. Thomas McCarty, father of the pres- ent Pastor of St. Augustine's. Though the beginnings of this parish were very humble, it did not fail to grow. Father McCarty was succeeded by the Rev. John McKenna, who ministered to his growing flock until 1868, when he went to Flushing. Before going, however, he began the erection of the present church of Our Lady of Mercy, the corner- stone of which was laid in September, 1867. It was finished by his successor, the Rev. Thomas Taaffe, and dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Bishop Loughlin, on Fehruary 7, 1869. The church is a modern Gothic structure, 70 feet by 128, and is ornamented by a handsome stained-glass window back of the altar. A school was started in Father McKenna's time, and in 1864 numbered 290 boys, under the Franciscan Brothers, and some 200 girls. The school, which is opposite the church, is built of brick and is three stories high, and the class-rooms are well lighted and well venti- lated. Adjoining the school is a select acad- emy under the care of Sisters of St. Joseph, who also have charge of some 300 girls in the parochial school. The present convent was built in 1890, by Father McNamara. Father Taaffe built the present pastoral residence and placed the church upon a solid basis, and was then called to rescue St. Patrick's church from its financial embarrassments. He was suc- ceeded by the Rev. James J. McElroy. Father McElroy was not in very robust health and his pastorate was not of very long duration. At his death, in 1877, he was succeeded by the Rev. P. J. McNamara, who had already done

good service as an assistant at St. Joseph's and for three years as Pastor of St. Malachi's Church. Under each of these Pastors the church progressed, and in 1884 Father Mc- Namara presented a financial statement which was highly creditable to the business methods of the Pastor and to the generosity of his peo- ple. On the death of Father Corcoran, Father McNamara, after a pastorate of seventeen years at Our Lady of Mercy, was transferred to St. Joseph's. From the time of his ordina- tion in 1870 Father McNamara worked quietly but effectively. He visited the prisoner and carried consolation to the homes of mourn- ing, whether of the rich or the poor. His Bishop, recognizing his abilities, appointed him Vicar General of the Diocese and the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIII, invested him with the dignity of a Monsignor. His fellow students of St. Francis Xavier's College, New York, showed their appreciation of his worth and of his elevation to the prelacy by making it the special feature of one of their annual celebrations. May he long live to continue the good work he has been doing so long and so faithfully.

St. Stephen's .- In 1866 a small frame church on Carroll street, now Hicks, was pur- chased from the Episcopalians by the Rev. O. J. Dorris and dedicated under the invocation of St. Stephen. In 1873 the Rev. E. J. O'Reilly began the erection of a new church at the corner of Summit and Hicks streets, on lots that had been purchased some years be- fore, and in October, 1875, the new St. Ste- phen's was dedicated by Bishop Loughlin. This is a beautiful structure, surmounted by a magnificent spire, on the summit of which is a cross that may be seen far out upon the waters of New York Bay. In years gone by this cross was illuminated at night, and was a beacon to mariners entering the "bellissimo lago of San Germano," as the Catholic ex- plorer, Verrazano, was wont to call our bay. The old church was turned into a school and placed under the care of the Sisters of Charity.

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In 1890 the Rev. Michael T'. Fallihy be- came Pastor of St. Stephen's. He continued the work of his predecessor until the time of his death, in 1898. He was succeeded by the Rev. J. H. Mitchell, LL. D. Father Mitchell was born at Astoria, Long Island, in October IO, 1853. He made his ecclesiastical studies in Montreal, and was ordained by Bishop Loughlin on December 22, 1877. Imme- diately after his ordination he was appointed assistant at old St. James' pro-Cathedral, where he labored for some years. In time he became Secretary to Bishop Loughlin and Chancellor of the Diocese. He was a great friend of the young men and did much to im- prove their mental and spiritual condition. They were quick to recognize his interest in them, and he was elected President of the Young Men's National Union, succeeding the Rt. Rev. Bishop Keane (now Archbishop of Dubuque) in that office. He was one of the founders of the Brooklyn Catholic Historical Society and was its Vice-President for some years. The Presidency was offered to him more than once, but he refused, insisting that that position should be held by a layman. He was, nevertheless, the leading spirit of that so- ciety and one of its most indefatigable workers. One of the last acts of his life was the arrang- ing of a public meeting of the society. He was foremost in the movement which cul- minated in the erection of a bust of Peter Tur- ner, one of Brooklyn's pioneer laymen, in front of St. James' pro-Cathedral, and as chairman of the Publication Committee was collecting matter for the first publication of the Historical Society.

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A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 127

Author: Ross, Peter. cn Publication date: 1902 Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1188

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188