A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 128

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 128

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Father Mitchell's pastoratę at St. Ste- phen's, though full of promise, lasted only two or three months. His people had just come to know him and to appreciate his work when he caught cold, which developed into pneu- monia and ended in his death on April 17, 1898. This was a sad blow to his parishioners and to the Catholics of Brooklyn in general, for no priest in the Diocese was better known

or more beloved. So great was the esteem in which he was held that his name was one of the three proposed for a successor to the Rt. Rev. Bishop Loughlin. The Catholics of Brooklyn were anxious to do something to show their appreciation of this good priest. The Brooklyn Catholic Historical Society in- augurated a movement to perpetuate his mem- ory. Under the Presidency of the late Joseph W. Carroll, a union of the Catholic societies of the Diocese was effected and all joined to- gether in raising a fund of $5,000 to secure a scholarship, to be known as "the Rev. James H. Mitchell scholarship," in the Catholic Uni- versity of America, at Washington, D. C. The Rt. Rev. Bishop McDonnell approved and en- couraged the movement, and in time he had the happiness of sending a check to the Rt. Rev. Mgr. Thomas J. Conaty, D. D., Presi- dent of the university, for a scholarship which was to be for the benefit of Brooklyn theo- logical students, for all time. Had Father Mitchell been consulted in this matter he would not have desired otherwise. The first Mass of many a young and zealous priest will be offered up for the repose of good Father Mitchell long after those who knew him and loved him and who contributed to this fund shall have passed away and been forgotten.

Father Mitchell's successor was the Rev. Nicholas J. Doran, the present (1901) Pastor of St. Stephen's.

St. Louis.'-In 1869, on July 18, Bishop Loughlin laid the corner-stone of a new church for the French-speaking Catholics of the Eastern District. This church was later on dedicated to God, under the patronage of St. Louis. The Pastor was the Rev. Jules Jollon, a gentleman who has done missionary service in Africa as well as in America, and who has been signally honored by the French Govern- ment. In 1889 Father Jollon removed his congregation from Marshall street to Ellery street near Nostrand avenue. Here a hand- sonie frame church with parochial school and pastoral residence has been erected. The

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church has a seating capacity of 1,700. The French element, which at one time was largely from Alsace and Lorraine, is gradually di- minishing, and the bulk of the congregation is now composed of English-speaking people. Father Jollon's assistants are English-speaking priests and sermons are delivered, on Sundays, in French and in English.

St. Cecilia's .- In 1870 two new churches were started, one in the Eastern District under the invocation of St. Cecilia, and the other in the Western District dedicated to St. Augus- tine. The old St. Cecilia's, a small frame building, and the frame pastoral residence, were about as primitive as it was possible to make them. The congregation started as a mission of old St. Mary's. At first Mass was said in a hall on Herbert street, between North Henry and Monitor streets. Some 200 persons constituted the original congregation and prominent among these were William Clarkson, Patrick Doyle, Michael Dowd, M. Riley, Thom- as Riley and J. McCabe. In 1870 a small frame church, 25 feet by 50 feet, was built by the Rev. Father John R. McDonald. Rev. Florence Mc- Carthy was the first resident Pastor, in 1874, and lie built a second church, also a frame structure, 35 feet by 85 feet. After a pastor- ate of ten years Father McCarthy was suc- ceeded by the Rev. Michael Malone, in 1884. In the meantime the parish had been growing and the time was fast approaching when a third church would become necessary. Father Malone labored for four years to meet the needs of his people, and in 1888 he was trans- ferred to another field of labor. His successor was the Rev. Edward J. McGoldrick.

Father McGoldrick is a native of Brooklyn and made his early studies in old St. James' school. Later on he went to Manhattan Col- lege, where he graduated with honor. Having decided to devote his life to the service of God, at the altar he offered himself to Bishop Loughlin, whose quick discernment not only led him to accept the young aspirant for holy orders but to send him to the American Col-

lege in Rome to make his ecclesiastical studies. At the completion of his theological course Father McGoldrick was ordained in Rome, and on his return to Brooklyn was assigned to assist Father Taaffe at St. Patrick's.

Here he labored until 1888, when he was appointed Pastor of St. Cecilia's. The posi- tion demanded a man of prudence and energy ; there was a considerable debt to be paid and the erection of a new church was an imper- ative necessity. Bishop Loughlin made no mistake in the man he selected to undertake this work. Father McGoldrick at once made an appeal to his people, setting forth the needs of the parish, and the people responded. with alacrity. In a short time the old debt was paid off, and on September 27, 1891, Bishop Loughlin laid the corner-stone of the new St. Cecilia's, a white marble structure, 90 fect by 165 feet, in the Romanesque style of archi- tecture, and with a seating capacity of 1,400. The ceremonies attending the laying of the corner-stone were of an unusual character. The musical part was performed by the Bee- thoven Liederkranz, Oriole Glee Club, and picked soloists from the various Catholic choirs of the city. After the ceremony of the laying of the corner-stone was over, a ser- mon was preached by the Rev. William J. Donovan, Rector of St. Anne's church, Hamp- ton Junction, New Jersey. An address was also delivered by Governor Albert, of New Jersey, who was a lifelong friend of the Pas- tor. Immediately adjoining the church is a handsome three-story pastoral residence of the same material (Georgia marble) as the church. The new St. Cecilia's was dedicated in 1893, and the first Mass was celebrated by Most Rev. Francesco Satolli, D. D., at that time Apostolic Delegate to the United States. The church property is now valued at some $250,- 000. In time Father McGoldrick expects to build a school that will accommodate the chil- dren of his 6,000 parishioners.

St. Augustine's .- The corner-stone of the original St. Augustine's church was laid in

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

November, 1870, by the Very Rev. J. F. Tur- ner, then Vicar General of the Diocese of Brooklyn. The church was situated at the corner of Fifth avenue and Bergen street. Rev. Louis J. Rhatigan was its Pastor, and he had the happiness of seeing his church com- pleted and dedicated in March, 1871. This church, though small, was amply sufficient to meet the wants of the Catholics in that part of the city in those days. But it was not long before the congregation began to grow very rapidly, and the congregation of fifteen or twenty persons who attended the first Mass said in the Pastor's residence, at No. 43 Prospect Place, now began to be compressed in the original church, which was 100 feet by 50 feet in dimensions. Then, too, the noisy surface cars and the projected elevated line made a change of site desirable. Father Rhatigan died on March 23, 1876, at the age of thirty-six, after a pastorate. of only six years.

He was immediately succeeded by the Rev. Edward W. McCarty, the present (1901) Pastor. Father McCarty at once saw the needs of his parish. The church property-200 feet on Fifth avenue and 169 feet on Bergen street, and 100 feet on St. Mark's avenue, together with the old church and parochial house-were sold, for $70,000, to the Brooklyn Elevated Railroad Company. A new site was pur- chased, 200 feet on Sixth avenue by 245 feet on Sterling Place, by 145 feet on Park Place, and on it the present magnificent building was erected, at a cost of about $350,000. An evi- dence of Father McCarty's tact and prudence will be found in the fact that the church is now practicably free from debt, and plans are now on hand for the erection of a chapel, school house and rectory. Among the fam- ilies that were interested in the early founda- tion of the parish may be mentioned Mr. James Rorke's and Mr. Michael Bennett's. The parish has also given the church two of its distinguished sons : The Very Rev. William L. O'Hara, A. M., President of Mount St.

Mary's College, Emmittsburg, Maryland ; and the Rev. John L. Belford, the successor of the late Rev. Sylvester Malone, as Rector of the church of Sts. Peter and Paul. The pres- ent church was dedicated in 1892. It is a grand English Gothic structure, 166 feet by 75 feet, and is considered by many to be the finest church in the Diocese. Father McCarty is a gentleman of taste and refinement and this is evinced in the appointments and decora- tions of his church, which are of the finest quality and most artistic in design.

St. Leonard of Port Maurice .- The year 1871 saw the erection of two new churches, St. Leonard of Port Maurice, for the Ger- mans, and the Church of the Sacred Heart. St. Leonard's is situated at Hamburgh avenue and Jefferson street, and was erected during the pastorate of the Rev. John J. Raber. Father Raber was a far-sighted man and was not slow to realize that his young parish was destined to grow. He seized the opportunity that presented itself and secured nearly the whole square block bounded by Jefferson and Melrose streets and Hamburg avenue and De- Kalb avenue. He built a church suitable to the needs of his day and made it especially attractive on account of the beautiful paint- ings which decorated its walls. He erected a school, attended by some 730 boys and girls, and placed it under the care of the Sisters of St. Dominic. Father Raber died in 1888 and was succeeded by Rev. Henry Francis Weite- kamp. The parish had now grown to such an extent that Father Weitekamp required two assistants. At this time he had the Rev. F. M. Schneider and Rev. Peter Henn. It was not long before he began to feel that a new and larger church was necessary, and he made ar- rangements to meet these requirements. But before he was able to carry out his designs he was called to a better world. He died Jan- uary 8, 1895, at the age of thirty-two years. Father Weitekamp was a native of Brooklyn .and was ordained in 1886. It was reserved for Father George D. Sander to undertake the

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THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ON LONG ISLAND.

work of the erection of the new church. Father Sander had been an assistant of the Rt. Rev. Mgr. May, at the church of the Holy Trinity, and had profited by the experience of his former pastor. In July, 1896, ground was broken for the new building, a grand commodious structure costing some $200,000. Father Sander has had the satisfaction of reap- ing the reward of his labors. His school has also increased, so that in 1901 he had some 1,400 children under the care of twenty-four Sisters of St. Dominic. His assistants are Revs. Francis X. Bettinger and Hermann Luegel.

Church of the Sacred Heart .-- The church of the Sacred Heart, Clermont avenue, near Park, was started in the old primary-school building on Vanderbilt avenue in 1871. Like many other churches in the city of Brooklyn, its beginning was very humble, but the mustard seed grew in time. It is a pity that Father McGivern, the first Pastor of the Church of the Sacred Heart, was obliged by ill health to give up his charge before he had the opportunity of maturing the plans he had made for the future ; but, finding that the work before him was beyond his strength, he re- quested the Bishop to turn it over to another. Bishop Loughlin rarely, if ever, made mistakes in his selections of men to fill certain places. Rev. John A. McCullum was an energetic young priest who had been assisting Father Taaffe at St. Patrick's church for some four years, and Bishop Loughlin confided to him the task of developing and shaping the plans of Father McGivern. Father McCullum at once set to work to organize the new parish. His first effort was the holding of a fair, which proved to be one of the most successful ever held in the city. A magnificent new church was soon erected on Clermont avenue, near Park. By the side of the church was erected one of the most spacious and best equipped parochial schools in the city. Father Mc- Cullum was ably assisted in his work by the Rev. John F. Nash, who on the death of Fa-

ther McCullum, on December 31, 1887, suc- ceeded to the pastorate of the Church of the Sacred Heart and completed the work which he and his predecessor had commenced.

Church of the Nativity .- The year 1871 gave still another church to the city of Brook- lyn,-the Nativity of Our Blessed Lord,-at the corner of Classon avenue and Madison street. On October 1, 1871, Bishop Loughlin sent the Rev. Michael J. Moran to form a new parish between St. Joseph's and St. Pat- rick's. Father Moran was well known in the district in which he was to labor, having as- sisted Fathers Fagan and Fitzpatrick at St. Patrick's, Kent avenue, for several years. He also spent a year at Flatbush, and while at the latter place attended Parkville, where he built a little church for the few Catholics who then resided in that vicinity. On being sent to organize a new parish he secured a most ad- vantageous site, and on the feast of St. Pat- rick, 1872, he said his first Mass in the new parish, in the present parochial residence. The number of attendants was small, reckoned hy the dozens only, but a start had to be made. On the 19th of May Father Moran had the happiness of seeing the corner-stone of the present church laid, and on the 2Ist of Octo- ber of the same year the church was solemnly dedicated to the Nativity of Our Blessed Lord. Its construction indicates that it is only a tem- porary structure which later on, when the times are propitious, will become a school and give way to a handsome church worthy of the neighborhood. In the meantime Father Moran has provided for the education of the children of the parish by the erection, in 1885, of a commodious school house, and about the same time he purchased a property adjoining his own and opened a convent and academy, which he placed under the care of the Sisters of St. Joseph. In 1888 Father Moran secured a valuable property at the southwest corner of Gates and Franklin avenues, which eventu- ally will be used for educational purposes, but which in the meantime is used by the lit-

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

erary and benevolent societies of the parish as a meeting place.

Father Moran was ordained in old St. James' Pro-Cathedral, December 8, 1865, an1.1 on December 8, 1890, he had the happiness of celebrating his Silver Jubilee. His congre- gation of a few dozen that assembled in the old rectory nineteen years before have grown to 4,000 ; his Sunday-school numbers some 1,000 children; and his parochial school and academy are in a prosperous condition. Among the more prominent members of his parish may be mentioned the Hon. Felix Campbell, former member of Congress and an ex-School Commissioner, a gentleman who has done tlie Church and the State good service.

St. Bernard's .- In 1872 the Rev. John J. Ammann gathered together the Catholic Ger- mans living in South Brooklyn and said Mass for them in Temperance Hall, on Hamilton avenue, and two years later he succeeded in obtaining a church which had been used by Baptists and which he dedicated to God under the invocation of the great St. Bernard. In 1891 the feast of St. Bernard was celebrated in this church, with great pomp and cere- mony. The Pastor at that time, the Rev. M. N. Wagner, left nothing undone to make the occasion worthy of the great saint. Bishop Loughlin, of Brooklyn, presided, and the late Rt. Rev. Winand M. Wigger, D. D., Bishop of Newark, pontificated. The sermon was preached by the Rev. Father Bonaventure, O. S. F. In 1891 a four-story brick dwelling on Woodhull street near the rear of the church was purchased for a parish school. The school is now (1901) under the care of six Sisters of St. Dominic. The Pastor is the Rev. Jo- seplı Traenkle.

St. Alphonsus .- While the Germans of South Brooklyn were organizing St. Bernard's their fellow countrymen in Greenpoint, under the guidance of the Rev. Wendelin Guhl, were laying the foundations of St. Alphonsus' church on Kent street, near Manhattan avenue. The church was a frame building, the corner-

stone of which was laid by Bishop Loughlin in March, 1873. It was dedicated on August 8, of the same year. The first Mass was said in a little frame building on the same lot, and the people assembled in it every Sunday until their new church was finished. The di- mensions of the present church are 56x85 feet. . In the rear of the church Father Guhl has a parochial school, opened in January, 1892, and taught by Sisters of Notre Dame. Father Gulil is a hard worker and his school is in a flourishing condition.

St. Michael's .- The year 1874 saw the foundation of four churches: St. Michael's, at Fourth avenue and Forty-second street ; St. Casimir's (for the Poles), on Green ave- nue, near Adelphi street; St. Teresa's, on Classon avenue and Butler street; and the church of the Transfiguration, Marcy avenue and Hooper street.

St. Michael's congregation was first or- ganized in a private house, No. 1047 Third avenue, by the Rev. Michael J. Hickey. The first Mass was attended by about twenty-five persons. Later on a church was built on Fourth avenue. Father Hickey was succeeded in 1875 by the Rev. Joseph P. O'Connell, D. D. (now Mgr. O'Connell), who on January 3, 1886, opened a fine school, 70 feet by 45 feet. In September of the same year he opened a convent for the Sisters of St. Jo- seph, who have charge of the school, which now numbers 500 pupils. On March 9, 1896, Rev. Henry A. Gallagher became Pastor of St. Michael's. He made some very important improvements and enlarged the church, so that its present dimensions are 92 feet by 45 feet. He is doing good work in the parish and is ably assisted by Rev. Joseph Smith and Rev. Edward F. McGolrick.

St. Teresa's .- The foundation of St. Teresa's church was a little more propitious. The Rev. Joseph McNamee was sent, in April, 1874, to organize a new parish in the sparsely settled neighborhood of Classon avenue and Butler street. He looked around for a build-

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THE CATHOLIC CHURCH ON LONG ISLAND.

ing in which to say his first Mass. Like Fa- ther Hickey, of St. Michael's, he found a good Irishman who was ready to open his doors to the priest, so that on the 4th day of May, 1874, the nucleus of the new St. Teresa's par- ish-one hundred and fifty souls-assembled at the residence of Mr. D. Gallagher, No. 685 Butler street, to welcome their future Pastor and extend to him their hearty co-operation. On the same day ground was broken. The corner-stone of the present building, 76 feet by 125 feet, was laid on August 2, 1874. By the following January (1875) the building had progressed so far that Rt. Rev. Bishop Lough- lin was able to open the basement for divine service, but the beautiful church was not en- tirely finished and dedicated until October 16, 1887. On September 1, 1883, Father Mc- Namee opened a fine school house, 50 feet by 90 feet, which was taught by thirteen Sisters of St. Joseph and two lay teachers. In No- vember, 1883, he opened a convent for the Sis- ters ; so that St. Teresa's is now a thoroughly equipped parish. During his pastorate Father McNamee has been assisted by Rev. Laurence J. Guerin (October, 1876, to January, 1891), Rev. Hugh Cassidy (January, 1885, to Jan- uary, 1886), Rev. John J. Crimmins (October, 1885, to November 7, 1899, when he died), Rev. Joseph McGurley (1891), and Rev. James A. Higgins and Rev. Philip T. Brady, his present assistants.

Church of the Transfiguration .- At the corner of Marcy avenue and Hooper street stands a beautiful structure of the Roman style of architecture and erected in honor of the Transfiguration of our Blessed Redeemer. To see that building now, few persons would be- lieve that in 1874 one hundred and ten Catlı- olics of the neighborhood assembled to hear Mass by the Rev. John Fagan, in a carpenter shop at No. 208 Hooper street, but such is the fact ; and yet, did not the Divine Founder of the Holy Catholic Church begin life in the car- penter shop of his foster father, St. Joseph? Perhaps this coincidence may account for the

success that has attended this parish. In 1875 Father Fagan moved his congregation into a neat brick structure, 40 feet by 75 feet in di- mensions, which was intended ultimately for a parochial school. Father Fagan died in 1878 and was succeeded by Rev. William J. Hill, the present pastor of St. Paul's. Before Fa- ther Hill had time to accustom himself to his surroundings his services were required to in- fuse new life into old Mount St. Mary's Col- lege, Emmittsburg, Maryland, and lie did it.

In 1881 Rev. John M. Kiely assumed charge of the Church of the Transfiguration. He saw at once that the parish had outgrown the old brick church erected by Father Fagan, and he immediately set to work to build the present church, a magnificent structure, 140 feet by 73 feet, and made it one of the largest and handsomest churches in the city. He also built the large and commodious pastoral resi- dence adjoining the church. Father Kiely died in 1899, deeply regretted by his flock.

The priests connected with the Church of the Transfiguration are as follows: Pastors- Revs. John Fagan, 1874-78; Rev. William J. Hill, 1878-81 ; Rev. John M. Kiely, 1881-1899 ; Rev. William J. Maguire, 1900 -. The assist- ants were Revs. Denis Tivenan, E. W. Dullea, C. H. O'Dougherty, Walter Mansfield, Joseph Kilpatrick, Walter Power, Peter Quealey, John J. O'Neill and Jeremiah J. Heafey.

Church of the Holy Family .- In 1876 the Rev. James J. Hanselman erected a church for the Germans on Thirteenth street between Fourth and Fifth avenues, and dedicated it to the Holy Family. Some time afterward Fa- ther Hanselman erected a fine school, which he placed under the care of the Sisters of St. Dominic. It is now attended by some 200 pupils. The year 1877 was marked by the opening of St. John's Chapel, one of the chap- els of the new Cathedral on Clermont avenue, and which has already been described.

St. Agnes.'-Three new churches were added to the city of Brooklyn in 1878. The most prominent of these was St. Agnes', un-

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der the pastoral charge of the Rev. (now Mgr.) James Duffy. It began in a modest frame structure on Hoyt street, near Sackett street. The congregation then numbered about 600. The corner-stone of the new church was laid in the spring of 1881. It was a massive Gothic structure of brick, brown stone and polished marble, 180 feet by 90 feet. The windows, which were very fine, were made in Munich, and the grand organ was said to have cost $20,000. In the summer of 1901 this beautiful church was struck by lightning and totally destroyed. This was a terrible blow to Mgr. Duffy and his people, but they have set to work to rebuild their church and in time a new St. Agnes' will rise from the ashes of the old one. Mgr. Duffy also erected a magnificent school building, which is at- tended by over 1,300 pupils, under the care of six Sisters of St. Joseph and sixteen lay teachers. Mgr. Duffy is assisted by Revs. James J. Flynn, Louis J. Sloame, Louis M. O. Blaber and John I. Whelan.

Church of the Holy Name .- The next house of worship, built in 1878, was the Church of the Holy Name. The Rev. Thomas J. O'Reilly in March of that year gathered to- gether the first congregation in "McCann's stable," at the corner of Eighteenth street and Eleventh avenue. On August II of the same year Bishop Loughlin laid the corner-stone of a new church on the corner of Ninth and Pros- pect avenues, and Father O'Reilly had the happiness of seeing it dedicated on Christmas day of the same year. It is a neat brick edi- fice capable of seating a thousand people. In addition to this Father O'Reilly has provided for the education of the children of his parish by erecting a school that now accommodates some 500 children, under the care of the Sis- ters of St. Joseph. Father O'Reilly is still in charge of the parish and is assisted. by Rev. John McEnroe.

Church of the Fourteen Holy Martyrs .- The Church of the Fourteen Holy Martyrs is another new edifice, erected for the Lithuan-

ians. It is situated at Central avenue and Covert street. The first Mass was said in a house on Central avenue and Cooper street ; some twenty-five persons attended. Soon after a church, 40x60 feet, was built, and dedicated in 1878. The Rev. Bernard F. Kurz was its first Pastor and is still in charge. He has also a parochial school in the basement of the church, under the direction of the Sisters of St. Dominic.

St. Matthew's .- Rev. B. J. McHugh was commissioned to build St. Matthew's church on Utica avenue near the boulevard. A fine brick building was erected, which for a time an- swered the needs of both church and school. At length Father McGlinchey, who succeeded Father McHugh, erected a new church and also a school, which is conducted by the Sis- ters of St. Joseph. They have over 300 chil- dren under their charge. In March, 1901, Father McGlinchey celebrated his silver jubi- lee. He was ordained by Bishop Loughlin on March II, 1876, and was immediately as- signed to assist the late Father Corcoran, at St. Joseph's, and continued in that capacity for nine years. He was then appointed Pastor of St. John's church, Riverhead, Long Island, and after five years of hard service here was called to the pastorate of St. Matthew's, where he is still doing good work.

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A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 128

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