St. James Roman Catholic Church (Manhattan)

Coordinates: 40°42′44″N 73°59′55″W / 40.71222°N 73.99861°W / 40.71222; -73.99861
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
St. James' Roman Catholic Church
(2007)
St. James Roman Catholic Church (Manhattan) is located in Lower Manhattan
St. James Roman Catholic Church (Manhattan)
Location32 James Street
Manhattan, New York City
Coordinates40°42′44″N 73°59′55″W / 40.71222°N 73.99861°W / 40.71222; -73.99861
Built1835–1837
Architectattributed to Minard Lafever[2]
Architectural styleGreek Revival
NRHP reference No.72000884[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 24, 1972
Designated NYCLJanuary 18, 1966

St. James' Roman Catholic Church is located at 32 James Street between St. James Place and Madison Street in the

Minard Lefever, and is sometimes attributed to him, there is no hard evidence of this being true.[2][4] The building was once topped by a domed cupola.[4]

History

The parish was established by

St. Peter's on Barclay Street. He purchased an Episcopal church building on Ann Street, retaining the name of Christ Church, and asked Father Félix Varela to organize a congregation. Fr. Varela also established a free school. In October 1833, it was discovered that nearby excavation had rendered Christ Church unsound. Pending the completion of a new building on James Street, premises were rented at 33 Ann Street. However, some members of the congregation finding this too far uptown, instead purchased the Reformed Presbyterian church on Chambers Street. This would become the parish of the Transfiguration, with Fr. Varela as the first pastor.[5]

The first Mass was said in the basement of the James St. church on September 18, 1836. The following January it was dedicated under the invocation of St. James the Apostle, by Bishop Dubois. Andrew Byrne was appointed rector. Byrne was succeeded in 1842 by Rev. John Maginnis, who was in turn followed by Rev. John N. Smith. In 1848 Fr. Smith succumbed to "ship fever" contracted when administering last rites to Father Mark Murphy of Staten Island, who had contracted the illness while tending recently arrived immigrants.[5]

St. James Elementary School
, located across the street.

The church was ordered to be closed by New York City officials in 1983, because of the danger of its roof collapsing.

Parish of St. Joseph
. The combined Parish of St. Joseph/St. James was merged again with the Church of the Transfiguration in 2015.

Pastors

  • Fr. Andrew Byrne, 1837–1842
  • Fr. John Maginnis, 1842
  • Fr. John N. Smith, 1842–1848
  • Fr. Patrick McKenna, 1848–1858
  • Fr. Thomas Martin O.P. 1858–1859
  • Fr. James Brennan, 1859–1865
  • Fr. Felix Farrelly, 1865–1880
  • Fr. John J. Kean, 1880–1901
  • Fr. James B. Curry, 1901–?[5]

See also

  • List of New York City Landmarks
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in New York County, New York

References

Notes

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^
    ISBN 978-0-470-28963-1
    .
  3. ^
    ISBN 978-0-19538-386-7
    .
  4. ^
    ISBN 0-231-12543-7
    ., p.210-11
  5. ^ a b c Lafort, Remigius. The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X, Catholic editing Company, 1914, p. 336Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. ^ Cunningham, Jennifer H. and Paddock, Barry. "Firefighters Save Historic Manhattan Church," New York Daily News (January 11, 2011)

External links


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