Jesus Christ - Saint Joseph Cemetery - Connellsville, Pennnsylvania - Statues of Religious Figures on Waymarking.com

Jesus Christ - Saint Joseph Cemetery - Connellsville, Pennnsylvania



Saint Joseph, the cemetery for Immaculate Conception Parish has a long and proud history. The roots of the parish can be traced back to the early 1800s when priests traveling through the area would minister to scattered Catholic families.

The priest would celebrate Mass, hear confessions and confer the other sacraments as needed before moving along on his way. In 1837, the bishop of Philadelphia appointed the first specific pastor, Father Michael Gallagher, to serve the Catholics in the Connellsville area. His parish included the counties of Fayette, Greene, Washington and parts of Westmoreland and Somerset. It would be 40 years before Connellsville would have a parish of its own.

As the number of area Catholics began to grow, particularly with a large influx of Irish immigrants, the bishop of Philadelphia, in 1870, felt the need to appoint a resident pastor to celebrate Mass every Sunday in Connellsville.

But, it was not long before the need for a new larger building became evident and in May, 1887 a new church was dedicated by Bishop Phelan. At this time there were over 100 Irish and American families registered in the parish.

Unfortunately on January 22, 1892, just a few years after it had been built, the church caught fire and burned to the ground. The congregation was determined to rebuild and in September 1896 the cornerstone was laid for a new church at its current site.

Bricks salvaged from the first church were incorporated into the church walls along with the new brick. The church, 129 feet long and 65 feet wide was built in a pure Gothic style. By that time the parish numbered 400 families with about 1,500 members.

The current cemetery and expansion of it was the catylst of John T. Burns was born May 26th, 1857 in Gallitzin, Cambria County, a second generation American Irishman. He attended St. Vincent's College in Latrobe to prepare for his priesthood. Father Burns was ordained in 1892 and came to Connellsville from New Brighton on December 22nd, 1896, in time for Christmas. The parishioners here came to recognize him as their gift.

The Father arrived in Connellsville with his sister Bridget serving as his housekeeper. He helped to complete the newly begun Immaculate Conception Church and it was dedicated on September 13th, 1897, the parsonage in 1898. The total cost of the building was 50 thousand dollars or nearly a million and a half dollars today. Father Burns retired that indebtedness during his term as pastor. The property would have occupied an entire block from Crawford to Apple with the church, parochial school, rectory and convent contained there. He was a strong supporter of Connellsville's Knights of Columbus and the local council was named for him. Father Burns was a friend to the railroad unions here during those days also. He was asked to give the opening address during a 1899 August weekend national union gathering held at Soisson Park in South Connellsville that numbered over 7000 people. He was always close by when there was a basketball game going on in the parochial hall and he could be found in our mountains during hunting seasons. He was a catcher when he played baseball in seminary school without a catcher’s mitt. Father Burns passed away May 2nd, 1922 less than 2 weeks before his 65th birthday with more than a quarter century of serving Connellsville. The church arranged for this marble memorial stone in the center of the 40 acres added to the new St. Joseph's Cemetery the year following his death.