St. Vincent de Paul Church - Baltimore, MD - Roman Catholic Churches on Waymarking.com

From Wikipedia

"St. Vincent de Paul Church is a historic Roman Catholic church located within the Archdiocese of Baltimore at 120 N. Front Street, Baltimore, Maryland, United States.

HISTORY
The church was dedicated in 1841 and is "the oldest Catholic parish church in continuous use in Baltimore."

The history of St. Vincent is entwined with the history of Baltimore itself. It was founded in 1840 by Irish workers who were building the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. Fr. John Baptist Gildea was the first pastor when the building was opened in 1841 to parishioners. The Irish immigrants working on these landmarks were a large part of the Catholic community, though membership included those from all social ranks, even slaves. It was the fifth Roman Catholic church constructed in Baltimore, and was built to serve the ever-increasing, wealthy, English-speaking Catholics in the Gay and Pratt Street area.

By 1865, weekly attendance was approximately 2,000 people. Unique among churches during this time period, St. Vincent's welcomed free people of color and slaves. Depressions in the floor in the rear of the church still show were the slave gallery was located after it was removed during a 1890s restoration.

In 1875, the church was consecrated by Archbishop James Gibbons, one of four churches so recognized in America, which placed it under the direct protection of the Holy See. The parish's most famous son was James Cardinal Gibbons (1834-1921). By the 1880s, St. Vincent's was the largest parish in the Archdiocese with over 7000 parishioners. In the 1890s, the demographics of the neighborhood shifted with new Italian immigrants, reflected by renovations to the church at the time.

Due to declining membership in the 1920s, St. Vincent's began to offer mass late Saturday night/early Sunday morning for the pressmen who printed the Sunday papers of the Baltimore Sun and the Baltimore News, each located nearby. Soon there were four such "Printers' Masses" each weekend which became very popular, attended by about 1,400. Printers were joined, and typically far out-numbered, by late-night revelers who took advantage of the unique mass time.

In the 1960s the church was actively involved in movements against the Vietnam War and social changes which helped to attract young activists to the parish and its causes. The church and its members are very proud of the wide variety of backgrounds and cultures that have accumulated over their long and diverse history. St. Vincent is still an active and engaged parish in 2019. The current pastor is Father Raymond Chase."

Type of Church: Church Status of Building: Actively in use for worship Date of organization: 01/01/1840 Date of building construction: 01/01/1841 Diocese: Archdiocese of Baltimore Maryland Address/Location: 120 N. Front Street Baltimore, MD USA 21202 Relvant Web Site: [Web Link] Dominant Architectural Style: Not listed Associated Shrines, Art, etc.: Not listed Archdiocese: Not listed

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