Philadelphia’s First Catholic Cathedral
...nd St. Augustine. Of the four, Old St. Mary’s was selected to be the first Catholic Cathedral of the diocese. Due to this, work soon began to increase the size of the church so that 36 new pews could be added. The trustee minutes declared that “our funds are unequal
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
...000 in today’s money).[1] The site of the national shrine was to be on the campus of The Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., which Msgr. Shahan was the rector of at the time. Shahan’s desire for the building of the shrine stemmed from the large Marian devotion during
Parish and School Closing
...closure included Northeast Catholic High School for Boys and Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls; however, because of community support both remained open. Parish schools would also be affected by the closures, and even parishes that remained open saw their schools close, such as St. Patrick’s in Norristown. Halvey_644J_073
Archbishop Ryan
...ners (appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt) and opening the first African-American parish, St. Peter’s Claver.[12] His work with the underserved could be seen most clearly in his connections with Saint Katharine Drexel. After the death of Bishop O’Connor, Ryan became Drexel’s spiritual advisor. It was Ryan’s suggest that Drexel named