Philadelphia’s First Catholic Cathedral
...races its history to 1763, when a second church was needed for the growing number of Catholics in the city. Built on land originally bought to serve as a cemetery for Old St. Joseph’s, Old St. Mary’s was referred to as “Mission Number 1” as St. Joseph’s was seen as
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
...merging of Byzantine and Romanesque styles.[3] The change in design had a number of reasons, which the architect, Charles Maginnis, stated arose out of a desire for a “distinctively American” church that would allow for a blending of the architecture in Washington D.C.[4] Another practical reason was the contemporary building
World War One Army Chaplains
...chbishop Prendergast in 1906, Father Wolfe served as assistant pastor to a number of parishes including St. Patrick’s and Assumption B.V.M.[4] When the United States entered World War I, Father Wolfe applied to be an army chaplain, being first assigned to Camp Meade in Maryland. In May 1918, he was
Catholics in WWII
...which Philadelphia had the second most with 51. As the war continued that number would increase to 68, unfortunately eight of those Philadelphia priests would die in the war, the most of any U.S. diocese.[7] Meyer Photo: Margherita Camp Chapel From his priests, Dougherty would often receive monthly progress reports