|
|
In 1943 Immaculate Conception was
still a mission chapel of St. Peter's Cathedral Parish, having
one pastor, Reverend Francis A. Costello, and one parochial
school, Cathedral School, founded in 1872 as the first Catholic
School in Scranton and originally named St. Cecilia's Academy.
The children from the Petersburg and Hill sections of the parish
who attended Catholic school were enrolled in the downtown facility.
Religious instructions were also provided at the Cathedral School
for those attending public schools. In 1923, the Mission Chapel
of the Immaculate Conception was built. While it was not yet
a parish in its own right and had no resident pastor, the chapel
became the center of worship for Catholics from the Hill Section,
and its auditorium also provided a convenient location in which
to hold religious instructions for the children. The Sisters,
Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary who had served as teachers
at the Cathedral School from its opening in 1872 serviced the
Mission Chapel as sacristans and religious education teachers
from the time of its opening in 1923. (60)
In 1941, Monsignor Martin J. O'Connor (later, Archbishop) as
pastor of Cathedral Parish acquired the old Bayard Taylor, No.
35 public grade school, located at the corner of Taylor and
Olive Street, from the Scranton School District. This building
was a three-story, red brick structure with ten classrooms and
two spacious halls. It was in complete disrepair at the time
of its purchase, but under the direction of Monsignor O'Connor,
extensive improvements were made--the tower which surmounted
the school was taken down; the iron fence that surrounded the
property was removed and the grounds landscaped; classrooms
and halls were painted; desks sanded and refinished; and new
blackboards set in place. At the time of the purchase of the
school, two vacant lots across from the property on Olive Street
were also purchased. This land was graded and sodded and playground
equipment installed. New cement walks were laid. These playground
facilities were made accessible to all the children of the neighborhood.
(61)
A year before the school was officially opened to students for
a regular full-time session, religious instructions were offered
twice weekly in the school building. In the summer of l942 both
kindergarten and catechetical instructions were held there.
The sisters engaged in this work included Sister Francella Shaughnessy
as kindergarten instructor; Sister Margrete Kelly, Sister Maris
Law and Sister Rosalita Smith taught religion to the various
grade levels of children. These sisters lived at Cathedral Convent
and commuted by the day to the Chapel School building. (62)
Monsignor O'Connor had been made Auxiliary Bishop of Scranton,
so his pastorate was given into other hands. He had prepared
well for a successor and the many matters for which he had been
responsible were transferred with relative ease. By September
7, l943, all was in readiness for the opening of Chapel School.
Monsignor Francis Costello, newly designated pastor of Cathedral
Parish, celebrated a votive High Mass in honor of the Holy Spirit
in Immaculate Conception Mission Chapel. Following the Mass,
two hundred children from kindergarten through fourth grade
marched the two blocks from the Chapel to the school under the
watchful eyes of Sister Ricarda Gill, who served as principal
of both Cathedral and Chapel Schools, and the five sister-faculty
members. These included Sister Ignatius Brown, Sister Grata
(Barbara) Brow, Sister Timothea (Jane) Driscoll, Sister Vera
Nallin and Sister Carmelita (Jane) Berube.
Sister Ignatius was to spend only two months there since she
was transferred to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, in November 1943. Sister
Maria Theophane Allen took her place at Chapel School. (63)
Since 1938 Sister Ricarda had served as principal at Cathedral
School, where the enrollment was about 600 pupils, so perhaps
she took it in stride that she was now being asked to add 200
to her expert care!
The foresight shown in planning for and opening Chapel School
is evident in the fact of its growth to almost six hundred students
by 1958. The numbers of students exceeded the space limitations,
so the then pastor, Monsignor Robert A. McNulty, announced that
the eighth grade would henceforth be located at Cathedral School
on Wyoming Avenue and that children who were not members of
Cathedral Parish (or the Mission Chapel) would also transfer
to the Cathedral School. But even with these arrangements the
Chapel School still enrolled nearly five hundred children. Nine
sisters and one lay teacher comprised the faculty at that time.
On August 28, 1958, Monsignor McNulty also announced that Miss
M. Pauline Casey had given her home at 612 Clay Avenue to the
Cathedral Parish for the use of the Sisters, Servants of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary, as a convent. Miss Casey had given
this property to the Bernardine Sisters in 1943, but in withdrawing
their sisters from the faculty of South Catholic High School
in 1958, the Bernardine Sisters returned the property to Pauline
Casey. These events were providential for our sisters, since
the growing faculty at Cathedral High School would have soon
brought about the need for an additional residence to accommodate
the faculty of Immaculate Conception Chapel School.
The Casey residence was located two blocks below the school
in the beautiful hill section of Scranton. Its twenty rooms
readily accommodated the needs of the nine sisters who took
up residence there on Saturday, August 30, 1958. The local community
included Sister Rose Francis Brown, superior and principal,
Sister Miriam Eugene Carroll, Sister Constantine Proulx, Sister
Marquita Sealey, Sister Greta Collins, Sister Charlene Templeton,
Sister Rosaria Joyce, Sister Eugenius (Teresa) O'Malley and
Sister LaSalette Connell.
Monsignor McNulty on Sunday, August 31, l958, celebrated the
first Mass in the new convent. A Jesuit priest, Reverend Joseph
P. Logan, was appointed chaplain, thus providing daily Mass
in the convent for the sisters.
Pauline Casey continued to show her extreme generosity by having
the exterior of the convent painted and by purchasing a new
electric stove for the kitchen. Generous gifts and donations
were made also by parishioners and by the families of the sisters
to provide chapel, kitchen, library and other materials for
the convent. (64)
Chapel School continued to grow as a K-7 grade school, reaching
a peak of 514 pupils in 1962-1963. By 1966, declining enrollment
at the downtown Cathedral Elementary School, however, resulted
in the decision to close the Cathedral Elementary School, transfer
grade seven from the Chapel School to the Cathedral High School
building, thus creating a junior and senior high school complex;
and to provide for Cathedral and Chapel elementary students
a K-6 setting at the Chapel School.
While these actions were logical due to the shifting population
of the downtown parish with an enrollment of 184 students, 121
of whom were in grades 7 and 8, it was obvious that the end
of an era had come. St. Peter's Cathedral Grade School building
had been, over a 94-year span a most significant spot in the
history of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of
Mary. The original building on this spot was opened and blessed
on July 2, 1872, by Bishop William O'Hara, first Bishop of Scranton,
and on September 8, 1872, it was named Saint Cecilia's and became
the motherhouse and novitiate of the Congregation, transferring
from Susquehanna, Pennsylvania. On September 26, 1872, St. Cecilia's
Academy was opened as a resident and day school and became the
first school founded in the diocese by Bishop O'Hara. The sisters
resided on the fourth floor of this structure above the school,
with no elevator to ease their ascent. Portress duty was reserved
for the young and agile!
At the time of the decision to close Cathedral Grade School
in 1966, it was decided to retain this 92-year-old structure
as a convent for the Cathedral High School faculty until further
plans could be made. (65)
On June 17, 1967, Immaculate Conception officially became a
full-fledged parish, separate from Cathedral Parish. The word
"Chapel" was dropped from the name of the parish.
The first pastor of the newly created parish was Reverend (later,
Monsignor) Leo W. Gildea. (66)
The deteriorating physical condition of the Chapel School building
was a serious financial drain on the parish and became also
a safety concern of the parents of school-aged children. Throughout
1970 and the spring of 1971 there was much discussion about
the future of the school as the enrollment dropped to 160 pupils,
K-6 grades. There were additional costs also as three lay teachers
were hired to augment the four sister-teachers. An exchange
of letters between Bishop J. Carroll McCormick and Mother Beata
Wertz in December 1970 and January 1971 indicate the Bishop's
desire and the Congregation's willingness to continue this school.
(67) And, as the annals report, "Easter recess brought
happy news. The Church Bulletin announced that our Reverend
Bishop did not want the school closed and repairs would be planned.”
(68)
Monsignor Gildea was replaced as pastor by Reverend (later,
Monsignor) William Purcell on September 8, 1971. Aware of the
enormity of his tasks, Father Purcell, nevertheless, began with
great enthusiasm and with the support of the parishioners to
renovate the school. During the week of January 7, 1972, teams
of parishioners painted classrooms throughout the building.
New desks were placed in the first five grades and new tile
flooring was laid. Bishop McCormick visited the school on May
2 and expressed his approval of all that had been accomplished.
Open house was held on May 7 for all parishioners, both to affirm
the labor that many had contributed and to conduct information
and public relations efforts on behalf of increased enrollment
for the school.
The beautiful twenty-room former Casey home that served as the
Immaculate Conception Convent was also in constant need of repairs
and refurbishing. In the summer of 1972, Father Purcell and
his volunteers tackled the job of painting the convent inside
and outside. At this point there were only four full-time sisters
and one part-time sister assigned to Immaculate Conception.
It was not surprising, then, that there was talk of selling
this large home and moving to a smaller house. On May 3, 1973,
talk became reality and the pastor purchased a new convent home
at 817 North Irving Avenue. The Casey home (Clay Avenue Convent)
was sold to Mr. Richard Walsh. The summer of 1973 was spent
moving from 612 Clay Avenue to the new convent on North Irving
Avenue with cleaning, packing, unpacking, and rearranging the
order of the day. The move was completed on August 10. Father
Purcell, pastor, offered the first Mass in the new convent on
September 1 and on September 10 Bishop McCormick blessed the
entire house.
The reality of a low enrollment in the fall of 1973 of only
135 pupils and continuing rumors that Immaculate Conception
was going to close, together with the Bishop's exhortation to
the sisters to strive to keep Immaculate Conception School open,
caused concern for the little community, which now included
Sister Rose Angela Ruddy, principal and superior, Sister Cecile
Gallagher and Sister Jean Coughlin. Their number was increased
by one when a postulant, Suzanne Campbell, was assigned for
third grade. (69) Their concerns were not unfounded, for on
September 18 Sister Rose Angela, as principal, attended a Congregation
meeting at which she learned that our sisters were to be withdrawn
from several schools, including Immaculate Conception, at the
close of the school year. The annals describe shock and disbelief,
even numbness, as the emotions characterizing the pastor, sisters
and parishioners as they received this news. (70) The plan was
that students from Immaculate Conception School would be bused
to St. Clare's and St. Paul's Schools in Green Ridge, utilizing
the busing system of the Scranton Public School District. Insofar
as feasible, books, equipment and materials from IC would be
transported to St. Clare's and St. Paul's over the summer. It
is not difficult to imagine how the sisters spent June of 1974
as they readied the school building for occupation by personnel
of the Northeast Educational Instruction Unit #19 on July 1.
The building was to be prepared to be a school for the handicapped
in September 1974.
The Irving Avenue Convent, too, had to be dismantled, after
only one year of occupancy by our sisters. The statues and the
monstrance from the chapel had been the gift of Sister Greta
Collins' family. These were given to our convent on River Street
in Scranton. Furnishings belonging to the parish were, of course,
left behind, but disposing of books and materials belonging
to the community was a large task. Many spiritual reading books
were given to the Passionist Sisters at St. Gabriel's Monastery.
Father Purcell, no doubt inundated by the events of the year,
was not present at the final closing of the convent. He had
left on July 5 to serve as chaplain with the Armed Forces of
the l09th Division for two weeks. On Sunday, July 14, Father Callahan removed the Blessed Sacrament
from our Chapel. Sisters Rose Angela, Maria Rita, Leo Marie
and Henry were in attendance . . . On Monday, July 15, Fathers
Meckwood and Callahan visited us to say goodbye, to thank us
for the work of the IHMs through the years, and to wish us well.
The rest of the day was spent completing those inevitable last
minute items. Finally, at 4:30 p.m. we closed the doors and
returned the keys to the rectory. (71) The thirty-year presence of our sisters at "the Chapel"
had seen a long line of religious women, rendering quality educational
service under the leadership of outstanding principals including:
Sister Ricarda Gill, Sister Paulette Morrison, Sister Alma Shelley,
Sister Alma Marie Morgan, Sister St. Helen Sullivan, Sister
Rose Francis Brown, Sister Bernita McDonough, Sister Carol Baden,
Sister Honor Lenihan and Sister Rose Angela Ruddy.
In tribute to all of the sisters who had served at "Chapel"
School an unidentified woman wrote a story for the Scrantonian
in 1981 as the old building, upon the decision of Father F.
Allan Conlon, pastor, and his parishioners, faced the wrecking
ball of the M & S Demolition Company of Old Forge. The writer
renews many happy memories of the old school, and asks:
Was it the magic of the building or the people who staffed
it that created the aura? I think it was both. I think the school
starved for the special touch of the IHM Sisters, with their
optimism and spirit. For although the original heating registers
in each room were engraved August 1, 1870--the official birth
of the building--I feel now that it must not have taken its
first breath until 1941 when the Diocese of Scranton bought
it and the Sisters came. But that is only my feeling, and there
is no one else here to debate it with this quiet morning . .
.(72 )
|
