The Church of St. Monica, commonly referred to as St. Monica's, is a parish church in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at 413 East 79th Street, Manhattan, New York City. The parish was established in 1879 and in 2015 merged with nearby St. Elizabeth of Hungary and St. Stephen of Hungary churches.
History The fourth Catholic parish on the Upper East Side, St. Monica's was founded by John Treanor, pastor of the Church of St. Lawrence O'Toole (now the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola). James J. Dougherty was appointed the first pastor, and in 1880 he began conducting Mass over a feed store at 404 East 78th Street. The following year, he purchased land for the construction of the church and school. Construction of the first church building was completed in 1883. In 1892, the address was listed as 409 East 79th Street.The World Almanac 1892 and Book of Facts. New York: Press Publishing, 1892. p. 390.
John J. Boyle served as acting rector at St. Monica's before becoming the founding pastor of St. Luke's Church (Bronx, New York) in 1897.Remigius Lafort, S.T.D., Censor, The Catholic Church in the United States of America, Volume 3: The Province of Baltimore and the Province of New York.. New York City: The Catholic Editing Company, 1914. p. 388.
In 2015, the Archdiocese of New York ordered St. Monica's merged with St. Elizabeth's and St. Stephen's to better serve 21st century Yorkville. The merged parish, which holds services at St. Monica's, is known as The Roman Catholic Parish of St. Monica, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Stephen of Hungary. As a result of the merger, St. Monica's parish boundaries shifted slightly.
Parish school The parish school opened in 1883, operated by the Sisters of Charity of New York. The Sisters of St. Francis assumed operations in 1944. After several years of declining enrollment, the school was closed in 1974.
The Parish school is now St. Stephen of Hungary School, located just a few blocks away on 408 E 82 St.
Buildings The current Gothic Revival church building was erected in 1906 to the designs of Schickel & Ditmars, prominent church architects.
In 1926, the rector Arthur J. Kenny had a three- and four-story brick school and convent with tile roof built at 410 East 80th Street, to designs of Thomas Dunn for $120,000 ($ in current dollar terms). A three-story convent at 405–413 East 79th Street was built in 1955 to designs by Brown-Guenther-Booss for $275,000 ($ in current dollar terms).
Pastors John Treanor (1879–1880) James J. Dougherty (1880–1890s) John J. Boyle (Acting Rector in 1890s) James P. Hughes was assigned here (presumably as assistant) in 1904; while William S. Creedan was transferred from here to St. Andrew's Church (Manhattan)"Changes in Catholic Clergy: Archbishop Farley Announces a Number of Assignments and Transfers", New York Times, June 11, 1904. Retrieved July 21, 2011. Arthur J. Kenny (1920s) James Henry Ambrose Griffiths (1955–1964), auxiliary bishop Donald Baker (2015-present)
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