Saint Stephen Martyr Catholic Church is a Catholic parish church located at 2436 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The parish was founded on August 4, 1867, and the first church building consecrated and used for worship on December 27, 1868. This brick structure closed on July 15, 1959, and the current new building was consecrated and first used for worship on June 11, 1961. The church was a favorite of President John F. Kennedy.
Establishment of the parish and construction of the original structure In the summer of 1865, Martin John Spalding, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Baltimore, suggested to the Reverend Dr. C.I. White, pastor at St. Matthew the Apostle Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., that a new parish be created in the city's west end to meet the needs of the area's rapidly growing Roman Catholic population. Dr. White purchased land at the corner of 24th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue (today 2436 Pennsylvania Avenue NW) from a Dr. Newman at a cost of $8,575 ($ in dollars) for the parish church, and began raising money for the building. The cornerstone for the new brick structure was laid on June 3, 1866.
The parish of Saint Stephen in Washington, D.C., was established on August 4, 1867, when the Rev. John McNally, formerly assistant pastor of St. Matthew the Apostle Church, was appointed the first pastor of the parish. A Solemn Mass was held at St. Matthew's to celebrate McNally's installation and creation of the parish. St. Stephen's became the ninth Roman Catholic parish established in the city.
The original red brick church and rectory were designed by Adolf Cluss, one of the most important architects working in the District of Columbia in the mid-1800s. Construction on and fundraising for Saint Stephen Martyr Church continued simultaneously. Construction on the basement (which contained the parish hall) was originally to be finished by mid-October 1867, but it was not complete until December. But work was far enough along for the first mass to be said in the church basement on October 27, 1867. Saint Stephen Martyr Church was dedicated on December 29, 1867. Father Francis X. Boyle of St. Peter's Catholic Church on Capitol Hill said mass and preached. At this time, Father McNally estimated the main building would be complete in the spring of 1868.
Father McNally's estimate was once more optimistic, for Saint Stephen Martyr Church was not completed until the end of the year. The church was consecrated on December 27, 1868, by the Very Reverend Dr. Thomas Foley, secretary to Archbishop Spalding. The Rev. Dr. C.I. White of St. Matthew's celebrated mass, while Dr. Foley preached the sermon. The adjacent church rectory was also completed at this time. The total cost of constructing the two buildings was about $51,425 ($ in dollars). Work continued inside the church for some time after its consecration. The $300 ($ in dollars) altar was not finished until February 1869.
Parish school and expansion Sunday school began at St. Stephen Martyr on January 5, 1868, but Father McNally wanted a parochial school as well, and fundraising for and construction of a $2,200 ($ in dollars) structure began the following year. St. Stephen's Parish School for Boys opened in 1872, with about 50 pupils aged 5 to 13 in attendance. The same year, the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul opened St. Rose's Industrial School within the parish as well. This school accepted orphans who were cared for by St. Ann's Infant and Maternity Home, which was also located within the parish (but had been founded in 1861). St. Stephen's Parish School closed in 1879, and the land was offered for sale.
Father McNally died on November 6, 1889, after suffering a stroke. He was succeeded by Father John Gloyd, formerly of St. John's Catholic Church in Westminster, Maryland, on November 24, 1889. Father Gloyd oversaw the burial of Father McNally at Mount Olivet Cemetery (where his remains had been temporarily interred in the receiving vault).
Father Gloyd's tenure was relatively short, compared to the 22-year term of Father McNally. Father McNally's advanced age left him somewhat unable to attend to the church's finances as well as he might have, and St. Stephe Martyr had incurred a significant amount of debt. Father Gloyd worked diligently to improve the church's income, and paid off the debt. During this time, he also conducted a campaign to collect old gold and silver jewelry from parishioners, which was then melted down and turned into a solid gold chalice and a solid silver gold-plated chalice. He also undertook repairs and made general improvements to the church and rectory. In April 1894, Father Jacob Walter at nearby St. Patrick's Catholic Church died, and James Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, assigned Father Gloyd as his successor. The Rev. John J. Dougherty of St. Edward's Catholic Church in Calverton, Maryland, succeeded Gloyd on May 14, 1894.
Father Dougherty's time at Saint Stephen Martyr was even shorter than Father Gloyd's, yet he significantly expanded the church. In October 1894, the congregation celebrated the installation of a large new marble altar, a gift provided by Father Gloyd and John G. Schwind of Baltimore. Major architectural changes were made to the church as well. In August 1895, a $5,000 ($ in dollars) renovation was made to the church. The two sacristy rooms on the south side of the sanctuary were demolished and two new chapels built there. Each chapel had a decorative stone arch over its entrance, and two windows (set aside for stained glass memorials to parishioners) which provided natural lighting. A small marble altar, carved by local D.C. artists, was added to each chapel as well. The north wall of the sanctuary was also removed, and the sanctuary extended with an apse. New sacristy rooms were placed on either side of the reinstalled large altar, and a decorative stone arch added to distinguish the apse from the sanctuary. The floor of the sanctuary was also tiled in what The Evening Star newspaper called a "graceful pattern". The renovation took three months, during which time the congregation worshipped in the church basement. Saint Stephen Martyr's renovated sanctuary reopened on October 27, 1895, with the Rev. Dr. D.J. Stafford of St. Patrick's Church preaching the sermon.
Father Dougherty fell seriously ill with an unspecified throat infection in September 1895. By April, his illness was so severe that Cardinal Gibbons traveled from Baltimore to visit. His health significantly improved by early May, and he returned to his parish on June 5. But Dougherty suffered several unspecified severe illnesses throughout the summer, and on September 18, 1896, he suddenly resigned his position. Father Walker S. Caughy, pastor at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Laurel, Maryland, succeeded him on September 27, 1896. Father Dougherty died of tuberculosis on November 28, 1896, in Cullman, Alabama, where he had gone to try to regain his health. He was just 43 years old.
Retirement of debt and construction of a new parish school
Father Caughy became one of the best-known clergy in the District of Columbia during his tenure at Saint Stephen Martyr. He was admired for his broad-mindedness, compassion, and good humor, and he was widely considered to be a theologian of an exceptionally high caliber. He became close friends with Cardinal Gibbons, who ordained him in 1880. He found Saint Stephen Martyr $28,550 in debt ($ in dollars), and managed to reduce this debt by half during his time as pastor. Caughy fell seriously ill with influenza in mid-December 1909, but continued to work through the Christmas holiday. He suffered a severe nervous breakdown in January 1910, and entered St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore. But he died there suddenly of unspecified causes on February 2. A Pontifical High Mass of Requiem was said by Owen Patrick Bernard Corrigan, auxiliary bishop of Baltimore. The Rev. Dr. William Aloysius Fletcher, rector of the Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore, preached the sermon.; A Month's Mind requiem mass was said by Monsignor James Mackin of St. Paul's Catholic Church of Baltimore on March 3. In a sign of the high esteem in which Father Caughy was held, Cardinal Gibbons preached the sermon and delivered the absolution.
Father Joseph J. Cassidy of St. John's Catholic Church in Westminster, Maryland, was named Caughy's successor on February 18, 1910. He took up his position on March 29. With Saint Stephen Martyr still $13,800 in debt ($ in dollars), he used fairs to help retire the debt as swiftly as possible. Father Cassidy also undertook major renovations to the church, installing electric lighting and having new frescos painted throughout the interior. The cost of the improvements, which began in early summer 1915 and were complete by mid-September, was $5,450 ($ in dollars). To celebrate the refurbishment, a solemn high mass, presided over by Cardinal Gibbons, was said on September 26, 1915 (the day the sanctuary reopened). The mass was celebrated by Monsignor William T. Russell of St. Patrick's Catholic Church, and the sermon preached by the Right Reverend Charles Warren Currier, Bishop of Matanzas, Cuba.
Father Cassidy had two goals he wished to accomplish at Saint Stephen Martyr: The addition of a parochial school and the founding of a convent. Fundraising for the school occurred during World War I, and it was not until September 1923 that ground was broken for the school. Designed by the local architectural firm of Pierson & Wilson and built by the Schneider-Spleidt Co. of D.C., the limestone and red brick building had eight classrooms, cloakrooms, and an assembly hall with balcony which sat 600. The basement contained separate boys' and girls' recreation rooms and a social hall. The estimated cost was $165,000 ($ in dollars). Father Cassidy was made a monsignor by Pope Pius XI on September 8, 1924, for having rendered valuable service to the Catholic Church.; He was honored again by Pope Pius by being named a domestic prelate of the papal household on November 23, 1924. He was invested with the honor at a ceremony presided over by Michael Joseph Curley, Archbishop of Baltimore, on the same day that the new $200,000 ($) St. Stephen's School opened.;
Father Cassidy's health began to deteriorate, however. He suffered from obliterating endarteritis, which inflamed the inner lining of the arteries and blocked blood flow to his limbs and vital organs. His left leg was severely affected by the disease in September 1925, and dry gangrene set in. This leg was amputated above the knee at Georgetown University Hospital on October 13, 1925.; His parishioners purchased an automobile for his use in visiting members of the congregation, and he used an artificial limb for walking. Monsignor Cassidy's health appeared excellent after the amputation. But in late August 1925, he fell seriously ill with stomach cancer, and died suddenly at Georgetown University Hospital on September 26, 1925, at the age of 69. Archbishop Curley presided over his requiem mass, which was said by Monsignor C.F. Thomas of St. Patrick's Catholic Church. Called a "priest's priest" by Archbishop Curley, more than 40 local priests attended his funeral. Father Cassidy's vision of a convent, however, remained unfulfilled at the time of his death.
Father Vincent Fitzgerald, assistant rector at Saint Stephen Martyr, led the congregation for 10 months as interim pastor. He purchased the House of Mercy at 2048 K Street NW, and at a cost of $25,000 ($) renovated the structure along with the St. Stephen's School temporary school building into a convent. The Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur moved into the convent on April 19, 1927, and took up teaching duties at the new parochial school.