Church of St. Joseph (Bronxville, New York)

Church of St. Joseph
St. Joseph's front facade
Church of St. Joseph Show map of New York Church of St. Joseph Show map of the US
40°56′18″N 73°50′4″W / 40.93833°N 73.83444°W / 40.93833; -73.83444
Location	15 Cedar Street, Bronxville, New York 10708
Country	United States
Denomination	Catholic
Tradition	Roman Rite
Website	saintjosephsbronxville.org
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	1922 (1905 as a mission church)
Dedication	Saint Joseph
Dedicated	1927
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	William H. Jones
Architectural type	Church
Style	English Gothic Revival
Completed	1928
Administration
Archdiocese	Archdiocese of New York

The Church of St. Joseph (commonly called St. Joseph's Church) is a Roman Catholic church located in the Village of Bronxville in Westchester County, New York. Officially founded as a parish of the Archdiocese of New York in 1922, the Church of St. Joseph consists of the parish church, adjacent parochial St. Joseph School, rectory, and parish center. It serves residents of Bronxville as well as residents of nearby neighborhoods in Eastchester and Yonkers. In addition to Sunday and daily masses, the church performs and prepares Catholics for the sacraments of baptism, first holy communion, confirmation, penance, matrimony, and anointing of the sick. It also conducts charitable and philanthropic efforts and a CCD (catechism) religious education program. St. Joseph's has a permanent chaplain to the nearby Lawrence Hospital.

History

The Church of St. Joseph began as a mission in Bronxville by neighboring Church of the Immaculate Conception of Tuckahoe in 1905. Having no dedicated structure, masses were celebrated in the ballroom of the illustrious Hotel Gramatan by Immaculate Conception pastor Fr. John McCormack who traveled by horse each Sunday. The first masses were attended by only seventeen families. In 1906, the mission purchased the no-longer-used Bronxville schoolhouse on the corner of Park Place and Kraft Avenue, converting it into St. Joseph's Chapel.

The once-small Bronxville Catholic community grew rapidly. In 1922, the mission was elevated to an official parish of the archdiocese by Patrick Cardinal Hayes, Fr. Joseph L. McCann its first pastor. The church quickly outgrew its home and began construction on the present-day church building on the corner of Kraft Avenue and Cedar Street, having raised $50,000 over the preceding four years. The new building was designed by Yonkers architect William H. Jones in the English Gothic Revival style. The stone from which it was constructed was locally mined from quarries in Westchester. In 1927, the church was dedicated by Cardinal Hayes and was completed in 1928.

The new pastor, Fr. Francis X. Scott oversaw the opening of the school in 1951. Msgr. Joseph Moore led the parish's transition following the Second Vatican Council. Under Msgr. Patrick J. Sheridan and Fr. James Connolly, the church and rectory were renovated and a pipe organ was installed in the church, as the staff was expanded. A parish center was constructed in 1986, which replaced the limited space of a previously-used house on Meadow Avenue.^[1]

During their time of residence in Bronxville, the Kennedy family attended St. Joseph's Church. The young Ted Kennedy was an altar boy at St. Joseph's Church and was later married there by Cardinal Spellman.^[2][3]

St. Joseph's celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 1972 with Terence Cardinal Cooke and Msgr. Theodore E. McCarrick (who would later become the Cardinal Archbishop of Washington) in attendance.^[4]

School

St. Joseph School opened on September 10, 1951 adjacent to the church at 30 Meadow Avenue and was staffed by the Congregation of the Most Holy Rosary (Adrian Dominican Sisters), while operated by the parish.^[5] Francis Cardinal Spellman dedicated the school on October 7 of that year. Msgr. Patrick Sheridan oversaw the start of construction in 1985 of the parish center, which included a gymnasium and additional space for teaching and offices, with the dedication by John Cardinal O'Connor occurring on September 27, 1986. St. Joseph School consists of an upper and lower school of grades kindergarten through eight. It was presented with a National Blue Ribbon Award by the U.S. Department of Education in 2010.^[6][7] The school's facilities are used also for the CCD religious education program for students who attend secular schools.^[8] St. Joseph School has an active Mothers' Club and Men's Club. Many students who graduate go on to attend local Catholic high schools in Westchester County and Manhattan. As of 2015, 239 students attended the school.^[9]

Pastors

In order from founding to present:^[1]

• Rev. Joseph L. McCann (1922–unknown)
• Rev. Francis X. Scott
• Rev. Msgr. Joseph P. Moore (1968–unknown)
• Rev. Msgr. Patrick J. Sheridan
• Rev. James Connolly
• Rev. Msgr. James F. Doyle (1998–2013)
• Rev. Peter McGeory (2013–present)

See also

• List of churches in the Archdiocese of New York
• Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
• Bronxville, New York
• Catholic Church

References

Bibliography

• Hill & Huber, Marilynn Wood & Mary Mean (1997). Around Bronxville. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738562223
• "Church of Saint Joseph: Parish History". Church of Saint Joseph.
• "St. Joseph School: Our History". St. Joseph School.