The records of this venerable church unfortunately are sparse and sometimes contradictory. Regrettably, there are very few original documents available. However, for the early years we have two resources published in the early 20th century: Joseph M. Flynn’s The Catholic Church in New Jersey, published in 1904, and Paul V. Flynn’s The History of St. John’s Church – 1908. We rely on these two works for the years they cover and on scattered records, occasional internet references and pictures, anniversary booklets, parish programs, and newspapers for the remainder.
Marianela Guerrero, Pastoral Associate for Communications and Director of Religious Education, has provided contemporary photographs for this site.
A “pen picture” written by Rev. Michael Holland of St. Columba’s Church in Joseph Flynn’s 1904 The Catholic Church in New Jersey describes the environs of St. John’s before the building of the church almost a century earlier.
Just about the time of the erection of St. John’s Church, Newark as a city had begun to awake to quickening impulses. The Morris Canal was being completed, and work had already commenced on the railroad, which, the only one in the State, was about to connect the city with New York. Statistics give the population at that time as ten thousand white Americans, six hundred Irish, three hundred Germans, and three hundred and fifty negroes. The central portion of the town, still unincorporated, was lighted with oil lamps sparsely scattered, and possessed few buildings of any importance. There were but four wards, the north, south, the east, and the west, and but two docks upon the river above Bridge Street. Where now stands Clark’s manufactory, in the writer’s own recollection, was an old frame iron foundry, and above nothing but the marshy riverbanks. State Street on the north, High Street on the west, the line of the Passaic, and thence down River Street and Mulberry to Fair Street – the extreme southern boundary—might be called the city proper, though a number of outlying habitations existed beyond. A wide and swift-running brook, reaching into the interior, ran through a deep valley down a line parallel with Eighth Avenue, which formed four large and picturesque sheets of water above Broad, High, Sheffield streets and the woodland district above, each of which supplied as many millwheels with power. This stream formed the watershed of a wide extended territory, and after storms frequently ran very high. But two bridges at Broad and High streets, spanned its current, and these were frequently overflowed. On this account many at times could not attend Mass from the North Ward and Belleville.
St. John’s, while not the first church built in New Jersey, was the first to have a resident pastor. In the first decades of the 19th century, a priest occasionally came to Newark to minister to the needs of the small Catholic community. In 1824, New York Bishop John Dubois sent Rev. Gregory B. Pardow to Newark to serve the Catholics and, if possible, to form a parish and build a church.
Unfortunately, no church records remain that document the story of the formation of St. John’s Parish. However, we have official civil records in the office of the Clerk of Essex County. These records show that on November 25, 1826, a Roman Catholic organization was incorporated, called “The Trustees of the Roman Catholic Society of Newark.” The first Trustees were Patrick Murphy, John Sherlock, John Kelly, Christopher Rourke, Maurice Fitzgerald, John Gillespie, and Patrick Mape. These gentlemen recorded a meeting held in St. John’s Church, in the Town of Newark, on the 13th day of November 1826.
Before the erection of the church building, the Catholics of Newark and surrounding areas often met for Mass at the Turf House, located at 40 Mulberry Street, the residence of Charles Durning. The first native of Newark to be ordained a priest was Durning’s son, Daniel. Sunday Mass was celebrated in other private homes as well as in a carpenter shop, also on Mulberry Street. As there was no church edifice in Newark, the trustees may have regarded the carpenter shop or one of the private houses where the Mass was offered as “St. John’s Church” for the time being.
As numbers grew, property on Mulberry Street, which became the site of today’s church, was purchased for $325 from George Cross, and the deed was recorded on May 23, 1827. The cornerstone was laid by the Very Rev. Dr. Power, of St. Peter’s Church, Barclay Street, New York, who oversaw the Newark mission on behalf of the bishop of New York.
That year, under Father Pardow’s direction, work began on the building. The Catholic people of Newark were poor, so the Irish immigrant parishioners used ship ballast stones in building the foundation. When the groundwork was finished, they ran out of money.
Accusations immediately ensued. Some claimed that the trustees were dishonest; others that the contractor was to blame for theft. Joseph Flynn records: “Through the baseness of one individual the money was lost to the struggling parish. The treasurer of the committee proved himself a veritable Judas, by making off with the entire receipts, and he was never heard of again. Let him be nameless!” Accusations were flying and the trustees published a 24-page refutation of all charges against them.
After much drama, things soon settled down, but it is unclear what exactly happened. To raise funds, Father Power, who also was a well-known speaker, offered to lecture for the benefit of the parish but there was no large hall available. Caleb Sayre and John Rutherford, wardens of nearby Trinity Episcopal Church, came to the rescue, and graciously offered their church for the lecture without charge.
The church was completed within a few months and dedicated in 1828 by Father Power. The dimensions were 50 feet by 65 feet. Men from the nearby sandstone quarries contributed the material and performed most of the work.
It was a rather simple building, a very plain structure. Some described it as primitive. Its seats were merely boards resting on stones. Others were a bit more generous in their critiques, but it was very modest. The original structure was never torn down, rather parts of it were incorporated into subsequent additions.
As the cost of the building exceeded the estimate by a considerable sum, the parish auctioned off pews to raise funds. The “rental” or “sale” of pews was a common way to raise church funds. Parishioners would “purchase” or “rent” a pew that would be reserved for their exclusive use. This custom perdured into the 20th century. Through this effort, some of the bills were paid, but indebtedness remained.
During the Panic of 1829, the trustees were sued by creditors and the church was ordered to be sold. Bishop Dubois of New York came to the rescue. Through his friend Bishop Simon Bruté of Vincennes, Indiana, he secured a loan of 22,960 French francs from the Association of the Propagation of the Faith in Paris. All the claims against the church were then paid.
Born November 9, 1804.
Died April 24, 1838
The first years were difficult. Rev. Gregory B. Pardow finally was appointed rector of St. John’s in 1829 and at that time was the only resident Catholic rector in New Jersey. His title was “rector,” not pastor. Until 1908, the United States was considered “mission territory” by the Holy See and its affairs were directed by the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, the mission congregation. In mission countries, under the canon law of the time, the office of pastor was not granted as it was a lifetime appointment, and it was considered unwise to make such a commitment. Instead, the canonical office of “rector” was used as it embraced all the responsibilities of the office of pastor but was an appointment subject to the will of the bishop. Pardow remained for three more years and was succeeded by Rev. Matthew Herard in 1832 and in 1833 by Rev. P. Rafferty, who administered the parish for only three weeks.
« St. John’s | Father Moran and The Distinctive Architectural and Pastoral Heritage of St. John’s Church »