RG 10.19 St. Mary\u27s Church, Boston, Mass., Finding Aid

All physical materials associated with the New England Province Archive are currently held by the Jesuit Archives in St. Louis, MO. Any inquiries about these materials should be directed to the Jesuit Archives . Electronic versions of some items and the descriptions and finding aids to the Archives, which are hosted in CrossWorks, are provided only as a courtesy. In 1834, four lots of land on Endicott Street in Boston’s North End were purchased by the Catholic Church to establish a parish and to build a church. The first mass was offered in the basement of the church in December 1835, and in May 1836, St. Mary’s Church was dedicated to the service of God. The Society of Jesus’ presence began at St. Mary’s with the arrival of Fr. John McElroy, S.J. as the first Jesuit priest in 1847. The parish of St. Mary’s grew to a large number and the need for parochial education was felt throughout the community. The Sisters of Notre Dame established a girls’ school in 1849 and the School for Boys was established by the Jesuits in 1859. With the parish numbering over 10,000, land was purchased in 1873 to build a new church which was dedicated in December 1877. The school and parish continued on until the 1970s when the school closed in June of 1973 and the rectory closed in 1976. The church was demolished and a housing building was built in its place. The collection of St. Mary’s parish contains a variety of media including the following: church announcements, financial information, house diaries, publications for the various jubilee celebrations, rectory diaries, and general files which include categories such as correspondence, death registers, and deed information