By Eileen Dougherty Troxell
The old church of Saint Malachy on Eleventh Street in North Philadelphia still maintains its magnificence despite the erosion of time. For 155 years it has stood as a sentinel against the hardships of the neighborhood. The church is still beautiful thanks to the dedication of its present pastor John McNamee, and all those who have gone before him.
As the name of Malachy suggests, the parish has an Irish heritage. The first parishioners were part of the great migration from Ireland in the 1850s. They fled from famine and tyranny to find a new life in America. The men labored in the many factories of North Philadelphia and the women worked as domestics in the mansions on Broad Street. They worked hard and jobs were plentiful. By the dawn of the twentieth century, Saint Malachy’s was a middle class neighborhood, where the Irish owned their own homes.
In 1900 the pastor Edmond Prendergast became a bishop and the old church was refurbished to reflect his status. Magnificent stained glass windows and works of art were added. It was a grand parish in its day, but the grandeur was not to last. Hard times and economic changes came, and Saint Malachy’s was changed forever.
There was a second migration to North Philadelphia in the 1930s, as African Americans fled the harsh economic conditions of the South. Many blacks settled in North Philadelphia as the whites fled to the suburbs and other parts of the city. Very few of these migrants were Catholic and attendance at Saint Malachy’s dwindled. In the coming years the factory jobs that sustained the Irish immigrants were no longer there. Philadelphia, which at the turn of the century had been the most important industrial city in the country, lost a great deal of its industry. Jobs for unskilled laborers were no longer plentiful. North Philadelphia felt the impact of this loss and the neighborhood of Saint Malachy’s began to decline.
Yet, even throughout these difficult years, Saint Malachy’s remained as a beacon of hope in the neighborhood. The priest and the parishioners held on and Saint Malachy’s was still there and it is still there today. Under John McNamee’s dynamic leadership it is a vibrant parish, drawing people from all walks of life.
And the Irish come back for the Irish Concert each year. Fans of Irish music come from far and wide and the old church rocks with Irish reels and hand clapping. The haunting music of the Irish ballads echo through the old church, bringing memories of the people who worshiped there so long ago.
Ardsley writer Eileen Dougherty Troxell is the author of a history of St. Malachy’s Parish, where her immigrant family once worshipped.
