Old St. Teresa Church is located in downtown

Albany, Georgia Albany ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia. Located on the Flint River, it is the seat of Dougherty County, and is the sole incorporated city in that county. Located in southwest Georgia, it is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia m ...

, on Residence Avenue. It is the oldest church building in Albany, and the oldest

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

still in use in Georgia. The name Old St. Teresa Catholic Church was given, because it changed to a new location in Albany. The church was kept in use and at least one Mass is a held every week.Joiner, Don (2007). "St. Teresa's Catholic Church". ''Antebellum Churches in Georgia''. .l. Lulu. 167-168.

History

Construction on the church began in 1859, on land that was given by Colonel Nelson Tift, the founder of Albany. The bricks that make up the building were handmade by enslaved workers on a plantation near

Newton, Georgia Newton is a city in Baker County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 602. The city is the county seat of Baker County. History Newton was founded in 1837. That same year, the seat of Baker County was transfer ...

. Due to the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, construction of the church was halted before the interior was completed. It was then used as a hospital for wounded Confederate soldiers. After the war, the building was completed and dedicated under the patronage of St.

Teresa of Ávila Teresa of Ávila, OCD (born Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada; 28 March 15154 or 15 October 1582), also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, was a Spanish Carmelite nun and prominent Spanish mystic and religious reformer. Active during t ...

on November 19, 1882, by

William Hickley Gross William Hickley Gross, C.Ss.R., (June 12, 1837 – November 14, 1898) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who was a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Savannah in Georgia ...

, who was the Bishop of Savannah at the time. The church was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1975.

Currently

A new larger

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

was dedicated in 1958, but the downtown location was kept as a second church. A

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

is conducted every Wednesday at noon at the Residence Avenue address.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Roman Catholic churches completed in 1859 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Buildings and structures in Albany, Georgia Churches in Georgia (U.S. state) Roman Catholic churches in Georgia (U.S. state) Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in Dougherty County, Georgia