The Seamen's Bethel in Boston was a
Methodist church whose pastor was the famous preacher
Edward Thompson Taylor. The building was purchased by Italian immigrants and became the Sacred Heart Church in 1888.
History
In 1829, a group of Boston Methodists formed the Port Society of Boston to provide charitable aid and religious services for the city's sailors. They acquired the vacant Methodist Alley chapel located in the
North End, which was the heart of Boston's shipping industry. The Port Society renamed the chapel the Seamen's Bethel, and at the end of the year
Edward Thompson Taylor was hired as Mariner's Preacher. The chapel in Methodist Alley proved too small for the growing congregation, and a new church was built at 12
North Square in 1833.
The new building was purchased by the Saint Mark Society, a group of Italian immigrants, in 1884, and was named Sacred Heart by
Archbishop Williams in 1888. The church was ministered to by the
Scalabrini Fathers
The Congregation of the Missionaries of Saint Charles Borromeo ( la, Congregatio Missionariorum a S. Carolo), commonly called the Scalabrinian Missionaries, is a Roman Catholic religious institute of brothers and priests founded by Giovanni Batti ...
from its opening in 1889 until 2004.
It is now part of
St. Leonard of Port Maurice Parish, and is staffed by the
Franciscan Fathers.
This church is currently under study for landmark status by the
Boston Landmarks Commission.
See also
*
History of Italian Americans in Boston
References
Further reading
*
External links
Photo: ExteriorPhoto: InteriorPhoto: Stained glass window
North End, Boston
Roman Catholic churches in Boston
Methodist churches in Massachusetts
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