St. Edward's Catholic Church, located in Shamokin, Pennsylvania, was constructed in the late nineteenth century. Its congregation grew out of earlier Shamokin churches and served the men that worked on the

Danville and Pottsville Railroad This is a list of the earliest Rail transport, railroads in North America, including various railroad-like precursors to the general modern form of a company or government agency operating locomotive-drawn trains on metal tracks. Railroad-like ...

. With

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æth ...

as its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

, the first St. Edward's Catholic Church was built and then dedicated in 1840. In August 1866, a parish was established and its first pastor was appointed in September of that year. A larger church was completed by Thanksgiving 1866. Groundbreaking and construction of a third church began in 1872. The larger church, built out of local

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

, was adorned with interior life-size paintings and frescoes. The church, which then served up to 1,400 people, was dedicated on June 6, 1880. It is within the

Diocese of Harrisburg The Diocese of Harrisburg is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that covers 15 counties of South Central Pennsylvania: Adams, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mi ...

. St. Edward's was claimed by locals to be the first church in the world to use electric lighting. The electric current was provided by the Edison Illuminating Company of Shamokin and the light bulbs were installed under the supervision of

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...

. The church operated a parochial school beginning in 1874. Run by the Sisters of Charity from Mount St. Vincent, New York beginning in 1875, it had 700 students and 14 teachers from the Sisters of Charity by 1911. The church was rededicated in 1969 following several 20th-century remodeling efforts that included the installation of stained glass windows, Carrara marble, and

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The station ...

. The church was destroyed by a fire in 1971 and rebuilt over the next few years with parishioners having mass in the church’s school gym. St. Edward’s was part of a consolidation of churches in 1995 and renamed as Mother Cabrini Catholic Church.

Early church history

A need for a Catholic church began with

workers, many of whom were of the Catholic faith, who were brought in to build a railroad in the area. Starting in 1838 church services were held in the village of Shamokin, led by preachers from

Pottsville Pottsville usually refers to the city of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Pottsville may also refer to: Other communities *Pottsville, New South Wales, Australia *Pottsville, Arkansas, United States *Pottsville, Kentucky, United ...

and

Minersville, Pennsylvania Minersville is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. Anthracite coal deposits are plentiful in the region. The population was 4,388 at the 2020 census. Minersville is located west of Allentown, northwest of Philadelphia, a ...

. A half acre of land was purchased on the west end of the village, where a wooden structure 20 feet by 32 feet was built by Stephen Bittenbender, Patrick Reilly, and Matthew Brannigan. Bishop

Francis Kenrick Francis Patrick Kenrick (December 3, 1796 or 1797 – July 8, 1863) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third Bishop of the Diocese of Philadelphia (1842–1851) and the sixth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of ...

of Philadelphia dedicated this as St Edward's Church on October 11, 1840. Reverend Michael Sheridan, pastor of St Joseph's Church in Danville, was in charge of the congregation from 1854 to October 1857. He was succeeded by Reverend Edward Murray who served as pastor until early summer of 1866. A parish was established in Shamokin in August 1866, with Father J. J. Koch appointed as its first pastor in September 1866. Construction on a second, larger St. Edward's church building was completed by Thanksgiving 1866. The congregation soon outgrew the building and in 1867 the building was enlarged. A

parochial house A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically own ...

was built on an adjoining lot in the spring of 1869.

Construction and electricity

Having planned for a new church for some time, Reverend Koch led the groundbreaking for a new church in September 1872. White cut

from the Big Mountain area and other building stone from Edgewood Park (Shamokin Indian Park) was brought in on sleds during the winter of 1872–73. They were cut to size on site by a dozen laborers and the cornerstone was laid May 23, 1873. The roof was completed in 1873 or 1875. The first mass was held in the basement on Christmas and church services were held there until the entire building was completed. The church tower was completed in 1875 and four years later the interior was finished. The church tower, with four large bells weighing 8,500 pounds, was high. An artist from Philadelphia created the interior

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

es. A depiction of the Resurrection of Christ, surrounded by the four Evangelists, was created in a fresco on the ceiling. Works of art included life-size paintings of St. Edward, the patron of the church,

St. Patrick ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

, and The Crucifixion and were hung over the main altar. The

twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

were painted on the walls. Father Kock imported two statues from France that sat on either side of the altar. They represented Christ meeting His Mother on His Way to Calvary and the

Descent from the Cross The Descent from the Cross ( el, Ἀποκαθήλωσις, ''Apokathelosis''), or Deposition of Christ, is the scene, as depicted in art, from the Gospels' accounts of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus taking Christ down from the cross after hi ...

. The church, which initially served up to 1,400 people, is located at Shamokin Street and Webster Street near downtown Shamokin. The third St. Edward's Catholic Church, within the

, was dedicated on June 6, 1880. An addition was built on the back of the building in 1882 to hold church records and

vestments Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially by Eastern Churches, Catholics (of all rites), Anglicans, and Lutherans. Many other groups also make use of liturgical garments; this w ...

. The church received electric lights in 1883. Electric current to the church was supplied by the

Edison Electric Illuminating Company The Edison Illuminating Company was established by Thomas Edison on December 17, 1880, to construct electrical generating stations, initially in New York City. The company was the prototype for other local illuminating companies that were establish ...

of Shamokin. It was claimed by locals to be the first church in the world with electric lighting, although according to records of an Edison museum, St. Edward's was preceded in that regard by the City Temple church in London and a church, 1st Presbyterian, in

Roselle, New Jersey Roselle (, ) is a borough located in Union County in the U.S. state of New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 21,085,Sisters of Charity from Mount St. Vincent, New York assumed supervision of the church in 1875, with four sisters placed at St. Edwards. A convent was built for them in 1877. A brick schoolhouse was completed in 1884 on a lot opposite the church. By 1911, there were more than 700 students who were taught by 14 Sisters of Charity.

20th-century remodeling

In 1906, the church interior was remodeled to include stained glass windows and decorations by the Italian artist Baraldi. Until 1932 the church steeple was the tallest structure in the area, but lowered then by 100 feet. The church basement was converted into a social hall and additional interior remodeling — including installation of Carrara marble for wainscoting, a communion railing, and altar — was completed in 1938. An extensive remodeling project of 1968 and 1969 resulted in repairs to exterior stone walls and mortar joints and remodeling of the interior. Canterbury crosses were mounted at the

. The modern English words from Matthew 11:28, ''Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest'' replaced the old Latin text spoken by Christ that was previously there. Other changes were the addition of symbols of the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

on the ceiling and other symbols put on the walls. A reproduction of Reubens' painting of the

crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion and death of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and consid ...

was added to the interior of the church. The church was rededicated in 1969.

Fire of 1971

The 99-year-old structure, which was then serving 2,500 church members, burned down in 1971. The fire, so fierce that it required 200 volunteer firemen to fight the fire and save nearby structures, took down the church so that all that remained were the stone walls. The church was rebuilt over the next three years. The interior of the new church was built inside the walls of the original structure, which were all that remained after the 1971 fire. There was a formal dedication of the newly constructed building in October 1974, officiated by The Most Rev.

Joseph Thomas Daley Joseph Thomas Daley (December 21, 1915 – September 2, 1983) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania from 1971 until his death in 1983. Biography Early life J ...

, D.D., the Bishop of the Diocese of Harrisburg.

Mother Cabrini Catholic Church

St. Edward's has historically had a congregation of German, Italian, and Irish members and priests who were Irish. Due to declining church membership, the need to redraw parish boundaries, and a need to pool resources—five Catholic churches in the coal-mining region of Pennsylvania were consolidated in 1995 into the new Mother Cabrini parish. St. Edward's parish, which was central to the five churches, was renamed the Mother Cabrini parish for its patron saint, Frances Xavier Cabrini. As a result of the consolidation, the congregation became more diverse. It picked up members from the four Lithuanian, Polish, and Slovak churches. The Franciscan order that oversaw St. Stanislaus Church then oversaw the former St. Edward's, now Mother Cabrini, church building. In recognition of the region's coal mining history, the church has a Coal Altar. It participates in the town's annual Anthracite Heritage Festival.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * *

External links

* {{coord, 40.7895, -76.5516, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-PA, display=title Roman Catholic churches in Pennsylvania Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg Churches in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania