How do you write a history with almost no documents? Whatever documents might have existed have disappeared. One gets the impression that someone without any sense of history got annoyed with all the papers and threw them all out. We don't even have the architectural plans for the new church.
The biography of Fr. Murphy, included in the journal celebrating the 150th anniversary of the church in 1948, consists of three sentences-even though his pastorate was nineteen years. "He improved the old Church building, now used as an auditorium, by putting on a new front and adding a small hall and three small meeting rooms. He also had the Church redecorated and painted for the first time since it was built. He died, after an illness of several months, in October 1933"

Those nineteen years included two Popes (Benedict XV 1914-1923, Pius IX 1922-1939), two Archbishops of New York (John Cardinal Farley 1902-1918, Patrick Cardinal Hayes 1922-1939),World War I (1914-¬1918), Influenza which claimed 20 million lives worldwide (1918) Woman's suffrage (1920), Prohibition (1920-1933), Irish Independence (1922), Al Smith's attempt to become the first Catholic President of the United States (1928) and the Great Depression (1929- 193?)

His obituary in the Catholic News tells us that he died at the age of sixty-six, on September 26, 1933. He was born in New York City of Irish parents on June 6, 1867. He attended Fordham University. After one year in law school he decided to become a priest. He entered St. Joseph's Seminary, then located in Troy, N.Y. and was ordained a priest by Bishop Gabriele in the Cathedral of Albany on June 251892. His first assignment was as assistant at Blessed Sacrament on W. 72 St in Manhattan where he served for sixteen years. In 1908 he became pastor of St. John's in Goshen. On November of 1914 he became a "permanent rector" of our parish. He had a younger brother, John, who was also a priest who eventually became pastor of St. Bernard's in White Plains. In the eulogy at his funeral Mass he was described as "a modest and retiring man."

There are only two historical documents on file in our archives. A third document is from the Archives of the Archdiocese of New York.

1. Baptism Records of St. Mary's
Baptisms records show that the ethnic makeup of the parish was beginning to change, but not drastically. Irish surnames declined from 95% to 80% Irish during Fr. Murphy's pastorate. This reflected the tremendous ncrease in the population of Yonkers, especially of immigrants from Eastern Europe and Italy. The population of Yonkers was estimated to be 75,000 in 1917 and 100,000 in 1923.The Irish were moving on "to the suburbs of Yonkers to be replaced” in the territory of the parish of St. Mary's by Eastern and Southern European esp. Jews, Italians, Polish, Slovaks, Ukrainians, Russians, and Hungarians and Lithuanians. Many of the Catholic ethnic groups used St. Mary's Chapel until they created their own churches.
Some who lived near St. Mary's became lifelong parishioners. St. Mary's School was oftentimes the great attraction.
2. An official certificate verifying that "the Parish of the Immaculate Conception contributed $28,000 to the New York Catholic War fund Campaign conducted in the Archdiocese of New York, March 17 to 25, 1918".
World War I was a horrible and probably unnecessary war. The total number of casualties on both sides was ten million. The Allies listed six million dead. It settled very little. But America emerged as a world power. The war began in September of 1914 and hostilities ended on November 11, 1918. The entry of the United States in 1917 turned the tide of war but at a terrible price. 116, 516 Americans died- half in battle -half by disease. 204,002 were wounded. In the battle of the Argonne Forest in the fall of 1918, 26,277 Americans died.

The mobilization by the United States was amazing. 4,272, 521 persons were drafted or enlisted. Over 2,000,000 were transported across the Atlantic Ocean. The United States amazed the world with its ability to produce men and machines. As the Japanese would remark twenty three years later: "We have awakened a sleeping giant."

In Yonkers it is estimated that almost 7,000 men and women of Yonkers served in one capacity or other. The population of Yonkers was 75,000 at the beginning of the war. 50% of the population was estimated as Catholics. The war memorial at the foot of City Hall on South Broadway lists almost 200 Yonkers residents who died during the war. There were many other casualties who came home suffering, especially from the effects of poisonous mustard gas.

Some churches kept exact figures. St Joseph's Catholic Church reported that 450 men had been in the military service, 15 had died and six received wounds. Our pastor, Charles Murphy, as seems to be his custom, kept no records He was quoted as saying: "We kept no record of our various activities during the war. We just jumped in and did our best and forgot about it."

Fortunately we have records from the Crescent Club of Yonkers. The Crescent Club was originally organized from the membership of St. Mary's Parochial School by Brother Augustus who was the Christian Brother principal of the Boys School. At the outbreak of the war, there were 143 members of which 122 "joined the colors." During the war years the club was maintained by its Ladies Auxiliary. The records show that two members died in the war, one of gas and the other of influenza. Seven were casualties - usually from gas. One lost his hearing from the explosion of the bombs. Eight men received medals.

The Catholic Church became very involved in fundraising for the soldiers. A Catholic War Fund Drive" to improve conditions in military camps in the United States and in overseas service for the benefit of soldiers and sailors of all creeds was held in March of 1918." The quota for Yonkers was $82,800. The quota for each parish was listed in the newspapers: St. Mary's: $17,500; St. Joseph's: $15,000; Sacred Heart, Monastery: $9,000; Holy Eucharist: $7,000; St. Denis: $6,500, Our Lady of the Rosary $5,500; St. Peter's: $5,000; St Casmir’s : $5,000; St. Bartholomew’s :3,000; Most Holy Trinity: $2,500; St. Anthony's: $2,.000; Our Lady of Mt Carme: $1,500:; St. Nicholas of Myra:$1,500;St.John the Baptist: $1,000, St. Michael's: $800.

The actual total raised by St. Mary's was $22,800 the equivalent in dollars today is $377,000.. It is an extraordinary amount of money for St. Mary's. Part may be explained by the fact that perhaps 25% or more of the total sum was donated by non-Catholic. Many of these donors had businesses in and around Getty Square - which were included in the territorial boundaries of parish of St. Mary's. The results throughout New York State were also astonishing. The goal set was $2,500,000. The amount raised was $4,862,424. Part of the key to its success was this was the fact that this was the first really professional fundraising drive by the Catholic Church. Index lists of parishioners were provided by every pastor and volunteers were sent to each residence soliciting funds. It was also a way of countering the accusations of anti-Catholic organizations that the Irish would not fight to defend England and the Germans would not fight against their own people.

3. A letter to the Chancery Office from Fr. Murphy (found in a footnote in Fr. Shelley's wonderful history of the Slovaks Catholics in Yonkers.) Charles Murphy to Thomas Carroll, the diocesan Chancellor of the Archdiocese of New York (August 16, 1929.) The Chancellor had asked on what authority he had designated such generous territorial boundaries for his parish.

Fr. Murphy replied: "I have no authority other than what fairness would dictate. I honestly tried, when appointed here, of making inquiries of the diocesan authorities to find out what the exact limits were. No information was afforded me other than a general statement that there were no limits in Yonkers....My neighbors, were, however, more helpful in the matter than the diocesan authorities. They gave me limits with a vengeance- limits which would reduce St. Mary's to about five hundred adults. As I could not accept their ridiculous claims, when the "Status Animarum Report" called for parish limits, I was forced to give limits such as included the bulk of people of the people regularly attending Sunday Mass."

"His neighbors" were pastors of nearby parishes. Territorial boundaries of parishes were (and to some extent still are) very important. You could not choose your own parish. You had to go to the parish whose geographical boundaries included where you lived. The only exceptions were "national parishes" which were set up to accommodate people who could not speak English e.g. St. Casmir (Polish), Most Holy Trinity (Slavic), Mt Carmel(Italian) etc. In 1920 in Yonkers there were eight territorial parishes and seven national parishes. National parishes presented their own difficulties as Fr. Shelley's book demonstrates.

The main source of the dispute was over the creation of the parish of Holy Eucharist, a territorial parish set up at the foot of Nodine Hill just a few blocks east of St. Mary's. It siphoned off many of the parishioners of St. Mary’s. Fr. Murphy's boundaries extended the territory of his parish by at least two blocks on the east, south and north. In this regard I am in complete sympathy with Fr. Murphy. When I became pastor in 1987 I couldn't believe how small the boundaries of St. Mary’s are e.g. St. Peter's is two and half times the size of our parish. Fr. Murphy did not win this battle. How necessary was the creation of Holy Eucharist parish? The answer may be in the fact that the parish ceased to exist in the 1950's. The population of Yonkers was booming when the parish of Holy Eucharist was created. it was easy to overestimate future numbers. Federal anti- immigration laws were passed in the mid 1920's that would greatly limit the number of Catholics from eastern and southern Europe.

A foot note. If Fr. Murphy "feisty" (Fr. Shelley's word) letter to the authorities is any indication of his temperament there may have been good reasons to destroy any other writings. I am beginning to like Fr. Murphy.

Next Chapter