The Church of the Immaculate Conception is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

in the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York City and the count ...

, located at 414 East 14th Street, near First Avenue,

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and previously at 505 East 14th Street.

History

The parish was established in 1855, when a temporary church was established in a carpenter's shop on 15th Street by Rev. Bernard Farrell. The congregation was largely Irish and Italian immigrants who had settled on the East Side. Farrell resigned due to failing health, and his successor, Rev. John Ryan had a new church constructed at 505 14th Street, which was dedicated by Archbishop Hughes in May 1858. Ryan was followed by Rev. William P. Morrogh, who established the parish school. The school opened in 1864, staffed by the

Sisters of Charity of New York The Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul of New York, most often known as the Sisters of Charity of New York, is a religious congregation of sisters in the Catholic Church whose primary missions are education and nursing and who are dedicate ...

; the Christian Brothers arrived in 1880 and assumed instruction of the boys. By the tenure of Monsignor John Edwards in 1875, Immaculate Conception was the largest parish in the city. In 1887, the church was consecrated by Archbishop

Michael Corrigan Michael Augustine Corrigan (August 13, 1839May 5, 1902) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third archbishop of New York from 1885 to 1902. Early life Michael Augustine Corrigan was born August 13, 1839, in N ...

. The church was the site of the 1891 funeral of Congressman

Francis Barretto Spinola Francis Barretto Spinola (March 19, 1821 – April 14, 1891) was an American politician and military leader often considered to have been the first Italian AmericanMultiple sources: * * * * to be elected to the United States House of Represe ...

When Msgr. William G. Murphy took over in 1906, Immaculate Conception was one of the largest in the archdiocese. The following decades saw a diminishing number of parishioners as members of the congregation moved to other parts of the city. The church was demolished in the 1940s to make way for

Stuyvesant Town Stuyvesant may refer to: People * Stuyvesant family * Peter Stuyvesant (1592–1672), the last governor of New Netherland * Peter Stuyvesant (1727–1805), New York landowner and merchant * Peter Gerard Stuyvesant (1778–1847), lawyer, landown ...

. In 1943 the parish took over the chapel and hospital buildings now known as Church of the Immaculate Conception and Clergy Houses, completed in 1896 to designs by

Barney and Chapman Barney and Chapman was an American architecture firm based in New York, active from about 1892 through 1908. The partnership designed significant municipal buildings, churches, private estates, and an asylum complex for the state of New York. Jo ...

and formerly owned by Grace Church. Immaculate Conception School 419 E13 in 2021 jeh

This existing facility was expanded with a four-storey brick convent and parochial school, at 415-419 East 13th Street and 414-416 East 14th Street, designed by

Eggers & Higgins Eggers & Higgins was a New York architectural firm partnered by Otto Reinhold Eggers (August 4, 1882 – April 23, 1964) and Daniel Paul Higgins (September 12, 1886 – December 26, 1953). The architects were responsible for the construction phas ...

for $700,000, and completed in 1945. On February 16, 2023, the Archdiocese of New York announced that the school would close at the end of the current academic year due to falling enrollment levels and pandemic-related issues. There is another church of the same name on Staten Island established in 1887, and a third in Ditmars, Astoria, Queens, and also Immaculate Conception Church (Bronx).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Immaculate Conception (New York City) Roman Catholic churches completed in 1858 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Religious organizations established in 1855 Roman Catholic churches in Manhattan Eggers & Higgins church buildings East Village, Manhattan 1855 establishments in New York (state) 14th Street (Manhattan)