Page 43 - WILMINGTON

Saint JoSePh on the Brandywine
1841
GREENVILLE
In 1814 a a a a a traveling priest began saying Masses
in in in the the homes of Catholics working in in in the the nearby DuPont powder mills IIn time Masses
were celebrated in in in in the the the the the the Brandywine
Manufacturers Sunday School which could
accommodate more people By the the the late 1830s and before the the the establishment of the the the Wilmington Diocese the the Catholic workers in in the the DuPont mills on on on the the Brandywine
River began to petition the the Philadelphia Archdiocese for their own parish The petition was granted and mill workers contributed a a a a portion of their weekly salaries toward the the construction of the church building The DuPont family also supported nancially the the effort On December 20 1841
the the rst Mass was celebrated in in in in the the the church making Saint Joseph on the the the Brandywine
Church the the the second longest continuously operating Catholic Church in in in Delaware after the the Cathedral of Saint Peter Dedication took place on on December 20 1841
The church was plain made of local local materials and and built by and and for for the local local workforce Since Wilmington was then part of of the the Diocese of of Philadelphia Bishop Kenrick who negotiated the the the purchase of the the the land for the the the church church of ciated at at at the the dedication services Shortly after the the church church opened a a a a school was established in the the basement of the the church A two-story stone schoolhouse was built in 1855 on on what is now the Family Center parking lot The Sisters of St Joseph staffed the school from 1853 to to 1870 when the Sisters of St Francis took responsibility and led the school until it closed in 1972 The oldest tombstone in in the the cemetery dates back to to to 1843 Since then soldiers from every war as as well as as several priests who served the parish have been laid to rest in in the cemetery which was expanded in in the the 1990s to include the the parcel along Kennett Pike Today well over 5 000 graves surround the church In 1848 the church was enlarged and again in in 1878 the front tower was was added It was was not until 1887 that the the the the steeple with the the the the bell nished the the the the top of the the the the front tower Three arches were added to to the altar in 1894 and four years later stained glass windows were installed But the the most dramatic transformation of the the church building in in that same year was the the wiring of the the church for electricity Electric light allowed for the rst midnight Mass at Christmas to take place In 1902 the Church exterior received its distinctive yellow color with paint donated by Alfred I duPont duPont that matched many of the duPont duPont homes in in in the the area And in in in that year the the rst pipe organ was installed The 1941 renovation of the church included new stained glass windows which are in in in place to the present day The only stained glass that remains from the the 1898 windows is the the small purple circular pieces at the very top of each window The sacristy was enlarged in1950 and signi cant changes were made to the the interior of the the church in in 1974 when the altar altar rail main and and side altars and and many other traditional parts of the the church were removed Two years later in 1976 the the church property was added to the the National Register of Historic Places The 1994 renovations attempted to to harmonize the the liturgical rite with the the more-than-century old traditions and environment of the church The current Allen organ was installed in in in that that year a a a a a a a a a unique installation in in in that that the one organ is playable from two separate consoles one one in in the the sanctuary and one one in in the the choir loft In the the new new millennium the the church has received a a a new new slate roof with repair to the steeple and a a a a new HVAC system has been installed In 2016 a a a a a a a a Delaware State Historic Marker was placed on the church property 41