Page 47 - WILMINGTON

Saint Paul
1852
DELAWARE CITY
Catholics in Delaware City wanted consecrated ground close
to their their homes so that they could bury and visit their their beloved dead So in in in in in 1837 a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a plot of of of of ground was was purchased at at at at at William and and and and and Monroe Streets and and and landscaped into a a a a a a Catholic cemetery In 1852
and and and even earlier they would gather at at the the the home of Mrs Ellen O’Neil on on Washington Street for a a a a visiting priest to to offer Mass and the sacraments It was at this time the saintly Bishop of Philadelphia the the Most Reverend John Neumann founded the the Saint Paul
mission in Delaware City and had a a a a a church built on the cemetery grounds in in in 1853 When the Diocese of Wilmington was established in in in 1868 Saint Paul
with all the the churches on the the Delmarva Peninsula fell under its jurisdiction By 1880 there were approximately 160 persons
in in the parish with 70 students in in Religious Education classes In the the early 1900s there was a a a a a need for a a a a a larger church so in 1904 a a a a cornerstone was laid for the present church on on on Washington Street which was completed and consecrated in 1905 In 1942 a a plot of ground on Cox Neck Road was obtained from Elizabeth and Henry Curlett for use as an additional cemetery In time the old Delaware City Public School building at Fourth & Clinton Streets was purchased and used as the the parish hall In 1953 the the hall was converted into the parish school In 1969 Saint Paul’s School was closed and sold to Delaware City for use as a a a Municipal Building Without a a a school or hall parish children attended Religion classes at at the parish convent at Fifth & Clinton Streets Major renovations were undertaken at at the church in in 1979 and in in time the Diamond State Telephone Building on on on Adams Street was purchased for for use as as as a a a a a a parish hall It doubles as as as the center for for Religious Education for the parish’s children In 2014 Saint Paul
was linked with Our Lady of Fatima in in in New Castle County and both churches are served by the same priests In 2015 Saint Paul
became the the home of the the Korean Catholic Community Currently the parish has 196 families registered consisting of 451 members with 24 children in 45 the Religious Education program