"A very pleasant situation between some steep hills through which a very large river, deep at its mouth, flowed to the sea. From the sea to the estuary of the river, any ship heavily laden might pass, with the help of the tide which rises eight feet...

Entering the river, we found the country on its banks well peopled, the inhabitants not differing much from the others, being dressed with feathers of birds of various colors," These are the words Verrrazano used to describe his discovery of New York Harbor in 1524. The hills he referred to are the Navesink Highlands and the high ground at the east end of Staten Island. Those who manned the Dauphine were surprised when friendly Indians came to greet their landing party in thirty canoes, pointing out an easy landing place, probably at the present site of Tompkinsville on Staten Island.

Staten Island is rich in its almost 450 years of history. Today, some of the names familiar to the residents of Staten Island, recall that history. The community of Dongan Hills is names for the governor of colonial New York, Thomas Dongan, under whose leadership a bill of religious toleration for all Christians was effected in 1683. It is in his honor that the Knights of Columbus named a local assembly.

Against the background of the discovery of Staten Island and the grant of religious fredom, permanently established later, the many years of St.Sylvester's Parish history gracefully rests.The fact is that when St.Sylvester was first established as a mission of St.Ann's Church of Dongan Hills in 1917 much of the area had not changed a great deal from the time it was first viewed by the men of the Dauphine. It was indeed "a very pleasant situation" with friendly people and very much wide open space in which to settle.

On January 21, 1921 negotiations were completed for acquisition of the property of Wandell Memorial Church and the First Mass there was offered two days later. Father Farrell had settled with the Methodist Congregation for the price of $25,000.00 for the property although the price originally asked was $30,000.00. When Cardinal Hayes heard that the Methodist congregation was very poor, he revised the terms of the transaction and added $5,000.00 more for the windows. This total the original asking price and the entire community was pleased. It was a happy solution for the people of both congregations who were always so friendly. In fact, the Methodist minister's wife used to make cakes and sell them to the Catholic parishioners in Concord at one dollar apiece.

Prior to the 1921 purchase, Father Farrell had acquired a site in Concord and showed it to Cardinal Hayes who gave him permission to proceed with further purchase which turned out to be the Methodist church. Now, the Catholic congregation of Concord was prepared to become a parish and Cardinal Hayes appointed Reverend Michael Donnelly the first pastor of St. Sylvester Parish. John Murphy and Joseph J. McCarthy were selected and appointed the first lay trustees.

Remodeling the Methodist Church

When Father Donnelly arrived on June 7, 1921, just three weeks before the incorporation of the parish on June 30th, it was evident that the church building would require extensive remodeling to prepare it for the liturgical worship of the Catholic congregation. First of all the building was small and the pews were arranged in a semi-circular fashion with a platform extending into the body of the church. Father Donnelly is reported to have said, "I could stand before the altar and almost shake hands with the people in the last pew". Renovation began almost immediately. An addition was provided to serve as sanctuary and house the Main Altar. An altar in honor of the Blessed Virgin was added. By this time the congregation had grown to approximately three hundred and fifty persons and with projected growth it meant that every in of space had to be put to use. A choir loft was put in and a vestibule added. The church had a very fine Estey organ and this was retained.

Parish Growth and a Fruitful Pastorate

Father Donnelly would lead the parish he founded for ten years of extraordinary growth and accomplishment. Each Sunday the number of Catholics attending the little church seemed to increase. By 1926 space was again a critical problem for the flourishing parish. In addition, Father Donnelly was quite concerned about the Christian education of so many of his young charges. With a view to the expansion of the parish facilities and the construction of a school, the pastor purchased eight lots adjoining the rectory on Targee Street. Parishioners and parents also shared the pastor,s dream of a parochial school for St. Sylvester's children and supported the effort to raise sufficient funds to give substance to their dream.

Work was underway in 1929 and completed in 1930. Had construction not taken place when it did, the parish might not have had a school for a number of years. But the dream had been fulfilled before the dreadful Depression could destroy it as it did so many other dreams in other places. October 7, 1930 the day the classes began, was indeed a day of joy in the parish, a day of parish pride in a community achievement.

A reception and dance were held that evening in the auditorium of the new school which had cost approximately $70,000.00. The problem of space had been solved, for these new facilities could now accommodate the needs of a parish which in ten years had grown from 350 to over 2,000 persons. In his ten-year tenure the founding pastor had firmly established the parish which now had an enlarged church, an enlarged rectory, additional property and a parochial school. Although there was no thought of it that joyful evening, Father Donnelly's work at St. Sylvester was nearing completion, for the following year he would be appointed pastor of St. Matthew Parish on Sixty-Eighth Street in Manhattan. He would serve there until his death in November 1935.

St. Sylvester Parochial School

Before Father Donnelly left St. Sylvester,s however, he did see the parochial school inaugurated. The Sisters of the Presentation Order accepted the invitation to teach in the new parochial school. At first, the Sisters from Mount St. Michael's on Staten Island came to each grade one through grade seven. They commuted to and from St. Sylvester's each school day until in 1932. The first school enrollment was one hundred and twenty. The staff included Sister Mary Patrick, Principal, assisted by Sisters Mary Anthony, Mary Brendan and Mary Stephen each of whom taught double grades. Due to illness, Sister M. Brendan was soon replaced by Sister Mary Evangelist. The following year Sister Mary Catherine was added to the staff. During this early period there were no lay teachers in the school. When the first class graduated in 1932, the new pastor, Reverend Bernard H. Clark, who had been appointed on November 6 1931, had the pleasure of presiding. There were eight boys and one girl in that first class and when Father Clark handed out the diplomas he began an annual ritual which he would continue throughout his remarkable pastorate of twenty-five years as pastor of St. Sylvester Parish. It was an especially fitting occasion for the new pastor, because he had come to St. Sylvester with an impressive record of achievement with youth.


The Pastorate of Father Clark

As an assistant in a Manhattan parish, Father Clark was one of the organizers of the Catholic Baseball in the Bronx and upper West Side and it was under his supervision the the largest championship baseball game of the Catholic league was staged at the Polo Grounds in 1918. He also had organized the Colonial Lyceum and St. Catherine's Athletic Club.

The appointment to St. Sylvester's was his first and only pastorate, for he remained in that office until his death on January 15, 1957. Father Clark is remembered not only for his special concern for youth but for the many contributions he made to the building of the spiritual and material fiber of the parish. During his service Father Clark opened for the Sisters in a rented house on Oder Avenue to relieve the commuting problem. In 1936 the convent was moved to the Clove Road location and remained there until 1966. It was during his pastorate that the outdoor grotto in honor of Our Lady of Lourdes was completed.

Perhaps the highlight of his long pastorate occurred in June, 1936 when the parishioners expressed their respect, gratitude and affection for their pastor on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of his Ordination. The parish held a jubilee dinner at the Meurot Club, St. George. Among the guests were the Borough President Joseph A. Palma, a member of the parish and, Reverend Matthew Delaney, a lifelong friend. The Jubilee Dinner Committee included Mrs. J.D. Lucey, Borough President Palma, honorary chairmen; William Haley, vice chairman;Frank Haley, treasurer; Frank Murphy, secretary; and Mark F.Dobbyn, publicity chairman. William Reilly, who was general chairman, announced days before the dinner that over four hundred reservations and in the end some had to be turned away.

Just two months after he passed another great milestone - the Silver Jubilee as pastor of St. Sylvester Parish - Father Clark died. His Eminence Francis Cardinal Spellman presided at a Solemn Mass of the Requiem at St. Sylvester's Church for the repose of his soul. For the first time in its thirty-six-year history, St. Sylvester's congregation mourned the death of a priest who died while serving the parish as pastor.


The Pastorate of Monsignor Dalton

On March 16, 1957, Reverend John J. Dalton was appointed pastor. He brought vision to his new office, but unfortunately, he suffered from ill health and could not remain active as long as his predecessors. The crowning achievement of his pastorate was, of course, the completion of the new school. Construction was finished on the eight-classroom building in 1959. The school was blessed and dedicated by Cardinal Spellman. On June 12, 1960, he received his greatest honor when he was elevated to the rank of Domestic Prelate amid the congratulations of his many priestly colleagues and the best wishes of his beloved parishioners. He was the first priest to distinguish the parish as a titles pastor.

It was during this period that St. Sylvester had the unusual experience of housing a diocesan hig school which, was named after the priest who had first opened St. Sylvester as a mission forty years before. The arrangement was made while Monsignor Farrell High School of Oakwood Heights was still under construction. The parish offered the use of the unoccupied first floor of the old parish school for the first freshman class of the new high school.

In September, 1961, one hundred and thirteen high school students with five faculty members opened sessions in the old St. Sylvester School (which was later demolished to make room for the gymnasium). The arrangement lasted for one school year. By the following year all the youthful eyes had turned toward the new beautiful new high school in Oak Height, but over one hundred sophmores would long recall their first year at St. Sylvester's old school.

Countess Moore High School also held its first classes at St. Sylvester School prior to the completionof its facilities in 1964 and the girls first graduating class, the Class of 1966, spent their first two years of high school, under the principalship of Sister Mary Benignus, at St. Sylvester School.

During Monsignor Dalton's tenure, extensive renovations to the church and the rectory were also completed, but continued illness forced the pastor to retire from active administration of the parochial affairs on August 24, 1962. He took up residence at the Frances Schervier Home and Hospital, although he retained the title, "Pastor Emeritus" until his death on June 9, 1965. Monsignor Dalton was buried witha Requiem Mass at his beloved Church of St. Sylvester at which his successor, Monsignor Lennon, delivered a moving eulogy expressing the parishioners' love and gratitude for their departed shepherd.

Significent Changes

Not only St. Sylvester Parish, but the Catholic Church throughout the world was facing a period of significant changes. This era of renewal began with the first meeting of the Second Vatican Council on October 11, 1962, just shortly after Monsignor John J. Lennon assumed the office of pastor of St. Sylvester Parish. The council indeed turned the eyes of the bishops, the priests, the religious and, the laity to the role of if the Church in the modern world - to the contribution Catholics must make to the Church, to the community, to the world in order to build a better tomorrow for all people. In a manner which has been characteristic of the pastors of St. Sylvester Parish throughout its fifty golden years, Monsignor Lennon guided the way to the future through providing for the formation of the parish youth.


Monsignor Lennon's Guidance

Monsignor Lennon came to St. Sylvester from St. Mary Magdalen, Pocantico Hills, New York, where he had served as pastor since 1958. His studies for the Priesthood at St. Joseph's Seminary, Dunwoodie, Yonkers, New York, led to his ordination on September 22, 1934, followed by further studies which earned him in 1936, a Master's Degree in Social Work from the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. Other positions held by Monsignor Lennon include those of Assistant Director, Department of Child Care of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, from 1936 to 1941; Director, Department of Child Care of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York from 1941 to 1951; Assistant Secretary of the National Conference of Catholic Charities from 1951 to 1955; Dean of the National Catholic School of Social Service, Washington, D.C.from 1955 to 1958.

With this excellent background, it is no wonder that Monsignor Lennon was able to guide his parish those first difficult years of transition with a sure hand and a solid plan for making St. Sylvester's an outstanding parish in the era of Church renewal. The master program called for a threefold construction project. It included plans for an eight-room extension wing for the school, a new convent and a large modern gymnasium-auditorium.

The people of the parish joined generously in the effort. Every individual and every parish group - the St. Sylvester Mothers' Guild, the Holy Name Society, the St. Theresa Society, the Rosary-Altar Society - all put the future first in support of the building program. But it was more than that; it was a program of total parish renewal. This program advanced at a pace comparable to the deliberations of Vatican II. In fact, the last session of the Council closed on December 8, 1965, and on May 1, 1966, Monsignor Lennon addressed a letter to his parishioners which said in part:

" We see today the happy fruition of our labors together in the
cause of Christ. These new buildings have but one purpose -
to enable you to enrich your lives as Catholics.....

The new convent, auditorium and class rooms have become
a reality through your efforts and generous sacrifices
and devoted efforts

Dedication of the New Convent, Classrooms, and Auditorium

St. Sylvester, or for that matter the whole of Staten Island, has seldom witnessed an occasion so joyous or one that is remembered with such poignant clarity as the first day in May, 1966, when the new buildings were dedicated and blessed by His Eminence, Francis Cardinal Spellman.

At least an hour before Cardinal Spellman was scheduled to arrive, people began to gather along the corner to the church. It was expected that he would go directly to the rectory. When his car did approach shortly before 3:00pm he saw the waiting crowd and had the car stopped so he could walk along the path of well wishers and give them his personal greeting. It was an ardous day for the aging Prelate as he performed the ceremony of blessing and dedicating the three buildings. By the time the Cardinal arrived to bless the last of the these - the auditotium-gymnasium - it was filled to capacity. As the Staten Island Advance reported the following day: "As the Cardinal entered the building the hall turned into one overwhelming tribute of applause and cheers which continued until he completed the long red-carpet walk to the stage.

Distinguished guests included twenty-nine Monsignorifrom the New York area, Congressman John M Murphy, Deputy Mayor Timothy Costello, Borough President Connor,State Senator John J. Murphy, John H. Lotz of the Board of Education and Assemblyman Kucio F. Russo. In his warm welcome to the Cardinal, the pastor of St. Sylvester'sMonsignor Lennon announced to the gathering that threr was a threefold reason for celebration with the Caardnal because it was not only the day of dedication of the three new buildings, but the week of the Cardinal's sevent-seventh birthdayand the month in which he would celebrate his Golden Jubileein the priesthood. The throng burst into another thunder of applause and cheers which all but drowned out the combined church and school choirs impromptu reendition of "Happy Birthday to You".


The Golden Jubliee of the Parish

St. Sylvester Parish was itself approaching a Golden Anniversary and, indeed, it had every reason to celebrate. In those fifty years the parish had grown from the little in a rented hall with one hundred and fory-four second-hand trolley seatsto become a parish in 1921 with about three hundred and fifty persons, to a large, modern parish of twenty-three thousand families with full facilities - church, rectory,convent, school and auditorium - a parish geared for renewal, prepard for the future. The Fifieth Anniversay provided the occasionto recall the years of struggle and sacrifice, the earlyyears of growing pains, the recurring problem of property and adequate space and, as only time can do, to bind these recollections in a tome of golden memories.

But, the Golden Anniversary was not simple a time to reminisceabout the past; it was a milestone on the road to the future. Both the past and the futurewere provided for in the anniversary plans.

One September 10, 1970, the announcement went out for the initial meeting of the Golden Jubilee Committee. That meeting was held on September 17th in the parish rectory and the general plan was discussed. Joseph Carelli was the General Chairman and other appointments included: Mr. Frank Murphy, Co-chairman: Mrs. George Lee, Co-chairman/Secretary: Mr. Edward Schrieber, Religious and Liturgical Mr. Louis Forrisi, Operations Committe: Mr. Fred Zimmer, Treasure: Mr. Maurice Ryan, Historian: Mr. Thomas Rizzo, Journal: Mr. James King, Journal Assistant: Sister Kathryn Anderson, School Participation: Mr. Richard McKean, Publicity.

Significant events during the celbration opened with Golden Anniversary Dinner Dance, attended by more than five hundred parishioners and friends on May28, 1971. Held in the Columbian Lyceum on Staten Island, the affair was honored by the presence of many priests and sisters who had served the parish in past years, as well as persones prominent in the cultural, political and academic life of the community.

On Flag Day, June 14, 1971, St. Sylvester's participated in a flag raising ceremony to honor the memory of young FrankLevato, one of the graduates of St. Sylvester School, who was killed in action in Vietnam on July 7, 1969. His burial flag was presented to the church by his parents for this occasion.

On June 30, which was the actual Fiftieth Anniversary date of the parish's incorporation, an anniversary banner presentation and dedication ceremony was held, with the church's new banner being flown for the first time.

The St. Sylvester Dramatic Society presented Come Blow Your Horn on October 8th and 9th, with a dance following each occasion.

May 13, 1972, was the highlight of the Jubilee Year, when Cardinal Cooke came to the parish and was the chief celebrant priest at a Mass of Thanksgiving in the school hall. The hall was filled to overthrowing when the Cardinal arrived that afternoon was greeted by a retinue whick included the faculty and children of the school, an Honor Guard of the Knights of Columbus, clerical and lay dignities, parishioners, and other members of the community.

In a welcoming address, Mr. Edward Schrieber patalleled the history of St. Sylvester's with the life of Cardinal Cooke. He also mentioned some past events on which the parish pride itself: the visits of two cardinals in a six-year span; the accommodation of students of Monsignor Farrell High School and then of Countess Moore High School - in both cases because their own buildings were not yet for occupancy; the only Catholic class on Staten Island for special children - which had been in existence six years; and the background of the Golden Jubilee Chalice,used for the first time that day by His Eminence, Cardinal Cooke - the chalice was cast from old artifacts that had benn donated during the previous year by St. Sylverter's parishioners. He also welcomed Reverend Clifford Atkinson, pastor of St. Simon's Episcopal Church, and Reverend William A. Epps, pastor of St. Phillips Baptist Church, who, in true ecumenical spirit, were present to share the joyous occasion. Reverend Carl Sutter, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, and Rabbi Irving Brenner were unable to attend due to prior commintments.

After the Mass, the Cardinal received parishioners in an outdoor presentation and the evening culminated in a magnificent social and dance enjoyed by all who attended.

More to follow. Under Construction.