A History of St. Peter Catholic Church in Memphis
St. Peter’s, the Mother Church for Catholicism in West Tennessee, was founded in late 1840 with the appointment of Father Michael McAleer as pastor.
Before that time the needs of the few Catholics in Memphis were supplied by itinerant priests such as Father Stokes, who celebrated the first Catholic Mass here in 1839 in Eugene Magevney’s parlor.
On October 29, 1841, John S. Claybrook, trustee of Judge John Overton’s estate, conveyed block #409 of the original plan of Memphis to Bishop Richard P. Miles. Marcus B. Winchester, first mayor of Memphis and agent for the proprietors, and Eugene Magevney were witnesses of the deed when recorded in the Shelby County Register’s Office. That block is the 1481/2 foot square tract at the northeast corner of Third and Adams. As a partial donation, the price was made a nominal $500.00 which was generously subscribed by a number of Protestant Memphians as a gift to the Catholic community. In the summer of 1842 a brick church, 30 x 70 feet, was commenced. It was completed the following year at a cost of $5,000.00. (Records list $3,645.39 plus donated labor – 109 cart loads of sand.)
The constant influx of Irish Catholics and the immigration of German Catholics after the failure of the 1848 European Revolutions – to western frontier towns like Memphis resulted in the need for a larger church building. The present structure was commenced in the summer of 1852 and dedicated January 17, 1858.
The architect was Patrick Charles Keely, one of the most prolific church architects in the 19th century. St. Peter’s was among his earlier works, as evidenced by the octagonal towers which he favored and the simple Norman Gothic, fortress-like lines, as opposed to his later more ornate designs.
It is interesting to note the first church was left standing while the present building was constructed around it. The congregation continued to use it until the new church was ready for roofing. Then the old building was demolished and carried out the front doors. Until the present structure was completed enough so that services could be held there Sunday Masses were celebrated in a hall of the Medical College which was housed in the old Exchange Building at Front and Poplar (the present Auditorium).
In 1846 Bishop Miles asked the Dominican Order to assume the pastorate of St. Peter’s. Father Joseph Sadoc Alemany, 0. P. became the first Dominican and the second pastor of the parish with Father Thomas L. Grace, 0. P. as his assistant. Father Alemany later became Bishop of Monterey, California, and then was made the first Archbishop of San Francisco. Father Grace, who was appointed the fourth pastor and the one under whose direction the present church was built, left St. Peter’s in 1859 to serve as the second Bishop of St. Paul. Minnesota.
Father James Hyacinth Clarkson, 0. P. was named the third pastor of St. Peter’s in the spring of 1848 and was the first Dominican of a long line to give his life serving the people of Memphis. During his short tenure, severe small pox and cholera epidemics broke out. He contracted cholera while ministering to the sick and died August 25, 1849. He is buried under the sanctuary near St. Joseph’s Altar.
The second Dominican to perish while nursing the sick was Father James Raymond Cleary, 0.P. who died September 17, 1855, one of 220 persons who lost their lives in the second yellow fever epidemic Memphis witnessed. He, too, is buried under the sanctuary, as is Father Joseph Augustine Kelly, a hero of the yellow fever of 1878. A bronze plaque memorializing these three priests is on the west wall.
During Father Grace’s pastorate, and at his urging, six Dominican sisters arrived in Memphis January 1, 1851 to establish St. Agnes Academy as a boarding school for young girls. The following year Father Grace prevailed upon the sisters to care for a few orphan girls. As the numbers increased and the need to care for orphan boys made the continued use of St. Agnes unfeasible for that purpose, St. Peter’s Orphanage came into being when Father Grace acquired a farm five miles out on the Raleigh Road.
Another pastor of St. Peter’s, Rev. Thomas L. Power, 0. P., was the instigator of a Catholic college and school for boys. His efforts, aided by those of a successor pastor, Father Stephen Byrne, O.P., culminated in the founding of Christian Brothers College in 1871.
In 1872-73 the present rectory, designed by Jones and Baldwin, was constructed.
1873 marked the fourth yellow fever epidemic in Memphis – the first one of awesome proportions. Four Dominican priests succumbed to the scourge: Father George Raymond Dailey, 0. P., Father Bartholomew Vincent Carey, 0. P., Father Dennis Augustine O’Brien, O. P., all assistants assigned to St. Peter’s, and Father John Dominic Sheehy, 0. P., who was stationed elsewhere but begged to come to Memphis when he heard that all the priests were victims. The pastor, Father Joseph Augustine Kelly, O. P., was stricken but survived. By thus becoming immune, he was able to assume a truly heroic leadership role in the epidemics of 1878 and 1879. Letters and telegrams in the archives reveal him as almost a one-man Red Cross Society.
Three other Dominicans died in the epidemic of 1878 and a fourth in 1879: Father John Raymond McGarvey, 0. P., Father John Albert Bokel, O. P., Father Patrick Joseph Scannell, O. P., and Father Emile Dalmatius Reville, O. P. Like Father Sheehy in 1873, Father Scannell volunteered from Louisville, Kentucky when the Memphis priests became ill. He begged on his knees to be given the assignment. These yellow fever victims of 1873, 1878, and 1879 are buried on Priests’ Mound in Calvary Cemetery.
During Father Kelly’s pastorate St. Peter’s Orphanage was moved to its present location at Poplar and McLean Streets.
In 1891 Sodality Hall was built on the east side of the main church. Over the decades, it would serve multiple functions, such as the Friar’s chapel and a room where Lenten lunches were traditionally served. Today, the first floor serves as a choir rehearsal room and multi-purpose space. The second floor, called the Crystal Room due to the beautiful antique chandeliers, serves as a meeting room, library, and museum for many artifacts belonging to the St. Peter legacy.
In 1900 the stained-glass window in the Sanctuary over the Altar of Repose was installed. The last great changes to the physical structure of St. Peter’s prior to renovation in 1985 occurred in 1913-1915 with the installation of the remaining stained-glass windows (except for the World War I Memorial in the choir loft) and the scagliola altars (originally five; the existing three plus two in the transepts which have since been removed). At this time the large oil murals on canvas were hung on the apse walls. They were removed during the present restoration for being detracting over-decoration and too ornate. Possibly the medallions of twelve Dominican saints in the clerestory on either side of the nave also date from this period. They, too, are oil painted on canvas, not frescoes.
The present four-manual organ was obtained in 1923, and was built by Casavant Freres Limitee of Saint Hyacinthe, Canada, and is one of the finest in Memphis. The bell in the west tower was cast by G. W. Coffin, Buckeye Bell Foundry, Cincinnati.
St. Peter remained largely unchanged during first half of the 20th century. It continued to be the jewel of the downtown churches.
However, tragedy struck Memphis on April 4, 1968, with the assassination of Civil Rights Leader The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., at the Lorraine Motel, just one mile south of St. Peter. In the months following, racial tensions grew worse and many citizens abandoned the once thriving downtown Memphis. As a result, St. Peter’s population declined to numbers even lower than the yellow fever panic.
During the 1970s, an average of 35 parishioners constituted the main Mass on Sunday mornings. In one year, the parish celebrated only one baptism. With this drastic reduction in membership and the existence of three Catholic parishes in walking distance of each other, a serious discussion arose as to whether the parish should be shuttered.
In the midst of this crisis, the Master of the Dominican Order granted permission for the Friars in the southeast United States to found the Province of St. Martin de Porres on December 8, 1979. This new province brought new life to Memphis, as the Province of St. Martin de Porres inherited the legacy of St. Peter from the Province of St. Joseph.
The parishioners also did not give up on the parish! Those who stayed at St. Peter continued to make the parish a center of worship and service. Those who were not in the Memphis area came together as the “Friends of St. Peter”, a group dedicated to the preservation and restoration of St. Peter Church.
As a result of this hard work, and with the arrival of Fr. Joseph Konkel, O.P., as pastor, St. Peter underwent a major restoration and renovation in the late 1980s. The plasterwork was repaired, paintings restored, and an expanded courtyard and gathering area were added. With the stain-glass windows, freshly-restored organ, and these other renovations, St. Peter was even more spectacular than when it was first dedicated.
With a need for space, the parish would again expand in the late 1990s with the addition of a parish hall and classroom building constructed on the north end of the property. Dedicated in 2001, this complex allowed for more classes, special events, and Sunday socials – and it allowed for more people to be involved in each!
In addition to the parish hall complex, the Shrine of St. Martin de Porres, Patron of the Southern Dominican Province, came to Memphis. A new chapel was built on the grounds of St. Peter Parish and the chapel was dedicated September 15, 2001, becoming the St. Martin de Porres Shrine and Institute.
Patience and fortitude proved invaluable for St. Peter Church. As if relying on prophecy, the Dominican Friars continued to grow St. Peter Church while Downtown Memphis continued to flail. However, in the years following the dedication of the shrine, Downtown Memphis would see a resurgence of people moving into apartments, condos, and houses all along Main and Front Streets. Together with the explosion of population on Mud Island, Memphis was booming again…and St. Peter was ready to welcome the faithful!
St. Peter Catholic Church celebrated its 175th anniversary on October 4, 2015. Fr. Augustine J. DeArmond, O.P., Pastor, celebrated the Mass, assisted by Deacon M. Edward Ramsey. Fr. Thomas M. Condon, O.P., Prior Provincial of the Province of St. Martin de Porres, preached the homily. Fr. Paul Watkins, O.P., Superior of the Dominican Friars of Memphis and Rector of the St. Martin de Porres Shrine and Institute, Fr. John Lydon, O.P., Parochial Vicar, and Fr. Victor Laroche, O.P., Friar in residence, concelebrated the Mass.
St. Peter Catholic Church continues to be the “Jewel of the Southern Province.” No other parish in our region, under either diocesan or religious order pastoral care, matches the beauty of this house of God. More so, the people of St. Peter continue to be faithful benefactors and co-workers with the Dominican Friars of Memphis. It is safe to say that the history of West Tennessee and the Catholic Diocese of Memphis is incomplete without the Dominican Friars of Memphis and St. Peter Catholic Church.
WALK-THROUGH OF THE CHURCH
St. Peter Church is the second oldest Catholic Church in the State of Tennessee, and arguably the most beautiful, giving glory to God.
PROCEED DOWN THE MAIN AISLE AND NOTE
The ornate and intricate plaster work which abounds in the Church.
The Cherubim surrounding the culs-de-lampe hanging from several keystones in the nave and the sanctuary and the lace-like cut work in the lunette in front of the sanctuary above the statues of St. Peter (on right) and St. Paul (on left). It gives a chiaroscuro or cloisonne effect.
JUST BEYOND THE OVERHANG OF THE CHOIR LOFT, TURN BACK AND NOTE
Stained glass window over main entrance, behind the organ. This was the last window installed (in 1922) as a memorial to parishioners who served in World War I, and lists their names and branch of service. It was fabricated by Franz X. Zettler, Munich, Germany. Beside the kneeling soldier and sailor are Dominican saints.
Kneeling, left to right:
- St. Agnes of Montepulciano, holding a lamb (a pun on her name (Agnes is Latin for lamb) and is also a symbol of purity and innocence).
- St. Rose of Lima, with crown of red and white roses.
- St. Catherine of Siena, with lily, another symbol for purity or virginity.
- St. Catherine de Ricci, with crown of thorns, stigmata and whip (for twelve years every Thursday and Friday she relived the Passion and Death of Our Lord in a trance).
- St. Vincent Ferrer, holding crucifix, symbol of noted preaching and missions.
Standing, right to left:
- St. Pius V. It is said the white robes popes now wear daily derive from his Dominican habit.
- St. Hyacinth.
- St. Antoninus, Archbishop of Florence.
- St. Dominic, the dog and torch symbol at his feet represent a dream his mother had when pregnant in which she bore a dog in her womb and that it broke away from her with a burning torch in its mouth and set the world aflame. Has become a symbol of Dominican Order; also a pun in Latin, Domini canes, “watch dogs of the Lord”.
- St. Thomas Aquinas, the great writer-theologian.
- St. Peter Martyr, with hatchet (really a bill hook for pruning trees or cutting grain) in his head, by which he was killed, and the palm leaf, representing martyrdom.
- St. Louis Bertrand, with snake in cup, the symbol of attempt by the Carib Indians to poison him.
- St. Albert the Great, with book, the symbol of teaching (he was Thomas Aquinas’ teacher) and later a bishop.
- St. Raymond of Peñafort
The mural medallions on each side in choir loft are:
- Pope St. Gregory I – the Great – who regulated the system of Church music for the liturgy, and gave us the Gregorian chant.
- St. Cecilia, patroness of music.
TURNING BACK AND PROCEEDING DOWN THE MAIN AISLE:
- Light fixtures of brass and alabaster date from 1925, although the church was wired for electricity in 1900.
- Altar of Repose (formerly High Altar, Main Altar, or Mass Altar), of scagliola, a composition material painted to resemble marble, was installed in 1915, along with four others – the side altars of St. Joseph and the Blessed Mother, which remain, and transepts altars to the Sacred Heart and St. Dominic, which no longer exist. Originally, this altar had five steps leading up to it, but this was reduced to two during restoration for several reasons:
- Since Vatican II Council, a Mass Altar facing the congregation is required.
- Lowering the Altar gives a better view of the two inner angels in the bottom panel of the stained glass window.
- The Altar had to moved out from wall for new heating/air conditioning systems air returns.
Below the table of the Altar is a depiction of Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper. On right pedestal is Dominican seal; Dominican cross is on the left. Statue on right is St. Catherine of Siena, wearing a Crown of Thorns to represent her stigmata. On left is St. Rose of Lima. Above tabernacle is Crucifixion group of St. John and
Blessed Mother on each side and St. Mary Magdalen, kneeling at foot of Cross.
Stained Glass Window is oldest in Church (except for Tower windows), was executed in 1899 in Franz Mayer’s studio in Munich. It shows Dominican seal in top panel, flanked by St. Vincent Ferrer on left and St. Rose of Lima on right. The main panel depicts the vision of St. Dominic receiving the Rosary from the Blessed Mother. (The Rosary has antecedents centuries before St. Dominic. The earliest writings tell of unlettered persons reciting 150 prayers representing the 150 Psalms sung or recited in the Liturgy of the Hours – the Divine Office. St. Dominic and his followers popularized the Rosary as a method of praying, meditating on, and preaching the life of Christ in the 5 Joyful, 5 Sorrowful, and 5 Glorious Mysteries).
On the. left side of this main panel is St. Peter and on the right is St. Paul.
The lower panels depict 4 angels holding the symbols of our salvation through Jesus. The lily for His innocence and purity; the crown of thorns and cup for His suffering and shedding His blood for our sins; the cross for His death and the crown and scepter for His resurrection.
Ambry on left wall holds Holy Oils consecrated by the Bishop on Holy Thursday and used in baptisms, confirmations and anointing the sick throughout the year.
Reliquary on right wall holds a relic of St. Dominic and of St. Bernadine of Sienna.
A Dominican seal on sanctuary floor features the motto of the Order: Truth, Praise, Bless and Preach.
MOVING TO THE WEST TRANSEPT:
- St. Joseph’s Altar. Dates from 1915. Statue of St. Joseph was broken a number of years ago. This will be replaced.
- Stained Glass window. (These and others in Church were made in 1913-1915 by Mayer’s Munich Studio in Chicago) represents Blessed Imelda of Bologna, patroness of fervent First Communions. Placed in a Dominican convent for schooling at age of 9. Had great devotion to Jesus in Blessed Sacrament but could not receive Him because custom then was to make First Holy Communion no earlier than age 12. She would ask, “Tell me, can anyone receive Jesus into his heart and not die?” When she was 11, after Mass on Ascension Day, she was still kneeling before Altar when the community saw a Host hovering in the air above her. The priest placed it on a paten and gave it to Imelda, who received it and died in rapture.
- Bronze plaque to 3 Martyr Priests who are buried at intersection of West Transept and sanctuary.
- Stained Glass Windows. Transept window depicts Annunciation in right panel and Visitation in left one. Other windows on west side of nave represent other three Joyful Mysteries: Nativity; Presentation of Jesus in Temple; and Finding of Jesus in Temple.
- St. Vincent Ferrer (1522-1589) preached repentance throughout Europe in combatting the moral laxity that sprang up after the social disruptions of the Great Plague (known as the Black Death, which killed one-third to one-half of Europe’s population). His symbols of the tongue of fire and angel wings refer to his preaching ability and to the angelic beauty of his selfless life. The book represents his Treatise on the Spiritual Life.
- St. Louis de Montfort (1673-1716) wrote True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, and spent his career preaching missions and spreading devotion to the Rosary.
- St. Peter Martyr (1206-1252) preached in northern Italy against the Cathari sect, a heresy closely akin to the Albigensian, which denied the humanity of Jesus. He was ambushed and killed. While lying on the ground he dipped his finger in his blood and wrote in the dust the beginning of the Nicene Creed, the document asserting the Divinity and humanity of Jesus. The symbols of bill hook and dagger show the means of his death, and the palm leaf represents his martyrdom. The assassin, Carino, repented and became a Dominican brother at Forli. He died 41 years later.
- Side Altar of Blessed Mother 1915. Statue of Our Lady is marble, the only marble in the Church, and its age is unknown. It could well date back to the first Church built in 1842.
- Stained Glass Window – St. Thomas Aquinas Adoring the Blessed Sacrament. St. Thomas had a great devotion to the Blessed Sacrament as attested by his hymns praising Jesus in the Eucharist. He composed the liturgical office and Mass for the Feast of Corpus Christi. This window depicts an incident after the University of Paris asked him to resolve a dispute, which was whether the accidents of the bread and wine remain really or only in appearance upon their consecration into the Eucharist. His treatise is accepted teaching of the Church today. Later while praying, he had a vision of the Holy Trinity and Jesus told him he had written well of the sacrament of His Body.
- Crucifix. A gift of Calvary Episcopal Church. It had been commissioned in Italy for that church, but was too large and was given to St. Peter’s.
GO THROUGH EAST TRANSEPT TO STAIR HALL
- Portrait of Father Joseph Augustine Kelly, Pastor of St. Peter’s 1863-1865, 1868-1871, 1872-1876, 1879-1881. Hero of Yellow Fevers. Moved St. Peter’s Orphanage to its present location at Poplar and McLean. Former Provincial.
- Portrait of Father Edward A. Ashfield, an assistant pastor from 1883 until his death in February 1889. He was stabbed to death by a deranged young man he had been counseling. Father Ashfield was a convert from Anglicanism.
- Portrait of Michael Dominic Lilly, Pastor of St. Peter’s 1865-1866, 1886-1887. Former Provincial.
- Portraits of all the pastors of St. Peter Catholic Church arranged in chronological order.
MOVING UP WEST AISLE TO REAR OF CHURCH
Note the Dominican Saints in East Clerestory, beginning at sanctuary and proceeding toward choir:
- St. Raymond of Penafort (1175-1275), holding keys, staff and book. Compiled Book of Canon Law – the Decretals – also wrote works for guidance of confessors, hence the key symbol. The staff may represent several things: his work and travels among the Moors, his election as Master General of the Order, and his sailing from Majorca to Barcelona on his cloak with staff holding up one corner as a sail.
- St. Antoninus (1389-1459), Archbishop of Florence, great benefactor of the poor. Was in novitiate with Fra Angelico and commissioned his paintings.
- St. Pius V (1504-1572), popularized the Rosary by his crusade of it for victory over the Turkish fleet threatening Europe. Resulting Battle of Lepanto October 7, 1571, he saw in a vision in Rome and announced news of the victory.
- St. Rose of Lima (1586-1617) First American saint.
- St. Catherine of Siena Crown of Thorns depicts her stigmata; the book, her Dialogues, which she dictated because she was unable to read or write.
- St. Hyacinth (1185-1257) Dominican Apostle to Poland and missionary to countries of the north and east. Depicted holding a monstrance and a statue of Blessed Virgin. During a Tartar invasion his convent was set afire. He removed the Blessed Sacrament from the tabernacle to save and hide it when Our Lady asked him not to leave her statue to be desecrated. It was very heavy, but Our Lady told him she would lighten the load. He escaped with both and walked dry-shod across a river to safety.
PROCEED DOWN EAST AISLE
- Stained Glass Windows tell the Glorious Mysteries: the Resurrection, the Ascension, and Descent of Holy Spirit on Apostles are the three single windows. The Assumption of Our Lady into Heaven is the right panel of the transept window and Our Lady’s Coronation as Queen of Heaven is left panel.
CONTINUE WITH DOMINICAN SAINTS IN WEST CLERESTORY, BEGINNING IN CHOIR AND PROCEEDING TO SANCTUARY
- St. Albert the Great (1207-1280) Teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas, early natural scientist, was bishop of Ratisbon. Had a vision when St. Thomas Aquinas died.
- St. Agnes of Montepulciano (1268-1317) holding her symbol for her name, lamb (Agnus in Latin). Like St. Anthony of Padua she had a vision of Our Lady and the Infant Jesus, who let her hold Him.
- St. Catherine de Ricci (1522-1589) Crown of Thorns representing her stigmata and burning heart representing her twelve years of re•living the passion and death of Jesus.
GOING UPSTAIRS TO CRYSTAL ROOM. BUILT AS SODALITY HALL, 1891
- Painting of St. Mary Magdalen – obtained by Mr. P.A. McPhillips from Mexico.
- Stained Glass Window at head of stairs. St. Dominic receiving Rosary from Our Lady, surrounded from top left down and around to top right by the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries.
IN CRYSTAL ROOM
- East Hall – Stained Glass Window, St. Dominic, Our Lord, St. Agnes of Montepulciano.
- Symbols of North Wall Windows: Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Beehive (the Church), the Papacy.
- Symbols of South Wall Windows: Crucifixion implements, Jesus’ initials.
- Symbols of West Wall Windows: Crown of Thorns, Pilate’s writing above Cross.
History Credits: 1840-1915 Narrative by Charles E. Pool, 1915-Present Narrative by Fr. Augustine J. DeArmond, O.P.
Walk Thru prepared by Charles E. Pool as guide for docents in tours of St. Peter’s during Victorian Village Festival, Sunday, September 1, 1984.