St. Philomena Church and Cemetery

St. Philomena Church and Cemetery. . St. Philomena Church is the only remaining building from the early settlement at Kalawao. The original church on this site was built by Brother Victorin Bertrant in 1872, about a year before Father Damien arrived at the settlement. Assisted by patients, Father Damien remodeled St. Philomena in 1876 and added a new wing and a tower. He rebuilt the church with stone in 1888. During 1987-88, St. Philomena Church was restored to its condition of December 24, 1932, the date of the last regular church service here. It was rededicated on October 22, 1988., The Sacred Heart Brothers Cemetery, immediately to the right of the church, contains the grave of Brother Joseph Dutton, the original grave of Father Damien, and a marker commemorating him. This cemetery is only a small portion of a much larger graveyard at St. Philomena. Over 7000 people have been buried on the peninsula since January 1866., Father Damien de Veuster , Father Damien arrived at Kalawao on May 10, 1873. He devoted his life to the settlement's patients. Damien sought practical solutions to the patients' problems, and his fluency in the Hawaiian language gained him trust and support. Early in 1885, Father Damien was officially diagnosed as having leprosy, although he had noted probable symptoms a few years earlier. He died on April 15, 1889., Captions , [Top (left to right)] , . Father Damien de Veuster, 33, in 1873, the year he arrived at Kalawao. , . St. Philomena Church after Father Damien's remodeling of 1888. , . Father Damien's body was returned to his native Belgium in 1936. , [Bottom (left to right)] 1872; 1876; 1888-89.