Old Fourth Ward in Atlanta in Fulton County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
Atlanta’s First African-American Catholic Church
Photographed By Mark Hilton, November 14, 2021
1. Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Marker
Inscription.
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. Atlanta’s First African-American Catholic Church. Our Lady of Lourdes was established in November 1912 by Father Ignatius Lissner as the first African-American Catholic church in Atlanta. Father Lissner received funding for the church and parish school from Mother Katharine Drexel, a Pennsylvania heiress who founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (SBS), an order established to serve and support African and Native Americans. During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Lourdes parishioners, including SBS nuns, participated in protest activities as part of the Old Fourth Ward community. The SBS staffed Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School until 1974. The school closed in 2001 when the Archdiocese of Atlanta could no longer provide funding. The building is now the Katharine Drexel Community Center.
Our Lady of Lourdes was established in November 1912 by Father Ignatius Lissner as the first African-American Catholic church in Atlanta. Father Lissner received funding for the church and parish school from Mother Katharine Drexel, a Pennsylvania heiress who founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (SBS), an order established to serve and support African and Native Americans. During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, Lourdes parishioners, including SBS nuns, participated in protest activities as part of the Old Fourth Ward community. The SBS staffed Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School until 1974. The school closed in 2001 when the Archdiocese of Atlanta could no longer provide funding. The building is now the Katharine Drexel Community Center.
Erected 2013 by the Georgia Historical Society and Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. (Marker Number 60-10.)
Location. 33° 45.294′ N, 84° 22.321′ W. Marker is in Atlanta, Georgia, in Fulton County. It is in the
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Old Fourth Ward. Marker is on Boulevard NE north of Edgewood Avenue NE, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 25 Boulevard NE, Atlanta GA 30312, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 15, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 173 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on November 15, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.