St. Mary's Church
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L'Église St. Mary

Biddeford, Maine

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The Museum in the Streets

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Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 12, 2021

1. St. Mary's Church / L'Église St. Mary Marker

In 1848, Irish Catholics celebrated their first mass in the Emery House at the foot of Emery Street in Biddeford with Father McGuire of the parish of St. Dominic's in Portland. Around 1850, Catholics started to congregate on the second floor of the offices in the Pepperell Mills, where mass was said about every three months by a priest from Portland. The congregation then moved to St. Mary's Church, first known as the Church of the Assumption, built by Patrick C. Keely in 1856. It was located on Vetromille Street, later renamed St. Mary's Street. French-Canadians originally attended mass in St. Mary's until they moved to the old Methodist church in 1870. Following destruction by fire the rebuilding of St. Mary's Church began in 1923 and deciation was held in 1926.

Ce fut en 1848 que la première messe catholique fut célébrée à Biddeford par le Père McGuire de la paroisse St. Dominique de Portland. Elle fut dite dans la maison d'un nommé Emery au bas de la rue de ce nom. Située sur la rue Vetromille et renommée la rue St. Mary, la première église portrait le nom de Marie de l'Assomption. Pendant des deux années

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suivantes, la messe fut célébrée une fois tous les trois mois par un prêtre de Portland dans les bureaux de la filature Pepperell. Commencée en octobre 1855, l'église que le Canadiens-Français immigrés dans nos lieux assistèrent aux offices religioux jusqu'au début de 1870. L'église fut bénite en 1926.
 
Erected 2006 by The Museum in the Streets. (Marker Number 21.)
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Religion & Religious Structures • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the The Museum in the Streets: Biddeford, Maine series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1848.
 
Location. 43° 29.747′ N, 70° 27.573′ W. Marker is in Biddeford, Maine, in York County. It is at the intersection of St. Mary's Street and Hazel Street on St. Mary's Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 23 St Mary's St, Biddeford ME 04005, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Southern Maine Coast. It is also in the American Northeast, in New England, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), November 12, 2021

2. St. Mary's Church

is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Society Saint Jean-Baptiste de Bienfaisance / La Société Saint Jean-Baptiste de Bienfaisance (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); McArthur Library / La Bibliothèque McArthur (about 600 feet away); St. Joseph's Church / L'Église St. Joseph (approx. 0.2 miles away); Tracy House / La Maison Tracy (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Opera House / La Salle de L'Opéra (approx. 0.2 miles away); Biddeford City Hall / L'Hôtel de Ville (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Lincoln Street Mill and Clock Tower / La Filature Et Sa Tour Sur La Rue Lincoln (approx. ¼ mile away); John E. Maxson (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Biddeford.
 
Additional commentary.
1. Spelling on the marker
The term mass has been taken verbatim from the marker. Catholics tend to capitalize the term (i.e. Mass) when referring to the sacrament.

    — Submitted November 19, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.

 

 
Credits. This page was last revised on August 26, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 19, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 703 times since then and 111 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on November 19, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.