By Dan Israeli
It was back on that date in 1908 when the first ever Mass was held in the area, at the old Kinsey Homestead, now the site of the Krauss Funeral Home. The eleven families that attended that Mass would go on to form the congregation of St. Catherine of Sienna's Roman Catholic Church, the oldest parish in Franklin Square.
St. Catherine's will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first Catholic Mass in Franklin Square later this year on Sept. 14. The service will be attended by Bishop William Murphy of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, along with several St. Catherine members. While many Franklin Square Catholics take in the joyous celebration, it also serves as a good time to look back on that first Mass 100 years ago, and retrace the origin of St. Catherine of Sienna.
Before 1908, Catholics in the area attended St. Boniface Church in Elmont, which was founded all the way back in 1852. Augustus Rath, uncle of Franklin Square civic leader Jon Rath, was a pastor at the church. Around the turn of the century, Franklin Square, like most of Long Island, was rural farm land. The area began to develop around two hotels built on Hempstead Turnpike. Franklin Square was founded by German Catholics, who attended St. Boniface, but sought to establish their own parish in neighboring Franklin Square.
Four men - founding father Andrew Hoffman, Peter J. Herman, August Kalb and Nicholas Kreischer - got together and decided to start a church in Franklin Square. "They went to the bishop of Brooklyn, who said it was OK, as long as the men supported it financially," said Paul van Wie, Franklin Square historian. "They made a guarantee and started raising money."
They decided on a lot of land that was owned at the time by John Lewis Childs, the founder of Floral Park. According to van Wie, Childs wasn't interested in selling the land, which made the men weary to ask. What was originally looking like a problem, however, turned out to be a blessing. "When they said they wanted to make it a church, Childs donated the land to them at no cost," van Wie said.
With their land in hand, the men began raising money for the construction of the rectory, doing everything from holding parties in the local Munson Fire Department to raffling off a pig. By 1909 - one year after the same men and a few other families held that first mass - they were able to raise a few thousand dollars to build the church. In the meantime, the growing congregation held mass at the Kinsey Homestead, along with other homes in the area. Soon after the rectory was built, it became an inadequate space due to the rapidly growing congregation. In 1914, the new and current rectory was built.
And for those curious as to how the church received it's name, van Wie noted that Kalb, Herman and Kreischer all had wives that shared the same name - Catherine. Combined with Sienna, a city in Italy, and the church became known as St. Catherine of Sienna.
Ed Sheridan, associate pastor and administrator of St. Catherine's, noted the significance of the centennial anniversary and the overall excitement generating around the church lately. This month, Msgr. Richard Figliozzi from the Diocese of Rockville Centre will join St. Catherine's as its new pastor. "This parish has a rich history," Sheridan said. "It has provided worship for Catholics in the Franklin Square area for almost 100 years, and its important to take note of the tradition. It's a very exciting time for us here, and we look forward to welcoming our new pastor."
