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| Our Lady Help of Christians Church, interior |
Albany’s third German Catholic church was Maria Hülfe der Christen, or Our Lady Help of Christians, situated at 74 Second Avenue. The area surrounding Second Avenue was originally located in the Bethlehem hamlet of Groesbeckville until Albany annexed the district, in 1870. Today the area is known as the “South End.” The district was predominantly a German enclave. Its inhabitants resided in small one-family frame homes. The South End German Catholics originally worshipped at Holy Cross Church, but many found it difficult to travel to Hamilton Street. Therefore in 1873 they requested that another German parish be created for their locale.
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| Our Lady Help of Christians |
The church began in a small frame building as a mission for Holy Cross, with services conducted by priests from Holy Cross. In 1874 Reverend Stephen A. Preisser became the first pastor. The corner stone of the church was laid on June 27, 1880, during an impressive ritual with “pomp and ceremony” where at least two thousand people attended.[1] On August 28, 1881, the church was consecrated with impressive services.[2] Within the congregation, the church was known as “Maria Hilf,” or “Mary Help."
Among the parishioners it was well known that the early worshippers, the majority of them immigrants, had mortgaged their homes in order that their beloved church be built. The cost of the church was $14,000. In 1874 the church purchased eighteen acres of farmland in Glenmont for use as a parish cemetery.
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| Our Lady Help of Christians, interior |
Societies that functioned within the church included two benevolent aid societies or Unterstützungvereine: the Saint Stephen Society, established in 1874, and the Saint Boniface Verein, founded on August 27, 1875. As of 1897 eighty members paid monthly dues of $.35 enabling them to weekly sick payments of $4.00, a $100 death benefit, and a $50 disbursement for the death of a member’s wife. The society’s capital amounted to $3,042.41, and in 1891 the Verein joined the German Roman Catholic Central Verein. Both of these associations were benevolent societies that catered to the needs of newly arrived immigrants. The Holy Name Society and the Christian Wives and Mothers Society were based on spiritual enlightenment for women. Other female associations included Branch 452 of the Ladies Catholic Benevolent Association, the Saint Monika Verein, the Sacred Heart Society, and the Junglings und Jungfrauen Sodality, which promoted the advancement of religion in the lives of young females.[3]
Under the direction of the first resident pastor, Reverend Preisser, a parochial school was established in January 1875 on Krank Street, before the congregation was incorporated into a parish. Initially, lay teachers, including John Hess, taught the students until the services of religious teachers were secured. In 1882, responding to an invitation from the pastor, the Sisters of Saint Francis from Syracuse, New York came to replace the lay teachers. Their rigorous and demanding protocol gave the school a reputation for maintaining high standards. The school affectionately became known as “Krank Street College.”
Under the direction of the first resident pastor, Reverend Preisser, a parochial school was established in January 1875 on Krank Street, before the congregation was incorporated into a parish. Initially, lay teachers, including John Hess, taught the students until the services of religious teachers were secured. In 1882, responding to an invitation from the pastor, the Sisters of Saint Francis from Syracuse, New York came to replace the lay teachers. Their rigorous and demanding protocol gave the school a reputation for maintaining high standards. The school affectionately became known as “Krank Street College.”
In the 1890s the school had an enrollment of three
hundred students. School tuition was $.50
per month for pupils above the first grade and $.25 per month for first grade
students. As was true of so many of the
German national schools of the time, instruction was given in both German and
English.[4] Morning classes were taught in German and
afternoon classes in English.
In 1935 a
modern school was built and was in operation until the school closed in 1975,
because of low enrollment. Sadly, the
church said an emotional Auf wiedersehen,
after one hundred thirty years of service to the community, owing to dwindling
parishioners. The final mass was held on
February 10, 2002 .[5]
[1] Albany Argus, June 28, 1880, 8:2.
Phelps, comp., The Albany Hand-Book,
p. 59. Reynolds, Albany Chronicles,
p. 688.
[2] Albany Argus, August 29, 1881, 8:3.
[3] Louden, ed. Catholic Albany: An Illustrated History of the Catholic Churches and Catholic Religious, Benevolent and Educational Institutions of the City of Albany, pp. 274-276. n. a., Geschichte der Deutschen in Albany und Troy, p. 155.
[4] Leary, The History of Catholic Education in the Diocese of Albany, pp. 53-54. Howell and Tenney, eds., History of the County of Albany, N. Y., From 1609-1886, p. 757.
[5] Robert J. Hohenstein, Our Lady Help of Christians Church Cornerstone, 1880-1980: 100th Anniversary (Albany: Phil’s Offset Shop, 1980), pp. 1-20. Roberts and Cockrell, eds., Historic Albany, p. 218. The Evangelist, January 31, 2002. Times Union, January 24, 2002, 1A:1.
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