New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-05-27
GOSSIP OF THE BOROUGH
Monsignor Mcnamara Dedicates
Church to st. Grc cory the Great.

The Right Rev. Monsignor P. j. l>SNamara
dedicated the new Roman Catholic p>rlsh
church, built at Brooklyn avenue and st. JohnS
Place TO St Gregory the Great, last week. The
Rev Herbert = Farrell, pastor OF the Church
OF St Mary Star Of the Sea- at Far RockaWay'
and the Rev. c. T. Vita, chaplain or 81. John
Home. assisted, as well the pastor or the new
church, the Rev Maurice Fitzgerald formerly
Of St Monica's Church, Jamaica The building
cost $4,000, and is intended only as temporary
home as If is the hope OF Father Fitzgerald to
erect a much finer and larger edifice at Brook
lvn avenue and Sterling Place in a few years.
In obtaining a site for his church he made prep
arations for building larger place Of worship.
The ground purchased consists OF the entire
block on the west side OF Brooklyn avenue, be-
tween St Johns Place and Sterling Place. The
cost was So, 800. He also bought house for
s17oO This adtons the new church and will
be used as a rectory. The new building is con-
structed Of brick. with inner and outer walls of
metal II has seating room for about five hun
dred people. This has not yet been paid for,
and Father Fitzgerald has set himself the task
OF raising the funds to clear of the Indebtedness
his first work in the parish.
l. The organization known as the De Kalb Ave
nue. Methodist Episcopal Church VIII be seventy
Wears old June is. 1907 Last Sunday the mem
bers celebrated their fifteth year IN their pres
ent building, ar De Kalb and Franklin avenues.
The church was officially recognized as an or
ganization On June is, 1887. The first pastor
was the Rev William Gothard. There have
been thirty-six pastors since his day the pres
ent pastor being the Rev. DR.. w A Layton.
Only eight OF the thirty-seven pastors Of the
church are still living and OF these only four
are still in active service. Since the organiza-
ton of the church 285 members have held
or Of Tha
bers OF the church who We're on the rolls when
the church was first opened, in 1856 are still
living. One Of them stll Is attending ser
vices.
Tho top OF the spire Of Holy Trinity, which
since the early Co.'S has been the Hottest IN
Brooklyn and landmark FOR miles around, has
been removed in the work OF rebuilding the
outer walls. The large cross which so lona
perched upon its capstone 300 feet above Mon
tague and Clinton streets is now slowed away
in the basement OF the structure The semi.
globular capstone only is inches In diameter
is q little piece in the pile of broken stone IN
the churchyard to the north OF the building
Workmen hammering away chipping The
stone from the steeple, once considered the most
beautiful in America. The cross which was {
feet . inches high, was removed In three niAces
The stoneWork was Clipped off and lowered IN
baskets on the north side al first but now thai
the hollow in the steeple has been reached Tho
rubbish IS lowered through Il The work. n,
removing the stone from the lofty pinnacle va
prscarlous. both to he workmen and 10 the
pedestrians In the street The wind or the care.
less use or a hammer might have hurled sbarr
CHUNKS or stone upon the passersbv However,
no accident has occurred. The removal Of the
stone VIII not cease until the tower which IN.
epire Eurmounted is reached. The spire AND
tower were octagonal n form and OF Gothit
styie. and were designed by Bernard Lefevre
son or the architect who planned old TrinIt,
Church In Manhattan.