St. Joseph Catholic Church at 109 N. Meadow Ave., Laredo, TX 78040 US - About Our Church
About Our Church
A HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH'S PARISH CHURCH - LAREDO, TEXAS 1. St. Joseph's Parish Church of Laredo, Texas, was officially created by Bishop Mariano S. Garriga, of Corpus Christi, in 1953. The Church had originally been built as a Mission Chapel in 1941 and was served by the Oblate Fathers from St. Augustine Church of Laredo, Texas. The letter announcing the erection of the Mission Chapel to the rank of a parish was addressed by Bishop Garriga to the Rev. Charles Taylor, O.M.I., its first pastor, on April 19, 1953. (see complete text of the letter below). In that letter Bishop Garriga stated that, due to the large extension of the St. Augustine territory, it was rather difficult to meet the spiritual needs of the faithful from the mother church and, therefore, he decided to divide it, creating a new national parish of St. Joseph, destined to serve the needs of the spanish-speaking faithful. (Cf. Codex Historicus of San Agustin Church of Laredo, Texas, page 13.) 2. A few years before, in 1941, then the Bishop of Corpus Christi, Most Reverend Manuel Ladvina, advised Rev. Jesus Prieto, O.M.I., at that time Pastor of St. Augustine Parish, to look for a suitable site for a Mission Chapel to be built in the Chacon area. Steps were immediately taken for that purpose and arrangements were made in order to comply with His Lordship the Bishop's wishes, and also to overcome the legal, canonical and financial requirements. The necessary piece of land was purchased from privately-owned property, located in between the streets of Meadow, Green, Mendiola and Mercer, where the future church was actually built in 1941. (Cf. Codex Historicus of San Agustin Church, Laredo, Texas, Pages 23, 24, and 25.) 3. During the month of September 1941, the ground breaking for the church building took place and the Church Blessing and Dedication were held on January 23, 1942, with Bishops ledvina and Garriga officiating in the liturgical ceremonies. Details in regards to the personalities attending the religious event, as well as the total cost of the church building, the tower, the altars, the pews, etc., can be read in the already mentioned Codex Historicus of San Agustin Parish of Larefo, Texas, Pages 9 and 10. It should be underlined that the generosity of the St. Joseph's parishoners deserve the whole credit for the church building. Their support for the building of the church, as well as for its maintenance has been, from the very beginning up till this very moment, really outstanding. 4. In 1962 the Oblate Fathers, who were in charge of the parish from 1953-1966, built the present rectory, whose architect was Mr. Alfonso Leyendecker of Laredo. The total cost of the rectory amounted to $31,000.00. In 1966, the parish was entrusted to the Augustiani9an Fathers of the Provincia Augustiniana Martitense del Sagrado Corazon de jesus, Madrid, Spain, and since then the church and its property have been greatly developed. A. From 1968-1970: 1. The church was newly paved. 2. The sacristy was enlarged. 3. The pews were replaced. 4. The air conditioning system was enlarged. B. From 1975-1980: 1. The parish hall was build at a total cost of $92,000.00, including the tables and the chairs. It was blessed by Bishop Thomas J. Drury on April 19, 1975. 2. The large parking lot in front of the hall was paved. 3. The annex offices to the residence were built, bringing the total cost of the parking lot and the annex offices to $60,000.00. 4. In 1985, the primitive columns of the church, badly damaged by termites, were replaced by new columns of steel and concrete; the fence surrounding the church property was mended and a new loud-speaking system was installed, totalling a cost of $15,000.00. It is worth noting that all the works done in the St. Joseph's Parish property, so far, have been carried out and completed with its own auspicies and means. The poor people of the area are very generous when a reasonable appeal is made and it is hoped that they will continue supporting their church as they have been doing so faithfully during the past forty years of St. Joseph's Church history. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ANNO DOMINI 1953 BISHOP'S LETTER Rev. Charles Taylor, O.M.I. c/o St. Augustine Church P.O. Box 636 Laredo, Texas Dear Father Taylor: Since the spiritual needs of the people of St. Augustine Parish in Laredo, Texas, cannot be properly attended to because of the large terrytory of the parish, with the consent of the Diocesan Consultors, and with the advice of the pastors, I, by virtue of special faculties granted me through His Excellency, the Most Reverend Apostolic Delegate to the United States, under date of March 31, 1953, hereby divide St. Augustine Parish and erect St. Joseph Parish in Laredo as a national parish for the Spanish-speaking faithful. The limits of St. Joseph Parish shall be as follows: The northern boundary, Aldama Street, from the eastern city limits of Laredo to McClelland Street; then south on McClelland Street to the Rio Grande River to the city limits of Laredo on the east, and thence north along the city limits from Monument Street to Aldama Street. At the recommendation of your Provincial Superior, I appoint you as Pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Laredo with all the rights and duties given to the pastor by the Code of Canon Law and by the legitimate custom of our diocese. The Spanish-speaking inhabitants within the above described limits will constitute the members of St. Joseph Parish. Given at Corpus Christi, Texas, this the 6th day of April, A.D. 1953. Most Rev. M. S. Garriga, D.D. LL.D. Bishop of Corpus Christi