The St. Patrick Parishes

    In 1965, the Phelpston parish produced a wonderful centenary souvenir book, which included a poem written by B. Baxter of Penetanguishene in 1893. Some choice stanzas are excerpted here: At The Openi

    The Irish settled this area of Tiny Township starting in the 1850s. However, they soon moved on to other farming areas as families from Quebec moved to the vicinity for cheap and fertile land. The Fr

    Once the Irish settlers cleared their land and built a family dwelling, their next priority was a place of worship. It was no different in Stayner, where the pioneers built a log church in 1848. By 1

    Though established in 1876, the Schomberg parish did not have a church building for almost forty years. Instead, Mass was celebrated in the chapel/living room of the rectory. In 1915, the current chu

    The baking and breaking of bread has brought people, and communities together around the world for millennia. Aside from being a dietary staple, bread also plays a symbolic role in many religions as

    The second wave of Irish immigration followed the Great Famine of 1847. The original site of St. Patrick's Church in Markham was on Rouge Street, in an area dubbed "Vinegar Hill" or "Little Dublin."

    The first wave of Irish immigration to Upper Canada occurred in the early nineteenth century following England's annexation of Ireland in 1800. Irish settlers to the Toronto Gore area arrived in 1818

    This church was built to serve the settlers of "Irishtown" in the Dundas St. and Dixie Rd. area of Mississauga. The brick church built in 1872 (left) was replaced by a much larger one in 1971 (right)

    In 1867 St. Patrick’s Gothic Church was built on St. Patrick's Street in downtown Toronto. In 1908 this “Old St. Patrick’s” became Our Lady of Mount Carmel for the first Italian Congregation. Constru