St_Michaels_Panel_V3 St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church Many of the Roman Catholics in Cobourg were recent Irish immigrants. Fr. A Kernan arrived to found the parish in 1837 and their �rst church, a small frame building called St. Polycarp's, was completed in 1839 at what is now 600 William St. By 1859 a brick addition had nearly doubled the size. Four years later the original wooden part of the church burned down but was rebuilt. At the rededi- cation the name was changed to the COBOURG'S CHURCHES 1837 & 2012 HERE THEN, HERE TODAY… Methodist College/ Sisters' Residence Francis Du�y, a St. Michael's parishioner in the 1870s, became the most highly decorated priest in U.S. Army history. Du�y Square, in the northern half of Times Square, New York, includes his statue. Church of St. Michael the Archangel. In 1895 the present church was constructed at the site of the residence of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Division and Havelock Sts. The Sisters of St. Joseph played a major role in the life of St. Michael's, especially in the �eld of education. Their �rst residence was in this former Methodist College for young ladies, called Brookhurst Ladies' Academy, at Division and Havelock Sts. It was purchased by St. Michael's in 1883. St. Michael's today Father Francis Du�y chaplain of the 69th New York Infantry Regiment & his statue seen in Times Square, New York City. Content provided by Jim Weller, author of "Cobourg's Churches Over the Life of the Town" (2012). Design provided by Steve Smiley, RGD, Quench Design & Communications, Port Hope.