Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church (Atlanta)

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church is a Catholic Church in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Located in the Sweet Auburn neighborhood, the church was established as a mission in 1912 and is a contributing property of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church (2020)
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
33°45′17″N 84°22′19″W
LocationAtlanta, Georgia, United States
DenominationCatholic Church
History
FoundedNovember 1912
Founder(s)Ignatius Lissner
DedicationOur Lady of Lourdes
Administration
ArchdioceseRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta
ProvinceEcclesiastical Province of Atlanta
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
Part ofMartin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park (ID74000677)
Added to NRHPMay 2, 1974

History

The church was established in November 1912 by Ignatius Lissner with funding from Katharine Drexel, who had founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (SBS).[1] The church was located in Sweet Auburn, an African American neighborhood in Atlanta, and shared a high degree of ecumenism with several Protestant churches in the neighborhood.[2] The church, originally known as Our Lady of Lourdes Colored Mission, was built as a three-story combination church and school, and Lissner served as its first pastor.[3] At the time, it was the second Catholic mission intended to serve African Americans in Georgia and the first in Atlanta.[3] The church is located on the same block as the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr.,[3] who as a kid would often play on the parish grounds.[4] During the civil rights movement, many church members protested for increased civil rights. The school would remain active until 2001, when it closed due to a lack of funding from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta.[1]

See also

References
  1. Georgia Historical Society 2014.
  2. Moore 2018, p. 135.
  3. Presidential Parkway Construction 1984.
  4. Moore 2018, p. 136.

Bibliography
  • "Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church: Atlanta's First African-American Catholic Church". Georgia Historical Society. September 16, 2014. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  • Moore, Andrew S. (2018). "Black and Catholic in Atlanta: Challenge and Hope". In Cummings, Kathleen Sprows; Matovina, Timothy; Orsi, Robert A. (eds.). Catholics in the Vatican II Era: Local Histories of a Global Event. Cambridge University Press. pp. 135–156. ISBN 978-1-107-14116-2 – via Google Books.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Presidential Parkway Construction, I-75 to Ponce de Leon, Atlanta: Environmental Impact Statement. 1984 – via Google Books.
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