St. Bridget's Roman Catholic Church

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In 1868, Thomas Whitney donated the land for a church to be built in Glassboro. Originally the church was built on the north side of University Boulevard in the Chestnut Ridge area. The parish began with about 20 families. The church was established as a mission-type church and clergy from neighboring churches came in to serve. By 1880, 80 Catholic families lived in Glassboro, but because of the distance of the church, many families had difficulty attending regularly. Because of this, the church was moved closer to the center of town. The structure was lifted and placed on a sturdy wagon, and then it was then pulled by horses down University Blvd toward its new location. 

The second location of this church was on Church Street at the approximate map coordinates 39.702311, -75.116009. The plot of land was purchased in August 1882. During the move, an operations breakdown occurred leaving the church idle on the railroad tracks. All trains were believed to have passed for the day so they decided to wait until the next morning to begin moving the church again. A freight train came along, but luckily a railman noticed the oncoming train and diverted a disaster. 

In May of 1886, the Church had extensive work done, including a new addition with two new rooms: a rectory and a reading room. By 1888, the membership had reached 200 and a permanent priest was assigned. A rectory was built for St. Bridget's Church in 1890.

In 1964, the old St. Bridget's Church was demolished and the area was used as a parking lot for the new church across the street. The current St. Bridget's Roman Catholic Church is located at 125 Church Street at the map coordinates 39.702354, -75.115507.

See also:
St. Bridget's Elementary School

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