Affiliation Roman Catholic Church Status Active Website [1] Opened 1887 Phone +1 267-787-5000 | Year consecrated 1887 Leadership Father Carlos Keen Height 23 m Capacity 650 | |
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Similar Immaculate Conception Roman C, St Adalbert in Philadelphia, St Cyprian Roman Catholic, St Donato Roman Catholic, St Mary's Roman Catholic | ||
St. Agatha – St. James Church (formerly St. James Church) is a Roman Catholic church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The original parish was established in 1850 as the Church of St. James the Greater, the first Catholic parish in Philadelphia County west of the Schuylkill River. Ground was purchased at 38th and Chestnut Streets and within two years a church building was erected. Construction of the current building, designed by Philadelphia architect Edwin Forrest Durang, began on October 16, 1881 and was completed on the same day in 1887.
The church underwent additions in 1930, which included electric lights, and another complete renovation in 2003.
Nearby St. Agatha's Church (at 38th and Spring Garden Streets in Powelton Village) was closed in 1976, and its parish was merged into that of the former St. James Church, which was then renamed St. Agatha – St. James.
The current pastor is Father Carlos Keen.