The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester celebrated its sesquicentennial in 2018, which inspired me to take an overview of Catholicism in what’s now Steuben County. Currently there are 12 churches in Steuben, organized into six parishes or communities. (Two of those six also have churches in other counties.) There is a chapel at Bath V.A. There used to be one at St. James Mercy Center in Hornell, but I’m not sure whether that’s still the case with the new location and ownership.

There are nine former churches: St. Matthias, Atlanta [or Bloods] (1914-1972); Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic, Bath (1951-1992); St. William, Cameron Mills (1885-1903); St. Joachim, Canisteo (1880-2005); St. Mary Greek Catholic, Corning (1917-1933); St. Ignatius Loyola, Hornell (1931-2004); St. Vincent de Paul, Corning (1913-2018); Immaculate Heart, Painted Post (1951-2019); and St. Mary Chapel, Troupsburg (1866?-1883).

There were also other locations in which there were attempts to plant missions, or where there were intermittent services, but those listed above seem to be the only ones that were formalized.

Until recently St. James Mercy Center (established 1890) was a Catholic hospital, and the only one in Steuben. There were once Catholic orphanages in Corning and Hornell. There are 11 Catholic cemeteries in Steuben County, plus a few inactive ones. As of this writing All Saints Academy (P-8) in Corning is the sole church-connected Catholic school in Steuben, but St. Ann’s Academy (P-6) in Hornell is a private Catholic school. There used to be schools at Bath, Wayland, Hornell, Rexville, Corning Southside (St. Patrick’s) and Corning Northside (St. Vincent de Paul).

Catholic Charities has a substantial presence in Steuben, including Turning Point Ministries and Food Bank of the Southern Tier.

Until recently Immaculate Heart of Mary (Painted Post) was the youngest congregation (established 1951). The youngest congregation now is St. Stanislaus in Bradford (1923), while the newest building is at St. Mary’s in Rexford (1984).

Sacred Heart (Perkinsville, established 1838), is the oldest faith community in the diocese outside Monroe County, and thus the oldest Catholic congregation in Steuben.

St. Patrick’s (Prattsburgh) has the oldest edifice, constructed in 1868 by Irish immigrant parishioners, and periodically altered since. St. Patrick’s, St. Mary’s (Bath), St. Mary’s (Rexville) and St. Mary’s (Corning) were largely Irish when they started out, but the northwest corner churches… Sacred Heart (Perkinsville), St. Joseph’s (Wayland), and St. Pius V (Cohocton) were mostly German-speaking. St. Stanislaus in Bradford was created largely to serve Polish immigrants.

A few curios about Steuben Catholic churches:
*A graduation celebration at St. Vincent de Paul (Corning) swelled in size as family and friends welcomed neighbors seeking shelter during the 1972 flood. The pastor kept an eye on things from the roof.
*St. Ann’s steeple is highest point in Hornell.
*The Rexville church was originally located in Greenwood.
*St. Mary Chapel (Troupsburg) is the only former worship site which has been demolished with no replacement. There’s some confusion about the name of this worship site. The diocese has it as St. Mary, but local folks have long called the associated cemetery St. Ignatius.
*Future birth control pioneer Margaret Sanger (originally Margaret Higgins) was baptized at St. Mary church in Corning. Their relationship went downhill from there.
*During the 1920s, when the Ku Klux Klan was very powerful locally, members of St. Mary Greek Catholic church in Corning once unintentionally terrorized the neighborhood when they followed old tradition by going out into the night wearing white robes. Later on the St. Mary Greek Catholic edifice was home to the St. Mary Greek Orthodox church, which has just recently opened a new worship center in Gang Mills.
*St. Mary’s church in Bath had a significant physical expansion in 1879, largely due to the fact that 200 Catholic veterans had taken up residence in the just-opened New York State Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Home.
*Some years ago Hammondsport was designated the coolest small town in America. St. Gabriel’s bills itself as the coolest Catholic church in the coolest small town in America.

The current parishes (or communities) and worship sites are:

ALL SAINTS PARISH St. Mary, Corning. Formerly included St. Vincent de Paul (Corning) and Immaculate Heart (Hornell).
HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC COMMUNITY Sacred Heart, Perkinsville; St. Joseph’s, Wayland; St. Pius V, Cohocton; St. Mary, Dansville (Livingston County).
OUR LADY OF THE LAKES CATHOLIC COMMUNITY St. Patrick’s, Prattsburgh; St. Januarius, Naples (Ontario County); St. Theresa’s, Stanley (Ontario County); St. Michael’s, Penn Yan (Yates County).
OUR LADY OF THE VALLEY PARISH St. Ann’s, Hornell; St. Mary’s, Rexville. Formerly included St. Joachim’s (Canisteo) and St. Ignatius Loyola (Hornell).
SS. ISIDORE & MARIA TORRIBIA PARISH St. Catherine of Siena, Addison; St. Stanislaus, Bradford; St. Joseph’s, Campbell. These are the ABC churches, for Addison-Bradford-Campbell. The parish is named for patron saints of farmers and rural communities.
ST. JOHN VIANNEY PARISH St. Mary, Bath; St. Gabriel, Hammondsport.

Area Catholics were attacked by organized hate groups during the Know-Nothing era of the 1840s and 1850s, and during the Ku Klux Klan era of the 1920s, but nevertheless, as we can see, they persisted!