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Site: Five acres (approximately), purchased in 1870, from the estate of Captain Fitzmaurice, R.M.
Cost £1,100.
Foundation stone: 9 Nov 1890 - laid by Most Rev Dr O'Doherty, Lord Bishop of Derry.
Dedicated Sunday 15 Sept 1895: by Most Rev Dr O'Doherty, Lord Bishop of Derry.
Parish Priest: Very Rev. Hugh O'Hagan
Caretaker (1901): Annie Timoney
Architecture
Architect: William Hague
Builder & Contractor: Robert Collen, Church Street, Portadown
Altars: James Pearse (see below: General Irish History)
Ecclesiastical & Architectural Sculptor, 27 Great Brunswick Street, Dublin - Cost £1150
Marble Communion Rail : also James Pearse cost £245
Baptismal Font: Probably James Pearse. - Installed after the dedication.
Stations of the Cross: Mayer & Co, Munich
149 New BondStreet
Royal Bavarian Establishment, London
Installed after the dedication.
Cost £235 0 0
Stained Glass: Mayer & Co, Munich
These windows were installed between 1905-1922. They are the current windows on the Church today (2010).
Bell: Byrne’s Fountain Head Bell Foundry and Engineering Works, James’ Street, Dublin
Cost £236 9 3
Total Cost: £18,00. Paid in full by the date of the dedication.
Financial contributors
Fr John Mc Elhatton who spent 2 years raising funds mainly in America.
Later became Parish Priest of Urney i.e. Melmount and is buried in the graveyard near the main gate.
Very Rev. Hugh O'Hagan
James Kennedy, Barrack Street Shirt Factory
Mrs Browne, Castle Street
Paid for the Altars £1,150
Paid for Sanctuary Lamp Holder £50
Edward Gallagher - Stations of the Cross £235
The Church of the Immaculate Conception was built to replace the poorly constructed Chapel of St John, Townends Street. Towards the latter half of the 19th century, Saint John's Chapel was so dilapidated that parishioners made use of the small Convent Chapel, until the new Church opened on Barrack Street. The new building was far removed from the impoverished appearance of Saint John's. The then recently opened Church of Ireland Christ Church building (1879) in the Bowling Green, probably influenced this lavish new design.
Church Timeline:
1821: Chapel of St John is consecrated. (location: Strabane Grotto)
Saint John's was the first post-reformation Catholic Church built in Strabane. It is shown on the Griffith's Valuation Map c1850.
1870: The site for the Church of the Immaculate Conception is purchased from the estate of Captain Fitzmaurice, R.M. The land contains approximatley five acres and costs £1,100.
Quote from Mr Curlyhill: - This location had been known as "Snodgrass" or "Buchanan's Field".
1890 9 Nov: Most Rev Dr O'Doherty, Lord Bishop of Derry lays the Foundation Stone of the Immaculate Conception.
Similar to the recent discovery at Derry Guildhall:
"In the hollow in the centre of the foundation stone was placed a bottle containing a number of coins and copies of several newspapers, including the Derry Journal and the Freeman's Journal."
1895 15 Sept: Church of the Immaculate Conception is dedicated by the Most Rev. Dr. O'Doherty, Lord Bishop of Derry. Cardinal Logue, The Catholic Primate of All Ireland attends the ceremony.
The total cost of building with furnishings was £18,000. The sum was paid in full by the date of the dedication; with enough money left over to pay for the construction of the Parochial House.
Newspaper Article:
24 April 1896: New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXIII, Issue 52 [See Tyrone section]
Mr Curlyhill's corrections and additional information relating to the newspaper article:
The dedication was on Sunday, September 15, 1895 (not October), and was in the presence of Cardinal Logue, The Catholic Primate of All Ireland. However, it was the Most Rev. Dr. O'Doherty, Lord Bishop of Derry who dedicated the church.
The Stations of the Cross were supplied by Edward Gallagher. They cost £235 and were designed by Mayer & Co, Munich (better known for their stained glass work)
General Irish History:
James Pearse (Ecclesiastical & Architectural Sculptor) was the father of Patrick Pearse, the leader of the Rising in Dublin in 1916, and his brother William, both of whom were executed.
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