Holy Rosary Catholic Church

This place is on private property. Listing for informational purposes only. Please do not visit without express permission from the land owner.

Demolished

The Holy Rosary Catholic Church was located along East Pike and Florence Street in Clarksburg, West Virginia, and was established in 1906 when a vocal and growing Slovak community requested Bishop Patrick J Donahue for permission to build a national Slovak parish. It served not only Slovaks, Poles, Crotians and Slovenians, but also many Hungarians and Greek Rites.

The church was needed at a time when Slovak immigrants came to America in large numbers, and many settled in West Virginia where the Consolidated Coal Company had vast holdings and job opportunities. C. F. Zaruba made the suggestion to Ambrose Karliak, who along with Stephen Vojusak and Charles Gavelda, raised funding for the church’s construction. The Slovak church was the only one of its type and had no defined parish limits due to its specific targeted demographic.

Worshippers traveled upwards of 50 miles or more to attend.The first Mass was held at 603 East Pike Street by Rev. Melchior Furst, the first pastor. After just a few weeks, in June 1906, the Mass was moved to Centennial Hall. The congregation then purchased two lots, and services were held in two old houses which had been remodeled into makeshift halls. Shortly after, construction on a basement for the future church was completed, as was renovation of one of the oldest houses in the city into the rectory.

The church superstructure was completed on September 30, 1909 when the cornerstone was laid. By 1913, the congregation had swelled 1,500. A new Holy Rosary parish was formed in 1924 and dedicated on July 26, 1925 by Bishop John J. Swint. The Holy Rosary Catholic Church closed in 1984 and was merged into the Immaculate Conception parish of Clarksburg and the Sacred Heart parish of Chester due to a shortage of priests.