Sacred Heart: Avalon’s Little Church Celebrates 90 Years
Religion played a key role in the early development of the Seven Mile Beach. The First United Methodist Church of Avalon, Wells Memorial Presbyterian Church and
St. John’s by-the-Sea Episcopal Church all boast congregations dating back more than 100 years. Most congregations began by meeting in private homes or even the Avalon Hotel until sufficient funds were raised to construct a church. The same can be said for the Catholic Church in Avalon.
Before 1911, Catholics residing in Avalon or Stone Harbor would have to make their way to a boat launch in Stone Harbor, provided by several realtors, and then connect with a trolley in Anglesea to complete their trip to St. Ann in Wildwood. Stormy weather and sandbars could often make their trek a challenge -- except for the rare Sunday when a priest may be on the island to say Mass in a private home. This was all averted in 1911 when St. Paul Church was constructed in Stone Harbor. Residents of Avalon soon became members of St. Paul.
Even the trip from Avalon to Stone Harbor could prove challenging as most parishioners made the trip to Stone Harbor by way of the beach. Services began in an abandoned excursion house on 83rd Street in 1910. It was at this time that Msgr. James Maroney of St. Ann in Wildwood was appointed to look after Stone Harbor as a mission of the church.
St. Paul Church reported at its dia-mond anniversary in 1988 that there were “25 hearty souls from Avalon and Stone Harbor who worshipped on backless benches before a wooden altar lovingly made by a Catholic workman” during the summer of 1910. Services were being offered June through September. The church was closed during the off-season. This schedule continued for several years after the first church was built on 99th Street.
Meanwhile, as the population of Avalon continued to grow, so did the demand for a place of worship for Catholics. In June 1923, Mrs. Thomas Campbell of Avalon appealed to Fr. Nicholas O’Loughlin, who was the assistant to Maroney at St. Ann, asking that Mass be offered in Avalon. Unfortunately, when presented with the request, Maroney responded that the number of Catholics in Avalon was still insufficient to offer Mass.
Avalon’s permanent and summer population continued to rise. Finally in 1925, the number of Catholics vacationing in Avalon so impressed Maroney that he consented to a weekly Mass, July through August, beginning July 4, 1926. On that date, a complete chapel was prepared and ready in the home of Mrs. Campbell, which was located on Third Avenue (now Ocean Drive) between 19th and 20th streets. O’Loughlin offered a High Mass with 286 men, women and children in attendance.
According to research by Robert Penrose, the Catholic Church owned several lots in Avalon’s north end, which coincidentally was where the bulk of the population resided. There were no apparent plans at that time to develop them.
Thankfully, prayers for a place to worship were answered by Frederick J. Michell, who in August 1926 accepted the responsibility for building a church in Avalon. He purchased and paid for the lots on First Avenue between 25th and 26th streets, only about four blocks from the home he built for his mother on 21st Street.
Michell was 10 in 1870 when he emigrated from Switzerland to the United States with his parents and brother Henry. Henry started a seed business in 1890. He was joined by Frederick in 1892. By 1900, the business was moved to a bustling five-story building in Philadelphia. Today, the Henry F. Michell Company is based in King of Prussia, Pa., and celebrates the fact that it has served the horticultural industry for 125 years. The company is still operated by the Michell family.
Michell’s generosity shouldn’t have surprised his friends in Avalon. After all, he had already funded Avalon’s first playground and indoor recreation facility at 21st Street and the beach, and was the president of the Casino Club, the organization formed when the Avalon Casino closed its doors. The Casino was the pride of the Jersey coast … capable of showing movies, roller skating, basketball games. There was Skee-Ball, an ice cream shop and even a barber. It was the social hub of the Seven Mile Beach for many years until the Borough was forced to close it for structural issues. The Casino Club was formed, the forerunner of the soon-to-be-conceived Avalon Yacht Club. Michell was also the benefactor of St. Madeline Church in Ridley Park, Pa. His philanthropic efforts preceded him.
In December 1926, Michell presented the plans for the church at a fund-raising benefit in Philadelphia. It was here that he supposedly explained that the church’s design was modeled after a church in Switzerland that he remembered from his youth.
The contract was awarded to T.S. Goslin Builders, of Wildwood. Goslin was a builder, developer and lumber distributor in Wildwood who built Wildwood High School, which is still in use some 105 years later. The cornerstone for the church was laid and blessed in October 1927. The stone can be found today in the church’s foundation on the northwest corner of the church at ground level.
Tragically, Michell never had the opportunity to worship in the church. Following a short illness, he passed away less than a month before the dedication in June 1928. According to newspaper accounts of his death, “Long before it [the church] became a reality, Mr. Michell dreamed of it and the structure will stand as a silent witness to his faithfulness and loyalty.” Which it does to this day, 90 years later. There’s a small plaque inside the church on the wall to right of the altar that acknowledges the contributions of Michell.
The church was officially dedicated the Sacred Heart by the Sea Church at 11am on Sunday, July 1, 1928. For the dedication, a procession of more than 100 people began on Dune Drive and made its way down 21st Street to First Avenue, past the Michell house, and then down First Avenue to the church. A solemn High Mass was planned with Rev. N. O’Loughlin of Philadelphia as the celebrant. The sermon was delivered by Rev. Naughton, who said “the structure forges another link in the long lines of churches along the Jersey Shore.” He gave credit to the women of the church for starting the conversation about the church. He also said that if not for the generosity of Michell, the church might not have been able to come to Avalon.
The dedication was followed by another procession to the Hotel Avalon, where a dinner was served to 150 invited guests. At the dinner, Pennsylvania state Sen. Augustus Daix, a Philadelphian and an Avalon summer resident, spoke of the loss to the church and Avalon with the death of Michell. According to Daix, Michell was “a pal to every man in the community and a peace maker under all occasions.”
It’s funny how the calendar works. This summer provides an opportunity to celebrate Mass exactly 90 years after the original dedication of the church took place: on Sunday, July 1, 2018.
Sacred Heart became an independent parish for Avalon in 1954. The Sacred Heart by the Sea Church was Avalon’s primary place of worship for Catholics, including weddings, baptisms and funerals, until the church built the auditorium at 50th Street and Ocean Drive. All with a seed planted by a benefactor who ironically made his livelihood out of providing seeds to the horticultural industry nationwide.