893 Central St.

Historic Name: St. Anthony’s Church 

Uses: Roman Catholic Church 

Date of Construction: 1907 / 1960 

Style/Form: Spanish Mission 

Architect/Builder: Timothy E. Sheehan (1906); Mario V. Caputo (1959) 

Foundation: Granite stone  

Wall/Trim: Brick and limestone veneer 

Roof: Gable roof 

Major Alterations: From 1907-1960 only the granite foundation with a flat (temporary) roof completed; superstructure finally completed in 1960 

Condition: Good 

Included in Hengen survey? No 

Related oral interview? Yes 

Portuguese owned? No 

Recorded by: GGF and MF 

Organization: UMass Lowell 

Date: July 2023 

Description

For over 50 years, beginning in 1907, St. Anthony’s Church was partially built with a granite foundation and a flat roof, giving the appearance of a subterranean structure. In the late 1950s, Boston and Belmont-based architect Mario V. Caputo, inspired by a small church in Bolivia, produced a modernist Spanish Mission design. The construction followed this design and the church was fully completed in 1960. Its main façade faces east and features a projecting gable end accentuated a limestone veneer, multiple, narrow rectangular windows that permits natural light into the narthex and nave. The gable end is crowned with a thin, streamlined cross. Outside, along the walkway to the entrance stands a granite sculpture of the patron saint of the parish, Saint Anthony.

History

In 1900 Lowell’s Catholic Portuguese contributed funds to purchase an old wood-frame Primitive Methodist Church in Back Central on Gorham Street, with the first services at newly consecrated St. Anthony’s held in the spring of 1901. The Boston Archdiocese appointed Fr. Joaquim V. Rosa (1872-1964) from the Azorean island of Pico as the first pastor. Additional funds from the city’s Portuguese allowed for the purchase of a lot on Central Street. Boston-based architect Timothy Edward Sheehan, who designed a number of churches for the Archdiocese, executed the design of the new St. Anthony’s. It featured a towering central spire and had elements of the popular Spanish-Baroque style. Fr. Rosa reportedly assisted in the design of the rectory and oversaw the landscaping. On Thanksgiving Day, 1907, Archbishop William O’Connell presided over the dedication of the laying of the cornerstone. One year later, with construction funds fully expended, only the granite walls and the floor of the basement were completed, and a flat roof was installed over the largely subterranean structure. 

With the exception of interior improvements, directed by Fr. Joseph T. Grillo, St. Anthony’s Church remained in this partially completed state for over 50 years. Fr. John Silva, the longest serving pastor for the parish, pushed for a new design and construction. Again, with the aid of funds from local parishioners, a superstructure, designed by architect Mario V. Caputo, who was inspired by a church in Bolivia, was constructed in 1959-60. It featured a modernist Spanish Mission design. The church has remained largely unaltered since 1960 and continues to serve a largely Portuguese population.

Sources

“Church Dedicated,” Lowell Sun, May 21, 1901 

“A Paróquia de Santo Antonio de Lowell, Mass.,” Diario de Noticias, September 9, 1950 

“Men in Action,” The World’s Work, v. XX, June, 1910, p. 12970. 

“Renovating Completed—St. Anthony’s Church and Rectory in Central Street Refinished in Modern Style,” Lowell Sun, August 15, 1926. 

“Church Construction on Central Street,” Lowell Sun, July 6, 1959.