HISTORY OF
St. Margaret's Roman-Catholic Parish
in Seattle, WA

          In May of 1910 when Interbay was a picturesque bay, and Dravus Street was a dirt road called Grand Boulevard, 125 families living in the area petitioned Bishop Edward J. O’Dea to raise St. Margaret’s from a mission to a full fledged parish. Since 1890, it had been a mission of the Redemptorist Fathers. Bishop O’Dea granted their request and appointed Reverend J.B. McDonald as the first pastor of the tiny Parish.

Over trails, board sidewalks and sandy roads, Catholics came to the first Mass celebrated in Minch’s Hall on May 25, 1910. Steiner’s Hall, 3042 15th Ave West was rented by Fr. McDonald as a temporary church during the five months of construction until the new church was dedicated on October 12, 1910.

St. Margaret’s is the oldest religious landmark on Queen Anne Hill. The church itself is the original structure although it now stands one block south of its original location. It was moved to it’s present location in 1914 and the cables installed for stabilization during the move remain intact. During the 1974 restoration they were enclosed and now appear as beams crossing the church horizontally.

This unusual moving feat was accomplished under the direction of Fr. James Stafford, St. Margaret’s second pastor.
In 1919, Fr. James F. Lanigan became pastor and under his leadership, a Parochial School was built and opened in 1923 to it’s first 107 students, and a teaching staff comprised of three Sisters of “St. Joseph of Peace.

From 1924-1930, Fr. Patrick Kirby was Pastor at St. Margaret’s. One night in 1928 around 9 PM, a parishoner named Elizabeth Albright was coming up Dravus Street when she noticed a fire burning in the front of the church. Running to the rectory, she alerted Fr. Kirby who called the fire department and then raced to the church to remove the Blessed Sacrament. The main altar was destroyed but, the rest of the church was saved.

Fr. Phillip Corboy arrived in 1928 and served as pastor from 1930 until his retirement in 1972. Over his 42 years as pastor, a new rectory and convent were built, an organ was installed, the school was expanded and modernized and, the playfield and par\king lot were enlarged.

In 1971, after 41 years of service, the parish was reluctantly forced to close it’s school because of declining enrollment, ever-rising costs. And a shortage of Nun-teachers. The building was demolished and replaced by Corboy park, which is still in its place today.

On October 8, 1971, almost 61 years to the day after the dedication of the little framed church, Fr. Francis X Murphy was appointed as the sixth pastor of St. Margaret’s.

1974 marked the restoration of St. Margaret’s church. The church was refurbished in keeping with it’s age and innately simple style, retaining the main altar that was installed after the fire of 1928, to make it conform to he liturgical requirements of Vatican II, while retaining the special identity of St. Margaret’s as the little church where people come to pray and to worship God as a community.

Next came Fr. Thomas Pitsch, 1976-1978; Fr. Andrew Squier 1978-1982; Fr. James van Gogh 1982-1990; Fr. David Linehan 1990-1992; Frs. Richard Basso and James Mallahan 1992-1994, Fr. Kevin Moran 1994-1996, Fr. Robert Camuso 1996-2004.

In 1992, the Polish Catholic Community of Seattle petitioned Archbishop Thomas Murphy for a church to call home and, he gave his approval for them to share the facilities of St. Margaret’s with the Traditional Community.
Fr. Josef Calik SCh. served as pastor of the Polish Catholic Community from 1992 until his death in 2004.

The Polish Catholic Community at St. Margaret’s numbers 200 active families and an additional 200 part-time participating families. The have contributed their energy and talents to many renovation projects in the church. In 1993 they constructed the Grotto dedicated to Our Lady, in thanksgiving for being granted a permanent home parish. The six glass stained windows created by Polish craftsman, Piotr Kochel, represents Our Lady of Czestochowa, Jesus as Divine Mercy, St. Maximilian Kolbe, Our Lady of Ostrabrama, Our Mother of Perpetual Help and, St. Margaret of Scotland.

St Margaret’s parish in Seattle began in a small way and has remained a small parish, unique in anera of large parishes and large churches. The simple frame structure, which originally cost $7600, still measures 92 feet long by 37 feet wide, and seats 150 souls. Also, due in great part by the talent and energy of members of the Polish community, we have a beautiful meeting hall in the basement of the church. St. Margaret’s has survived being moved as well as a fire, and has withstood 97 years of constant use, to become what no one planned or anticipate in Interbay back in 1910-- one of Seattle’s historic churches playing a vital role in generations of families.

In 2004, Father Stanislaw Michalek, S.Ch., was appointed pastor of St. Margarets, ministering to both the Traditional and Polish members of the church.

In 2006 the Traditional and Polish communities were merged into one, becoming simply St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church Commuinty, with Masses in English and Polish every week.