The history of St. John's has been an important part of Philadelphia history by serving the Philadelphia community. Canonized saints have trod on this holy ground. St. John Neumann's installation as the fourth bishop of Philadelphia and, later, his funeral took place at St. John's, which served as Philadelphia's Pro-Cathedral for 25 years. St. Katherine Drexel, whose family lived 3 blocks away, attended St. John's during her childhood, and prayed at this church's Immaculate Conception Statue just prior to leaving Philadelphia to enter the religious life that would lead to sainthood.

In 1941, St. John's established Holy Redeemer Chinese Catholic Church as a mission chapel. Twenty years later we opened St. John's Hospice to serve the homeless. During the Anniversary Year, we will add to our history by dedicating two new shrines to St. Francis of Assisi and St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, crafted by the noted Philadelphia sculptor, Anthony Visco. Also in recognition of our 175th Anniversary we will install a Pennsylvania historical marker in front of the church.

Above: the present day statue, located to the left of the altar. Right: after the 1899 fire, the statue is shown standing unharmed on left side of photo.

In February, 1899, the interior of St. John the Evangelist's upper church was destroyed by fire. Almost miraculously, the statue of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception remained untarnished by the fire, as the picture below indicates. A century later, this beautiful statue remains a symbol of faith to the people and visitors of St. John's.

Q. Does the parish know how its name was chosen?
A. The first pastor was John Hughes, the future Archbishop of New York. He chose the name to honor his patron saint.

Q. Is there anything about the parish that people who are not parishioners would be surprised to learn?
A. We are preparing two new shrines in the lower church, one to St. Francis of Assisi and one to St. Pio of Pietrelcina, the first deacon and the first priest to bear the stigmata, the latter the spiritual son of the former.

• Bishop John Neumann was installed as Bishop of Philadelphia in our church in 1852. He died within our parish boundaries in 1860 and his funeral Mass was celebrated here.
• St. John also served as the cathedral (pre-Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul) for 25 years.
• St. Katherine Drexel was baptized at Assumption Church on Spring Garden Street, now part of our parish. She was brought up at 1503 Walnut Street. She attended Mass for the last time as a lay person on May 7, 1889, then took the train from nearby Reading Terminal to Pittsburgh to enter the Mercy Sisters convent.
• St. John's Hospice on Race Street was founded by Msgr. Anthony J. O'Neill, pastor here, in 1963.
• Matthias O'Conway, whose daughter, Cecilia, was St. Elizabeth Seton's first follower, is buried in our cemetery, as are essayist Agnes Repplier, Ana Maria Huarte de Iturbide, widow of Mexican Emperor Agustin, and Thomas Penn Gaskell, great-great-grandson of William Penn.