Prior to St. Katherine of Alexandria being formed, some white churches allowed colored members to partake of its services on a very limited and restricted basis. St. Katherine of Alexandria was established in November 1891 on the Feast of St. Katherine, organized as a “colored” mission of Mount Calvary Church.
When St. Katherine’s was established, it was located at 1350 N. Calhoun Street in a house. The Rev. Normine H. Kaltenback was the vicar from 1891–1911. After several moves due to the increase in membership, St. Katherine’s needed to find a larger place to worship.
On June 15, 1882, Edmund Law Rogers and Charlotte M. L. Rogers sold the lot of land at Division and Presstman Streets to St. George’s Episcopal Church for $5. In the deed, Mr. Rogers states “this property cannot be sold for no other or disposed of in anyway other than a church on this lot.” The stone, brick, and wooden chapel had been built for the white congregation of St. George’s.
On July 11, 1910, the building and other property was sold to Mount Calvary Church. On November 12, 1911, St. Katherine’s moved to its current location at the corner of Division and Presstman Streets in West Baltimore.
Since St. Katherine’s beginning it has had many prominent families from the neighborhood worship there over the years. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall was confirmed at St. Katherine’s. In 1975, St. Katherine of Alexandria’s congregation was accorded parish status. After years of hard work by dedicated members, on October 26, 1996, the deed to the church was transferred from Mt. Calvary Church. In June 1998, Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke signed a bill making the St. Katherine’s an official Baltimore City landmark.
The Church of St. Katherine of Alexandria continues to be the lighthouse for hope and salvation in Baltimore that our ancestors built it to be.
Learn more: https://www.stkatherine.ang-md.org
Church of St. Katherine of Alexandria
2001 Division Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21217
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