History 1850-Present

1850 - First Mass of record within boundaries of St. Mary of the Angels parish is celebrated by a diocesan missionary priest, Rev. Thomas McEvoy. Another diocesan missionary priest, Rev. John Doran, organizes the Olean Catholic community.

1852 Rev. Joseph McKenna of Cuba collects $300 from railroad workers (predominantly Irish and German) along the railroad to build a church for the Olean Catholics. With this collection, he was able to purchase a lot (where the church today stands) from a Trustee of First Baptist Church for $200. With the remaining $100, the Catholics built a small wood "shanty" church built with timber cut just a couple blocks away.

1855 Most Rev. John Timon, C.M., pioneer Bishop of Buffalo, with help from Nicholas Devereaux, a prosperous land investor and visionary Catholic layman, secured the commitment of the Franciscans in Rome to send three priests and a brother friar. Very Rev. Pamphilius da Magliano, OSF was assigned as the first pastor of the mission church in Olean. During his time in Allegany, he established St. Bonaventure's College and the first permanent Franciscan foundation in the Eastern United States.

1858 Fr. Pamphilius begins to build a new wood-frame church in Olean [Photo courtesy of SBU Archives] with a loan of $10,000 from Thomas Devereaux, Nicholas' son. Fr. Pamphilius blessed the cornerstone for the 40' x 60' church which was dedicated to the patroness of the mother-church of the Franciscan Order at Assisi, Saint Mary of the Angels, the name of their beloved Portiuncula.

1860 St. Mary of the Angels Church is blessed and opened on October 21.

1867 Very Rev. Diomede Falconio, OSF is named 2nd pastor of the mission Catholic mission church of St. Mary of the Angels in Olean. In 1899 he was the only American citizen (or pastor) ever appointed as Apostolic Delegate to the U.S. He was created Cardinal in 1911 by Pope (Saint) Pius X. In 1914, he became the first American appointed to the Roman Curia. 

1876 Most Rev. Stephen Vincent Ryan, second Bishop of Buffalo, appoints 26-year-old Rev. John J. Hamel, an alumnus of St. Bonaventure’s college, as the first resident pastor of St. Mary of the Angels parish. At that time, the Franciscans relinquished the care of the Olean mission to diocesan priests. Fr. Hamel spoke fluent German which helped his ministry to the German parishioners who made up one-third of the congregation. Most of the congregation was made up of English-speaking Irish. But the Germans struggled with understanding Mass readings and homilies, going to confession, and engaging in catechetical instruction. 

1878    Fr. Hamel  [pictured] enlarges the church building to accommodate the growing number of Catholic immigrants pouring into the region. That same year, two bells were added to the church tower. After a second expansion a few years later, the church had an occupancy of 800. This statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (inscribed with the date: 1880) was placed in the sanctuary Fr. Hamel built during the first expansion. 

1882, Fr. John Hamel builds a Catholic mission church in honor of the Sacred Heart in Portville, NY.

1889 St. Mary of the Angel's parochial school and convent are built on Sullivan Hill near 6th Street. [Pictured] The first graduating class was in 1890 and included John O'Hern who would become the third Bishop of Rochester, NY. 

1895 St. John's parish is established in North Olean after 45 years of Olean having only one Catholic community entity. This changed the boundaries of St. Mary of the Angels' territory. 

1909 Archbishop Falconio returned to Olean to confer upon Dean Hamel an honorary degree of L.L.D. from St. Bonaventure’s College. [The picture of the Cardinal is from an oil painting in the National Gallery of Art]. Cardinal Falconio had been a friend of the Olean pastor since his days as Fr. Hamel's instructor at St. Bonaventure's College. 

1912 The first resident pastor of the church of St. Mary of the Angels—the only pastor the parish community had known for almost 36 years— died peacefully in his parochial residence on January 15, 1912. A  total of 19 assistant priests served under Dean Hamel from 1885 until his death.

Dean Hamel’s funeral Mass was attended by the largest crowd ever assembled in the history of Olean for a funeral, according to newspaper reports at the time. The eulogy at the Requiem Mass was preached by Rt. Rev. Monsignor (Venerable) Nelson Baker, the celebrated priest from Buffalo famous for building many charitable institutions including orphanages and schools. Pope Benedict XVI declared Fr. Baker “Venerable” in 2011.

Dean Hamel's body was brought to his hometown of Brooklyn, NY for internment. 43-year-old Rev. Edward Rengel [pictured left blessing first marble stone of new gothic church], is named second diocesan resident pastor of St. Mary of the Angels. Like his predecessor, he spoke fluent German.

1913 Construction begins in March for new a stone Gothic Revival church --by order of Bishop Colton, based on the design of the new Gothic Revival cathedral being built in Buffalo. Remarkably, religious services remained uninterrupted while the old church was moved across First Street to the lot where the present school sits. Fr. Rengel chose as architect Emile Ulhrich from Cleveland, a French architect trained at the prestigious l’Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, who several years later would be commissioned by (Venerable) Monsignor Baker to design Our Lady of Victory National Shrine in Lackawanna. Fr. Rengel is attributed to this great find for Monsignor Baker.  The cornerstone of the new church was blessed by Most Rev. Charles Colton, Bishop of Buffalo.

1915 New church is blessed by Very Rev. Monsignor (Venerable) Nelson Baker, VF who preached the very first homily in the pulpit. The beauty and grandeur of the magnificent structure was nothing like anyone had ever seen in the region, according to newspaper accounts. Although the glorious stained-glass windows were not installed, the church was, for the most part, completed at a cost of $250,000. This was $150,000 over what was initially budgeted. This was paid for by relatively small individual contributions of parishioners--very few recorded at four figures; none at five figures. [Below: One of the first photographs of the new church's interior]



1917  Louis Zamparini is baptized at St. Mary of the Angels (April 1). When he was a young child, his Italian immigrant family moved to California where he would become a famous Olympic champion and WWII war hero. His story was told in the 2010 New York Times Bestseller, Unbroken, which was later made in to a major motion picture of the same title. 

1919 The magnificent windows from Deprato Statuary Company (New York | Chicago) were installed just in time for the consecration. Most. Rev. William Turner, Bishop of Buffalo consecrated the building on June 29 (Feast of Saints Peter and Paul) ; Most Reverend Patrick Joseph Hayes, Archbishop of New York [pictured right], assisted Mass following the consecration and preached the homily. This was Fr. Rengel’s 25th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood, and for this occasion he was given the privilege of presiding at the Mass instead of the Archbishop (who was his classmate from Manhattan College). 

1920  Fr. Hamel’s remains brought back to Olean and re-interred in east tower crypt of St. Mary of the Angels after a solemn Requiem Mass. 

1923  New school and convent built on corner of West Henley and South First Street; blessed by Venerable Monsignor Nelson Baker in 1924 [pictured and in school dedication photo below]. 

1924  Fr. Rengel made Dean of Cattaraugus County.

1926 Dual anniversary celebration of founding of the Catholic community in Olean (75 yrs) and establishment of the first diocesan parish (50 yrs). For this occasion, the church interior was completely renovated with new lighting fixtures, paint and art. Most Rev. Dennis Cardinal Dougherty, Archbishop of Philadelphia, (a friend of Fr. Rengel's and former Bishop of Buffalo) celebrated the solemn Pontifical Mass. 

1929 Olean native (and former St. Mary’s parishioner) Most Rev. John O’Hern is appointed 3rd  Bishop of Rochester by Pope Pius XI. In his first official visit to Olean after his episcopal ordination, he blessed the brand new chimes that were placed in the east bell tower. 

1934  Fr. Rengel elevated to Domestic Prelate /Monsignor by Pope Pius XI. 

1940 Thomas Merton [pictured left] arrives in Olean to teach at St. Bonaventure’s College. It was in Olean that Thomas Merton made significant choices in his life, as chronicled in his New York Times bestselling memoir, The Seven Storey Mountain (1948). He often went to St. Mary of the Angels to pray and to go to confession. At the close of 1941, he stopped in to St. Mary of the Angels one last time to pray the stations of the cross before boarding the train taking him to the Trappist Monastery in Kentucky. He wrote of a particularly beautiful experience in the church that night in his memoir.  Merton would become one of the most important spiritual writers of the 20th century. 

1952 Centennial Jubilee of Catholic community in Olean. For this celebration, the church interior was completely cleaned and renovated with new canvas art symbols and angels added. Parishioners from St. Bonaventure's Church and St. John's Church gathered for Mass at St. Mary of the Angels as part of the celebrations of their common heritage. Celebrations also included a pilgrimage visit among the three parishes.

1956  Monsignor Rengel dies at age 87. He is interred in the east tower crypt. Remarkably, in a span of 80 years, only two pastors served St. Mary of the Angels Church. 

1956-1970 Monsignor Michael Campbell serves as third diocesan pastor. Following Second Vatican Council, it fell upon Msgr. Campbell to make the necessary liturgical and ministerial changes in the parish. During his tenure, he helped establish and fund Archbishop Walsh High School. Many of the outdoor statues on parish grounds were acquired during Monsignor Campbell's tenure. He is burried in St. Bonaventure Cemetery in Allegany. 

1970-1979 Rev. Monsignor William Joseph Sutherland serves as fourth pastor of St. Mary of the Angels Church. In keeping with the requirements of Vatican II, a parish council was formed and lectors were trained along with extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. The parish debt was significantly reduced. 

1976 - 100th Anniversary of the establishment of the Olean parish. The parish centennial celebrations included a pilgrimage to the International Eucharistic Congress in Philadelphia in conjunction with the celebration of the nation's bicentennial. 

1979 -1984  Rev. Roy Crissy serves as fifth pastor of St. Mary of the Angels.

1984 -1990  Rev. William Gallagher serves as sixth pastor; elevated to Monsignor in 1988 by Pope (Saint) John Paul II. Soon after arriving in Olean, Fr. Gallagher was struck with the news that the church building was declared unsafe due to major structural issues with the roof and steeples. This forced him to close the church's doors to the public for 18 months--celebrating weekend Mass at Archbishop Walsh and then St. Bonaventure University. This dire situation necessitated a $2 million capital campaign to finance the restoration of significant structural elements including the steeples and roof and complete restoration of decoration of interior as water damage had taken its toll on the walls. Wallpaper removed in the sanctuary revealed the magnificent medallions, heroic-sized angels and image of St. Mary of the Angels that we enjoy today. These paintings were completely refurbished by the same family members from the same company that produced the art in 1952. The church was re-dedicated by Most Rev. Edward Head, Bishop of Buffalo, in 1989. [Pictured above: a portion of Monsignor Gallagher's capital campaign brochure]

1990 -1997 Rev. Thomas Quinlivan serves as seventh pastor of St. Mary of the Angels. He steered celebrations of the 75th anniversary of the church building's consecration in 1994. In an amazing gesture of love and sacrifice, during his tenure, he donated his entire life savings to the parish to help keep it financially stable. 

1997- 2018 Very Rev. Gregory J. Dobson serves as pastor of St. Mary of the Angels and Vicar Forane of Southern Cattaraugus County.  He eliminated parish debt [news story pictured below]; established several ministries; created a Parish Life Center and new Blessed Children of Fatima chapel. Sacred Heart parish in Portville (which was built by Fr. Hamel) was merged with St. Mary of the Angels. In 2008 Fr. Greg celebrated his 25th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood with  three days of parish events. He inaugurated a $1.8 million capital campaign for restoration of the windows and artistic interior along with reconstruction of lower level church facilities. Fr. Greg established numerous devotional practices including public religious processions.

2015  Year-long Centennial celebrations of the church building include a Solemn Centennial Mass in September presided by Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Buffalo who in December selected St. Mary of the Angels to host a Holy Door of Mercy for the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis. 
2016 The spectacular ceiling paintings are completed by Swiatek Studios of Buffalo, New York in time for Easter celebrations. In November, the parish commemorated the 140th Anniversary of Fr. Hamel's arrival with month-long celebrations beginning with an Oct. 30th Mass which included three descendants from Fr. Hamel's family. Fr. Hamel's chalice, found earlier that summer in the sacristy, was refurbished for the occasion. 
2017 February 14--Pope Francis grants the title of Minor Basilica to St. Mary of the Angels Church in Olean, New York! This designation made St. Mary's the 83rd basilica in the United States. The Mass of dedication with Bishop of Buffalo is planned for June 29, 2017, the Feast of St. Peter and Paul. On June 29, 2017, the Most Rev. Richard J. Malone, Most Rev. Robert Cunningham (Diocese of Syracuse), and Most. Rev. Edward Grosz (Auxiliary Bishop of Buffalo) concelebrated the Inaugural Mass Solemnizing the granting of the title of Minor Basilica upon our parish church. More than 700 attended this grand celebration which occurred on the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, the same day that our building was consecrated in 1919.
2018 On July 30, Fr. Greg retired from active ministry after 22 years as pastor/rector--the third longest-serving pastor in the history of our parish. He was 70 years old and had just celebrated his 35th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood.
Very Rev. Patrick Melfi is appointed by Bishop Malone as ninth pastor of the parish and second rector of the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels. He is an Olean native and former parishioner/altar boy! Fr. Pat assumed his office as pastor/rector August 1, 2018, the feast of St. Alphonsus Liguori. He retained his pastorship of St. John the Evangelist in Olean. With his appointment, it is the first time since 1895 that all Roman Catholics in Olean are under a single pastor.
2020 With Rev. Melfi's transfer to pastor the Ellicotville and Franklinville parishes, Apostolic Administrator, Most Rev. Edward Scharfenberger, assigned Rev. John Adams as parochial administrator of both Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and St. John the Evangelist Church in Olean.
2021Most Rev. Michael Fisher appointed Fr. John as pastor/rector of the basilica and pastor of St. John's.