By Steve Cichon
steve@buffalostories.com
@stevebuffalo
Three different buildings have served as St. Margaret’s church since Fr. Thomas Timmons was assigned to start a parish on a swampy plot of land in the growing Hertel Avenue/North Park neighborhood in 1916.
Rev. Thomas Timmons stands in front of the temporary St. Margaret’s Church on Hertel Ave., 1917. Buffalo Stories archives
Early the following year, a temporary church was consecrated and open to serve the Catholics in North Buffalo.
Interior of the temporary St. Margaret’s Church. 1917. Buffalo Stories archives.
Within a year, the cornerstone was laid for the second St. Margaret’s Church. This is the building which was most recently St. Margaret’s School, and is currently under development by Iskalo to create 2,000 square feet of retail space and 24 apartments.
More than 1,000 people showed up to watch Bishop Dougherty lay the cornerstone for the building that served as St. Margaret’s Church from 1918-1957, and school from 1918-2012. The building is now being developed into a mixed use retail and residential space. Buffalo Stories archives
The rectory was built in 1924, and the current St. Margaret’s church building was built starting in 1957.
St. Margaret’s School, 2015. Buffalo News photo
