ABSTRACT: Two ledger scrapbooks for St. Leo’s Catholic Church.
SCOPE: This collection includes two ledger scrapbooks from St. Leo’s Catholic Church in St. Louis. The first scrapbook, labeled as an Announcement Book, includes Mass announcements for every Sunday and Holy Day from January 1, 1905 to January 1, 1908. The announcements cover a range of topics, including parish group meetings, eucharistic adoration, church finances, and prayer intentions. There are also a number of tipped-in documents, including minstrel show programs and a 1967 section of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s “Everyday Magazine.”
The second scrapbook is written in a hotel ledger book, and the inside front cover includes a label from the Spalding Stationery Company. The scrapbook chronicles the activities of the St. Leo’s Camp in Vienna, Missouri from 1916 to 1924 and includes photographs and clippings. The ledger indicates the camp was first organized in 1904 and led by Father James T. Coffey, the pastor of St. Leo’s, before being sold to Dr. E.A. Bohner of Jefferson City.
EXTENT: Two scrapbooks.
HISTORY: St. Leo’s Catholic Church was built in 1888 at the corner of 23rd and Mullanphy Streets. At its founding, the church served a predominantly Irish population in the Kerry Patch neighborhood of St. Louis, though the area would later see an influx of other immigrants and migrants. Father James T. Coffey, the pastor of the church from 1904 to 1931, oversaw the opening of a free school and a temperance hall on the parish campus. The church was demolished in 1978.
ACCESS: This collection can be viewed on-site in the Rare Book and Manuscripts Reading Room. Some of the material may be photocopied, digitally scanned or photographed, subject to condition and other access restrictions. Information on conducting research with the archival collections of the Library, including current building hours and reading room policies, can be found on our Research page. The St. Louis Mercantile Library is located on levels one and two of the Thomas Jefferson Library building on the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ north campus.
Preferred Citation note: The preferred citation for this collection is “From the Special Collections of the St. Louis Mercantile Library at the University of Missouri – St. Louis."
