All of the following text was written for the 100th Annivesary of the Parish, in 1973.

1973 - Half a century has passed since His Excellency, James E. Kearney, Bishop of Rochester, first set these memorable words upon paper. The occasion was the Golden Jubilee of the Church of St. Cecilia, which was celebrated with a Solemn Pontifical Mass on February 4, 1934. In the ensuing years, the turbid busy city of which Bishop Kearney wrote has experienced numerous changes, perhaps among the greatest being those that have affected and are continuing to change the sixty square blocks stretching from East One Hundredth Street to East One Hundred and Twelfth Street, and from Fifth Avenue to Second Avenue, in that section of East Harlem known as "El Barrio."

This is "the neighborhood." Well-known for its heavy Hispanic population, it is home to approximately twenty-five thousand Americans whose roots are deep in the sun-swept Island of Puerto Rico but whose hopes now belong to the mainland States, and more than fourteen thousand Black Americans whose forefathers have contributed to every stage of our developing nation. Home also to smaller groups whose ties are to ancient oriental cultures, great Roman Empires, and sparkling Emerald Islands, "the neighborhood" can count among its riches the diversity of this vast population, in which is found the "People of God." Like many generations throughout these past one hundred years, this congregation of the Faithful centers its love and belief in the venerable Church of St. Cecilia which even now, as it celebrates its centennial anniversary, continues to bear its "cross-crowned steeple, in the majesty of peace.

"El Barrio," One Hundred Years Ago
Manhattan had started its move upward as the Nineteenth Century entered its fourth quarter. In the area between Central Park's northeastern perimeter and Hell Gate's excellent bathing and fishing facilities, small businesses were springing up, reflecting the tastes and desires of a new influx of Irish and Italian immigrants who had come to join the already established German and Jewish population.

Fringed surreys and carriages still carried respectable sporting gentry of the day to One Hundred and Fifth Street and the Old Red House, a resort hotel that featured a quarter-mile trotting track. There was an abundance of grass and trees, children ran barefoot through the streets spinning hoops and tops. To the south, the financially elite had established their residences in great townhouses, and Fifth Avenue was beginning to acquire the glint of gold that would spread its fame as a fashion center throughout the world for decades to come. But for the most part, "the neighborhood" was home to a hard-working industrious, middle-class people intent upon building a better future than that found in the lands from which they had so recently come.

This was the East Harlem of 1873, and into this atmosphere came the Very Reverend Hugh Flattery, pioneer priest who was to become the first pastor of the Church of St. Cecilia. Zealous and devoted, he was called a true Apostle by those who knew him in the infant days of St. Cecilia's Parish. That he was also a man of extraordinary foresight and knowledge is evidenced by his many achievements in behalf of Our Lord and His Flock.

Men of God
Father Flattery's tiny chapel was established in the Old Red House less than two hundred years after the cornerstone for the first permanent Roman Catholic Church in the City of New York was laid in lower Manhattan. Turning the hotel into a parochial residence, Father Flattery offered Holy Mass here daily, but in a short time the increase of attendance made it evident that a new site would soon be necessary. With no thought to his own personal convenience, the noble priest worked for the parish and sacrificed every individual comfort. He was not to see the new church,however, for in 1879, after six years of Christ-like zeal this good pastor was called to his rich reward.

Father Flattery's successor and the first pastor of the present site of St. Cecilia's Church was the Very Reverend Monsignor William P. Flannelly. The good parishioners were spurred on by their new pastor and working together they made Father Flattery's hopes a reality.

Property East One Hundred and Sixth Street was procured and work began immediately. 0n September 9, 1883, at four o'clock, the corner-stone of the new church was laid. The Right Reverend William Quinn performed the ceremonies and the sermon was delivered by Reverend Dr. Edward McGlynn. Within half a year the pastor and his flock were to experience even greater joy when, on the fourth Sunday of Epiphany , 1884, the Most Reverend Archbishop Hayes blessed the basement chapel of what would be the new edifice. This was all that was completed when Father Flannelly passed on to his eternal reward just a short time after.

The Builder of Churches
Assuming charge of St. Cecilia's at a time and under conditions that were calculated to test the sterling capabilities of the business man more, than the theological attainments of the priest, Reverend Michael J. Phelan famed throughout the diocese as "The Builder of Churches," was designated pastor of St. Cecilia's Parish in 1884. Coming to us from St. Mary's in Newburgh, this gifted and experienced Priest of God began at once to carry on the labors of his predecessors.

Father Phelan was to remain pastor at St. Cecilia's for thirty-eight years. These were years that reaped a rich spiritual harvest. Of primary importance was the completion of the upper church, an accomplishment brought to fruition in 1887. Using the plans of Napoleon Le Brun, the same architect who designed the Metropolitan Life Building, Father Phelan acted as general contractor, commissioning the services of carpenters, plasterers, tinsmiths, bricklayers, etc., who were mostly members of the parish, and thereby saved his parishioners almost fifty thousand dollars in contracting fees.