PARISH HISTORY

"Adherents of the Romish Church have gradually settled in town, constituting a very respectable class in society, among whom may be found some of the most thriving farmers. Becoming weary of a journey of five miles to attend worship (as were the first settlers of the town), they erected a chapel in 1885, which is well furnished and adapted to their use; they maintain religious services in connection with the church in Lexington, Rev. P. J. Kavanaugh being the priest in charge." --Abram English Brown, "History of the Town of Bedford," 1891

. . . Picture a quiet rural village with a population of a few hundred, mostly farmers. At its center are two churches, Unitarian and Congregational, and a few shops run by merchants and cottage craftsmen such as the shoemaker, the blacksmith and the wheelwright. Unpaved roads radiate outwards, providing access to the surrounding farms and neighboring towns. This is what the town of Bedford, Massachusetts, was like in 1840.

During the 1840s, moved by compassion for the unfortunate people of Ireland dying in the potato famine, the citizens of Bedford took Irish immigrants into their homes and gave them jobs as farm workers and household help. By 1850 one fifth of Bedford's population were Catholics who had been born in Ireland. In subsequent years Catholic immigrants from other countries settled in town, adding ethnic diversity to the population. The newcomers were gradually assimilated into the society of the community.

Even if you owned a horse, getting to church in those days was a test of a Catholic's dedication to the Faith. Depending on which side of town you lived on, the nearest Catholic church was in Concord or Lexington or Woburn. Travel to the next town was difficult when heavy rains turned the dirt roads to mud, and nearly impossible when the snow was deep. Transportation methods did improve with a rail line to Concord in 1874, and in 1885 a rail line to Billerica elevated Bedford to the status of railroad junction. By then, however, Bedford had its own Catholic church.

THE MISSION CHAPEL

In 1884 Saint Brigid's Parish in Lexington built a chapel on Great Road in Bedford. (The site today is an empty wooded lot between the old Post Office building and Hillside Avenue.)

This chapel, dedicated to Saint Michael, was an unstaffed missionary adjunct to St. Brigid's. A mission priest traveled from St. Brigid's to conduct services on a regular schedule (a common arrangement in those days and still seen occasionally, as in the instance of Boston's Logan Airport Chapel). Sometimes, especially in the winter and early spring, the missionary found the going impossible. If conditions were that bad when a Lenten service was scheduled the congregation would sometimes gather in the chapel nevertheless and led by one of their members, a sort of unofficial deacon, they would hold services such as the Stations of the Cross. This manifestation of spontaneous devotion occurred often enough to be long remembered.

For many years the Catholic community came on foot or on horseback or by horse-drawn carriage to attend services. Just as parking lots are essential for churches today, churches of that era provided stables to shelter the horses. The stable down in back of our chapel was an open-front shed which faced south to catch the sun's warmth and deflect the north winds of winter.

After 32 years Bedford's Catholic population outgrew the chapel. This was largely due to an accelerated growth of the general population in the early 1900s, which was brought on by the installation of electric street railways (with trolley cars) connecting Bedford to adjacent towns and to the Boston Elevated Railway. St. Brigid's enlarged the original building in 1916, adding two wings to the chapel in order to double the seating capacity. Some of the charm of the smaller structure was preserved by reusing original windows and other parts of the facade in the redesign. Later, in 1927, additional improvements were made to the interior.

During the 1920s Bedford's Catholic population continued to grow and in 1926 the nature of the town was altered significantly with the building of the Veteran's Hospital, which created many new and non-agrarian jobs. With this evolution and growth the need for a separate parish with its own full-time priest was finally recognized.

THE NEW PARISH

In 1931 the Archbishop of Boston, William Cardinal O'Connell, established the Parish of St. Michael and assigned one resident priest, our first pastor. For the next decade two Sunday Masses were adequate for the needs of the parish. Sunday School for the children was held after the 9:15. The teachers were from nearby religious orders: sisters of the Christian Schools at Marycliffe Academy, brothers from the Maryknoll Seminary and, later, Marist nuns. The religious education program had a fine reputation and some of St. Brigid's parishioners enrolled their children here.

The 1940s saw the establishment of Hanscom Field and the beginning of Route 128 construction - both would drastically change the town and the parish. Farms were demolished to make way for the Bedford Air Base (later named L. G. Hanscom Field) which the Army Air Corps (later the U. S. Air Force) needed in World War II. Many of our parishioners have been stationed at "the Base." Route 128 construction was interrupted by the war and completed afterwards, in time to facilitate an electronics industry explosion.

By 1950 the town's population was a little over 3,000 - the suburban expansion and post war baby boom had begun. More than 300 units of affordable duplex housing were built to accommodate the influx of employees to the area. In 1955 a curate was assigned to the parish. By 1956 the town's population had risen to almost 7,000 and soon it was standing room only at the four Sunday Masses at St. Michael's. The congregation was outgrowing its church once again.
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In 1960 there were seven Sunday Masses scheduled each week, six in the church plus one at the Page School for the children attending Sunday School there! In October 1960 the last Mass was said in the old church building.

THE PARISH PASTORAL CENTER

As the third millenium began, the parish was faced with the challenge of not having adequate space for its religious education, social and administrative activities. The decision was made to build a parish pastoral center, with three distinct "wings" in which to carry on the work, which begins in Church, in these three areas.

Groundbreaking took place in June 2002, on the Feast of the Sacred Heart. The Parish Center was officially opened with a dedication ceremony, in June 2003, on the Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. With approximately 18,000 square feet of new space, the facility gave us our own religious education meeting rooms; a new library; a youth ministry area; a parish hall; administrative space; and additional meeting and conference rooms.

THE PARISH TODAY

The latest count of parish members (our 1997 parish census) is about 2,430. Many of these people are active in parish projects and a wide selection of ministries. For a description of opportunities for you to participate, see our ministries page and our weekly bulletin.