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THE BULLETIN OF THE CATHOLIC L AY MEN'S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
FEBRUARY 15, 1930
Fr. O’Boyle Pioneer
Pastor of St. Paul’s
Beloved Priest Who Died in
1927 Was Pastor There for
Over 37 Years
Settlements along the east coast of
Florida fifty years ago were not num
erous, neither were they large. Few
people ventured into the state but
recently reclaimed from a wilderness.
Daytona was one of the few commun
ities then which showed distinct
promise of population.
Comfortable homes, stores and
churches had sprung up, and with
their advent there came a call for a
missionary priest who could make
regular visitation to the place and
serve the people of the Catholic faith.
It was in 1886 that Father John F.
O’Boyle was first assigned to the dis
trict of which Daytona Beach was a
part. His headquarters were in Ti
tusville, at that time head of naviga
tion for the east coast; supplies being
brought there by boat and taken by
mule cart to the little settlements
of the surrounding country. Travel
was slow and uncertain then, and
Father O’Boyle usually made his
rounds in a small rowboat which car
ried him along the river where he
could administer to the needs of his
scattered people.
He was not only friend and advisor
to the people of his own faith, but
a comrade of all religions. There
were no means of communication in
those days, other than that which
was brought by passing travelers, and
Father O’Boyle carried news from
one home to another and he was
eagerly greeted by the pioneers who
settled along the east coast in the
early days, and welcomed to what
ever fare the house provided at that
time.
Children were the special friends
of the missionary priest. He was
never too tired or too busy to stop
for a word with them, and the pockets
of his worn black coat were always
sagging from the oranges or nuts he
carried to give the children he should
happen to meet in his travels. It was
Father O’Boyle who inaugurated the
custom of the picnic party and the
annual Christmas tree of the St.
Paul’s parish. Once a year the chil
dren were provided with all the cake
§nd ice cream they could eat, and at
Jhristmas time the tree and gifts
were an annual event.
From 1890 to 1903 Father O’Boyle
came to Daytona to say Mass once a
month, for by that time several Cath
olic families had settled in the lit
tle town. Mr. and Mrs. C. D. Smiley,
from Mayport. and two young sons,
accompanied by Mrs. Smiley’s sister,
Miss Leonie Turner, were the second
Catholic family to arrive.
Celebrations were made in the old
Palmetto House on, the river front,
then the only hotel in town, and at
the William Jackson Hall, now the
Daytona Beach Hardware Store, as
well as in the old depot on the corner
of Beach Street and Orange Avenue,
and the old opera house mown as the
Atlantic block at the present time.
Altar fixtures were of the crudest;
a kitchen table serving as the altar
itself, while Mass book stand and can
dlesticks were made of red cedar
wood carved out by Mr. Alexander
Achstetter. The first collection bas-
get was made out of bleached palmet
to. Tne altar cloth was given by a
friend of Mr. Achestetter’s who kept
the things at his house until Father
O’Boyle should send a message tell
ing of his coming.
Daytona Beach’s Pastor
Realizing that Daytona was devel
oping as a center of the east coast,
Father O’Boyle was transferred to
Daytona in 1895 which was the be
ginning of the parish now known as
St. Paul’s. That year marked the
first Catholic Church bazaar. It was
held in the Atlantic block, and the
proceeds amounted to $130.
In 1895 Father O’Boyle received
permission to buy a lot, 100 feet by
150 feet on the corner of Myrtle and
Palmetto. The funds of ’he church
were limited at that time, and the
parish was small. Father O’Boyle
took this carefully into account, yet
determined that the building which
would stand on the new lot should be
-
•
Compliments
GULF REFINING
CO.
.
U. W. CUNNINGHAM. Agent
DAYTONA BEACH
FLORIDA
REV. Wm. J. MULLALLY
of the best, in spite of the stumbling
blocks besetting his path. Piece by
piece Father O'Boyle inspected the
lumber brought to the lot to be used
in the building. Knot holes and im
perfections were quickly detected by
his sharp eyes, and he insisted that
none but the best materials go into
the church.
While the building of St. Paul’s
was in progress, Mass was held every
Sunday in the old opera house, but-
in the fall of 1901 the little church
was partially completed and on Sep
tember first the opening Mass was
held there. The altar was a small
home-made affair constructed as well
as possible under the circumstances.
There were no pews; rough boards
were supported by boxes, even nail
kegs and barrels were utilized,. It
was a church, However, and their
own; a place of worship which be
longed to them.
During the summer the congrega
tion shrunk to less than 50, but in
the winter tourist season, it became
necessary to hold three masses each
Sunday, for the parish totaled nearly
four hundred souls throughout the
few months when Daytona blossomed
as a resort town.
lot to make further addition,
This situation existed in January,
1923, when Father O’Boyle officially
resigned from the church. Strenu
ous labors were beyond his physi
cal endurance and he realized that
his work should be passed on to a
man of younger years. On the 8th
of April, Father O’Boyle celebrated
his last Mass as pastor of St. Paul’s
On the 27th of April, 1927, Father
O’Boyle passed to his heavenly. re
ward. More than 50 of his 85 years
had been spent in church work, and
he was mourned not only by those of
the Catholic faith, but by the Prot-
testant peoples as well. His kindly
spirit and his zealous work for the
church were only a part of the Father
O’Boyle beloved of the people.
Martin J. Hanley
of Charleston Dead
With the growth of Daytona, came
the expansion of the St Paul's
parish. Three times the Palmetto
Avenue Church was rebuilt to ac
commodate the ever growing demands
made upon it. A rectory was added
to the grounds, and the tiny build
ing at the rear of the church, for
merly the quarters of Father O’Boyle,
was used as a Sunday school room
and meeting place. It soon became
evident, however, that St Paul’s par
ish had outgrown the church, and
there was no available space on the
Member Quality Bakers of America.
By Invitation Only
Phone '79,
A. B. C. BAKERY
524 VOLUSIA AVE.
BUTTER-SPUT AND KEW-BEE BREAD
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA
(Special to The Bulletin)
CHARLESTON, S. C.—Martin J.
Hanley, 78, one of the most widely
known members of St. Patrick’s par
ish, died here January 17 after a short
illness. For many years, Mr. Han
ley was assistant city electrician, in
stalling the first fire telegraph alarm
in Charleston; he supervised the sys
tem for a number of years until his
retirement five years ago. He was
a member and officer of N. Lynch
Council, Knights of Columbus, of the
Fourth Degree Assembly, past presi
dent of the Ancient Order of Hiber
nians and a member of the Catholic
Laymen’s League and the Holy IName
Society of St Patrick’s. His funeral
was held from St. Patrick’s Church,
Rev. Jos. L. O’Brien, pastor, officiat
ing interment was in St. Lawrence
Cemetery. Surviving are two sons,
Martin J., Jr., and Stephen A., two
daughters, Miss Katie F. Hanley and
Mrs. A. I. Whiteside, and a sister,
Mrs. M. J. Kelly, the latter of New
York.
Two Fascist Books
Are Placed on Index
(BY N. C. W. C. News Service)
ROME.—The Osservatore Romano
has printed the text of a decree of
the Sacred Congregation of the Holy
Office placing on the index two
books recently published by the
leading Fascist publishing house in
Italy, Liberia del Littorio. They are
“Render Unto Caesar: the Religious
Polity of Mussolini, with Documents
Hitherto Unpublished,” by Mario
Missiroli, and “The Fascist State,
the Church and the School,” pub
lished under the nom de plume of
Ignotus. _
Both volumdfe are saicr to contain
the gravest errors against Catholic,
doctrine. , .
Signor Missiroli’s book is a history
of the negotiations and solution of
the Roman question and the speeches
made by Premier Mussolini before
the Chamber and the Senate on the
Laternn treaties.
Daytona Book and Stationery Company
Incorporated 1914
232 South Beach Street Daytona Beach, Florida.
HARRY WILCOX MOTOR COMPANY
AUTHORIZED SALES AND SERVICE
LINCOLN
F0RDS0N
CARS—TRUCKS—TRACTORS
DAYTONA BEACH
FLORIDA
The Baggett Weatherby Co.
736 S. Beach Street
Expert Ambulance
Service
Phones 67 and 68
Daytona Beach
Florida