1. St. Luke the Evangelist
  2. About Us
  3. Parish History

Parish History

  • The Early Years -- Corner of Dale and Bellevue Avenues
  • The Early Years - Benoist-Christy home where first Mass was said, October 11, 1914
  • The Early Years - House at 7237 Delta was purchased to be first church and rectory
  • The Early Years - House at 1229 Sunset was used from October 1914 to May 1915
  • The Early Years -- Nieson Home (St. Luke's Field)
  • The Building Years - Exterior of the Church
  • The Building Years - Inside the Church
  • The Building Years - Altar
  • The Building Years - The Side Altar Consecration, Nov 1945
  • The Building Years - School faced with stone to match church
  • The Building Years - Rectory
  • The Building Years - Mary's Statue, May Day 1960

Milestones of St. Luke

1914 - Father Joseph Collins appointed as the first pastor of Saint Luke the Evangelist Parish, with the congregation of 175.  First mass celebrated, October 11th, in the Benoist-Christy Home.

1915 - Two story home purchased at 7237 Delta Street (just west of convent) to serve as church and rectory.

1916 - The cornerstone for a combination church and school was placed in April.  St. Luke's School opens it doors on September 5th to four grades in two classrooms.  Combination church/school building dedicated on October 8th.  The Sisters of St. Joesph of Carondelet begin 84 years of service to St. Luke's School.

1929 - St. Luke's modern church completed.  Former combination building converted into classrooms to expand the size of the school with eight rooms for eight grades.

1940 - For the Silver Jubilee, the church sanctuary was refurbished with stone and marble altar offset by the gothic ornamentation behind the altar.

1949 - The school was rebuilt and expanded, doubling the room capacity.  Father McMahon accorded the title of Monsignor.

1952 - Construction on the convent was completed.  The former convent was demolished to allow for additional playground area.

1964 - Golden Jubilee Eucharistic celebration presided over by Cardinal Joseph Ritter.

1982 - Parish Spiritual Renewal Movement begins its first season with more than 200 parishioners participating.

1989 - Parish celebrates 75th Anniversary.  All alumni invited to return to St. Luke's.

1993 - First parish auction held at Immaculate Conception hall.

1996 - Parish chosen as pilot for "Returning God's Gifts," and exceeded goal by more than 50%.

2002 - St. Luke Parish establishes a capital campaign, "A Window to the Future" and raises over $300,000 to address various capital improvements and help the school funding.

2007 - After 91 years of education, St. Luke's Parish School celebrated its final year.

2009 - The school building is leased to Clayton Childcare Academy, a private pre-school and grade school.

2012 - A new organ is installed in the church replacing the original organ installed in 1929.

2012 - The school building is leased to International Schoolhouse, a Spanish immersion school,  private pre-school and grade school.

2014 - Parish celebrates its 100th anniversary with a variety of events including a trivia night, an egg hunt on the field, a parish/alumni homecoming featuring the Bob Kuban Band, a movie night on the field and commencing with Mass celebrated by Archbishop Robert Carlson along with a dinner at Orlando Gardens.

2017 - Parish hosts Mass Mob XI, a celebration of historic churches in St. Louis.  View coverage of the event here.

2018 - Oratory of SS. Gregory and Augustine relocated to St. Luke's parish offering extra-ordinary (Latin) Masses

Pastors of St. Luke

1914 - 1920
Fr. Joseph Collins

1920 - 1963
Msgr. Joseph McMahon

1964 - 1968
Fr. Thomas Hederman

1968 - 1973
Fr. John Freiberger

1974 - 1993
Msgr. John Kennedy

1993 - 2001
Fr. Richard Stoltz

2001 - 2006
Fr. Stephen Bauer

2006 - 2006
Fr. Thomas Begley

2006 - 2015
Msgr. William McCumber

2015 - 2017
Fr. John-Paul Hopping

2017 - present
Fr. Peter M. Blake