"Much as visitors to Red Hook experience today, the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary's clock tower was among the first sights immigrants spotted arriving in New York Harbor, said the church's pastor, Father Claudio Antecini. "The Statue of Liberty is a symbol of America, the land of opportunity and freedom. Now there is the Freedom Tower," Antecini, 63, told The News. "In some places, you can see from the sea, the steeple with the clock. (Arriving immigrants) said, 'Wow, there is hope.' The church is a landmark, a landmark of freedom.""
"The historic house of worship, which stands today on Richards St. near Verona St., began as a small meeting house established in 1854 on nearby Van Brundt St., commissioned by Irish, German and Italian dock and factory workers, the pastor said. A year later, workers began digging the foundation of the first Visitation, but once completed, the congregation quickly outgrew the space as the neighborhood's shipping and manufacturing industry boomed. In 1876 they began building a second, larger church, which stood for 20 years, until a fire destroyed it on July 12, 1896."
The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Red Hook marks its 170th anniversary after enduring fire, flood, recession, a pandemic and decades of change. Its clock tower greeted many arriving immigrants in New York Harbor and became a symbol of hope and freedom. The congregation began in 1854, founded by Irish, German and Italian dock and factory workers, and repeatedly rebuilt as the neighborhood grew and after a destructive 1896 fire. The current Gothic-revival building is constructed of dark Manhattan schist, features a shiplike ceiling, dramatic frescoes, five Louis Comfort Tiffany stained-glass windows (1918), and a rare 1917 Reuben Midmer & Sons pipe organ.
Read at New York Daily News
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