Weddings and arts events now fill Saint Thomas Preservation Hall, a former Catholic church in downtown Wilmington. Constructed in 1846 by Robert B. Wood, this Gothic Revival building was built for a small but growing parish overseen by Fr Thomas Murphy. It even became the pro-Cathedral of North Carolina when Fr James Gibbons was consecrated as the vicar apostolic.
In 1908 the parish acquired land at South Fifth Street and Ann; that move led to the Basilica Shrine of St Mary being completed in 1912 and gave the congregation more space. An Irish priest, Fr Christopher Dennen, persuaded the parish to keep this church as a place of congregation for Black Catholics, a decision made possible by a $12,000 donation from Mother Katharine Drexel. The Josephites then staffed the parish from 1911 to 1966.
After a fire in 1966 the St Mary's and St Thomas parishes decided to desegregate, leaving St Thomas unneeded, and the church was formally deconsecrated. Picture the Gothic Revival details that once framed a congregation for Black Catholics.