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| St. Dominic Church, 1932 | Interior of St. Dominic, 1932 | St. Dominic Church, 2002 | Interior of church, 2002 |
St. Dominic, Donora
St. Dominic was founded in 1902 as a Slovak ethnic parish. The founding of the church was a result of the immigration of Slovaks into Donora. In April of 1902 a committee of Slovaks successfully petitioned the Bishop for permission to form a parish. On August 7 of that year, a pastor was assigned to the parish. At first the church was named Most Holy Name of Jesus. Shortly afterwards, property containing two buildings was purchased by the parish. One of the buildings was renovated and by October the church was ready for use. In November, the parish was renamed St. Dominic.
In 1905, the church committee decided that a new church was needed. On June 12, the building that served as the original church was sold, dismantled and moved to another site where it was converted to a private residence. On June 17, construction began on the new church. On October 1, the cornerstone was laid and the first Mass was celebrated in the new building on April 15, 1906.
In 1949, the church was remodeled and enlarged. On May 7, 1950, the newly renovated church was dedicated.
As the rise of population in Donora at the beginning of the twentieth century led to the creation of the parish, the loss of population in Donora near the end of the century led to its closing. In 1992, St. Dominic was merged with three other parishes to form the new Our Lady of the Valley parish. The St. Dominic church building remains open and served the new parish.
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| St. Dominic Church, 1932 | Interior of St. Dominic, 1932 | St. Dominic Church, 2002 | Interior of church, 2002 |
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