{"id":242,"date":"2017-07-14T17:37:15","date_gmt":"2017-07-14T21:37:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stmarkstluke.wordpress.com\/history-st-mark\/"},"modified":"2017-10-02T04:33:23","modified_gmt":"2017-10-02T04:33:23","slug":"history-st-mark","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/history-st-mark\/","title":{"rendered":"History – St. Mark"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\nSaint Mark the Evangelist\u2019s History dates back to 1946, where the First Mass was held on October 6, 1946, in Greencastle, PA and is part of the Diocese of Harrisburg, PA. Prior to 1946, there was no Catholic mission or church in town, therefore families were attending St. Andrew\u2019s in Waynesboro, PA, Corpus Christi Church in Chambersburg, PA, and St. Mary\u2019s Church in Hagerstown, MD.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"The church began, in 1946, at a local bank, Citizens National, on North Carlisle Street, in their community room. Fr. Thomas B.Johnson was granted permission from Father Allwine, Pastor of St. Andrew\u2019s Church, to hold this First Mass. This assembly, became a mission church of Corpus Christi Parish, in Chambersburg, PA, with the consent of Bishop George L. Leech.
\nDuring this time, the priest used to face away from the congregation.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"
\nTwelve first families comprised the Greencastle Catholic Mission. Worship continued until 1954, when the mission was moved to a local funeral parlor, Zimmerman Funeral Home, on South Carlisle Street. During Mass, on multiple occasions, only a curtain separated the congregation, during Mass, from the deceased person. Catechism classes were taught, during this time, by the Sisters of Saint Joseph, from Chambersburg.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"The church, then moved into the McLaughlin hotel (“Antrim House”), where Mass was held in a section of the dining room known as “The Palomino Room” and then in the former bar room.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"In March 1960, a two story home, located at 32 Spring Grove Avenue, was purchased, at the request of Fr. Louis Dougherty, as a permanent place of worship. This was done with approval from Bishop George L. Leech. The first floor served as the chapel and the second floor was rented out to bring in extra income. Other fundraising activities began at this time: bake sales, chicken bbq, card parties, spaghetti dinners, and Bingo. On December 8, 1961, the mission was returned to St. Andrew\u2019s Parish, in Waynesboro, PA, with Fr. Thomas J. Gralinski, becoming the mission\u2019s pastor. In 1962, the Greencastle Mission became St. Mark the Evangelist. With the increasing number of families, a building fund was started and the search began, for suitable land, for building the future church.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"Approximately 4 acres of land was purchased, on South Ridge Avenue, on December 1, 1962. Construction began in 1964. The completed church was dedicated, by Bishop George L. Leech, on August 18, 1965 where it still stands today.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\nRectory<\/strong>
\n\"\"Previously located on 302 South Washington Street, Greencastle, PA, and was utilized from 1968-1988.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\n\"\"In 1988, the current rectory, was built, next to St. Mark the Evangelist, on 395 S. Ridge Avenue, Greencastle, PA.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\nParish Center Building<\/strong>
\n\"\"Completed in 1978 and was blessed by Bishop T. Daley.\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\nCredit: Information collected from St. Mark the Evangelist Church Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Book, 1990, by James T. Clark<\/i>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Saint Mark the Evangelist\u2019s History dates back to 1946, where the First Mass was held on October 6, 1946, in Greencastle, PA and is part of the Diocese of Harrisburg, PA. Prior to 1946, there was no Catholic mission or church in town, therefore families were attending St. Andrew\u2019s in Waynesboro, PA, Corpus Christi Church … Continue reading History – St. Mark<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-242","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P8ZI4x-3U","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":238,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/history-st-luke\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":0},"title":"History – St. Luke","author":"Don M","date":"July 14, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In October 1946, the first Mass was held in Mercersburg at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Lynch. In 1947, a home on Fayette Street was purchased where Sunday Mass was celebrated until 1960. The basement barroom of the Mercersburg Inn was the site for Mass from 1960-1968. Priests\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/stluke-tapestry-179x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9518,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/knights\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":1},"title":"Knights of Columbus","author":"Don M","date":"July 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"BROTHER DANIEL P. JUDGE COUNCIL #18566 (Greencastle, PA) Mission The Knights of Columbus, Brother Daniel P. Judge Council #18566 is a group of Catholic men, bound in Fraternity, who, along with their spouses and families, seek to exemplify the values of Charity and Unity in service to St. Mark the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":450,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/bulletins\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":2},"title":"Bulletins","author":"StMarkStLukeParish","date":"August 9, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"If a link above is not working, look for recent bulletins athttps:\/\/discovermass.com\/church\/st-mark-the-evangelist-greencastle-pa\/","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9443,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/walking-with-moms-in-need-resources\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":3},"title":"Walking with Moms in Need: Resource Directory","author":"Don M","date":"May 19, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Pregnancy Help Childcare Services Parent Education Walking with Moms Social\/Counseling Services Food & Clothing Assistance Housing & Rental Assistance Baby Items Emergency Services Pregnancy Help Catholic Charities is a non-profit organization that offers a range of social services1331 S. 7th Ste 2Chambersburg, PA 17201Phone: 717-263-3765 WIC (Women, Infant & Children)\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"Pregnancy Help","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/pregnancyhelp-e1747711775508.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":135,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/pictures\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":4},"title":"Pictures","author":"Don M","date":"June 14, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"St. Mark Parishioners took part in the PA March for Life, 9\/19\/2022 St. Mark & Corpus Christi Parishioners at the PA March for Life, 9\/19\/2022","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/cropped-front.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8846,"url":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/directions\/","url_meta":{"origin":242,"position":5},"title":"Directions","author":"Don M","date":"April 10, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"St Mark the Evangelist, Greencastle PA St Luke the Evangelist Mission, Mercersburg PA","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=242"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/242\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":461,"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/242\/revisions\/461"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stmarkstlukeparish.org\/home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}