History

St. Margaret of Scotland Church was birthed on Christmas Day 1899. Founding pastor Father John J. O’Brien was tasked with starting a Catholic parish in the rapidly growing area near Henry Shaw’s garden and the Tower Grove neighborhood.

125th Anniversary

In 1899, Pope Leo XIII was the head of the Catholic Church; William McKinley was the President of the United States; St. Louis was the fourth largest city in the nation; and cars, light bulbs, and aspirin were hot new inventions! 1899 also was the year
that Fr. James J. O’Brien and a few Catholic families in the Shaw neighborhood gathered together to found a new parish in the
Archdiocese of St. Louis under the patronage of St. Margaret of Scotland. By the grace of God, through good times and bad, war
and peace, prosperity and pandemic, our Church, our nation, and this parish have endured and grown in ways that those founding
families could never have imagined!

As we celebrate 125 years as a parish in the St. Louis Archdiocese, we look back on our history – how we got to where we are today. And maybe, just get an inkling of where we’re headed and how we can keep the momentum going.

CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ABOUT SMOS QUASQUICENTENNIAL

For the length of the 20th century St. Margaret of Scotland remained a centerpiece of spiritual and civic activity.  During the Great Depression the church was a source of solace and social support for its parishioners.  As the City of St. Louis reached its peak population in 1950, so too was the number of families at St. Margaret.  At this time the athletic program for young people expanded greatly, teaching sportsmanship, discipline, fundamentals and leadership.  It became one of the largest and longest-serving institutions of the parish.

By the 1960s St. Margaret of Scotland was the most densely populated parish in the Archdiocese.  Student enrollment outgrew the original school building, precipitating the construction in 1966 of new classrooms (now called ‘Faith Hall’) and a gymnasium.  But the construction of the interstate highway through the parish and the migration of families to the suburbs presented challenges to St. Margaret.  The 1970s through the 1990s saw ambitious church-led initiatives to stabilize the area, including the creation of a credit union, a Shaw neighborhood association and the acquisition of derelict properties around the school to expand the campus.  Devoted parishioners labored hard to make the community work.  Most importantly, attention to good liturgy, preaching and music made St. Margaret an attractive place to worship God and celebrate the sacraments.

At the start of the 21st century St. Margaret of Scotland Church was on the rebound.  Growth could be seen in many ways.  With the consolidation of neighboring parishes in 2005, St. Margaret’s boundaries expanded: in the southwest corner to Kingshighway Blvd. and Magnolia Avenue and toward the east and north, incorporating the Compton Heights neighborhood.  The steady influx of new families gave rise to a larger parish school.  Leaders devoted to Catholic education made St. Margaret of Scotland School nationally recognized in 2010 when it received the US Department of Education’s Blue Ribbon award for excellence.  Within five years of this honor the school increased by one hundred students.  With the projected trend of baptisms and registrations, it became evident that the school’s facilities would not be able to accommodate this growth.  A parish capital campaign raised $2.3 million to replace school’s existing boilers and construct a new beautiful middle school building, Purcell Hall.  With an enrollment of nearly 500 students, St. Margaret of Scotland School is one of the twelve largest Catholic schools in the Archdiocese.

Meanwhile, long-time parishioners proud of their past and new young families eager to make their contribution come together to worship, to socialize, and to take the gospel of Christ into the world.  We are and we live our mission statement: “A diverse urban Catholic parish.  Inspired by the Holy Spirit and the example of our patroness, we are called to be a vibrant voice and beacon of the Catholic faith in our neighborhoods.”

The First 100 Years…

To read a history of our parish written by Maureen Wangard and Don Burrus for the church centennial in 1999, please click the link below.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SMOS CENTENNIAL HISTORY BOOKLET

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About

About

We are a diverse, urban, Catholic parish.
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Leadership & Staff

Leadership & Staff

Meet the staff at St. Margaret of Scotland.
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Mass Schedule

Mass Schedule

We are blessed to be able to "sing and play to the Lord" frequently, whether we gather together in communal worship or spend time in individual prayer and devotion.
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Contact Us

Have a question or comment about the St. Margaret of Scotland parish community? We’d love to hear from you!

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