Did you know that in 1950, Father Francis Carney became pastor and immediately undertook building a long
awaited high school. Groundbreaking for the facility, which would replace two small frame houses converted
into classrooms, was held in March 1955, with dedication on April 29, 1956.

Did you know that only six classes graduated from St. Francis Xavier High School? Interstate 10 carved a path
straight through the building. Parishioner Percy Franklin and Jonny Little went to Washington D.C. to discuss
the situation with federal Highway officials, but plans remained unchanged. St. Agnes and First Methodist were
saved, but SFX suffered a terrible lost.

Did you know with the demise of the high school and the coming of the interstate, the city’s “colored” settlement
was torn in half? Many families were forced to move, but the distance and destruction the their school didn’t
daunt most parishioners. They continued to attend mass in the little brick church, and raised enough money
to construct a new elementary school in 1963. But while Fr George Wilson and the people rejoiced over the new
school, they were saddened about their church. The pile drivers and heavy machinery used for the Interstate construction had badly damaged the old structure. There was no money for repair.

Did you know that during the time of integration the church census took a nose dive, as the Civil Rights movement reached it’s peak? The words of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fed the souls of all black Americans, including black Catholics, and some looked outside the their church for spiritual nurturing. Within the parish there was discontent, and some parishioners made the switch to St. Agnes or churches closer to their new homes.

Did you know that in the mid 1960’s many families refused to allow the doors of the old church to close permanently? Bishop Robert Tracy assured parishioners that as long as they stayed, the doors of St. Francis Xavier would remain open.

Did you know that when all seemed lost, the parish received a new lease on life? The vitality and keen organizational skills of Father Bartholomew Hines were the perfect medicine to cure St. Francis Xavier’s ills.

Did you know that in 1968 the Golden Anniversary of the church rekindled the Ancestral flame of hard work and sacrifice among the parishioners? Crowds of well-wishers flocked to the old church for the Anniversary mass, and later to the Catholic Life Center for a banquet.