Our Lady of Pity Church, which was deconsecrated by the Archdiocese of New York in November of 2017, is almost gone as its being demolished to make way for affordable housing.
The rectory and school building are already gone and all that remains are just three walls and the roof of this structure from the neighborhood’s past.
The parish of Madonna del Suffragio (Our Lady of Pity) was founded in 1908 by Italian immigrants from Ponza, an island off the coast of Italy halfway between Rome and Naples.
In 1929, the current church was built to serve the fast-growing community of Ponzese living in the neighborhood.
Now, all that will soon remain is rubble as the last, visible mark of the Italian community from Ponza in Melrose is erased forever.
And for this Puerto Rican kid who grew up across the street from OLP and attended Sunday mass as a child, a piece of my past is also gone but will never be forgotten.
Below are pictures I took two years ago when they began the slow process of removing anything of significant value as well as hauling away whatever was left behind.
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Dear reader: Now more than ever, it is important to support local journalism, especially as told by a Bronx-born and raised journalist telling our stories. If you found this or any of our stories informative and enjoyed our photography throughout the past years, kindly consider donating to support local Bronx journalism for decades to come.
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