“From the Archives” — Philip N. Dwyer, Architect

By the 1890s, Saint Mary Church needed repairs and renovation, the first major challenge facing its new pastor, Father Henry J. Cutler. He turned to a young parishioner, Philip N. Dwyer, as the architect for the project. The grandson of Irish immigrants, he attended school in Alexandria (probably Saint John’s Academy since Richard L. Carne, headmaster, was his cousin), and Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

Philip originally drew plans for the church’s renovation in 1881, when he was just 21 years old. He also designed Saint Mary’s Lyceum in 1888. While he was still in his 20s, he began a career as a land developer in Washington, DC, and built hundreds of houses in Southwest Washington, many lost to urban redevelopment in the 1950s. Some still remain on Capitol Hill and in Foggy Bottom, near the U.S. State Department.

He built the convent adjacent to Saint Dominic Church in Southwest Washington. His uncle, Father John Antonius Rotchford, O.P. (one of the first men ordained to the priesthood from Saint Mary) was the pastor of Saint Dominic. He built Saint Joseph Church on Capitol Hill (2nd Street, Northeast) and Saint Paul the Apostle Church (15th and V Streets, Northwest), now Saint Augustine Church. The architectural similarities between Saint Mary and Saint Paul/Augustine Church are striking.

In 1895, Dwyer provided plans to add 20 feet to the length of Saint Mary’s church, bringing the entrance and façade to the current location. The center steeple was replaced, with the bell tower surmounted by a gilt cross. The entire front was constructed of Indiana limestone, said to have come from Georgetown University. A new brass communion rail was installed, the old side galleries were removed, and eight memorial stained glass windows were installed. Many of the improvements were paid for by donations from the Irish families of the parish.

Unfortunately, the talented architect and builder died suddenly in 1897; he was only 38 years old. He is Saint Paul/Augustine Church, buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Washington.