Augustinian Academy (Staten Island)

The Augustinian Academy on Staten Island, New York, was founded on May 30, 1899, in conjunction with the new Roman Catholic parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel, both by the Augustinian Friars. The buildings were originally erected for the Visitation Sisters, and were purchased and modified by the Augustinians for educational purposes. The academy buildings were dedicated by Bishop Sebastiano Martinelli on September 10, 1899, and officially opened on September 13, 1899, as "The Catholic High School of Richmond Borough". This was the first Catholic settlement in Tompkinsville, and the first Mass was said in the neighborhood on November 12, 1899, in McRobert's Hall on Arietta Street. Our Lady of Good Counsel occupied the large chapel in the academy building, along with the small chapel of Our Lady of Consolation, erected in 1902 on St. Paul's Avenue.[1]

Augustinian Academy
General information
Town or cityStaten Island, New York City
CountryUnited States
Completed1899 (Tompkinsville),
1926 (Grymes Hill)
Demolishedc.2005 (Grymes Hill)
ClientRoman Catholic Archdiocese of New York

The program of study comprised classical, commercial and grammar courses, and was soon accredited by the University of the State of New York. The valuation of the academy and church property was about $100,000 in 1914. On May 30, 1909, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the academy's founding, the Ancient Order of Hibernians presented the academy with a handsome 100-foot flagpole and a large American flag.[1]

The academy began educating boys for the priesthood in 1921. It expanded to the Grymes Hill neighborhood in 1926, but finally closed in 1969. The Grymes Hill property was used as a retreat house until 1983, acquired by Wagner College in 1993, then heavily damaged by fire, and ultimately razed in the early 2000s. "During its 70 years of existence, Augustinian Academy graduated approximately 1,348 men and added about 250 priests to the Augustinian order."[2]

Among the properties it owned, and founded, was a site on the east side of Andrews Avenue, 200 feet south of Fordham Road, in Morrisania, Bronx. The structure would be a two-story brick school, 54x100 feet, built in 1906 to the design of architect J. O'Connor for $50,000, for the now-closed St. Augustine's School.[3]

References
  1. Remigius Lafort, S.T.D., Censor, The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. Volume 3: The Province of Baltimore and the Province of New York, Section 1: Comprising the Archdiocese of New York and the Diocese of Brooklyn, Buffalo and Ogdensburg Together with some Supplementary Articles on Religious Communities of Women. (New York City: The Catholic Editing Company, 1914), p.396.
  2. Matteo, Thomas (October 7, 2012). "Staten Island Memories: Augustinian Academy". Staten Island Advance. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  3. "IN THE REAL ESTATE FIELD. The Building Department: List of Plans Filed for New Structures in Manhattan and Bronx", The New York Times, April 18, 1906.

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