Old St. Brigid Church Tour and Talk

Join UICC leader Anne Cassidy Carew and Woody LaBounty, President of San Francisco Heritage for a rare tour of Old St. Brigid's on Van Ness in honor of our ongoing celebrations of St. Brigid.

Woody will give a presentation on the history of St Brigid’s including the successful fight to protect the exterior of St. Brigid Church, as San Francisco Landmark #252 on October 24, 2006 and what may lie ahead for the interior.

Take advantage of this unique opportunity to see the inside of San Francisco's only site dedicated to St. Brigid, and home to ecclesiastical art that was made and imported from Ireland.

St. Brigid's

The parish of St. Brigid was formed in in 1863, and the present-day St. Brigid's church was dedicated in 1904. Re-built after the Great San Francisco Earthquake in 1906, the church’s stunning features include stained glass windows manufactured by the Harry Clarke studio.

The exterior features the only sculpture of St. Brigid in San Francisco and the apostles by Cork sculptor and stone mason Séamus Murphy.

Closed in 1993, and acquired by the Academy of Art in 2005, the exterior of St. Brigid Church, including the Harry Clarke stained glass windows, became San Francisco Landmark #252 on October 24, 2006.

We'll tour the interior, and discuss the history of the parish, and the artwork that remains inside.

This tour is offered as a cultural program and a benefit for the Patrick J. Dowling Library at the United Irish Cultural Center, the only Irish and Irish American library and archive in California.

About Presenter

Woody LaBounty serves as the President & CEO of San Francisco Heritage, a 50-year-old non-profit with a mission to protect and enhance San Francisco's unique architectural and cultural identity. Before joining Heritage, he was the long-time executive director of the local history organization, Western Neighbourhoods Project and led efforts to save 1906 earthquake relief cottages, scan and post more than 50,000 historical images online (OpenSFHistory.org), and bring together arts and history to equitably enrich the neighbourhoods of western San Francisco.

Celebrate the season of St. Brigid and the remarkable contribution Irish women have made—and continue to make—across the world.

PLEASE NOTE

Given the age of the facility, the grounds are not ADA compliant and the tour does include a number of stairs.