New Bedford’s Historic Cape Verdean Church Marks 120 Years

Our Lady of the Assumption Church on South Sixth Street in New Bedford, the first Cape Verdean parish in the United States, is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, church leaders are holding a celebration on August 16 at the Century House in Acushnet.

Parish members Maria DaCruz and Renee Ledbetter visited Townsquare Sunday this week to share some history about the church, along with details on the anniversary celebration.

Honoring 120 Years of Cape Verdean Faith

The church was established on Water Street in 1905 and remained there until the Hurricane of 1954. Hurricane Carol flooded out that part of the city, including Our Lady of the Assumption Church.

Surviving Hurricane Carol: A Story of Resilience

"My mother told me stories about young people in our community swimming through the flood waters to the church and climbing through a window to recover the Chalice and other artifacts in that building," Ledbetter said.

She said those young swimmers included her father and the Gomes brothers, one of whom – Martin Gomes – later became OLOA's first Cape Verdean pastor.

Church leaders then started a building fund and received help from the Catholic Diocese, the City of New Bedford, and a local resident who donated land and a house off South Sixth Street. The house now serves as a Parish Center for the OLOA congregation. Construction on the new church was completed in 1957.

A Church That Feels Like Home

"My family has been part of the church since 1968," DaCruz said. "It's a home for all the Cape Verdean immigrants looking for a Catholic Church. This is a family church, and people here are a family to me."

"It was a place as young people, where we felt safe," Ledbetter said. "Even today, when I feel stressed out, I will drive to the church parking lot and sit there, even if the church is not open."

Join the Celebration August 16

Tickets for the OLOA celebration on August 16 are $75 and available by calling the Parish Center, and from various parishioners, including both DaCruz and Ledbetter.

"We want to show we are a united church, we are a giving church and we do love our community," they said.

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